Its refreshing to see so many new products coming to market over the past year, many of which I never thought we would see on the diecast battlefield. From Soviet warbirds to German vengeance weapons, “paper panzers” to WWI zeppelins, I don’t think there has been a time when we have seen so many new types of weaponry being modeled for the collecting community. Having said that, there’s still loads of armament to explore in scale and lots of different ways model makers can entice collectors into making space for these new ranges. Here’s a few suggestions for 2018:
- Modern warships – perhaps offered in the same manner as Eaglemoss Star Trek starships series, I think that a range of modern era 1:1100 scale submarines and surface ships would do exceptionally well at retail, particularly if they were coupled with a full-color magazine that discussed the ship in detail along with behind-the-scenes information presently only available from select sources.
- Drones – There is no question that drones are taking their place on today’s battlefield and will one day play an even greater role in combat as we progress into the mid 21st century. On the ground, in the air and at sea, drones provide real-time assessments of the enemy’s capabilities, and can take action against threats when other assets may not be available.
- Experimental Aircraft – Luft-X has already done a remarkable job of bringing into focus some of the Luftwaffe’s secret projects that could very well have turned the war around for the Axis forces in the waning days of WWII. That said, there are still a myriad of aircraft that were on the drawing board from a number of nations that could just as easily become hot-selling items. The question is can Luft-X tackle this subject matter faster than they have to date, or will other manufacturers step in to steal their thunder?
- The Littorals – We’ve all seen documentaries about the Vietnam War, and the effect the US Brown Water Navy had on the prosecution of the campaign around the Mekong Delta. How many times have you wanted to see some of these low draft ships offered up at scale or, if we dare to dream bigger, some of the E-Boats, PT-boats and other river craft that played a vital role in taking the war to the enemy in the Second World War.
- Missiles – I’ve often thought that it would be interesting to compare and contrast air-to-air and air-to-ground ordnance from a number of nations around the world. Perhaps offered in a larger scale so everyone can appreciate some of the detail that goes into their construction, I think that a range of post-WWII era guided and unguided bombs, rockets and missiles would sell well. In so doing, a similar range of ICBMs would open the door in a number of respects, particularly as it applies to today’s world of threat and counter threats being deployed almost on a daily basis