Shout Outs

Thanksgiving is Shaping Up to Become Another Fleet Week

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According to our distributor, a brand new squadron of Eaglemoss 1:1100 warships will be leaving port and headed our way around the third week of November. The five warships include Imperial Japanese Navy Shikishima Class Battleship – Shikishima (EMGC30), German Kriegsmarine Bismarck Class Battleship – KMS Tirpitz (EMGC31), Imperial Japanese Navy Kongo Class Battleship – Hiei (EMGC37), Imperial Japanese Navy Taiho Class Aircraft Carrier – Taiho (EMGC41) and Imperial Japanese Navy Mogami Class Heavy Cruiser – Mikuma (EMGC32). With Thanksgiving around the corner, we expect these fleet favorites to sell out quickly.

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The F-35 Takes a Dive, in Pricing

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If you’re a fan of either the Hobby Master or Air Force 1 F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, then you may want to sit up and take notice of the following announcement. Yesterday, we learned that our distributor has dropped the minimum advertised price for the entire Hobby Master and Air Force 1 1:72 scale F-35 catalog to just $49.99 apiece, which, in some instances, equates to an almost 50% price drop from a high of almost $85. No reason was give for the huge price decrease ahead of the holiday season, so we assume they are just looking to move inventory and provide great value to the aviation collecting community. We’ve lowered our prices accordingly, and will bring in extra inventory to cover any orders that exceed our current stock level.

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News, Rumors and Scuttlebutt

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As we inch ever closer to the holidays, several interesting bits of news seem to have surfaced. For starters, Corgi will no longer be offering a Spring and Winter catalog, as they have done in the past. Instead, they plan to offer one catalog per year, which will be issued in the Spring, likely coinciding with the opening of several International Toy Fairs.

 

Meanwhile, Eaglemoss has indicated that the 1:43 scale Vehicles of the Second World War has reached its conclusion with the release of EM70, a 1939 Mercedes-Benz Gelandewagen Typ 4 (G4) Limousine – Heer, Germany, 1939. The series has done remarkably well for us, so we’re still hoping that they reconsider their decision or perhaps offer a follow-on series of vehicles from other time periods.  Likewise, it looks as if their Warships of the World series may be nearing its own run, as we get closer and closer to issue #80. We’re hoping that they re-release the series with English-translated magazines and packaging, thereby reaching a broader audience of naval enthusiasts. It would be a smart if somewhat more expensive decision on their part, should they look to keep the series afloat and perhaps add more naval subjects.

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New Payment Option: Checkout with Amazon

Amazon Payments

We’ve been approved to begin accepting online payments through Amazon’s “Checkout with Amazon” payment system. You can now pay for your purchases through your Amazon account, or, if you prefer, use PayPal or the four major credit cards (AMEX, VISA, MasterCard, Discover). A “Pay with Amazon” button will appear at the bottom of your shopping cart, which will then take you to your Amazon account and enable you to pay for your purchase through Amazon’s secure wallet. If you have any further questions, feel free to contact us by phone during normal business hours or via email.

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The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

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As we head into the all-important holiday season, several recent developments have surfaced which bears some immediate attention. A couple of new manufacturers have popped up on the radar, which require a closer look by everyone involved. Artitec (http://www.artitec.nl/) is a Netherlands-based manufacturer of kits and pre-built scale models in multiple scales. They have a rather intriguing set of military vehicles offered in both 1:72 and 1:87 scales, many of which have never been seen before. We hope to have more information on their line-up in the weeks to come. In the air, Calibre Wings (http://www.calibrewings.com/) is a new, Singapore-headquartered operation that is currently developing a slew of modern aerobatics replicas as well as a 1:72 scale take on the Grumman F-14 Fleet Defender. Again, more information will follow soon.

On the downside, several eagerly awaited models seem to have slipped in the release schedule. Luft-X is reporting that their next trio of secret weapons of the Luftwaffe have been delayed until February. Likewise, it appears as if Air Force 1’s 1:72 scale B-25 and B-17 may not make it under the Christmas tree, since neither aircraft has yet to be photographed and shown to the public. If anything changes, we will certainly let you know, but right now it appears as if these should be crossed off your holiday wish list.

Lastly, we have altered our shipping model, in an effort to better serve our collecting audience, particularly those customers in the central and western parts of the United States. We are now offering a flat rate shipping cost of just $4.99 to customers residing within the lower 48 states. So, you can order as a few or as many items as you like for only $4.99, and no longer have to worry if your order meets or exceeds the $150 free shipping threshold. This change has already been implemented and we will be updating our shipping graphic shortly. Keep in mind, that orders will be shipped out via the most economical means available to us, so please do not contact us to indicate you need your order to arrive by such-and-such date. The Post Office still offers faster means of shipping, particularly during the hectic holiday season, priced in accordance with their speed-of-delivery. Hopefully, this new shipping model will alleviate back orders, and enable us to ship out product quickly and as cheaply as possible. Note, customers residing outside the Continental US will still have to pay regular shipping rates, based in accordance with live rates provided by the USPS. Also, we have dropped UPS from our carrier options since we no longer use them due to their excessive dimensional rates business model.

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Star Wars: The Force Awakens Merchandise

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As many of you already know, September 4th is when licensed Stars Wars vendors are allowed to discuss details concerning all of the new Star Wars-related merchandise connected with the upcoming feature film, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, scheduled to open on December 18th. As fate would have it, we are headed out-of-town this Friday, so we’re going to have to wait until next week to start listing all of The Force Awakens collectible products we intend to stock. Happily, you can find more information concerning the announcement here: http://www.starwars.com/news/star-wars-the-force-awakens-products-to-arrive-on-force-friday-september-4

Remember, may the Force be with you.

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Google Trusted Store Surveys

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For the astute among you, you may have noticed that we have applied to become a Google Trusted Store, which means added benefits to both you, the customer, as well as us, the merchant. At the conclusion of an online order, a pop-up window will appear similar to the one shown here, which will allow you to submit a survey regarding your overall shopping experience. We would appreciate it if you could take the time out of your busy schedule and rate us for each of the questions posed by Google. High ratings, would, of course, be most welcome!

You can find more information regarding the program here: http://www.google.com/trustedstores/

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How Do You Spell Eagle(mas)?

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Every so often we run into a situation where we get short shipped a few items. In the case of Eaglemoss, we learned today that several items in their partworks line that we had been expecting in the August/September time frame won’t be materializing, chief among them the 1:43 scale Bren Gun Carrier. Likewise, we got short shipped the Studebaker truck in CIAB livery, although we will be able to fill a few orders based upon the date we received them. Our distributor hasn’t given up hope, so there’s still a chance that they will locate another cache of these items, thereby enabling us to fill a few more orders and possibly offer the product up for general sale.

Anyway, one of the lessons learned from this unhappy happenstance is that it pays to submit pre-orders early. We fill orders based upon the date we receive them, in a sense rewarding those customers who place their orders ahead of the product being received rather than dallying on the sidelines waiting for a timely opportunity to arise. Again, by using a credit card, you have nothing to lose since we do not charge you until the merchandise is ready to be shipped out. If you decide to pay by PayPal or use a debit card then that’s a different story, since each brings with it its own set of circumstances discussed in detail on our First-Time User Information page.

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The Museum of American Armor

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In the “duh, we had no idea this was in our backyard department,” we just learned about the existence of The Museum of American Armor. Located on the grounds of Old Bethpage Village, Long Island, right near the American Airpower Museum at Republic Airport, the Museum houses several dozen pieces of military hardware, and recently received a USMC LVT “Buffalo” from the estate of a deceased collector.

The Museum of American Armor in New York www.museumofamericanarmor.org is acquiring a rare World War II era LVT (Landing Vehicle Tracked) “Buffalo” amphibious assault vehicle from Thea Kronlund as part of a joint decision to create a permanent living tribute to her late husband and armor collector, Mr. Kevin Kronlund, and his leadership in keeping alive our nation’s military heritage.

Mrs. Kronlund stated, “On the eve of Kevin’s death the Museum of American Armor acquired his Long Tom cannon and M 4 artillery tractor for the purpose of making it a cornerstone of the museum’s armor collection on Long Island. Over the passage of time the museum has made repeated references to Kevin’s legacy when visitors come to tour their facility. Given that the museum is located within one of the largest veterans populations in the United States and some 35 miles from Manhattan, we thought his LVT would be an appropriate means to create a lasting tribute to Kevin’s legacy that would be appreciated by many.”

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According to their web site, “visitors will walk through the museum’s camouflaged front doors that have been heavily sandbagged similar to the way important bunkers were protected some 70 years ago. Inside, a gift shop and administrative office will occupy a modest amount of space as the bulk of the building will be devoted to the display of some 30 vehicles. Half a dozen times a year, and in coordination with OBVR programming, these vehicles will be presented in the field or on the Village’s country roads as living historians offer displays on WW II tactics.”

For more information about the museum and its semi-regular events, you can visit their web site: http://museumofamericanarmor.com/

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