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Tamiya kits


Soloturk

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Hello all,

 

My first post in this area! I'm usually found in the aircraft area, but recently I've started collecting vehicles, as trucks and cars are my interest in general as well.

 

Nothing much, I only have a Revell Mini Cooper S (might build it), Itelari Ford Escort RS1800 and a Renault R5 Alpine Rally which was going cheap at Telford show last year.

 

Not built any yet, still building model airliners but I might make a start with the Alpine as well. Don't know what the RS1800 will be like, but having found one in the WIP section, not looking forward to it at all!

 

What are Tamiya car kit's like? I'd like to try one of those, more of a 'standard' car, I.E not a rally or racing version, even the Nissan GT-R I'd like to build, or even one of the classic's, I do like 80's or 90's cars. 

I remember when I was a kid Tamiya Radio Control (RC) kit's was a big thing in the late 90's. Unfortunately my mum or dad couldn't afford something like that and I had a basic RC, but my school friend had a Subaru Impreza which went like a rocket compared to mine, and it did look good. I remember the model shop in Bath had absolutely tonnes of Tamiya RC kit's and standard kits.

 

Are they any good? Are they over engineered and if so, is it best to build some other car kits first before trying one of these if they aren't ideal for beginners? 

 

 

Any help most appreciated!

 

James.

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I believe you will find a great number of Tamiya builds in progress on this site, and others, because they are world class.  While not perfect the vast majority of parts are extremely well formed and accurate.  Complicated sub-assemblies almost always fit perfectly.  Instructions are complete and easy to follow.  As with any kit the modeler must work out when to paint or assemble.  I live in the States and Revell, as a comparison, are total junk. 

 

In my opinion, Tamiya kits are the perfect starting point because THE PARTS FIT!  As such there is enjoyment in construction.  You want to continue to the next assembly because the previous was so much fun.  There is great confidence that the trunk lid will sit squarely on the chassis or the engine lines up perfectly to the monocoque.   Yes there are fitment issues from time to time, but they are usually small and rarely leave you to the point of disgust.  

 

My preference are Tamiya 1/12 Formula 1 - WIP:

They are large and complex but so rewarding.  There are many many smaller scale, and therefore less complex, kits to choose.  My experience is you won't be disappointed in whatever kit you build.  And please post your work!

 

JCH

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Hi

Tamiya kits in my opinion are usually spot on in fit and quality, you do get the odd fit issue as with everything, but very rarely in my experience.

Also Hasegawa and Aoshima do some decent kits you might wasn't to look at

I've had issues with Italeri kits and AMT kits with fit issues and apart from the ones in the stash, won't be rushing to add any more unless it is a subject I want and no one else makes

I don't know about the Revell mini and the Alpine, but the Escort is a challenging kit to get something decent from, but there's no other option

 

As long as you enjoy it and like the end product though, that's all that matters :) 

Any questions you have just post them up, there is a lot of knowledge in the vehicle section and I've picked up a lot of tips and help since I gradually seemed to have moved away from wingy things

 

Ian :) 

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Tamiya kits are if anything the opposite of “over-engineered”. They are very thoughtfully engineered to combine ease of build, good detail and a high degree of accuracy. Often multiple real parts are combined into one really clever moulding that just needs detail painting. At other times, parts are split to ease painting (eg the silver and black wheel parts in the new street Supra kit). Plus, as people have said, they fit. The new Ford GT, Supra, new NSX or MX5RF are state of the art; the LFA or DBS are modern classics; the Mercedes 300SL or Mk2 Jaguar are “vintage classics”. Even the older kits like the XJ220 or Ferrari 360 spider are pretty darn good. You can buy any that you like the look of the 1:1 of with confidence. 
 

If you want “overengineered”, get a Fujimi Enthusiast Model series kit 😜

best,

M.

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I can only echo everyone else. Tamiya have for years been a standard to which others are compared. You can get more detailed kits which are a level (and price tag) above, but they are accurate, usually straightforward to build and can be detailed to your heart’s desire.

The quality of the detailing of the kits has improved over time too so they have remained a ‘go to’ brand for many of us.

The only regular issue is the thickness of decals where a surface deviates from flat...

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I must admit I'm another Tamiya fan.  Back in my early teenage years I built (badly) a lot of Tamiya 1:24 cars.  The badness was my painting and getting glue everywhere but the kits themselves were nice and easy to assemble with clear instructions and refined locating pins that pretty much always got the parts where you wanted them.

 

Ten out of the fifteen kits I've got, either unbuilt or in progress, are by Tamiya.

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I've recently built 3 x Entex HUGE car kits (1/8 scale) and I'm currently building the 1/8 Entex Porsche RSR 935.

These kits are (supposedly - no idea why...) considered 'Grail' kits.
They don't hold a CANDLE to Tamiya.

 

With Tamiya, you KNOW you will get a great kit.

Any other maker - pot luck.

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I agree with the magority here , in that Tamiya kits just go together so easily. I’m on my third Aoshima Beemax kit , however , and I’m finding these fit just as well as Tamiya . I build rally car kits , so the decals can be difficult . Again , both kit manufacturers decals fit just so . 
Gary. 

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I can't really argue with anything here. While the best kit I've done isn't a Tamiya kit (Aoshima's Lamborghini Countach if you're wondering) and I wouldn't say their best models are head and shoulders above the best models from other makes, what really stands out for me is the consistency - pretty much every kit I've done has been well designed, high quality and has gone together well, I haven't come across a badly fitting Tamiya kit which is more than you can say for some other manufacturers . I'd say they do make a good kit to start out on car builds with as you're unlikely to have to do major surgery to get the thing to fit together.

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I would agree with what everybody else has said , but would like to offer a word of caution . The first Tamiya 1/24 car kit was released in 1977 and a fair few of the range are at or approaching 40 years old . Whilst still good kits , they are obviously not to the same standard as the more modern kits in the range . Also , the early kits tended to be motorised so the undersides are a little lacking in the detail department .  On the plus side though , their older kits are cheaper than the later ones , though none of them are especially expensive .

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If you're looking to try one, it's worth noting that older releases such as the Eunos Roadster are available really quite cheaply so you've got little to lose. The Eunos is available for £11 or £12 brand new and while it's not a complex kit it goes together beautifully. Alternatively something like the Celica GT-Four has a high parts count and full engine detail for well under £20.  

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Tamiya's car kits have been the standard to behold down the years, whilst Hasegawa and Fujimi are also highly rated.

But, there is a newer pretender to the throne.     Revell's German outfit are turning out some very nice 1/24 scale car kits of late. Their new Land Rover and Jaguar E Type kits released this year are well up there. I would like to see what Revell could do with a Bugatti Veyron or Chiron in this series. Airfix's latest new tool kits are very nice, but why on why do they persist in 1/32 scale? It used to be popular with a number of firms like Pyro, Gowland and Aurora, but those days are long gone, and Airfix by doggedly sticking to this scale are out of sync with what everyone else is doing!

Then of course in 1/24 scale we have the others like Heller, Monogram,, Italeri, Esci, Aoshima, Trumpeter kits etc. Then the American Revell USA, Amt sticking with 1/25 scale. Some good, some not so good.

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Tamiya are my go to kit for mojo busting.

You just know they'll go together easily and aren't to expensive either.

Their older kits are amazingly cheep. Eunos (curb side) £12, older Honda NSX (full engine)£15.

Bargains!

The one to be careful with is the old style Minis. Lovely kits (full engine), but now being sold for silly money. Tamiya, please re-release them!

 

Rick.

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  • 1 month later...

Thank you very much for your responses! I completely forgot to say thanks, only until I was just on Ebay that reminded me 😂

 

I was looking at Ebay for Tamiya car ideas, and saw a Nissan 350Z. There's one of these dumped over the road at work, not completely wrecked up, but certainly worn.

 

I'd be tempted to give it a go, the bid price for one started at about a fiver, I maxed it to £17 but went for £23 including P&P. Not knowing if it was rare, I looked for a buy it now option, and looks like I can pick it up for £19 with free postage! 

 

I usually filter auction only to find the potential cheap buys, it seems other times you can enc up paying over the odds!!

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  • 1 month later...
On 9/4/2020 at 10:47 PM, Soloturk said:

 

I usually filter auction only to find the potential cheap buys, it seems other times you can enc up paying over the odds!!

Don’t forget to look for highly-priced items which are accepting offers. I’ve gotten a few this way...often means the seller has no idea of price, so is willing to let the buyer propose a market price.

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On 16/07/2020 at 14:40, rs2man said:

On the plus side though , their older kits are cheaper than the later ones , though none of them are especially expensive .

 

Not all - even though they might not all be from the very earliest days of Tamiya cars, Zakspeed Capri's, RS500 & XR-4 Sierras, the BTCC & road Volvo 850's, Escort Cosworths and the aforementioned Minis among many others are all getting on a bit and are fetching daft money.

 

One thing to be wary of if looking to buy old Tamiya (or any other brands) competition car kits is the condition of the decals. A lot of my old rally and race car kits now have unusable decals. There are sometimes aftermarket replacements for the kit sheets (or for alternative cars) but a lot of these are made by Shunko - and having used a sheet of theirs recently on my in progress Tamiya Opel Calibra I have to say they are without a doubt the worst decals I've ever had the misfortune to use!

 

It's good to see Tamiya re-releasing the Europa and Lotus 7, let's hope more follow! :)

 

Keith

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If you just want to try a Tamiya there are plenty at around the £20 mark, especially road-type JDM.  Best to buy new if available, the saving on secondhand ones vs those still on shop shelves isn’t worth the pig-in-a-poke of dodgy decals, missing parts or scratched clear pieces - aftermarket decals are nearly the price of a kit - unless it is a real, real bargain; which is very infrequent on eBay nowadays.

 

on the other hand I recently had sensible (ie not taking the mickey) offers accepted on the Tamiya 7 and Europa by politely noting that they were about to be rereleased, so no one will be bidding the same heights as before.

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5 hours ago, keefr22 said:

 

Not all - even though they might not all be from the very earliest days of Tamiya cars, Zakspeed Capri's, RS500 & XR-4 Sierras, the BTCC & road Volvo 850's, Escort Cosworths and the aforementioned Minis among many others are all getting on a bit and are fetching daft money.

 

One thing to be wary of if looking to buy old Tamiya (or any other brands) competition car kits is the condition of the decals. A lot of my old rally and race car kits now have unusable decals. There are sometimes aftermarket replacements for the kit sheets (or for alternative cars) but a lot of these are made by Shunko - and having used a sheet of theirs recently on my in progress Tamiya Opel Calibra I have to say they are without a doubt the worst decals I've ever had the misfortune to use!

 

It's good to see Tamiya re-releasing the Europa and Lotus 7, let's hope more follow! :)

 

Keith

When I referred to their older kits being cheaper, I meant those currently available rather that those which are out of production .

I agree about the decals in older versions of their kits.  This ýear I've built a couple of their older motorbike kits and had major issues with the decals .

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