Revell releases for 2020 (after 1st quarter)

[Work In Progress]

Not to worry. Every time Revell brings out a big kit it ends up getting massively discounted several months later to clear the stock through the usual discount retailers. Like the £10 Lancasters and £15 Shackletons and Halifaxes that were everywhere in February. People will buy them at £49.95, given the rather nice coloured photo-etch

Edited December 3, 2020 by Work In Progress

[IT_Man]

6 hours ago, Plastic Bonsai said:

It does open but it is painfully slow. Apart from the 1/32 Hornet being made into an F version I haven't seen anything new but I could be missing detail in the slow download.

Is 2020 Catalogue so all items that were announced or released this year. Paper Catalogue available since February

[TEXANTOMCAT]

3 hours ago, Work In Progress said:

Not to worry. Every time Revell brings out a big kit it ends up getting massively discounted several months later to clear the stock through the usual discount retailers. Like the £10 Lancasters and £15 Shackletons and Halifaxes that were everywhere in February. People will buy them at £49.95, given the rather nice coloured photo-etch

Well said - I'd forgot the great Hobbycraft fire sale of 2020 when they really were kicking out cheap kits - including the high end Platinum stuff for a substantial discount...good call 

 

TT

[Work In Progress]

42 minutes ago, Beermonster1958 said:

I hate p/e parts anyway but, at a (hypothetical) £49.95, I could bin them without thinking twice about it!!

 

You'd be mad to do that, it;s about £30 worth of Eduard stuff at list prices, you can always find a home for it here if you don;t want to flog it on EBay

[SAT69]

In a way they've narrowed the market for the kit. Advanced modelers will love it (I'm guessing) but the average modeler will be turned away by the extras they don't use and the high price. Advanced modelers may be turned away by the price.

[Work In Progress]

The average modeller outside the USA doesn't have room for a 1/48 B-29 in any case. I think in the 43 years since it came out I've seen three built in the UK. It's near enough the same length and wing span as a 1/32 Lancaster and not many us have shelf space for those once they're built, either

Edited December 3, 2020 by Work In Progress

[Paul Thompson]

11 hours ago, Work In Progress said:

The average modeller outside the USA doesn't have room for a 1/48 B-29 in any case. I think in the 43 years since it came out I've seen three built in the UK. It's near enough the same length and wing span as a 1/32 Lancaster and not many us have shelf space for those once they're built, either

Agreed. Saw one built up in a shop when it first came out and was duly impressed but back then hadn't the dosh or space. Since then I housed one belonging for a friend. We both lived in Arnhem, he hadn't the space for his 1/48th collection which was stored in boxes in various places, and I had a ridiculously large house (no more, alas), so it went into one of my basements. There's posh, now. When I left he binned it, which was a shame.

 

Paul.

[Work In Progress]

All I'm saying is that the market for these enormous kits is so tiny anyway that I don;t think these things have a very significant number of potential buyers in the UK regardless of price. You don't see them getting built even on here, where the super-keen people are, and to the UK "average modeller" such kits are in volume terms, an irrelevance.

 

The reason I drew an exception for the USA is that given the much larger houses prevalent there, and the size and wealth of the USA as a domestic economy, the larger scales, and big aircraft types in those larger scales, probably do make these vast kits relevant to that market when they're really no more than a negligible sideshow in the UK. 

[Julien]

15 hours ago, Work In Progress said:

The average modeller outside the USA doesn't have room for a 1/48 B-29 in any case. I think in the 43 years since it came out I've seen three built in the UK. It's near enough the same length and wing span as a 1/32 Lancaster and not many us have shelf space for those once they're built, either

I have seen 2 1/24 Mossies built at shows, yet the kit was a big seller for Airfix with 3 production runs, so perhaps its not modellers in the sense of people you see at shows, or online who are buying these and building them. Pretty sure Revel would not release it if there was no market for it. 

[Work In Progress]

Maybe, though a 1/48 B-29 is considerably longer and wider than even a 1/24 Mosquito! 

 

And as for whether Revell would do it... well, presumably it makes sense for them because they can rely on the US market, and if they are selling them there, I suppose there is little extra cost for them to take a punt with a few in Europe but look at the track record. Time after time we've seen them having to heavily dump these big kits at enormous discount in the UK. The 1/48 Ju-52 and PBY, the 1/32 He-219, Hunters and Hawks, even the 1/48 Venturas. All have been decent kits in themselves (fat Catalina tail notwithstanding) but every one of them has been a prominent occupant of the bargain-basement bins in the £10 to £15 clearances.  

 

Edited December 4, 2020 by Work In Progress

[VMA131Marine]

On 12/3/2020 at 2:35 AM, Corsairfoxfouruncle said:

On 12/3/2020 at 1:40 AM, Beermonster1958 said:

 

Ouch ... Last time I built one (built three total) the kit was $29.00. Of course that was in 1988.

Factoring for inflation, it would cost $63 now.

[Graham Boak]

That's not factoring for kit inflation, which has been several times that of the official figures.

[TEXANTOMCAT]

I do remember that just about every model shop in the 80's had a Monogram B-29 hanging from its ceiling!

 

Wanders off in whistful nostalgia....  

[HMSLion]

If it's any comfort, I've rarely seen the 1/48 B-29 built in the USA, either.  I'm a big proponent of the Rule of 250...that a model must fit onto a rectangle of 250 square inches or less.  That's about 16 x 16 inches.  It's why I get irked by the constant whining for coffee-table-sized models like a 1/48 Vulcan...where do you PUT the thing after you build it?

[Work In Progress]

1 hour ago, Beermonster1958 said:

What that really means is that THEY would buy them.

 

Sometimes it means that, and sometimes all it is means they want to SEE one, but not actually part with their money for one.  Personally I was fascinated by the WNW Lancaster and very happy at the thought of it existing, but there was no way ever that I was going to buy one. 

 

Incidentally, while we're talking pricing, I can see no reason why a new-tool 1/48 B-29 done to modern standards would not cost as much to tool, market and ship as the similarly sized and complex HK 1/32 B-17 and Lancaster. And those are £350 a go.

 

Equally, the much smaller and equally ancient Tamiya 1/48 Lancaster retails at £95 these days

 

So with reference to other comparable kits currently on sale from other manufacturers, Revell probably think the B-29 is fairly priced and it's hard to prove otherwise. 

Edited December 5, 2020 by Work In Progress

[Work In Progress]

Interestingly, there is one of (apparently) this boxing currently being auctioned on eBay UK so just after 8pm on Monday we will find out what the bid patterns look like and at what prices various people dropped out.  Proper price discovery on this as it was started at 99p and with a couple of days to run is up to £62.99. Four bidders so far.

[Homebee]

Sources: 

https://www.revell.de/en/products/modelmaking/supermarine-spitfire-mk-ixc-technik.html

https://www.facebook.com/Revell/posts/3780206288691445:0

1/32nd - ref. 00457 - Supermarine Spitfire Mk.IXc  - "Technik"

 

Quote

The iconic Spitfire now really comes to life as a Technology Kit: fully automated the model runs a realistic start sequence with harmoniously starting engine and switching on the navigation lights.

The whole thing is supported by the authentic sound of the Rolls-Royce Merlin engine.

 

Scope of delivery:

Plastic model kit (non-assembled)

Illustraded, multilingual assembly instructions

Decal set

Electronic components

 

 

V.P.

Edited December 9, 2020 by Homebee

[JohnT]

On 03/12/2020 at 21:40, Work In Progress said:

The average modeller outside the USA doesn't have room for a 1/48 B-29 in any case. I think in the 43 years since it came out I've seen three built in the UK. It's near enough the same length and wing span as a 1/32 Lancaster and not many us have shelf space for those once they're built, either

I bought one from the original run way back when and thoroughly enjoyed sticking it together. I was pleased then with the end result with the exception that loads of carefully painted parts disappear when fuselage half a glued to half b. It was the first time I had a why did I bother moment. Anyway coming to the point, when I saw the platinum boxing and price my first thought was “How much will you see once it’s closed up? Will the new add ins work here?”  In 1/48 there is no glazing at all worth anything other than the nose and even that’s pretty limited. Everything just disappears so any “extras” need to be seen externally and I just don’t see the price difference being justified. 
 

It might have been more understandable on other kits, the 1/32 Ju88 for example- loads of glazing to peer into

[SAT69]

What appears to be being overlooked here is that a lot of these models that will build to very large proportions are bought but join the ranks of the other "stash" members and may, though not likely, be built. I seem to recall having heard or read somewhere that the model companies know that a large proportion of the kits they sell won't ever be built ... but the kits are bought, perhaps for the gee whiz factor of having the box in front of you to open, go over the parts, glance at the instructions and decals and then get closed up and put away ... for another time. As long as the kit makes the manufacturer money, whether we think it's too big or too expensive matters little ... as long as their account ledgers show profit.

[Harold55]

I for one have built the 1/48 B-29 and have it displayed in my cabinet.  In fact when I built my model cabinet I specifically made it large enough so I could eventually fit this plane in and that's the largest kit I will ever get in there.  It builds up very similar to their B-17 or B-24 just bigger.  Lots of detail molded in so fewer parts than newer kits.  Fit is not great but I have certainly seen much worse and it was state of the art for the time.  You will never see much of those photo etch parts once installed but we all must admit that's true for most of our kits, especially if we button them up.  Anyway, I love the kit - its big and impressive and looks great with a Boeing Peashooter sitting under the wing.  I finished it in metal foil, which was nuts.  But I doubt if it is worth the cost to retool at this point by Revell.  Maybe someone else could justify it.