Shout Outs

Rotorheads Rejoice

I’m convinced that January must mean rotorcraft in Latin even at a time when they had no idea what it meant when it was included in the Julian calendar. Dopey innuendoes aside, we are finally going to be receiving our second shipment of MH-47G helicopters from Forces of Valor and will likely have to place a further order once this allotment has evaporated. Also in the shipment are the first pair of Royal Australian CH-47 choppers, both clad in a desert yellow paint scheme.

Additionally we are heard that all three MH-53 Super Stallion helicopters from Panzerkampf are en route. The MH-53s are big and beefy and represent a great way for Panzerkampf to kick off their entry into the helicopter category. Rumor has it that a Hind is in the works, also these won’t likely touch down until the latter half of 2021.

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Is that a Tiger in Your Tank?

Forces of Valor’s 1:32 scale German Early Production Sd. Kfz. 181 PzKpfw VI Tiger I Ausf. E Heavy Tank – “100”, schwere Panzerabteilung 505, Kursk, Russia, July 1943 [Bonus Maybach HL 210 TRM P45 Engine]

Looking to cause a little stir on the very last day of 2020, Forces of Valor has finally posted pictures of one of their upcoming Tiger I heavy tanks to their Facebook account. While the vehicle sports its tactical number, its iconic knight on a red charger symbol hasn’t been applied just yet, nor have any of its balkenkreuz nationality insignia markings. Still it represents an important first step in the launching of this oft-discussed range, which is expected to begin fanning out this spring. According to the manufacturer 20 Tiger Is are in the offering, covering everything from the initial production machines that rolled out in 1942 to the late production versions responsible for defending the Reich towards the latter stages of the war.

We’ve doctored the photos somewhat to make them a bit more presentable since the original images sported a very dark background with extraneous errata thrown in. That said, you can get an overall idea as to how the model will look in its final form, complete with opening hatches and other equipment unique to this version. So please keep this in mind if you’re planning on ordering this model, which will no doubt be updated with better photos once the vehicle has entered its final building stages. Panzers vor!

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Forces of Valor Presents the Sturmtiger to the Fuhrer and the Collecting Community

Forces of Valor’s 1:32 scale German Early Production RW61 Sturmtiger Rocket Assault Mortar with Loading Crane – Prototype Presentation to Hitler, Ehrenfriedhof Arys Proving Grounds, East Prussia, October 20th, 1943 [Bonus Maybach HL 210 TRM P45 V-12 Water-Cooled Engine]

It appears as if Waltersons has at last posted final images of its upcoming 1:32 scale Sturmtiger assault mortar. The gallery shows the vehicle from a number of perspectives and even includes interior photos that show off its detail and working features. While the Company claims that the vehicle will be completed in early January, we believe that shipping delays and other issues points more towards either a February or possibly a March release.

We’ve learned that the price for a pair of metal tracks offered as an upgrade to the Sturmtiger is being pegged at $34.99, although its not clear if they will be available day and date with the arrival of the first Sturmtiger.

Forces of Valor Metal Tracks for the Sturmtiger Assault Mortar

The same tracks can likely be used for their upcoming torrent of Tiger I tanks, which should start to appear sometime in the first quarter of 2021.

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Corgi Slides into Bed With World of Tanks

Corgi’s “Fit-to-box” German Sd. Kfz. 182 PzKpfw VI King Tiger Ausf. B Heavy Tank with Henschel Turret [WOT]

Earlier this year, we learned that Corgi decided to launch a new “fit-to-box” military vehicle range that leveraged the highly popular World of Tanks name as a means of gaining product awareness and, hopefully, spurring impulse sales during the holiday season. For those of you unfamiliar with World of Tanks, its a free massively multiplayer online game that has been around for a number of years and gained quite a hefty international following thanks, in large part, to huge multi-tank engagements in which players gain fame and notoriety by knocking out their opposition in a sort of last man standing battle then leveling up afterwards with the aid of rewards and other perks.

Up until now, however, it wasn’t clear what each of the seven vehicles would look like or when they would be released. With Christmas fast approaching and most of their other ranges already in the sales pipeline, Corgi has finally unveiled the lineup, along with its packaging, and provided details concerning their impending release. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that we’ll get all or some of them in for the holidays thereby making them excellent stocking stuffers, and will, of course, update our release schedule as further word is passed along.

Note: Corgi has announced another addition to the World of Tanks range: an M3 Stuart light tank. While images for this late lineup addition were posted, we’re of the opinion that it will get released some time after the first batch of vehicles hit the streets this Winter.

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Calibre Wings Explains the Fencer in Detail

One of the reasons some model makers succeed in this business where others fail stems from the fact that a select few actually take the time to fully explain their model(s) in detail. Rather than rush their products out the door, Calibre Wings is one such company, oftentimes opting to take a few moments out of their busy schedule to describe their latest offerings so that customers can fully appreciate all of the work that went into the design process. Either through Facebook postings or YouTube videos, Noel Lee, the architect behind the Calibre Wings phenomena, has never shied away from the lime light and, with the release of their second pair of Su-24 Fencers, has created a polished 8-minute plus video showing off all of the model’s details as well as the procedure for assembling and dis-assembling the model both to prevent damage from occurring and showcasing all of the components found throughout the build. We invite you to watch the accompanying video, which will no doubt be followed up with additional post-release videos and testimonials.

We’ve decided to integrate these videos within the affected product listing, whenever and wherever possible. In the past, we were hesitant to do so since we had heard that embedded videos can have an adverse effect on a product’s search ranking on Google. Be that as it may, we’ve decided to change course and, where applicable, incorporate these videos into our listings since its value as a selling aid far exceeds its impact on the search ranking charts.

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The Chinook Update

I’m sorry to say that we’re all out of the Forces of Valor 1:72 scale MH-47G Chinook helicopter. Of course, it didn’t help that we were short-changed, receiving one case of a Japanese CH-47JA instead of the MH-47G we were counting on. We decided to keep it instead of returning it and have listed it on our web site. Typically, the Far Eastern liveries of US-built equipment (Japanese, Taiwanese, Singapore, Korean, etc.) don’t sell as well as models based upon machines designed for the primary user nation. However, seeing as how well all of the previous Chinooks have sold, we decided we could be making a mistake by rejecting it out-of-hand. Be that as it may, we are expecting a follow-on shipment probably towards the middle of December but this could change based upon all manner of issues. We highly doubt that we will be able to turn around all of the helicopter models in the follow-on shipment as soon as they come in and have them arrive at their appointed destinations in time for Christmas. More likely, they will arrive some time thereafter, perhaps as late as the New Year, if the shipping carriers run into problems getting all of their Christmas deliveries out and on time. My gut instinct is to say they are going to get slammed for the holidays, so I’ll err on the side of caution and say that the second wave will more than likely arrive at their final destinations the first week of January.

I know a great many of you have been waiting for a long time for this model, and more orders were placed once word got out that the helo arrived over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. On the plus side, I think there’s a good chance that the manufacturer is quite content with its sales and will more than likely offer a larger scale version of it sometime down the road seeing as how several 1:48 scale helicopters are expected in early 2021.

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Tales of Transparency: Odds and Ends for November

With Thanksgiving just a week away, we thought it might be a good idea to update everyone as we head into the all-important holiday season. So, with that said, lets get to it!

Earlier this week, we received the October shipment of Hobby Master goodies. Our distributor has informed us that they are still expecting the September shipment some time this week, if all goes according to plan. If it does arrive as prescribed, we will likely have everything in stock right before Turkey day. Why these shipments have taken so long is anyone’s guess. You’ve got your pick of reasons, from the pandemic to shipping and customs issues, to well, everything in between.

The often asked about Forces of Valor MH-47G Chinook has arrived at a different distributor and is now on their way to us. Here again, they should land at our doorstep right before Thanksgiving, which means we have a lot of boxing and shipping to do as we scarf down our turkey dinner.

On the downside, we were told several months ago that the Forces of Valor 1:24 scale radio controlled tanks were expected in November, which turned out not to be the case. Grrr. As it stands now, they are now scheduled to arrive in early 2021, unless, of course, this turns out to be another fictitious release date. We aren’t expecting anything else from Forces of Valor this year, although the manufacturer claims that several items are pegged for an early 2021 release, most notably their first 1:32 scale Sturmtiger. Most of the warships are presently in stock save the Yamato and Bismarck, which, as we understand it, are undergoing some modifications so that they can be displayed in either full draught or waterline poses.

We’re not sure what’s happening with Panzerkampf or when we can expect either the three MH-53 Super Stallions or any of the Mirages to arrive. They’re likely loaded on to a very slow boat out of the Far East, so we’re not sure how or when they are hitting our doorstep. The same holds true for their Abrams tanks, tank transporters and Russian APCs, all likely arriving very late this year on possibly in early 2021.

We received a large shipment of PMA products, including their second Karl Gerat mortar and a re-stock of their very popular Otto Carius Tiger I tank. Both are selling rather quickly so if you have your eye on any of these items, we strongly recommend you nab them now.

With that all said, we urge you to purchase only those items listed as being in stock if you intend to give them as gifts for someone special. Otherwise, there’s a good chance we may not be able to supply many of the items still listed as arriving in December. Sales are particularly strong this year, brought on, in part, by more people purchasing online rather than visiting a brick-and-mortar outlet. Please keep all of this in mind this holiday season.

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The Forces of Valor Update: We Own the Night

Forces of Valor’s 1:72 scale US Army Boeing-Vertol MH-47G Chinook Heavy Lift Helicopter – 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment “Night Stalkers”, 2014

According to our distributor, the Forces of Valor MH-47G Chinook helicopter, which is famously operated by the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment “Night Stalkers”, is en route and expected by the end of October. This is a significant announcement because we have quite a few pre-orders to fill as soon as they arrive and won’t have all that many left available for general sale once the pre-orders have been filled. However, we also wanted to point out that the manufacturer has decided to revise the tooling by moving the front set of landing wheels a bit further forward under the fuselage as one savvy collector pointed out on an aviation forum. While we applaud the manufacturer’s decision to revise the mold and bear the cost of making these changes it does create a bit of a lag in the supply chain. According to the manufacturer, they are sold out of the original helicopter model and have begun retooling the mold to address this modification. As a result, a second batch of models sporting this tooling change is not expected before the holidays and could likely make its way back into the distribution network as late as February. So, if you prefer to wait for the second version of the model, we will need to hear from you as soon as possible otherwise we will assume that the initial version is okay with you.

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The Forces of Valor Update: The Sturmtiger Rocket Mortar

We’ve received some preliminary photos for the prototype Sturmtiger rocket mortar, as it was presented to der Fuhrer and other dignitaries at the Ehrenfriedhof Arys Proving Grounds, East Prussia, on October 20th, 1943, which, as you can see, is bereft of any camouflage or unit markings. Besides several shells, this particular version comes with fully-painted 1:35 scale renditions of Adolf Hitler and his Minister of Armaments, Albert Speer. Bear in mind that although production has commenced for this particular version of the Sturmtiger, the vehicle may or may not appear by year’s end due to logistics issues. Based upon previous experience, it will likely show up sometime in early 2021. No word concerning the other two vehicles in the series or when they will become available.

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Calibre Wings Debuts Images of its Upcoming F-16

Calibre Wing’s 1:72 scale USAF General Dynamics F-16C Block 50D Fighting Falcon Fighter – 91-0353, 77th Fighter Squadron “The Gamblers”, Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina

We’ve been a fan of Calibre Wings ever since their inception, silently rooting on the underdog who’s been fighting for its fair share of marketing and shelf space for several years running. That said, the manufacturer has at last unveiled images of their upcoming F-16 multi-role fighters, one clad in Hellenic markings and representing a F-16D Block 52 aircraft, the other draped in US insignia and replicating an older F-16C Block 50 warbird.

Calibre Wings’ 1:72 scale Hellenic General Dynamics F-16D Block 52 Fighting Falcon Fighter – 91353, 337 Squadron “Ghost”, Larissa Air Base, Greece [Low-Vis Scheme]

Both aircraft are likely due out before year’s end, thus capping off a very successful year for this dynamic upstart. Priced at $149.99 apiece, we believe these models are the ultimate in “Viper” reproductions.

Side-by-side images of the forthcoming pair of F-16 Flying Falcons due out by year’s end

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