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Tamiya 1/48 in 1/32 you would like?


Guest The Southern Bandit

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Think it's important to separate hopes from likelihoods.

 

If you look back at Tamiya's 1/32 releases going back to the Spitfire, you can see patterns. The Zero IMO is a bit of a different thing. The timelines are screwy, for one thing. And it seems in retrospect more like a proof of concept for the releases since. Anyway...patterns that have held:

 

Release schedule. Brand new subjects release in odd-numbered years. Spitfire in 2009 through Mosquito in 2015. They're revealed in April, and ship later in the summer. Variants are released in even-numbered years, usually later in the year (exception being the Spitfire VIII and XVI, both released in 2010). We should expect a Mossie variant this fall and a new subject next year.

 

Subjects have all been popular kits with relatively light competition. Every subject Tamiya has tackled has been a guaranteed seller. And they've all generally had the field to themselves or faced only marginal or tangential competition. Eventually that has to change...but for now...

 

Tamiya has never gone back. Once a new subject is introduced, they don't go back to revisit a previous subject (the A6M2b is literally the single example of this). I wouldn't hold my breath for a P-51B, Spitfire Mk.XIV or even an F4U-1D.

 

Tamiya is pulling from their 1/48 catalog. The late Merlin Spitfires are the only significant deviation, and even then we're only talking a variant difference. The Mustang, Corsair and Mosquito all exist in Tamiya's 1/48 catalog, and newer 1/32 kits even more or less copy their smaller counterparts' box art. 

 

Tamiya is pulling from their 1/48 catalog in sequential order. They're skipping kits left and right, but consider this: they haven't "gone back" with respect to the 1/48 catalog either. The Mosquito was released in 1998. The Corsair in 1996. The Mustang in 1995. The Spitfire in 1994.

 

If we turn around and play the tape forward, as it were, the 1/48 Mosquito was followed by the Fairey Swordfish (1999), P-47 Thunderbolt (2002) and Me 262 (also 2002).

 

The Swordfish would be a strange choice IMO. Limited volume potential, and it's already done rather competently by Trumpeter. 

 

Assuming the precedent of the last seven years stands, I'd venture that the next 1/32 subject Tamiya tackles will either be the P-47 or Me 262. Yeah both are also kitted by Trumpeter, but both are also highly popular aircraft with tons of possible scheme options (i.e repeat sales). 

 

As for the 109...I have a hard time seeing Tamiya releasing one given their patterns to date. On the Emil side you've got good kits from Eduard and Cyber-Hobby. On the F/G/K side you've got Hasegawa and now Trumpeter and Revell racing to fill in variants. And at shockingly low price points in many cases. Similar things are happening with the Fw 190. And let's face it, both of Germany's main fighters were small - it'll be hard between kit size and competition for Tamiya to charge P-51 or Corsair prices for them. 

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I have subscribed to your logic for some time Matt and wholeheartedly agree with your conclusions.

 

My list of 60s jets was as idiotic as some of the others' wishes, just to highlight that point. We all know the next boxing will be a Mossie variant and the 2017 new tool - my instincts say - is the razorback Jug, with bubble top following in 2018.

 

My only regret is that we seem to have passed the Beaufighter "window" - and what a beauty that might have been.

 

Tony

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Guest The Southern Bandit

 

 

I don't really understand Tamiya, they are just so slow with new releases. I mean, is it that they want to get things correct, or is there very little money to be made, or do they just not care as much about the scale model ranges these days? Assuming that the Corsair and Mosquito have been killing it in sales, you'd think they'd increase the production of new mold kits?

 

They do seem slow Brad I agree, but what it probably is that Tamiya are a multi faceted hobby company and scale models is just one department it seems and the scale models maybe not the biggest? I can understand why us modellers think its the most important though and their 1/32 Aircraft series especially so :) Sometimes I'll look on the Japanese Tamiya site and even though I cant understand a word of Japanese I've sometimes got an early clue of something new that way (some words are universal and so are pictures) and it seems Tamiya are massive in other area's that would not interest us here, so basically perhaps they need to share their resources around? Perhaps they could expand each area and dominate and thus produce more 1/32 Aircraft kits, but history has shown that giant company's fall hard when it all goes wrong, maybe Tamiya have got the right business formula.

 

My guess is as good as anyone's I suppose, but I'd rather have Tamiya's slower almost guaranteed quality than say Trumpeters more prolific output and some times hit or miss quality.

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Guest The Southern Bandit

That's really well thought out Matt and I cant fault a word, would love a 1/32 Tamiya 109E, but that's just my personal desire, cant see it happening.

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Guest The Southern Bandit

I agree Jennings, a Tamiya P51-B would have been awesome, as unlikely as a 109 Emil though :) I actually bought the Trumpeter P51-B and some aftermarket recently with an aim to start soon knowing Tamiya were not likely to do it and was too impatient for the HK one, its got to be a good while off yet?

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Guest Peterpools

Matt's timetable of release date is on the money and no question another version of the Mossie is on the way. If I had to lay all my chips on the table and roll the dice just once ... winner take all, pick just one aircraft: P-47 Jug

Peter

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