With the holidays nearly upon us, we just wanted to take a moment and wish all of our customers and their families a very Happy Hannukah and a Merry Christmas. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for making this another joyous year at The Motor Pool and we hope you continue to stop by our stores into the New Year! There’s lots more ahead!
Even though it might have made more sense to unveil it earlier in the season, the USPS announced yesterday that it has created a free smart phone app that heightens the experience of giving and receiving a gift that comes packed inside a USPS Priority Mail box.
“The Postal Service is offering a free app for smartphones that aims to build excitement among customers who send and receive Priority Mail boxes during the holidays.” said the Postal Times.
“Customers who send a gift inside a Priority Mail box can use the app to send a personalized multimedia greeting to the recipient. The messages let the recipient know that a package is on its way. Recipients can also use the app to send the customer a holiday-themed thank-you message.
“Our app adds that special touch by delivering cheer when mailing and receiving holiday gifts via Priority Mail,” said Chief Customer and Marketing Officer James Cochrane.
The app is available on the Postal Service’s DeliverCheer.com holiday site, which has downloading instructions. The site also allows customers to buy stamps, order free boxes, schedule a free package pickup, find Post Office and collection box locations and determine mailing dates.”
We routinely get asked why we leave items up on our site when they are no longer available. Frankly, there is any number of reasons, from acting as points of reference should someone look to collect an entire range that may be available elsewhere to the oft chance that some of these items will return to stock. In the latter case, two long sold out items were recently uncovered by one of our distributors, who is now making them available for a limited time only. Both are from Dragon’s Can.Do series of pocket miniatures, which although small at 1:144 scale still pack plenty of punch in terms of beauty and collectability.
Expected some time in January are the King Tiger heavy tank series (CAN20020) and the equally handsome Jagdpanther heavy tank destroyer series (CAN20019). We aren’t sure if more products in the Can.Do range will be unearthed, but its nice to know that every so often some hard-to-find items make it back into the mainstream market, even if its for a limited time.
Back in September, we learned that radio-controlled vehicle manufacturer, Waltersons, had acquired the entire Forces of Valor product portfolio from the previous owner, Unimax. Since then, word has been sketchy about when the first products will hit the street so we thought it prudent to share what we know about the proposed line now before the year closes out. Best you play the accompanying musical video as you read what follows:
The first quartet of 1:24 scale radio controlled vehicles are now expected some time in early January 2017, barring any issues with customs, inventories, the Mad Hatter, and so on. The first four vehicles include the Tiger I heavy tank, PzKpfw IV medium tank, M4A3 Sherman tank and T-34/85 medium tank, each boasting new features which make them incompatible with the previously released vehicles offered by Unimax. The remaining four vehicles in the line (M26 Pershing tank, M1A1 Abrams tank, MLRS and King Tiger heavy tank) are already being re-developed and will likely come to market some time in the Spring. A 1:16 scale tank has been hinted at, which could be the T-72 tank shown in our Waltersons R/C section or it could be an entirely new vehicle. Figure packs are also being created.
The first batch of 1:32 scale static vehicles and 1:700 scale warships, based upon previously released models by Unimax, are being crafted with updated packaging and some minor improvements where applicable, such as new road wheels for the Tiger I tank and an improved display plinth for the warships, all of which will likely be released in early 2017. Our guess is that a formal announcement will be made at the Nuremberg Toy Fair held in Germany in February. At that time, we should also get a better idea as to which new products are being worked on for the rest of the year, even though several have already been hinted at by the manufacturer on Facebook. Moreover, expect several other retreads to be launched later in the year, modified, where deemed appropriate, to bring them up to today’s standards.
So, that’s it in a nutshell. Everything currently is still in a state of flux and we ask for everyone’s patience during this transitional period. Good things are in store for 2017, including a new 1:16 scale Tiger I heavy tank, we just need everyone to relax and remain focused as they once again build out their Forces of Valor collection. Enjoy!
Follow Up: We’ve been in touch with the principals at Unimax who inform us that they will be attending the upcoming American International Toy Fair held each year at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City in February. At that time, we’ll have a better idea as to where they are headed in both the short- and long term, and hopefully take photos of anything on display. Additionally, the Company provided some details concerning their expanding warship series, which will boast the following 1:700 aircraft carriers: PLAAN LiaoNing aircraft carrier, British HMS Invincible and USN Kitty Hawk (CV-63). All three are pretty far along in their production, so they will likely be released in early 2017.
Our distributor reports that several long out-of-stock bombers and other big wing aircraft from Amercom should returning to store shelves by year’s end, hopefully in time for the holidays.
Most are 1:144 scale, with a smattering of the larger aircraft available in 1:200 scale. All are budget priced at just $19.99 and lend themselves towards making great stocking stuffers for the holiday season.
Beginning November 1st and running through December 20th, The Motor Pool offers expanded telephone support for anyone wishing to place an order by phone or require product information. This expanded service runs seven days a week from 8AM-8PM EST. Of course you may still place your order online or contact us via email at your leisure.
We’ve passed the first hurdle in becoming a member of Walmart’s growing Walmart Marketplace retail superstore. Similar in concept to Amazon’s third-party retail channel, which enables merchants to sell their goods through Amazon, it will allow us to reach an ever widening group of people that may not be familiar with us, our product selection or the hobby at large. Like most online ventures, it’s a somewhat complex system to learn and gain familiarity with, particularly during the hectic fourth quarter, so its entirely possible that we may not launch this new retail channel until the beginning of 2017. We will likely start out slowly with a few products to get up to speed, then begin to expand as we become comfortable with their way of doing business.
I remember several years ago when analysts the world over began decrying the tank, citing its vulnerabilities on the modern battlefield from both Man-Portable (MANPAD) and Air-to-Ground ordnance. If that’s true, then someone better tell all the world’s military forces since they still seem to be cranking them out in anticipation of a potential cataclysmic engagement somewhere in Europe.
Recently, Turkey unveiled its first indigenously-built main battle tank dubbed the Altay. Not be confused with the Altaya brand of diecast collectibles, the Altay is a 3+ generation main battle tank (part of the MİTÜP (Milli Tank Üretimi Projesi, English: National Tank Production Project)) designed and developed by Otokar of Turkey for the Turkish Army and export markets. It is named in honor of Army General Fahrettin Altay (1880–1974) who commanded the 5th Cavalry Corps in the final stage of the Turkish War of Independence. In fact this naming is just a diversion that is indeed causing from the name of the race of turkic nations,Altay.
Meanwhile, Italy debuted its newest tank destroyer, the Centuaro II, at this year’s Eurosatory exhibition. Resembling its previous incarnation, the Centauro, the latest Centauro armored vehicle represents a new stage in the evolution of the storied Centauro 105 and 120mm armored vehicle, the first 8×8 wheeled antitank vehicle in the world with a high-pressure gun.
As regards mobility in particular, the power-to-weight ratio, increased to 24 HP/tonne, provides unequalled performance in terms of speed and acceleration thanks to the new-generation IVECO engine, offering more than 720 HP, and to the associated modernization of the transmission, braking system and control electronics.
The digital tyre pressure control (CTIS), allied with run-flat systems, the new suspension and the low nominal ground pressure allow the new Centauro armored vehicle to extricate itself from any type of terrain.
We reported last year how Poland is also developing a main battle tank, which bears a futuristic appearance that seems more at home on the battlefield of Call of Duty than it does against some of the latest weaponry it could face.
The idea of the PL-01 is to try and eliminate the infrared, radar and visual signature of the traditional tank to a large degree, while also relying on guile to take identity masking a step further. In addition, the PL-01 concept aims at bringing to market a tank packed with relevant modern features, many of which already exist off the shelf, while others are still on the developmental horizon.
The vast majority of targeting sensors on the battlefield today rely on the infrared band of the electromagnetic spectrum to do their bidding. The PL-01 attempts its almost magical infrared signature reduction via the installation of temperature controlled wafers that blanket its exterior. This chameleon’s skin of sorts, allows the tank’s skin to match the infra-red signature of its surroundings. It does this by processing what small infrared sensors mounted around the tank detect, and then displays a pattern on the tank’s honeycomb-like covering that best matches the infrared data collected.
As a result, the tank all but disappears to infrared sensors. Even more outstanding, these wafers can also be used like pixels, as each can be manipulated in temperature. This allows for the tank to use active infrared camouflage, such as tiger striping its infrared signature in the jungle, or making it flat like the sand in the desert. The PL-01 also lowers its infrared signature through cooling and dispersing the exhaust from its 940 hp diesel engine.
Hopefully, each of these new weapons of war will be replicated for the diecast military market.
In case you missed it, the final trailer for the upcoming feature film, Star Wars: Rogue One, was debuted this morning. Rogue One is the first in a new series of anthology films that do not directly follow the path of the Star Wars films but rather diverge a bit but are still set within the familiar Star Wars universe. The setting for this first film occurs just prior to Star Wars: A New Hope, released way back in 1977, and takes place prior to the attack and subsequent destruction of the first Death Star. Arch nemesis Darth Vader makes a return performance, voiced by none other than James Earl Jones. Look for the film to open on December 16th.
According to a report published by Popular Mechanics, Lockheed-Martin won a contract valued at $147 million to develop, build, field and test a Mach 20 capable weapons system that could strike a target anywhere around the world in less than an hour. The goal, it goes on to say, “is to create a high-speed delivery system that could bomb targets thousands of miles away in an hour or less. It’s similar to what other countries, including Russia and China, are working on.
Tactical Boost Glide (TBG) will be an air-launched boost glide weapon system. The TBG itself is a aerodynamic, arrowhead-shaped vehicle fitted on the nose of a rocket. The rocket in turn is carried by a large aircraft such as a B-52 bomber, which would carry the rocket to high altitude and then launch it. The rocket boosts TBG to an even higher altitude, whereupon a scramjet or ramjet kicks in and quickly accelerates it up to hypersonic speeds. TBG then glides unpowered the rest of the way to the target.
How fast will TBG go? A nearly identical program concluded in 2011 reached speeds of Mach 20. At that speed, a hypersonic vehicle could travel from New York City to Los Angeles in 12 minutes, or London to Sydney in 49 minutes.
Hypersonic is the next frontier in weaponry. The super-fast speeds could make it possible to destroy a faraway but time-critical target—say, a North Korean missile fueling on the launch pad or a terrorist meeting in a remote location. Hypersonic speed also makes interception very difficult—and makes the actual vehicle a weapon when the kinetic energy of an object traveling at Mach 20 is transferred to a target.
Boost glide systems are difficult to shoot down. Their high speeds reduce reaction times, giving the defender less time to respond to the incoming threat. The launch profile of boost glide weapons is much like a traditional ballistic missile but stops short of entering low-earth orbit. This makes them tricky targets for existing, slower-moving interceptor missiles.
According to Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which awarded the contract, Tactical Boost Glide will build on “knowledge and lessons learned from development and flight testing of previous boost glide systems, including the Hypersonic Technology Vehicle 2.” HTV-2 was that previous Mach 20 hypersonic program that last flew in 2011 for nine minutes. The stress of flying at Mach 20 subjected it to shockwaves one hundred times what it was designed to endure, as well as temperatures of up to 3,500 degrees Fahrenheit, before it was intentionally ditched in the Pacific Ocean.
Hypersonic weapons are also the next arms race. China is working on its own hypersonic weapon, the DF-ZF, which uses a DF-21 intermediate range ballistic missile instead of TBG’s bomber and rocket system. DF-ZF has been tested seven times, the latest in April 2016, with six tests judged by outsiders as successes. China’s hypersonic weapon travels at a more modest Mach 5 to Mach 10. The Russian Yu-71 system has been tested five times, with four failures.”
Obviously, such a system would be unmanned since it is inconceivable that a man could survive traveling at such incredible speeds while transiting low-earth orbit. And, if the vehicle is designed as an all-inclusive kinetic energy weapons system, then it would mean that the pilot was forfeiting his life in the process of carrying out the mission, perhaps other competing nations are willing to pay if they have similar systems in mind that are traveling at less stressful speeds, as PM suggests.
Of course, all of this falls under the purview of the recently announced doctrine dubbed Prompt Global Strike and flies in the face of MAD (Mutual Assured Destruction), first put forth in the 1950s and obviating the need for huge atomic arsenals. Prompt Global Strike (PGS) is a United States military effort to develop a system that can deliver a precision-guided conventional weapon airstrike anywhere in the world within one hour, in a similar manner to a nuclear ICBM. Such a weapon would allow the United States to respond far more swiftly to rapidly emerging threats than is possible with conventional forces. A PGS system could also be useful during a nuclear conflict, potentially replacing the use of nuclear weapons against 30% of targets. The PGS program encompasses numerous established and emerging technologies, including conventional surface-launched missiles and air- and submarine-launched hypersonic missiles, although no specific PGS system has yet been finalized as of 2015.
