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Wingnut Wings perhaps not out? EDIT: no, pretty sure they're out


k5054nz

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1 hour ago, Jo NZ said:

AFAIK the moulds are spread around  a number of manufacturers, and the only person who really knows where they all are is long gone.

 

Well, moulds are not something you can put in your pocket. A complete set of moulds for one kit weighs hundreds of kilos and costs tens of thousands of dollars. It is not something that suddenly disappears and nobody knows where it is. Especially when these moulds are of such high quality and when they can still be used for production without any problems.

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10 hours ago, oggy4u said:

Is there someone on this site who is planning to go to this airshow ? If so , can you take some photos of the models for sale ? 

I don't think I made it clear but I'll be at the show on Saturday, camera in hand.

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24 minutes ago, Scooby said:

If anyone see’s Lancaster test shots buy me a couple will-yah? 😀😀

I *may* have enough to buy a Gnome Mono engine sprue, maybe they'll cut me a great deal on your behalf?😅

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20 hours ago, Admiral Puff said:

I canned tentative plans to cross the ditch for WOW 2021, due to the on-again, off-again nature of the Australia-New Zealand travel bubble. Now I wish I hadn't! Next one, maybe ...

There has never been a bubble on NZ side - we have always had to quarantine. I've given up on classic fighters this year sadly...

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4 hours ago, Piotr Mikolajski said:

 

Well, moulds are not something you can put in your pocket. A complete set of moulds for one kit weighs hundreds of kilos and costs tens of thousands of dollars. It is not something that suddenly disappears and nobody knows where it is. Especially when these moulds are of such high quality and when they can still be used for production without any problems.

Bear in mind that the engines are separate moulds, the moulds are spread around about a dozen suppliers in two countries, and they moved around. Someone who really wants to could probably put the information together... Also imagine 2000 odd mould sets in a warehouse. They're not so easy to put your hands on immediately....

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13 hours ago, TEXANTOMCAT said:

Just rumourmongering....I wonder perhaps if the DR.1 deal with Meng was purely down to the fact that they owed them for the tooling and moulds and they struck a deal whereby Meng issued the kit themselves to recoup the debt...

 

TT

That's pretty much the strength of it, Texan

  Those expecting to find a veritable Aladdin's cave of long unavailable WNW kits at the airshow are going to be sadly disappointed. Ex employees have commented on FB this is most likely just a sell off of remaining NZ stock,

As others have commented, the original WNW staff have all taken up other employment 

 

Bruce

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As an aside, for anyone who’s interested TVAL’s 1/1 display slots for the show are:

 

TVAL Scenario 1: WWI Fighter Combat 
Fokker Triplane, Fokker DVII, Sopwith Camel, Pup and Snipe 
TVAL Scenario 2 Bomber across the Lines! 
Two Fokker DVII intercept a DH4 Bomber 

TVAL Scenario 3 Reconnaissance over the Trenches 
Bristol F2B, BE2c, BE2f, DH4, RE8 & BE12
TVAL Scenario 4: 1918
Fokker DVIII, Fokker DVII, Bristol F2B, Sopwith Camel & Snipe

 

The F.2B and BE.2f are originals, they have one each replica and original Camel so I’m not sure which is flying. I’m also not sure how accurate the online programme is as a friend has been practicing a dogfight routine in a Dr.I against a Sopwith Triplane and that’s not up there.

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Over on LSP today -

 

No formal confirmation but it appears to suggest it is simply a sell-off of the remaining stock.

 

From the picture posted up and a comment by someone who (may) have attended, it's just a small modest stall, a few assorted WNW kits on display and significantly, no built or WIP projects like the Lanc or H-P on display to imply "We are back!".

 

Draw your own conclusions.

 

Gary

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Redcap can you have a tweek at the link to make it work please. 👍

 

 

Ta

 

Dick

Edited by jenko
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1 hour ago, stalal said:

That stall in the link looks sad.

 

Indeed it is and they brought a bigger one and more kits with them halfway around the world when they used to come to Telford here in the UK than what we see here. 

 

How did it ever come to this and I lament more what they would have produced in the years to come (having those kits I want already) rather than a loss for what has gone before.

 

Gary

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I hear that there is a stash of WNW moulds and kits buried at an airfield in Myanmar but my money is that this is just an unfounded rumour. They are really inside the Amber Room which is secreted in a secret U-boat pen on a remote uninhabited island off Greenland

 

 

Perhaps more realistically we won’t see any resurgence of WNW for many a year if ever, sadl:(

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Thanks for posting the link - it is as we expected then by the looks of it. Can't say I blame them, there's a show on all they have to do is hump a few boxes outside and flog em to an audience there to see the full size.

 

Regarding 'overseas news' - I wouldnt be at all surprised if they've flogged the remaining stock to a big retailer such as Hannants or Lucky Model en masse.

 

Regarding the future - the moulds are dead money so I could see them licencing short runs to other manufacturers - 'Wingnut Wings' by MENG for example... would at least give you a return on a dead asset and keep interest in the brand alive...

 

TT 

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49 minutes ago, Modelraynz said:

Got mine😜

IMG-20210227-125836.jpg

 

I diddnt get a pic of the of kits on offer but there's a decent selection 😊

Congrats :) Heard any word about selling to overseas customers? As implied in the facebook post.

Edited by Torbjorn
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8 hours ago, Modelraynz said:

Got mine😜

IMG-20210227-125836.jpg

 

I diddnt get a pic of the of kits on offer but there's a decent selection 😊

For some odd reason your post makes me think of the guys on tv that go to the ends of the earth to track down some rare endangered species for preservation 

 

Good hunt there. Congrats. Love the clandestine photo done so that you don’t expose yourself to a mugging on way home 

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Had my hopes up but this is a really bad way to start off my Saturday. That 1/32 Hanriot would have been really nice. Can only hope that Roden's new 1/32 WWI birds will sell well so that they will continue to offer new releases every year. 

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1 hour ago, JohnT said:

For some odd reason your post makes me think of the guys on tv that go to the ends of the earth to track down some rare endangered species for preservation 

 

Good hunt there. Congrats. Love the clandestine photo done so that you don’t expose yourself to a mugging on way home 

Hahah cheers! it was in that spirit i picked one up!!(being a 72nd guy) -

yea its the wingnut shakedown gangs at the gates you have to watch out for!! 😅

 

I believe the kits were at RRP: the ninak was 98 pounds, which at a glance seemed to be in the ballpark as ebay? They did have a pretty complete list of kits available - was hoping for a se.5a (an earlier kit) but was out of luck, seems only their lattter range of kits was available

 

From the brief conversation it dossnt sound like WnWs is down for the count, though i know a number of the former staff have moved on to other work. A level of stock is obviously available and there was a desire expressed to continue retail locally and braching out from there which sounded promising....better than a "its dead, get em while you can" vibe.

 

Sorry i dont have any more definitave info!! WnW always plays close to their chest, and im not the greatest at coaxing out info!!

Edited by Modelraynz
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  • k5054nz changed the title to Wingnut Wings perhaps not out? EDIT: no, pretty sure they're out

There were two or three people very busy staffing the tent, unfortunately time was against us so I decided against waiting around to ask questions when there were actual customers around. Perhaps tellingly the only built/display model was a Camel that was broken and tacked onto a base instead of a display case.

 

Due to a change in national COVID alert levels today's show was cancelled late last night so I expect whatever stock remained will be put back into stock added to any future online sale.

 

50984942751_125a257fec_b.jpg 50985052472_310b64c74d_b.jpg 50985052507_30af98b99e_b.jpg 50984236803_8c38be673b_b.jpg 50984236878_506c2e672d_b.jpg 50984942696_1cc02312be_b.jpg 50984236763_c8a2b376c6_b.jpg

 

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