Any Tamiya 1/32 rumours?

[DeanKB]

11 hours ago, vince14 said:

And yet no mainstream manufacturers are willing to go there - If it was an untapped gold mine you'd think they'd be there in a flash. Moebius are probably the leaders in that field yet they sell less than 10,000 units per specific kit.

 

The problem that maufacturers face when using modelling forums as a guide to how desirable any specific subject might be is they're full of people claiming that such-and-such subject will fly off the shelves, but the reality is very different. The simple fact is that us hardcore modellers only make up a small percentage of people who actually buy models. Look at the Revell 1/48 Catalina. Everyone on the modelling forums said they wanted one, so Revell made one - and it was a commercial disaster, because it turned out that actually no-one wanted one.

And this has happened with practically endless amounts of funding available at very cheap rates. Companies have had access to cheap cash for the last decade, especially Chinese corps. Shipping costs, petroleum costs, 3D modelling costs have all been historically low, the economy has been on an 11 year bull run & corporation tax has been slashed in a race to the bottom.

 

Despite all of that, companies are treating 1/32 kits as largely not worth the risk. Consumers had cash, manufacturers had cash, yet not much happened. 

 

With the economy entering a recession, I fear that we'll look back at the last decade or so, as the hobbies high water mark. Of course, WNW & Tamiya will plough on, as private companies.

[Tony T]

2 hours ago, DeanKB said:

Until you realise that Tamiya have made every non-Tamiya kit in your stash effectively obsolete, a la Dreadnought style.

 

That's why I haven't bought any of their three Spitfires. They'd make me relegate the Revells to kitchen pan scrapers. 

 

There's room for a better F/RF-4 Phantom II series. The Hong Kong Models Spey Tooms and eventual Zoukei-Mura 1/32 F-4s will most definitely outclass the twenty-five year old Tamiya kits, which have some very annoying errors. 

 

Tony 

[John1]

6 hours ago, DeanKB said:

Of course, WNW & Tamiya will plough on, as private companies.

Well, at least one of them will.      

[Tony T]

1 hour ago, Jennings Heilig said:

ZM has said they're doing 1/32 Phantoms?  Did I miss that?

 

I read it somewhere where it appeared entirely plausible. I think it's a long-term goal — five-plus years down the road.

 

Tony 

[ringleheim]

On 4/10/2020 at 1:03 PM, Tony T said:

 

I read it somewhere where it appeared entirely plausible. I think it's a long-term goal — five-plus years down the road.

 

Tony 

They us some FW-190s first!  

 

That company must be absolutely tiny; they move forward at the pace of a mom and pop outfit operating out of the garage.

 

 

[305 swag]

On 4/10/2020 at 1:03 PM, Tony T said:

 

I read it somewhere where it appeared entirely plausible. I think it's a long-term goal — five-plus years down the road.

 

Tony 

 

On 4/10/2020 at 1:03 PM, Tony T said:

 

I read it somewhere where it appeared entirely plausible. I think it's a long-term goal — five-plus years down the road.

 

Tony 

I thought HK was supposed to do a 32nd F-4? ZM was doing them in 48th ? I’m waiting on them to do an E. 

[Dave Williams]

39 minutes ago, 305 swag said:

 

I thought HK was supposed to do a 32nd F-4? ZM was doing them in 48th ? I’m waiting on them to do an E. 

HKM was supposed to do British Phantoms (FG.1, FGR.2), but never heard they were going to do other marks.  ZM has done the F-4D, J, and S in 1/48.

[Radub]

Just now, Dave Williams said:

 ZM has done the F-4D, J, and S in 1/48.

 

ZM has also done a "C" and a decal sheet that allows the modeller to do a "British J". Their E is on its way. 

Radu

[Tony T]

1 hour ago, Dave Williams said:

HKM was supposed to do British Phantoms (FG.1, FGR.2), but never heard they were going to do other marks.  ZM has done the F-4D, J, and S in 1/48.

 

It's the 1/32 HKM F-4K/FG.1 that I'm waiting for.

 

I've given up on the Tan Model 1/32 range and the ZM 1/32 prospect may have been a fleeting idea which has since been dumped. 

 

Though it would be nice if Tamiya reversed their policy and made a late production F-4E with new slat, intake and nozzle parts.

 

Tony 

[305 swag]

2 hours ago, Tony T said:

 

It's the 1/32 HKM F-4K/FG.1 that I'm waiting for.

 

I've given up on the Tan Model 1/32 range and the ZM 1/32 prospect may have been a fleeting idea which has since been dumped. 

 

Though it would be nice if Tamiya reversed their policy and made a late production F-4E with new slat, intake and nozzle parts.

 

Tony 

I would love to see them do a slatted wing F-4E as well.

[Peter Browne]

On 3/12/2019 at 5:30 PM, Radub said:

Tamiya has a lot of models that they issued both in scales 1/48 and 1/72 that they never scaled up to 1/32 such as FW 190, Ki-61, P-47, F4D-1, F-84G, M6A1, N1K1-Ja . "Existing kits" predict nothing. They may do a 109, or then again they may not. And no, it is not "easy" to shrink-o-rayo (or enlarg-o-rayo) models from one scale to another. It can be done, but each model will have to be done individually. Trust me, I know, I am doing that NOW! :-) The only thing that may stay the same is the "outer shape", but that is only a tiny fraction of a model. Everything under that skin needs to be done from scratch within tooling limitatons and tolerances. 

Radu 

 

Well, I think there is something in this. 

 

However, Tamiya haven't as far as I can tell, brought out a 1/32 aircraft that did not already exist in their 1/48 line up in some type, except for the Phantom. 

 

So, if you run with that logic, the next 1/32 will be in their 1/48 range, but not necessarily in that version. But there is the possibilty of another exception...

 

I am hoping that a Tamiya 1/32 F-86 Sabre will be the next exception, and with the prospect of a decent AM CAC Avon CA-27 conversion as flown by the RAAF in Korea...Tamiya-san?

 

Drool at your pleasure...with the beautiful Illawarra Range in the background just south of The Gong (Woolongong)...

 

 

 

And another CA-27 at Temora ... with a peekin by a Hudson.

 

 

Edited April 24, 2020 by Peter Browne

[1to1scale]

On 4/12/2020 at 3:02 PM, Tony T said:

Though it would be nice if Tamiya reversed their policy and made a late production F-4E with new slat, intake and nozzle parts.

 

Tony 

or, how about an RF-4E or F-4G?

[LSP_K2]

1 hour ago, Peter Browne said:

However, Tamiya haven't as far as I can tell, brought out a 1/32 aircraft that did not already exist in their 1/48 line up in some type, except for the Phantom.

 

As far as I'm aware, Tamiya never did any 1:48 Phantoms.

[Peter Browne]

11 minutes ago, LSP_K2 said:

 

As far as I'm aware, Tamiya never did any 1:48 Phantoms.

 

I think that is what I said...?

Edited April 24, 2020 by Peter Browne

[DonH]

Here's a rumour for you - Tamiya have pulled out of the 1/32 market and will concentrate mainly on 1/48 with a few forays into 1/72.

 

I made this up, but that's how rumours start...