Hobby Master Conjures Up Several Masterpieces for 2018

Hobby Master’s USAF Boeing F-15C Eagle Multi-Role Fighter – Oregon ANG, 75th Anniversary

Even though we haven’t quite made it to the end of the year, that doesn’t mean several manufacturers aren’t already looking ahead to the following year to ply their craft. In the case of Hobby Master, the Company has announced several new items for a May/June release, upping their game in the process and further cementing their role in the aviation market.

As you can see by the accompanying illustration, Hobby Master feels it can finally address some of the more intricate patterns that adorn a number of aircraft, tackling some of the more difficult camouflage patterns as well as some of the more detailed artwork. This particular scheme was employed by the Oregon Air National Guard on their F-15Cs in 2016. Further down-the-road, we will likely see some of the beautiful patterns the Japanese Air Self Defense Forces apply to their F-15s, as well as a number of mottling camouflage patterns that were used on the Luftwaffe’s night fighters.

In any event, we have listed all of the latest Hobby Master aircraft announced yesterday and expect others to be added as we near the New Year!

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Lots of Goodies Still Rolling in this December and Beyond

Solido’s 1:72 scale German Sd. Kfz. 9 Famo Prime Mover and 88mm FLak Gun

We’re just weeks away from laying out the cookies and milk for Santa, but there’s still lots of stocking stuffers rolling in through out the month. Yesterday, we received a number of new Star Trek standard-sized starships as well as the Aventine, a highly coveted starship that came about because of an online petition and offered in limited numbers at the recent Comic Con convention in New York City.

Also expected this month are the second wave of War Master products developed for Solido, a restock of the TSM carrier deck, the December installment of Hobby Master aircraft, a handful of new Wings of the Great War pieces, several new Modelcollect weapons carriers, and, hopefully, a restock of their V-1 buzz bomb and launch ramp.

Looking ahead into January, expect the next to last wave of Eaglemoss Warships of the World warships, a number of new Eaglemoss Star Trek star ships, the Luft-X Haunebu flying saucer, the next pair of Calibre Wings F-14 Tomcats, and a wide range of other eagerly anticipated products. Save your hard-earned coin because there’s still lots to drool over as Santa makes his rounds!

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The Motor Pool’s 15% Off Winter Sale!

The bells are jingling, the trees are glistening, and, best of all, its the start of our annual Happy Holidays sale. From now until Wednesday, December 20th, you can take 15% off of any item we have in stock simply by entering our latest coupon code at the bottom of your shopping cart just prior to final checkout. Please enter discount code “TMP173” in the coupon box just prior to final checkout. Note: The following lines are excluded from this promotional offer: Air Force 1, Calibre Wings, Hobby Master, Luft-X and Wings of the Great War. Sale ends midnight, Wednesday, December 20th, 2017. May not be combined with any other sales discount.

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Boldly Adventure on the Aventine!

Eaglemoss’ Star Trek Federation Vesta Class Starship – USS Aventine NCC-82602

As promised, we now have a cache of the convention exclusive Star Trek starship, the USS Aventine. For those unfamiliar with the starship, the USS Aventine is a first generation Vesta-class starship that was commissioned in 2380 and was the second starship of her class to be completed. Originally commanded by Captain Dexar, command of the Aventine was given to Lieutenant Commander – and subsequently promoted to Captain – Ezri Dax after Captain Dexar and his First Officer, Commander Tovak were killed in combat with a Borg Sphere near Acamar. The Second Officer took command of the ship and was able to get it to safety. Two weeks later, Lieutenant Commander Dax was promoted to Captain and given permanent command.

The ship comes bundled with a full-color collector magazine, and has been eagerly sought after ever since it surfaced at the recent Comic-Con convention in New York. This one will likely sell out fast, so place your orders as soon as possible to guarantee delivery before the holidays.

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Dragon’s Fire Tamed: 3.SS and the Campaign in the Donbas

Dragon’s 1:72 scale German Sd. Kfz. 161 PzKpfw IV Ausf. G Medium Tank – 7.Panzer Regiment “Totenkopf”, 3.SS Panzer Grenadier Division “Totenkopf”, Kharkov, Russia, 1943

Maybe its appropriate that Dragon’s newest pair of 1:72 scale armored releases make it to market during the winter time frame. Just in time for the holidays and available for immediate shipping are two flocked Panzer IVs – the first, a German Sd. Kfz. 161 PzKpfw IV Ausf. G Medium Tank – 7.Panzer Regiment “Totenkopf”, 3.SS Panzer Grenadier Division “Totenkopf”, Kharkov, Russia, 1943 (DRR60699), the second, a restock of a German Sd. Kfz. 161 PzKpfw IV Ausf. G Medium Tank – 7.Panzer Regiment “Totenkopf”, 3.SS Panzer Grenadier Division “Totenkopf”, Kharkov, Russia, 1943 (DRR60700).The second tank has been out-of-stock for several months, so we’re excited to have it back in our armored stable for the holiday rush.

Dragon’s 1:72 scale German Sd. Kfz. 161 PzKpfw IV Ausf. G Medium Tank – 7.Panzer Regiment “Totenkopf”, 3.SS Panzer Grenadier Division “Totenkopf”, Kharkov, Russia, 1943

All things being equal, both items are beautiful pieces, perhaps some of the nicest tracked warriors to come out of the Dragon factory in some time.

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The Fleet’s In!

Forces of Valor’s 1:700 scale German Kriegsmarine Bismarck Class Battleship – DKM Tirpitz, Norwegian Fjords, 1944

Admittedly, the second wave of warships from Forces of Valor took a bit of time languishing at sea before reaching our port of call. Now that they are in, however, we’re sure you’ll be delighted by the finished product. Four warships make up the second task force including the German battleship Tirpitz (FOV861005A), the British battleship HMS Hood (FOV861002A), the Japanese super battleship Yamato (FOV861004A) and, of course, the US battleship USS Missouri (FOV861003A), where the peace treaty between the Empire of Japan and the Allies was signed in Tokyo Bay. Like the first set of warships received earlier, each of these fine replicas are seated within a faux sea wave blister and come packaged in an attractive five-panel outer display box that explains the features of each ship. Best of all, each warship comes bundled with a handsome display plinth that features the name of the ship etched on a metallic name plate along side the ship’s crest. Get them while you can for the holidays!

Forces of Valor’s 1:700 US Navy Iowa Class Battleship – USS Missouri (BB-63), Signing of the Japanese Surrender, Tokyo Bay, 1945
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The Motor Pool’s 20% Off Cyber Week Sale!

Its our biggest and best sale ever! From now until Sunday, December 5th, you can take a whopping 20% off of any item we have in stock simply by entering our latest coupon code at the bottom of your shopping cart just prior to final checkout. Please enter discount code “TMP172” in the coupon box just prior to final checkout. Note: The following lines are excluded from this promotional offer: Air Force 1, Calibre Wings, Hobby Master, Luft-X and Wings of the Great War. Sale ends midnight, Sunday, December 3rd, 2017. May not be combined with any other sales discount.

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Hollywood, Here We Come!

New inductees into the world of diecast military vehicles often times ask us how they are meant to be displayed. Standard answers include curio cabinets, atop credenzas or, if you so desire, used for miniature wargaming. Of course, should you have the wherewithal at film making, there’s always stop motion video, thereby enabling you to depict your very own battles.

One resourceful if budding film maker did just that, creating a nearly four minute take on how the Battle of the Bulge was fought. Its not clear where he obtained all of the vehicles shown in the film (hopefully some from us), but his creation boasts all sorts of slugfests, complete with pyrotechnics and even a couple of stand-ins thrown in for good measure. Enjoy!

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Calibre Wings Looks Ahead to 2018 with their Fencer

Ordinarily, with the holiday rush in full swing, we tend to add blog posts that have something to do with products currently available. This year we are making an exception, largely to help newcomer Calibre Wings get some traction as we enter the new year and put them on a more equal footing with some of the more entrenched players.

Earlier today, the Company release several first test shots for their upcoming 1:72 scale Sukhoi Su-24 “Fencer” attack aircraft. While unpainted and still showing areas where plastic is being used as opposed to metal, the imagery does give collectors an idea as to how far along they are with this project as well as their commitment to quality and craftsmanship. Noel Lee, managing director for Calibre Wings, also had this to say about their newest tooling:

1) There will be air intake covers and nozzle covers, these will be made from soft PVC.

2) The pitot tube looks bent because the PVC used during this test shot was too soft. We may change the pitot tube to a hard plastic if the subsequent harder PVC still proves to be unsatisfactory.
Due to the length of the pitot tube, it may not hold the shape very well if it was not a straight forward hard plastic. But I am trying to have it PVC, to prevent any accidental breakage.

3) The ordnance will be shown later since at this point of the test shot, the “giove vane” (if I got the term right) pylon is not yet adhered due to the lack of mounting holes on the underside of the model.

4) You can see clearly the differential between the M & MR versions on our test shot, which was previously not visible during the Nuremberg prototype.

5) The wings are sagging at the moment, again, due to the 1st test shot, there are areas that supports the wing that is not yet enough filled with material.

6) The ejection seat is wrongly sized and will be re-done to be made taller to fit the seated pilot

7) We are considering the use of magnets to adhere the landing gear “cartridges” (gear down and gear up) instead of using press fit.

8) The removal of the air intake covers requires the removal of the entire front section of the air intake piece.

9) The canopy will be provided as separate pieces for open position and closed position. This is due to constraint for having a more uni-body front fuselage and hence there is no space for assembly of a movable canopy.

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Time to Bomb the Reich this Holiday Season

Corgi’s 1:72 scale USAAF Boeing B-17G-35-VE Flying Fortress Heavy Bomber – “Little Miss Mischief”, 324th Bomb Squadron, 91st Bomb Group “Ragged Irregulars”, Bassingbourn, England, 1944

In year’s past, we would have given our eye teeth for a cache of B-17 Flying Fortresses to sell during the Christmas rush. Easily one of the most popular warbirds of the Second World War, B-17s seem to hold a special place in the hearts of aviation enthusiasts, so long as the replica is accurate, affordable and available when the holidays roll around. This year, it appears as if Santa has answered our prayers with no less than three 1:72 scale Boeing B-17 bombers, all ready to be nestled under the Christmas tree with some room to spare.

Earlier today, we were informed by Corgi that “Little Miss Mischief” (AA33316), their latest and greatest rendition of the Flying Fortress, was being shipped out to us and is scheduled to arrive at our base of operations the last week of November.

Air Force 1’s 1:72 scale USAAF Boeing B-17G-30-BO Flying Fortress Heavy Bomber – “Nine-O-Nine”, 323rd Bomb Squadron, 91st Bomb Group, Bassingbourn, England, 1944

Of course, we’ve also been selling the heck out of Air Force 1’s second rendition of the B-17, “Nine O Nine” (AF10110A), a more affordable version of the B-17 that does it justice from any number of vantage points. Happily, the Company also managed to scrounge up some of the first B-17s they released earlier in the year, “A Bit ‘O Lace” (AF10110). So while we would ordinarily be content to hawk at least one B-17 during the holidays, this year we have a trio ready for shipping, making 2017 a bumper year for the illustrious Flying Fortress.

Air Force 1’s 1:72 scale USAAF Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress Heavy Bomber – “A Bit O’ Lace”, 709th Bombardment Squadron, 447th Bombardment Group, Rattlesden, Norfolk, April 1945
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