Eduard announces a Spitfire IX and more 1/32 to come

[Tony T]

I don't think a Spitfire IX is risky if it's a good model. 

£40 will get you a Revell, £120 a Tamiya.

Howzabout a great kit à la Kōtare for ~£90? 

Those prices are pretty much standard in Europe if you want recently manufactured from the high street. 

 

Frankly, I find Tamiya prop kits overengineered, making assembly unnecessarily long-winded. And not everyone pulls out all the stops and buys the most expensive either: too many bills to pay. I haven't bought a single Zoukei-Mura kit for both those reasons. 

Along with buildability and pricepoint (if those really are words), there's the simple novelty consideration: buying & building something ***new***. 

I can, however, see how this announcement might rankle a modeller who's invested in half a dozen Tamiya Spitfire IXs.

 

I believe Eduard are onto a winning formula, albeit Kōtare have a slight lead. Best to get the Spit IX and P-51B out first. I would groan at a Bf 109G being №3 as a missed opportunity for a MiG, but actually it may be a good subject for them using the aforementioned logic. There's only Revell, ancientGawaunobtanium and Z-M. 

 

Tony

 

P.s. I'd gladly pay £100 for a quality Eduard 1:32 dinky Fishbed or Fresco. 

[RBrown]

In discussing a possible 1/32 project Vlad Sulc stated:

 

"As for other potential projects, we'll do what has been most successful in 1/48 scale, because the principles of why any given kit sells well are still the same, regardless of scale. 

The Hellcat is not a bad kit, it sells well, but Spitfires, Bf 109 F/G, Fw 190, P-51D and MiG-21 sell better. And that pretty clearly tells us what we will eventually be releasing in 1/32 scale."

Edited September 6 by RBrown

[John1]

2 hours ago, RBrown said:

In discussing a possible 1/32 project Vlad Sulc stated:

 

"As for other potential projects, we'll do what has been most successful in 1/48 scale, because the principles of why any given kit sells well are still the same, regardless of scale. 

The Hellcat is not a bad kit, it sells well, but Spitfires, Bf 109 F/G, Fw 190, P-51D and MiG-21 sell better. And that pretty clearly tells us what we will eventually be releasing in 1/32 scale."

The only thing on his list remotely interesting is the MiG.   What a waste, finally got a major player going in on 32nd and they seem hellbent on releasing the same kits that others have already done to a high level.  Yawn….

Edited September 6 by John1

[D.B. Andrus]

4 hours ago, Tony T said:

 

P.s. I'd gladly pay £100 for a quality Eduard 1:32 dinky Fishbed or Fresco. 

 

I'd gladly pay $1 for a Fresca. 😉

[thierry laurent]

I have yet to understand that logic ...I know that money given when modellers purchased PCM, Revell or Tamiya Spits did not bring a single penny to Eduard (except for aftermarket) but why not focusing first on a close to fully opened market? We just have the Trumpeter MiG-15, 17 & 21 and they are far from good! Moreover, they could release multiple versions corresponding to all the wars in which such planes participated. And if you still want to increase the size of the cake you will eat alone, simply start with never released variants such as the MiG-21PFM or the 15UTI... Honestly I don 't want to hear again from Eduard that "1/32 does not sell" if they start with a Spit Mk.IX...Ok, ok, I must just take my pills to stop complaining about the business logic of some companies...

[Martinnfb]

Needles to say that Mug-21 edition was extremely successful release. What we need to focus on, is the shift in the scale outlook of Mr.Sulc / Eduard. I do appreciate and applaud to this change. Thumbs up for Eduard! 

 

[Tony T]

1 hour ago, D.B. Andrus said:

 

I'd gladly pay $1 for a Fresca. 😉

 

You should be so lucky!  

 

Tony 

[CRAZY IVAN5]

1 hour ago, thierry laurent said:

I have yet to understand that logic ...I know that money given when modellers purchased PCM, Revell or Tamiya Spits did not bring a single penny to Eduard (except for aftermarket) but why not focusing first on a close to fully opened market? We just have the Trumpeter MiG-15, 17 & 21 and they are far from good! Moreover, they could release multiple versions corresponding to all the wars in which such planes participated. And if you still want to increase the size of the cake you will eat alone, simply start with never released variants such as the MiG-21PFM or the 15UTI... Honestly I don 't want to hear again from Eduard that "1/32 does not sell" if they start with a Spit Mk.IX...Ok, ok, I must just take my pills to stop complaining about the business logic of some companies...

+1 with a bullet! You tell'm brother.

[denders]

Well, I'm glad for whatever they bring to the market. If they're expanding into 1/32 with aircraft that they've already done the research for the 1/48 market, there should be some nice aircraft models to build.

[Wayne Bull]

John1 the reason they keep doing the same thing is it sells and it makes money , and i agree there are a lot of other sujects that dont get the love but the reality is they might not sell enough to break even . The other thing to consider is usually each time we get a new kit we get a better offering that is usally more accurate and better detailed than anything that has gone before . That sadley how ever is not always the case . Will this new Spitfire really be that much better than tamiya's? .who knows .Maybe it comes down to companys wanting the best Spitfire title . I have often questioned why companies release what they do but it never seems to ever be as simple as i think it should be .And the end of the day it is their money they are risking so they get the say on how they choose 

[Artful69]

9 hours ago, RBrown said:

In discussing a possible 1/32 project Vlad Sulc stated:

 

"As for other potential projects, we'll do what has been most successful in 1/48 scale, because the principles of why any given kit sells well are still the same, regardless of scale. 

The Hellcat is not a bad kit, it sells well, but Spitfires, Bf 109 F/G, Fw 190, P-51D and MiG-21 sell better. And that pretty clearly tells us what we will eventually be releasing in 1/32 scale."

 

If this is the official POV of the Eduard exec, then my earlier comments are even more pertinent ... 

 

The kit quality and pricing will need to be super sharp!! ... Razor sharp ... and there will need to be a compelling point of difference - or you will see the rise-and-fall again, of 1/32 Eduard.

 

ZM and Tamiya have the super engineered, accurate and detailed market cornered, while Kotare are following the minimalist route ... HKM's latest twin was the best kit they've produced to date ... and if you're going to insist on following the successes in 1/48 as your market indicator - which is a MUCH bigger market for you to gain sales in - you'd need to remember that in the 1/32 market, what ever you kit, there is more competition worldwide, for fewer potential sales.

 

The safest route for a "first kit" ... to gain some hype and market momentum is to kit a subject that either has not been done at all ... or not been done well in the scale ... for example: Kotare chose the early Spitfire ... a popular enough subject in a market where your only choices were the old Hasegawa / Revell offering or the newer (completely butchered) Revell offering. Add the reputation that Kotore's crew had already garnered in 1/32 thanks to their involvement with WNW ... and there's a winner! Kotare will be able to stretch their wings a little moving forward ... I expect their early Hurricane will do pretty well and if they keep heading down the 109 road maybe an E-1 or a T for something different.

 

Eduard has a good reputation ... so that bodes well. But out of all the subjects they've listed above ... which falls into the category of not-done-well-or-at-all? ... Probably only the MiG.21 - and their 1/48 offering has good reviews ...

 

I'm not that heavy into jets, but like the Phantom, it looks interesting enough to be worth a punt ... A Hellcat? - and here's the caveat: DONE WELL - would probably be welcomed in our scale with enough sales to justify its existence also ... but the rest? ... they might sell well in Europe ... I really don't know about elsewhere.

 

Rog

Edited September 7 by Artful69

[Darren Howie]

As time goes on i think we are seeing the segregation of world markets as transport costs and US tariffs directly impact msrp.

Given the EU’s high transport costs Eduard will do well in the EU versus Tamiya and a clean non complex base kit for a good price will do well for those after a simple build.

In Asia they will be dead as a dodo. Given you can buy Tamiya 32nd Spitfires for ¥7500 about £35 which is £5l less than an Eduard profipack kit in 48th!

Eduard stuff simply sits on shelves for months and months so a Spitfire in 32nd will sit unsold throughout much of Asia.

With Tariffs about to impacr US prices will rise but Tamiya stuff is expensive so Eduard could do well.

Eduard get a lot of sales on resin etc but who woukd prefer to cut up an expensive kit when you have the beautifully engineered Tamiya Spit with its superbly detailed engine etc probably already in a stash?

With region based price influences and a different design philosophy im sure a Spitfire will sell ok but im not sure it will in the entire world.

Worldwide there are a lot of Tamiya Spitfires sitting in stashes and its already paid for and comes with superb engineering something which Eduard need to address. Issues like cowl designs causing issues in 48th will not be accepted in 32nd competing against the big T.

Good luck to Eduard i think they will kill it with a P-51B not sure about a Spitfire with a magnificent Airfix one in 24th. Thousands of stashed Tamiya kits are out in the wild that are every bit and in some cases better than what Eduards best right now.

Cant wait for that B Mustang though! 

.

 

 

[zaxos345]

We (I 🤪) need a new tool Wildcat, Dauntless and Hellcat!!!!😃

 

John

[thierry laurent]

The problem I'm seeing is that reaching the profitability point asks now for worldwide sales...

[Tony T]

1 hour ago, thierry laurent said:

The problem I'm seeing is that reaching the profitability point asks now for worldwide sales...

 

I still believe novelty, price point & buildability will create a winner. 

The European market alone may be big enough to break even. 

And I'd be interested to know how many 1:32 Tamiya kits are sold in central and eastern Europe.

Especially given that Tamiya aren't making anything new. Nor are Hasegawa. 1:32 has-beens.

 

Much that I'd prefer a MiG, leading with a Spitfire is part of Eduard's propellery image. 

There's a big market at the Kōtare level: buildability, pricepoint, novelty. 

 

The more I think about it, the more the Eduard Spit appeals. Much that I love Revell's latest kits, its Spitfires were not its best. And I've never wanted a Tamiya IX with its complexity and lack of redundancy — a very strong feature of Eduard kits with optional clear parts etc. I'll be buying one. 

 

Eduard will not be competing with Tamiya, but Kōtare. And it's a toe-dipping exercise.

 

Tony