Waltersons, the owners of the Forces of Valor brand, today indicated that a new shipment is leaving China in early December and, their words not ours, will hopefully arrive at their facility in late December. Frankly, we have our doubts that this shipment will make it to us before the holidays. We reach this decision based upon previous experience with this manufacturer together with logistical issues that will likely conspire to delay its arrival, perhaps into the New Year. We wish we had better news to pass along and, as you might imagine, we do not know if we will have to reroute this shipment so that it is sent to Florida instead of New York should further delays complicate things.

According to the manufacturer, the latest shipment will contain more of the initial Tiger I tank painted in a winter camouflage scheme along with their new Jumbo Sherman. Their Sherman with the Duplex Drive is not expected to be included in this shipment and instead will likely reach fruition in early 2023. This also applies to their soon-to-be-released trio of 1:72 scale P-40 fighters along with both the waterline and full draught versions of their Yamato battleship. I know this comes as disappointing news to a great many of you but here again we play no part in getting product made, shipped out of China or distributed here in North America. If you are looking to give any of these three items as a gift I would strongly suggest choosing a different product that is currently listed as being in stock. Keep in mind too that with our clearance sale kicking off on Monday, the 28th, our remaining stocks of Forces of Valor products will almost certainly sell out quickly.

Update: This email was received from the owner of Waltersons on December 3rd. “Our recent shipment has just been loaded on the vessel yesterday, and it was supposed to occur 5 days ago, however, our factory district got locked down for almost a week. Until 2 days ago, every lock down policy was dramatically lifted. With that said, I think the arrival date to the US will probably be after Xmas, so I think its better if we ship to the Florida facility.”

To borrow a catchphrase from HBO’s award-winning series, Game of Thrones, we finally received our opening allotment of Forces of Valor’s latest Tiger tank. Unfortunately, this new supplier could only send us a grand total of twelve pieces, which means we cannot even cover all of the pre-orders we’ve received to date, much less list the item for open sale in our store or any of our marketplace sites. We’ve placed a back up order with another distributor who will hopefully be able to fill our order for the holidays. If not, we will likely receive our next order after we have completed our relocation move to Florida. We apologize for not having more on hand but sometimes these issues are completely out of our control. On the plus side, we do have their 1:200 scale interlocking aircraft carrier set in stock, their inaugural 1:32 scale Tiger tank model kit, as well as a trio of 1:72 scale Spitfires. All have been listed as being available on both our site as well as on eBay. As I alluded to earlier, winter is coming, although it may be a tad late for their newest Tiger.

We’re still keeping our fingers crossed that both of their forthcoming Sherman tanks will be here for the holidays. Admittedly, it doesn’t help that we have to knock on the door of multiple distributors to see what news they can share about the Shermans’ fate. We’ve submitted our opening order with our more reliable source and await to news concerning when the ranks will show up.

Incoming items addressed, the manufacturer has started to hint at what’s ahead for 2023. Before they closed up shop several years ago, Unimax, the previous owner of the Forces of Valor brand, had been working on a 1:72 scale F-16 Viper. Waltersons picked up the gauntlet and has finished the mold, adding a few bells and whistles along the way to enable it to better compete with similar models produced by Hobby Master, Calibre Wings and JC Wings. For one the nose cone can be opened via a hinge, which exposes a fully fleshed out radar. Items such as a cockpit access ladder, differing engine nozzles, engine and instrumentation covers and a full complement of weaponry are apparently now standard, as is a section of paved runway. The maker claims that both a standard as well as deluxe version of the F-16 will be offered, although it isn’t clear what changes/additions will be made to the model to further enhance it.

While talk of a Japanese F-2 fighter has also begun — again designed to compete with an existing Hobby Master mold — so too has information slowly leaked out about an upcoming UH-60 Blackhawk, likely offered in multiple configurations, liveries and service markings. The Blackhawk should be a welcome addition to their stable of combat rotorcraft, although we’re not certain if its catering to the 1:72 or 1:48 scale markets.

Finally, Waltersons has disclosed that three versions of the USS Kitty Hawk aircraft carrier are being worked on, one for each of the three distinct eras of the Cold War. Apart from some CAD drawings, no photos were provided, which leads us to believe they are still a way’s off and likely to be surged across a staggered schedule, most likely beginning with the 1960-1980 version, although the jury is out debating the release order. Obviously, each version will come with different types of embarked aircraft based upon when they saw service and in which operation the Kitty Hawk took part in.