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How about: a 1/32 Tamiya P-38 Lightning?


timvkampen

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29 minutes ago, Jennings Heilig said:

Why does Andy at Andy's Hobbies have any insight into Tamiya's corporate decision making process?  Of all the companies out there in this business, Tamiya is far and away the most opaque and non-communicative.  They don't even tell Tamiya America what's going on before it happens.

 

What I found really interesting about the kit announcement was the line "...and it’s been one of our most requested subjects to be made." So, are they really listening? Me thinks they are not, and Mr. Tamiya selected it due to its significant history in that region of the world. Plus, it'll make a nice companion to their 1/48 Betty Bomber in a dual-kit pack covering the shoot down of Yamamoto.

 

- Dennis S.

  Thornton, CO USA

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3 hours ago, Jennings Heilig said:

Why does Andy at Andy's Hobbies have any insight into Tamiya's corporate decision making process?  Of all the companies out there in this business, Tamiya is far and away the most opaque and non-communicative.  They don't even tell Tamiya America what's going on before it happens.

You answered your own question.  If they would tell Tamiya USA something or make any other public statement, we would not be looking to anonymous or non anonymous sources of somebody who knows somebody that says Tamiya is not planning more 1/32 in the near future.

 

WNW by contrast, won’t tell you specifically what they are working on but if you ask them a general question, like do you plan to do more WWII they will give some form of answer.  I have asked them several questions over the years, and they have often responded with an answer.  

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4 hours ago, Dennis7423 said:

 

What I found really interesting about the kit announcement was the line "...and it’s been one of our most requested subjects to be made." So, are they really listening? Me thinks they are not, and Mr. Tamiya selected it due to its significant history in that region of the world. Plus, it'll make a nice companion to their 1/48 Betty Bomber in a dual-kit pack covering the shoot down of Yamamoto.

 

- Dennis S.

  Thornton, CO USA

 

Interesting perspective, especially given that on this site, within the last year or so, several people predicted that Tamiya would never do a Lightning or B-29, because of the specific roles they played against Japan during the war. I suspect that Tamiya does whatever they think will make money, regardless.

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Reply from Tamiya USA:

 

Dear Tamiya Customer,

 

Unfortunately, we at Tamiya America don't have that information, all of Tamiya's decisions regarding development and planning for new releases and "re-releases" are made at Tamiya Inc. in Japan.  If you would like to see the products that Tamiya is planning to release, please see the links below:

 

http://www.tamiya.com/english/e-home.htm

 

http://tamiyablog.com/

 

Thank you,

Tamiya America

Customer Service

 

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I'd be a happy chappy if Tamiya would up scale this to 1/32 as well.  Surely Tamiya won't turn their back on the 1/32 market, when their planes have been so well received??  There are so many more subjects they could tackle in this range that surely there's potential in  this sector of the market??  P-38, any variation you like of the P-40, no German planes yet tackled, Hurricane, Beaufighter, another Japanese plane; the list goes on and on.

 

At least Airfix have closed one gap with their wonderful Hellcat.  I wonder what they'll do next???

 

 

Cheers,

Michael

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18 hours ago, LSP_K2 said:

 

Interesting perspective, especially given that on this site, within the last year or so, several people predicted that Tamiya would never do a Lightning or B-29, because of the specific roles they played against Japan during the war. I suspect that Tamiya does whatever they think will make money, regardless.

I was of the opinion Tamiya would never release a model of a p-38 used in Tamiya shoot down.  I said so on the thread regarding new 1/32 Tamiya.  It is almost a thumb in the nose to the people expressing opinions such as mine and I am quite happy to eat my statement.  

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5 hours ago, cbk57 said:

I was of the opinion Tamiya would never release a model of a p-38 used in Tamiya shoot down.  I said so on the thread regarding new 1/32 Tamiya.  It is almost a thumb in the nose to the people expressing opinions such as mine and I am quite happy to eat my statement.  

 

I really don't recall who was commenting back then, but my answer was directed specifically to Dennis, who expressed the notion that Tamiya was releasing the kit due to its significant history in the region, which is completely contradictory to what others have assumed in the past would not happen. I just perused the Tamiya catalog, and they sell Wildcats, Corsairs and Mustangs, all of which exacted a heavy toll on Japanese forces, as well as any number of 1:35 allied tanks that were directly involved in the island campaigns against the Japanese, so I just really don't see any pattern of avoidance there at all.

 

If you were taken aback by my comment, rest assured there was no malice implied, as that most certainly was not my intent.

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11 hours ago, Lothar said:

Even though I have the Trumpy kit I'd chew my mother in law's ear off

for a 32nd Tamiya P-38 and if its only for looking at the contents and

being happy to have it.

 

Lothar

Interesting choice of people to chew things off of, Lothar!

 

I think anyone who's been around here for the past few years knows that there is probably nothing I wouldn't chew off, of just about anyone, to see a Tamiya P-38 in 1/32, and my mother-in-law is not on the list. If it came to that, they can keep the darn kit.

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19 hours ago, cbk57 said:

I was of the opinion Tamiya would never release a model of a p-38 used in Tamiya shoot down.  I said so on the thread regarding new 1/32 Tamiya.  It is almost a thumb in the nose to the people expressing opinions such as mine and I am quite happy to eat my statement.  

 

The Japanese "approach" to the war is different from the Western "approach". In almost every way, it is similar to the Romanian attitude. When I grew up in Romania, no one spoke about the Romanian involvement on the Eastern Front. Romania was the second largest Axis combatant on the Eastern Front, with large contingents and equipment and hundreds of thousands of casualties, prisoners and injured. Almost every family in Romania was affected. On 23 August 1944, Romania switched sides, left the Axis and joined the Allies. When the war ended, with the Russians now based in Romania, it became a "bad idea" to mention the war against the Russians. When we studied history in school, all we ever learned was about what followed after 23 August. Romania was behind the iron curtain. Romanians could only access heavily-censored history. Stuck behind the Iron Curtain, Romanians were fed an altered version of history. Western historians had limited access to info also. So, as a result, the huge efforts and sacrifices made by the Romanian army were completely ignored and eventually forgotten. That is why all my decals are about Romanian aircraft, so they would not be forgotten. However, (and this is where I was going with this) people in Romania still spoke about the war effort. In family chats, inside the house, I could hear hints, whispers, indications that my grandfather fought in Russia. "He was injured in the war". "Where?" "Ah... somewhere out East. Shhhh, don't tell anyone." I never met my grandfather, he died the year before I was born. A friend of my grandfather's was still around, friend of the family. After he died I found a photo of him in an infantry Captain uniform. "When was this?" "Ah...the war... Stalingrad, I think, with your grandfather". "What was he doing there? Was he lost?" "Ah... No... He fought there." "Why?" "You know, the war..." The grandfather of one of my friends in school was missing a leg and walked in crutches. The official story was that he lost it in a vague "accident". My mother let it slip one day that he was actually "injured in the war", that he actually had some "big medals" and even "spent some time in a Russian camp". And so on...in drips and drops, the truth comes out. The point is that these people had to shut up if they wanted to keep their jobs, if they wanted to keep living some kind of normal life without bother from "the power that be" who may not appreciate any mentions of "uncomfortable" subjects. I have been to Japan a few times, I have friends there. Their elders do the same as old Romanians. First, they do not speak about the war, or if they do, they speak in terms that are framed in such a way as to avoid causing "trouble". Eventually you may get "drips and drops" of info, such as "my great-uncle was a radio operator on a ship" or "my grandmother's first boyfriend disappeared". So, if you ask a Japanese person about a thing linked to the war (such as a Lightning) you will get a deflected yet polite reply. That does not mean that they will never approach the subject. They will, but in their own way, in their own time. If you try to find "unbreakable rules" in vague replies, more fool you. ;-)

Radu

Edited by Radub
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