Airfix

[Weaver]

No one does a 1/35 Landrover 101 (forward control).  Airfix do one in 1/76 so they already have some knowledge of the subject.  Plenty of them around to LIDAR.
Kit Form Services produce a very expensive 1/24 resin example which I have so far managed to resist.

The Airfix 1/76th FC Landrover is the ex JB Models one, so Airfix played no part in tooling it, they just bought the moulds when JB shut down.

There's an FC just up the road from me. I've chatted to the owner on occasion, and he takes it to local events.

[zenrat]

No one does a 1/35 Landrover 101 (forward control).  Airfix do one in 1/76 so they already have some knowledge of the subject.  Plenty of them around to LIDAR.
Kit Form Services produce a very expensive 1/24 resin example which I have so far managed to resist.

The Airfix 1/76th FC Landrover is the ex JB Models one, so Airfix played no part in tooling it, they just bought the moulds when JB shut down.

There's an FC just up the road from me. I've chatted to the owner on occasion, and he takes it to local events.

By "some knowledge" I meant they know what one looks like...   

I looked into buying one once to use as a camper.  Advice said look for an ex radio vehicle for the upgraded suspension and electrical system.

[Beermonster58]

Been scratching my head a bit over the pricing.
£42 for the Ju-52 but only £30 for the Canberra. The aforementioned PBY price and, £40 for the almost equally ancient SRN. 4. £60 for a Shackleton??.
They can whistle for that one😉

Same here. From my point of view, I think it works out like this:

I'm pleasantly surprised by the £30 Canberra since I'd have guessed it would be more. Since I want at least one, possibly two, this is a big deal to me.

I too noticed the price difference between the Canberra and the Ju 52. I suspect the difference is one of complexity. The Junkers has a lot more interior, with opening doors, and complex engines. This is reflected in the parts count: 171 for the Canberra and 218 for the Junkers.

The SR.N4 is HUGE: 39cm long when finished and 276 parts! Like Kit I was firmly expecting it to north of £50, so again, I'm pleasantly surprised. Whether it's worth it given the age of the mould is another matter, but it's certainly a lot of plastic for your money.

The PBY price is a definite mis-step, especially given what others have said about it in this thread.

The Shacks have always been expensive and I only have one because I got it for a bargain price. Again, full interior and 290 parts.


Whether full interiors are worth making the kit more expensive for is an interesting question. In the case of the Ju 52, I suspect it is, because the model has many windows and large doors in not only the side but also the top, through which most of the interior can be seen. It's one of those models where, even if the doors were moulded closed, you'd still want something visible through the windows.  In the case of the Shackleton, I'm not convinced. Most of the interior is utterly invisible through the handful of tiny windows when the fuselage is closed up, so unless you cut parts of the latter away (which most people won't do), it's a waste of time. I'd have been inclined to put all the interior bits on a separate sprue, sell them separately as an optional upgrade and make the basic kit cheaper. You could probably have moulded far fewer of the interior sprues too, since most customers wouldn't want them.

You raise some interesting points
Cost and value are always going to be very subjective and, I'm inclined to agree with you on the cost aspect of providing full interiors. I think they are  complete waste of time and, I simply feed these extraneous parts to the bin monster. For those that do want to take the time and effort to assemble and paint things that won't ever be seen I think the concept of the upgrade set is a good one. I'm all for keeping models simple. I have zero interest in interiors. It's the exterior that catches the eye so, I usually just paint matt black whatever interior parts that will be seen and, leave it at that!  It's interesting that the instructions for the Airfix Wellington suggest modellers discard interior parts that won't be seen, even indicating the relevant parts.

I accept that the SRN.4 is a vey large, complex model but, I think £40 for such an old model is taking the p*ss a wee bit. However, that's just a personal view. I will get one but, I won't pay £40. The "big" announcement did help me solve another dilemma though, namely my Airfix club membership. I'm going to let it lapse. There's not enough in the range to tempt me to keep membership open for discounts. The rather poor choice of Club exclusive kit didn't help.

Not a total loss though. I'll be in for a Canberra, SRN.4 and Skyvan. I got something out of it and, that's all that matters really   

[NARSES2]

Logically any re-release is going to have a bigger profit margin than a new tool which is going to reduce that overdraft leading to a healthier company.

 

As for the OO/HO figures I wonder if they are in a harder plastic. The origional soft plastic was a devil to paint. You had to coat the figure in white glue first. I am suprised by some of these figure re-releases as the number of companies producing specific wargames stuff now is amazing. Hat for instance amongst others. I suppose it's a different market though ?

Talking of figures I wonder if they still have the 54mm figure moulds ?

[PR19_Kit]

That said, it's been pretty much an annual event to whinge, bash Hornby and predict their demise in certain corners of t'interweb so perhaps I shouldn't be surprised.

It's the same in the slot racing world too, lots of moans, and 'Why didn't they do a so-and-so?' in the Scalextric forums when their 2026 programme was announced.

[Charlie_c67]

Spent some time talking to the guy in Wiccor models in Portchester about it this afternoon and his very valid points were a) they make things to sell and b) they have a different marketing model from the new boys of Accurascale and Rapido so that explains some of the difference in prices. He also said that a lot of what "serious" modellers complain about actually sell well, for him at least, as models such as Mallard, Flying Scotsman and the Phantom are recognised by the majority of the general public so are more likely to sell than say the Skyvan or some random goods loco.

[Weaver]

I looked into buying one once to use as a camper.  Advice said look for an ex radio vehicle for the upgraded suspension and electrical system.

Interesting. I would have thought the ambulance would be the preferred choice because of it's bigger interior volume.

[Weaver]

Logically any re-release is going to have a bigger profit margin than a new tool which is going to reduce that overdraft leading to a healthier company.

 

As for the OO/HO figures I wonder if they are in a harder plastic. The origional soft plastic was a devil to paint. You had to coat the figure in white glue first. I am suprised by some of these figure re-releases as the number of companies producing specific wargames stuff now is amazing. Hat for instance amongst others. I suppose it's a different market though ?

Talking of figures I wonder if they still have the 54mm figure moulds ?

I believe I asked that question of an Airfix guy once (can't remember when and where though) and he said it was impossible to make figures in hard plastic if the moulds had been designed for soft vinyl.

[buzzbomb]

Talking of figures I wonder if they still have the 54mm figure moulds ?

I so hope so. Those Sid Horton mega conversions in Airfix Magazine set the standard for what was then a very limited market of available figures at that scale, outside of metal castings, which for the most part were sometimes a bit cruder.
These days the choice is endless and with 3D printing and design, any figure of any era doing almost anything is possible.

Would slot into a Classic range release, but I wonder if the market is there.

[Rick Lowe]

Would slot into a Classic range release, but I wonder if the market is there.

Probably mostly for the Completists and Collectors.

[jcf]

The HO/OO figures were (are?) moulded in polypropylene rather than vinyl, and the way the
moulds are designed, high draft angle* and some slight undercutting would not work with
HIPS, it's too rigid. It's possible that some formulation of ABS might work as it's more flexible
than HIPS, especially when warm, but can still be glued with liquid cement of the right type
and be painted with "lacquers", which means that regular spray primers work as a base for
enamels or water/alcohol thinned "acrylics".

Some of the most recent series Revell "snap-together" Star Wars kits, and some of the
Pegasus Models sci-fi kits, are moulded in ABS. 

*Draft is the angle of the entry to the mould cavity. No mould cavity for rigid plastics is 90°
from the face of the mould, if it was the moulded part would stay in the mould. Mould design
and manufacture has advanced to the point that the draft is so small it's almost imperceptible
but it's still there.

[NARSES2]

Talking of figures I wonder if they still have the 54mm figure moulds ?

I so hope so. Those Sid Horton mega conversions in Airfix Magazine set the standard for what was then a very limited market of available figures at that scale, outside of metal castings, which for the most part were sometimes a bit cruder.

I remember those articles well 

[jcf]

Talking of figures I wonder if they still have the 54mm figure moulds ?

Most likely as some were rereleased in 1994. The Scots Grey, French Cuirassier, Life Guard
and Polish Lancer cavalry figures in 2000 and the four were in the catalog until 2002.

[McColm]

It's very interesting that Airfix has brought back Sherwood Forest Castle and the figures. The Castle can be expanded by additional kits and used on model railway layouts.

[NARSES2]

Talking of figures I wonder if they still have the 54mm figure moulds ?

Most likely as some were rereleased in 1994. The Scots Grey, French Cuirassier, Life Guard
and Polish Lancer cavalry figures in 2000 and the four were in the catalog until 2002.

Thanks Jon 

The Polish Lancer was one of my favourites in the range