new 1/48 kittyhawk Jaguar

[Tonka]

Good words Jennings. I understand very well that there are people who bring their radicalism in this area that has nothing of radical, because it is a hobby. However, we are also consumers and we demand that the industry of scale models comply with its premise: to provide scale models from the real ones, mainly because in this forum we treat of scale models and not toys.

As to the cure of cancer I am not a Doctor or Specialist in this area but as a christian I pray every day that this evil could be eradicated from this Planet.

Tonka

[Loki]

Well said Tonka. I wholeheartedly agree with your sentiments

Again though, I don't agree with Jens and his assertion that we are talking about "toys". As has been said before, these are scale models. SCALE models. If things are out of scale then there is some extra work to be completed by the hobbyist. Whilst this is ok and there are rarely, if ever, scale models without the need for alteration, it should be for the model producer to get things right from the start.

Scale model:

"A scale model is a physical model, a representation or copy of an object that is larger or smaller than the actual size of the object, which seeks to maintain the relative proportions (the scale factor) of the physical size of the original object. Very often the scale model is used as a guide to making the object in full size. Scale models are built or collected for many reasons."

Toy:

"A toy is any item that can be used for play. Toys are generally played with by children and pets. Playing with toys is often thought to be an enjoyable means of training the young for life in human society. Different materials are used to make toys enjoyable to both young and old. Many items are designed to serve as toys, but goods produced for other purposes can also be used. For instance, a small child may pick up a household item and "fly" it through the air as to pretend that it is an airplane. Another consideration is interactive digital entertainment. Some toys are produced primarily as collector's items and are intended for display only."

There is the distinction. I for one don't "fly" my models around the room attacking make believe armies.

At the risk of upsetting the applecart, my view is that anyone on this forum that believes we are playing with toys, needs to rethink.

Is there any chance we can get back to the topic in hand and talk about this Jaguar and whether or not it will be a scale model or just another model that needs alteration to make it into a scale model?

[pigsty]

Well said Tonka. I wholeheartedly agree with your sentiments

Again though, I don't agree with Jens and his assertion that we are talking about "toys". As has been said before, these are scale models. SCALE models. If things are out of scale then there is some extra work to be completed by the hobbyist. Whilst this is ok and there are rarely, if ever, scale models without the need for alteration, it should be for the model producer to get things right from the start.

You're all right, believe it or not.

These are only plastic kits. They don't matter, except as a trivial contribution to world GDP and a trivial drain on the world's oil supply. If a plastic kit is a little bit wrong, it really isn't the end of the world.

On the other hand, these are scale model kits. Expectations in our tiny little corner of the world are high and increasing all the time. A scale model has to be a faithful reproduction of the real thing, within the limitations of the materials and technology used, or it's just an approximate representation. Take an egg plane - the type it's parodying is always obvious, but it could never be described as a scale model of it. Any manufacturer setting out to offer a scale model needs to get enough of it right to meet the expectations of the market to which he's offering it - and that means he needs to get a good idea of those expectations beforehand. This is not because the world will end if the model is wrong. It's because the economics of the situation demand it. If you seek to make money out of model kits, even though they are utterly unimportant, your best strategy is always to make as few mistakes as you can.

On the other other hand, there's mistakes and there's mistakes. I don't hold with the idea that we should just shrug and accept mistakes that could have been avoided (ie, where they're not driven by technical limitations). After all, we can't all correct them. And it's close to pish-taking to expect the aftermarket to clear them up - that's more to pay, for no good reason. Asking for help in the design of kits is a brilliant idea and should be encouraged. Even better where the resulting advice is actually heeded. But, as others have said, some errors will still creep in. Where they do, it's useful to have experts run the rule over the kit and point them out - with advice as to what to do about them. Merely carping isn't really very helpful.

So I suppose what I think is, while it's a good thing to hold manufacturers to their implicit promise of accuracy, it should be done calmly and sensibly, and always with a sense of perspective.

[horrido109]

I really hope the new F1 is as nice as the Jaguar. Mr Song, we need F1 AZ and F1 CZ Please!!

...and Su-27, Su-30, Su-35

[Parabat]

I really hope the new F1 is as nice as the Jaguar. Mr Song, we need F1 AZ and F1 CZ Please!!

...and Su-27, Su-30, Su-35

Hoor hoor! Ek stem saam!

Seconded...

Thankfully, these kits seem to be very buildable and offer good value, so I look forward to seeing more from their stable.