Why can't I build a 1/72 B-24 without remortgaging the house?

[Steve N]

7 hours ago, Chuck1945 said:

I got a veritable boatload of the Hasegawa Liberators when they were released, even sold a few off at bargain prices 3-4 years ago when I realized I had more than I could reasonably  anticipate actually building; but yeah, a good kit (or three) with a Ford nose would be added to the stash in a heartbeat. I did start a ‘D’ with the intention of finishing it for the 75th Anniversary of Tidal Wave but it is still languishing in the pending pile, perhaps the 80th?

I was building actually an Academy/Minicraft B-24D for the 50th anniversary of the Ploesti Raid, but then my first marriage blew up in my face that summer and the project got lost in the chaos.  Like you, I've managed to get ahold of a half-dozen or so Hasegawa B-24s over the years, whenever I happened to find one cheap ("cheap" being relative..they were all between 25 and 50 US Dollars.)  I found that the Minicraft B-24M nose will graft onto the Hasegawa kit with minimal difficulty, so at least you can do a decent last Ford B-24. 

 

Of course, the problem with the Hasegawa D-model is that it comes with the wrong tail turret..the fully-enclosed A-6B instead of the correct open-sided A-6A.  Fortunately Eduard remedied the situation a couple years back when they released their special "Riders In The Sky" edition of the Hasegawa kit with the correct turret, along with several other turret types, narrow-cord propellers, Leigh Light, and rockets.  They were then nice enough to sell all the extra bits separately and relatively cheap as "overtrees" (I bought three sets.)  I'm not sure if they're still available now, though. 

 

SN

[Steve N]

7 hours ago, Chuck1945 said:

I got a veritable boatload of the Hasegawa Liberators when they were released, even sold a few off at bargain prices 3-4 years ago when I realized I had more than I could reasonably  anticipate actually building; but yeah, a good kit (or three) with a Ford nose would be added to the stash in a heartbeat. I did start a ‘D’ with the intention of finishing it for the 75th Anniversary of Tidal Wave but it is still languishing in the pending pile, perhaps the 80th?

I was building actually an Academy/Minicraft B-24D for the 50th anniversary of the Ploesti Raid, but then my first marriage blew up in my face that summer and the project got lost in the chaos.  Like you, I've managed to get ahold of a half-dozen or so Hasegawa B-24s over the years, whenever I happened to find one cheap ("cheap" being relative..they were all between 25 and 50 US Dollars.)  I found that the Minicraft B-24M nose will graft onto the Hasegawa kit with minimal difficulty, so at least you can do a decent last Ford B-24. 

 

Of course, the problem with the Hasegawa D-model is that it comes with the wrong tail turret..the fully-enclosed A-6B instead of the correct open-sided A-6A.  Fortunately Eduard remedied the situation a couple years back when they released their special "Riders In The Sky" edition of the Hasegawa kit with the correct turret, along with several other turret types, narrow-cord propellers, Leigh Light, and rockets.  They were then nice enough to sell all the extra bits separately and relatively cheap as "overtrees" (I bought three sets.)  I'm not sure if they're still available now, though. 

 

SN

[Chuck1945]

Yes, I got one edition of the Riders in the Sky boxing and 2 or 3 additional sets of the Eduard extras to enable more accurate D versions. While I did get some of the Academy/Minicraft kits back when, unfortunately the M version never made it into the stash 😪

[72modeler]

13 hours ago, Chuck1945 said:

unfortunately the M version never made it into the stash 😪

Me, too! I have two of every Liberator variant that  they released, but neglected to get an M! (Not paying what they go for now, and it's doubtful that version will ever be re-released. ( I think I do have the vacform transparency set for the M, though.) 

Mike

 

@Steve N I had completely forgotten about the Hasegawa B-24D tail turret issue- thanks for the reminder! Wish now I had snagged more than than just one of  the Eduard overtrees Lib sets!

[TonyOD]

18 minutes ago, 72modeler said:

I have two of every Liberator variant that  they released,

 

And here's me wondering why prices have been driven upwards 😜

[72modeler]

4 hours ago, TonyOD said:

And here's me wondering why prices have been driven upwards 

Hey- it was 20+ years ago and they were bird kits- cheap, cheap, cheap! 

Mike

[Beauslx]

Interestingly enough Scalehobbist.com has the Mini D and J for $27, the Hase for D and J for $58 and $60. I have both the Mini and Hase in the stash, that I picked up years ago.

[JPuente54]

Count me as a supporter of Airfix bringing a new B-24 of any version in 1/72nd scale. They brought us not one, not two, but "Three" new Lancasters(B1/B3, Special "Dambusters", and a Mk 2!), so, it is not out of the thinking. A new Handley Page Halifax would be nice, too; but, deserves its own thread.

Joe

[TonyOD]

2 hours ago, JPuente54 said:

Count me as a supporter of Airfix bringing a new B-24 of any version in 1/72nd scale.

 

I've just shamelessly begged them to do one on Instagram. I think I may have embarrassed myself.

 

They do seem to be working their way through the notable bombers though... Shackleton, Lancaster, B-25, B-17, Whitley, Wellington... (alright the Shack isn't strictly speaking a bomber but you know what I mean...)

Edited May 9, 2021 by TonyOD

[TonyOD]

I just worked out that if you put every B-24 ever built wingtip-to-wingtip, you'd have a line of bombers 378 miles long. Crazy.

[Ravnos]

I paid £65 for the most recent Eduard kit recently and I thought I was pretty lucky honestly, the same kit was around £120 at its cheapest on ebay at the time. it sold out almost immediately when the stock came in and looking at the retailers site now they've bumped it up to 95. still out of stock though and the retailer suggested that they might not be able to get any more.

Edited May 11, 2021 by Ravnos

[72modeler]

On 5/10/2021 at 2:19 AM, TonyOD said:

you'd have a line of bombers 378 miles long. Crazy.

Make that 379 miles long if you include the ones @tonyot has either built or has squirreled away for future WIP's! 

Mike

[tempestfan]

On 5/7/2021 at 12:02 PM, Giorgio N said:

Based on this I'd expect that a new B-24 from Airfix would not be any cheaper than the existing Academy B-24 kits, most likely it would be more expensive (IIRC the old B-24 was in a higher price series compared to the old B-17). Again all this applies in my corner of the world, other corners may see different prices....

No, both the original B-17G and B-24J were originally in Series 5 (kits 5005 and 5006) - the Lib only was elevated to Series 6 with the scarce 1985 reissue (ignore scalemates datation - the box shown is 1985 and it most clearly states "Series 6", right in your face)  and I think stayed there ever since. If Airfix do a new B-24, I am fairly sure they will do their utmost to put it in Series 8, which also contains the Lanc and B-17.

[Paws4thot]

Quote

2 hours ago, tempestfan said:

B-17G and B-24J were originally in Series 5 (kits 5005 and 5006) - the Lib only was elevated to Series 6

 

Well, I've just confirmed this with the Airfix Tribute Forum database, which is more limited in breadth but more accurate than the Scalemates database,

[Col Walter E Kurtz]

On 06/05/2021 at 16:21, paul bardell said:

 

 

Now that's slightly too much even for me!

 

 

 

 

SWMBOd wouldn't have me shot at dawn if I spent that amount on a B24 😂 

[Col Walter E Kurtz]

I managed to get an early 1980s vintage Airfix for £15 I think in 2004 from a shop closing down.. I eventually made the kit up in 2020 lol.. oh well last reasonably priced B24 I'll ever lay my hands on.. Come on Airfix! You are missing a trick here! 

[TonyOD]

32 minutes ago, Col Walter E Kurtz said:

SWMBOd wouldn't have me shot at dawn if I spent that amount on a B24 😂 

 

I assure you mine wouldn't even wait that long...

 

Thing is, with a bit of stash thinnage and some wheeler dealering with a bunch of kits I came by I actually have the funds to buy one, but I just can't bring myself to pay the money people are asking for a very ordinary kit. If I wanted a superior mould I could stretch to a Hasegawa, heck I could even get one of Eduard's Riders in the Sky boxes of tricks but I just can't justify that kind of expenditure on one kit. It's silly.

 

One thing's for sure, the second Airfix announce they're doing one (we can hope) all those folk pushing old Airfix, Revell and Academy kits on eBay at thirty, forty, fifty quid a pop based on their rarity value will be lucky to give them away.

 

I might even bring this discussion to Airfix's attention...

 

 

[Col Walter E Kurtz]

5 hours ago, TonyOD said:

 

I assure you mine wouldn't even wait that long...

 

Thing is, with a bit of stash thinnage and some wheeler dealering with a bunch of kits I came by I actually have the funds to buy one, but I just can't bring myself to pay the money people are asking for a very ordinary kit. If I wanted a superior mould I could stretch to a Hasegawa, heck I could even get one of Eduard's Riders in the Sky boxes of tricks but I just can't justify that kind of expenditure on one kit. It's silly.

 

One thing's for sure, the second Airfix announce they're doing one (we can hope) all those folk pushing old Airfix, Revell and Academy kits on eBay at thirty, forty, fifty quid a pop based on their rarity value will be lucky to give them away.

 

I might even bring this discussion to Airfix's attention...

 

 

Yes Tony! It is remiss of me to think mine would also wait that long  too ! 😂.. smothered at well before midnight the the previous day! 

There is always an upper limit I will pay for a kit personally. I'd love to buy a 1:32 scale Lanc from HKM but apart from displaying the finished kit I just couldn't pay nearly £400 for it. I can afford it I dare say but  we have to maintain some sort of perspective.

 

Airfix have in recent years begun to understand that serious model-makers demand a better quality product. I have been impressed by the quality of some recent kits. RAF 100 Group B17, HE 111 and BP Defiant to name a few. I paid a fair price for all 3 but the crisp mouldings and choices for depictions made this worthwhile. The development costs for a new moulding must be  very high. Clearly there is a worldwide market for a stonker of a 1:72 Liberator kit.. Airfix must know this if they pay any attention to their potential customers views. Yes I think we should all contact them and suggest they do a Liberator. If they did I'd personally buy at least 5! 

Home craft leisure activities have had a massive resurgence due to Covid. It makes good business sense for companies like Airfix to step up and meet this demand and build on it. 

 

Ill be contacting them as well! 

 

Andy

 

[alt-92]

7 hours ago, Col Walter E Kurtz said:

 

Home craft leisure activities have had a massive resurgence due to Covid. It makes good business sense for companies like Airfix to step up and meet this demand and build on it. 

True, but the lead time for a new kit is 1 to 1 1/2 year from design start to RTM - assuming there aren't any hickups in production due to stuck container ships or a pandemic.

 

For those interested, here's a presentation done by Paramjit Sembhi (happens to be Flory Models member) . He works as designer at Airfix, did the Mk.Vc Spit and the Mossie.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABjwCUlBih8

 

 

[TonyOD]

I'll be watching that with great interest later on, @alt-92, thank you. Again though, I don't anybody imagines a new tool launch is a speedy process (,y occasional visits to the bit of the forum where they talk about upcoming kits bears this out.) I have enough kts in the stash (and then some) to keep me busy for a few years while Airfix are knocking a new tool together. 😁

 

I know nothing about the business of making and selling model kits, but when I was a kid they were seen as toys (and still are by non-modellers, I think!) I'd be interested to know what proportion of the market is "serious modellers" and what is "mass market" or "dabblers". All those young lads knocking together Spitfires in the 60s, 70s and 80s are now more mature gentlemen (in the absolute prime of life!) with time and disposable income on their hands, and the internet changed everything I imagine: vast amounts of reference material are available at the click of a mouse, as are pictures of beautifully built models that surely make any aspiring kitbasher want to up their game a bit: so they're going to want an accurate, quality kit and will probably throw some money at aftermarket too. 

 

(I had an interesting conversation the other day, little shop on a village high street in Nottinghamshire run by an elderly gentleman. I'd passed it a thousand times but never been in despite noticing a few model kits in the window, I was just after some more filler for that blessed Pe-8. Anyway, while model trains are the gentleman's main thing, he also keeps a healthy stock of Airfix starter sets and does good business with them: the Sherwood Forest Center Parc is just up the road and he says he gets a lot of guys coming in to get a kit for something to do on a rainy day. I reckon that at least some of these customers finish their kit and then think "I can do better than that" and get another one, and so on, in exactly the same way as I did when SWMBO bought me a Spitfire starter set when I turned 40. If they're building a new tool kit it's likely to be a more enjoyable process and therefore more likely to be repeated. I imagine. I took a new tool Airfix EE Lightning off his hands while I was there 😉)

Edited May 13, 2021 by TonyOD

[tempestfan]

17 hours ago, Paws4thot said:

Well, I've just confirmed this with the Airfix Tribute Forum database, which is more limited in breadth but more accurate than the Scalemates database,

Oh yes, as the ATF database is by @Richard Humm and Steven Pietrobon, with some humble input by me especially where things Plasty are involved.

To be honest, I am really surprised the Airfix kit has become so hard/expensive to get. The initial Type 3A boxing is rather rare, and I had to invest quite a bit to get hold of one IIRC, but otherwise they used to be fairly common on eBay.de , at least when I was actively buying kits there (and rest assured, I was an eBay addict for almost 15 years). Perhaps I should start combing my collection and put kits up for sale…

[davecov]

I am about a week away from finishing my old Airfix B-24J:

 

I actually painted it before assembly so I still need to make good the fuselage joins and repaint them. I've also got to clean up the paintwork on the glazing, adding some different shades of silver panels and decal it. Ironically, after the many years of waiting to make one, when it is completed it will be put into storage in the outside shed, probably never to see the light of day again. BTW, to aid storage, the wings, cowlings and tailplanes are removable which shows what a good fit they are.

 

Dave

 

[Col Walter E Kurtz]

8 hours ago, TonyOD said:

I reckon that at least some of these customers finish their kit and then think "I can do better than that" and get another one, and so on, in exactly the same way as I did when SWMBO bought me a Spitfire starter set when I turned 40

Pretty much what happened to me l guess! Though I had the Liberator sitting there unbuilt. Once I saw what others were presenting on the internet I was spurred on to take much more care. 

[TonyOD]

Now that looks rather nice, @davecov! Is it quite rivety?

[davecov]

Thanks @TonyOD

 

It is extremely rivety. Normally, I would remove the rivets but I wanted this to be a nostalgic build as a reminder of when I last built one in the Seventies. Complete with rivets, warts and all, it will be "interesting" to say the least when I come to put the decals over them! Still, I am enjoying putting it together which is all that matters.

 

Dave