According to a recent Facebook posting, Greenlight Collectibles, a sister company of Forces of Valor, announced that they have signed a licensing agreement with Paramount to produce a 1:144 scale replica of the F-14 Tomcat seen in the feature-film Top Gun Maverick. Its not clear if they will be producing replicas of some of the other aircraft portrayed in the film and whether or not they plan to up-size the models for the 1:72 scale market. We’ll pursue this story and post updates once they become available.
In a surprise announcement, Corgi today announced plans to roll out not one but three new 1:72 scale Supermarine Spitfires this summer. All three models are based upon aircraft currently on display at hangars across the UK, making them unique in their own right. So, while a Spitfire model always does well at retail, the fact that all three can be seen in the flesh means they’ll help to ignite a renewed passion for these iconic aircraft. The Supermarine Spitfire T.9 is a two-seat fighter aircraft that was developed after World War II. All T.9s started as single-seat fighters, usually the Mk. VIII or Mk. IX. The pre-order window is now open and detailed information concerning each model can be found at the bottom of each listing.
We’ve been overwhelmed by the ground swell of support we’ve received since announcing our inventory liquidation sale on Monday. We thought we would close up shop due to an illness in the family — to be more specific my wife was diagnosed with Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus (NPH). Naturally, I was overcome with grief and worried about our future when I heard the news, unsure what this sudden and potentially dire medical condition would mean to us.
Fortunately, we have a doctor in the family who immediately came to our rescue. She spirited my wife off to Dallas, Texas, where she lives and works and admitted her to Parkland Memorial Hospital, where my wife has been receiving extraordinary care. At its core, NPH means there is a build up of fluid in both the spine and brain, which can lead to all sorts of complications, from loss of balance to delirium and then some. To combat this, two procedures need to be performed – the first, draining of any fluid that has built up in the spine by performing a lumbar puncture, which was successfully done earlier this week. A second procedure involves inserting a shunt into the cranium, which then drains the head of any remaining fluid. The follow-on procedure is scheduled for early March and I’ll be flying to Dallas next week to be with my wife prior to and after the procedure has been performed.
Despite having a great 2024, I decided to announce my retirement and intended closure of our shop in 2025 after hearing the news. When I made that decision, several people indicated that it might be best to see how the second procedure turns out before going any further. That said, I reluctantly agreed, although I will eventually move our business, home and belongings to Dallas to be closer to our immediate family should anything else be required. I don’t know exactly when this will occur since this whole episode was unexpected and unplanned. I doubt it will happen in 2025 since there’s lots of moving parts and people to consider. Frankly, it isn’t the best time to either buy or sell a home. Our goal, therefore, is to change locales sometime next year, when I believe conditions will be more conducive to making a cross-country move. So, for now, our business will remain open and run as usual, even if it means having to fly back-and-forth to Dallas to see and be with my wife.
In the mean time, I thank you for your support and thought it made sense to share with you our present situation and how it may impact our business for the balance of the year. Its been a harrowing few weeks and hope we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel when this crisis is behind us.
With the recent imposition of a 10% tariff on goods coming from China, it remains to be seen how both manufacturers and distributors decide to pass along these cost increases to the trade as well as the consumer in both the near- and long-term. In my opinion, most will take a wait and see attitude over the next few weeks to see if these tariffs will either be rolled back or remain in place based upon China’s reaction. Bear in mind, its entirely possible that not only will the tariffs remain in place but they could increase further should the Administration feel it necessary to raise the stakes even higher if China doesn’t get the subtle message or decides to retaliate in kind. During his presidential campaign, Trump had threatened a 60% tariff so now that he’s in office anything and everything is on the table. Presently, its not clear if certain manufacturers — among them Hobby Master, Panzerkampf and a few others — will be affected by the tariff and whether or not companies operating outside China will pick up sales by being located outside the PRC.
Its entirely possibly that the new Administration will up the stakes even further by placing an across-the-board tariff on every country that currently does business with the US, all in an effort to demonstrate to the world that we mean business when it comes to concessions. Over the weekend, both Canada and Mexico, our nearest neighbors and close allies, saw a 25% tariff imposed upon them, so it isn’t a stretch that even more allies will get the same treatment should Trump feel its within his rights to push the bounds even further.
So, as we start 2025, things aren’t looking especially great in the commercial space unless something substantial occurs by one or both parties. Geo-political events being what they are, it could be a situation where one side is waiting for the other to blink before they can formulate a response to the US initiatives. It isn’t a pretty scenario and one that will undoubtedly lead to a scarcity of product and higher prices for what does come into the country.
We’ve decided to put a halt on stocking any further JC Wings military products. Five months ago, after speaking with the Company’s owner to voice our concerns over several topics, we indicated to them that they needed to build a dedicated web site so that their customers and the trade could see and speak to them directly instead of trying to track them down on social media. Its 2025, folks, and its about time every manufacturer has its own web site where anyone can speak to a manufacturer through normal channels rather than through chaotic FB threads. We know firsthand how much it costs to hire a web designer to build out a fully functional e-commerce web site as well as the cost of maintaining it and its a fraction of what it costs to complete the production run of a new model.
Moreover, their quality control went downhill last year, and we were besieged by requests from customers for parts that they were unable to obtain from JC Wings directly. Again, as a retailer, we do not stock parts for any of the products we sell. Even if parts were available from any of the manufacturers we deal with, we would have to enlarge our storage facilities by two fold to house said replacement parts. It is the manufacturer’s responsibility to not only handle these types of issues but to provide parts to their customers whenever the need arises, that is if they plan to work with the customer going forward. From our standpoint, we pay our invoices promptly but having said that, we also expect a level of service from the manufacturer or its authorized distributor that is commensurate with that level of professionalism all of which is aimed at handling these types of complaints in a competent and expeditious manner.
Anyway, it doesn’t appear as if the manufacturer was serious about creating a web site or ready to provide the services necessary to support their business. So, we’ve decided to stop carrying the line until they can demonstrate to us and others that they are both keen to sell and service their clientele as we would like to see. We’re sorry to have to take this step and hope that 2025 represents a turning point for JC Wings if they want to continue selling their models both here and abroad. If they wish to address this concern in a public manner we have no problem posting their response as an addendum to this post.
