Panzerkampf 1:72 US M1083 Medium Tactical Vehicle with Gun – Desert Camouflage
We’ve been impressed with the manner in which newcomer Panzerkampf has addressed the military diecast market, both listening to advice given and product unleashed. While other manufacturers seem to have fallen off the radar, Panzerkampf has, to date, released a wide array of ground vehicles, aircraft and helicopters that have both been well received and, just as importantly, sold very well.
We’re in possession of their 2022 catalog, which contains a number of new product introductions both on the ground and in the air, along with their first ever foray on the high seas. Unfortunately, at this time of year, we’re still inundated in orders that have to get out over the next few days in order to make the holiday deadline. And, with 2022 looming, other manufacturers are starting to spill the beans on what’s ahead as they look towards the 2022 toy fairs to hawk their latest wares.
Thus far, we’ve been able to list several of Panzerkampf’s newest introductions, including a Pantsir S-1 antiaircraft weapons system, US M1083 medium tactical vehicle and even a Sea King H6 medium lift helicopter. Over the coming days we hope to have the remaining list of new introductions up on our site and available for pre-order. Naturally, we’ll have actual product imagery up on our site in lieu of these line art drawings once they get posted by the manufacturer. So, don’t be alarmed by how few new items have been added just yet since there’s lots more in the pipeline from this prolific manufacturer.
So, we’ve finally received a bit of good news from our distributor regarding Hobby Master. Turns out the November and December shipments are expected to hit their warehouse early next week. Its also quite likely the September and October shipments will arrive shortly thereafter, perhaps the first week of January. Essentially, this means four months worth of product are scheduled to reach us on or around the same time — we’re guessing the first week of January since there are a couple of holidays in between and the carriers typically take off for a breather based upon their own workload.
Frankly, we’re not sure when everything is going to reach us and in what order, so we’ve lumped together all four months worth of product into our January 2022 release category. Its possible some items might reach us before the end of the year but with all the struggles everyone has had to endure this year, we’re placing our bets on the first week of January. Obviously its going to take us a bit of time to go through everything before we can start shipping out product, updating our web site and our attendant marketplace sites. As a result, we’re asking everyone to please bear with us as we attempt to ascertain when and which products reach us in the next few weeks.
Update: Our distributor informs us that all four months worth of product, which encompasses their September through December shipments, have been received at their Georgia facility. Currently, they are working diligently to sort through everything and will begin shipping out said items to their retail network on December 24th and into the following week. With the holidays upon us, we will likely start to see the fruits of their labors just before New Years. We doubt everything will arrive all at once, so its possible the balance of the shipments will arrive at our New York facility the first week of January. In the meantime, please do not call or send us any messages at this time asking about your pre-orders. They will be filled as product comes in and may be mailed out in multiple shipments. Thank you for your patience.
Corgi 1:72 German Junkers Ju-87B-2 Stuka Dive-Bomber – 3./Sturzkampfgeschwader 2 “Immelmann”, Battle of Moscow, December 1941
Without doubt one of the most instantly recognizable aircraft of the Second World War, the Junkers Ju-87 Stuka may not have been the most effective strike aircraft to see combat during the conflict, but it was certainly one of the most feared. Capable of providing strategic, precision bombing support for advancing Wehrmacht ground units, the Stuka heralded the coming of war and as such, had been designed specifically to instill fear and confusion into enemy troops and the terrified population at large. Attaching a wailing siren, known as the ‘Jericho Trumpet’, to one of the undercarriage spats on the Stuka’s airframe, only served to enhance the reputation of this aircraft, with its distinctive gull wings coming to represent the fearsome manifestation of Blitzkrieg! Although the Stuka had been found to be vulnerable against the modern fighters of the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain, it would go on to play a significant role during Operation Barbarossa, where its precision strikes were used to clear a path for advancing ground units along the vast front line.
This 3./StG.2 Stuka wears the standard camouflage of Black/green and Dark green over light blue, but has a roughly applied winter distemper to give it additional protection whilst operating during winter conditions. It also features a representation of gaping mouth artwork over the air cooler and above, which is described as ‘Ghost Bones’, making this one of the most distinctive Stukas to serve on the Eastern Front.
Corgi 1:72 German Messerschmitt Bf 109G-6 “Gustav” Fighter – Black Double Chevron ‘Mickey Mouse’, Hptm. Horst Carganico, CO II./Jagdgeschwader 5 “Eismeer”, Pskow South Airfield, Soviet Union, Early 1944
Born in Silesia in October 1917, Horst Carganico was already a pilot with Jagdgeschwader 1 at the outbreak of WWII and would see his first combat action against the RAF whilst flying from Luftwaffe bases in Norway. Despite this, it would be on the Eastern Front where Carganico would have his greatest success as a fighter pilot, taking an active part in Operation Barbarossa and claiming at least 20 aerial victories by the end of September 1941. In the six weeks from the beginning of April 1942, he would go on a scoring run which would see him claiming a further 23 victories, but as Soviet fighter effectiveness began to improve steadily during the year, he would not have everything his own way. On two separate occasions, he would be brought down over Soviet territory following combat with the VVS (Soviet Air Force), luckily managing to evade capture and return to his unit both times.
Carganico was known for adding his personal “Mickey Mouse’ emblem to the majority of the Messerschmitt fighters he flew, including the rather elaborate example which adorned this II./Jagdgeschwader.5 machine, which surely made this one of the most distinctive fighters on the Eastern Front. He would survive the savage fighting in the East only to be killed in May 1944 whilst engaged in combat with USAAF fighters over Saint-Dizier – attempting a forced landing in his damaged aircraft, the fighter struck high tension cables and crashed. Carganico posted an impressive combat record of 60 confirmed victories from a total mission count of around 600 sorties, mainly on the Eastern Front.
Corgi 1:72 German Junkers Ju 88A-5 Medium-Bomber – F1+AS, 8./Kampfgeschwader 76, Orscha, Russia, December 1941
As arguably the most versatile German aircraft of the Second World War, Luftwaffe Junkers Ju-88 units were probably the most capable strike assets they had available at the start of Operation Barbarossa and they would be used extensively throughout the campaign. During the opening attack in the early hours of June 22nd, 1941, hand-picked, experienced Ju-88 crews were sent as pathfinders to ‘light up’ the Soviet airfields closest to the western edge of the invasion, illuminating targets for the main attack force which followed just minutes later. Immediately returning to their bases, they were refuelled and loaded with standard bombs, so they could head back to the target airfields and participate in the rout of the Soviet Air Force. In other sectors, the Ju-88s of KGs 76 and 77 reported the inexplicable loss of several experienced crews, losses which have since been attributed to friendly fire incidents during the melee of the initial attacks.
As the German invasion gathered momentum, Ju-88 units would be constantly employed in attacking Soviet airfields ahead of ground units, but would also become extremely proficient at targeting Soviet troop and armor concentrations which were threatening the flanks of advancing German columns. This attractive 8./KG.76 Ju-88 came down behind German lines during the early winter of 1941, probably due to engine trouble, as it was later recovered and returned to operational condition. Looking resplendent in its winter whitewash, it also features the distinctive wasp emblem of the unit on its front fuselage.
All three Corgi 1:72 scale Vorrucken nach Norden (Advance to the North) aircraft are now in stock and ready for immediate shipment.
Corgi 1:48 Royal Flying Corps Bristol F2B Fighter – D8084/S, “Charlie Chaplin”, Capt. Sydney Dalrymple and 2/Lt. G. Beagle, RAF No.139 Squadron, Villaverla Aerodrome, Italy, August 1918
Great War Australian ace pilot, Captain Sydney Dalrymple, transferred to the newly formed No.139 Squadron at Villaverla in Italy during the summer of 1918, where he would be flying the Bristol fighter in an armed reconnaissance role. At this stage of the war, Dalrymple only had a single aerial victory to his name, however, this was gained while flying the Martinsyde G100 ‘Elephant’, an aircraft which gained its nickname due to its size and ungainly flying characteristics. Early operations with the Bristol fighter in Italy proved disappointing, as the aircraft were initially flown in a similar manner to the much maligned BE2c, flying straight and level to allow the observer to take his pictures.
Indeed, the squadron had lost three crews in action during this period and only switched to flying the aircraft much more aggressively following the arrival of famous ace, William Barker, as their new Commanding Officer, who understood the fighting qualities of this effective multi-role aircraft. On August 8th, 1918, Dalrymple and his gunner, 2/Lt. G Beagle, used Bristol F2B Fighter D-8084 to shoot down two Aviatik D.1 Berg fighters near Caldonazzo during the same mission and would dispatch two Albatros D.IIIs on September 13th flying a different Bristol. Now officially an ‘Ace’ pilot, Dalrymple was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross on November 1st, 1918. Bristol F2B Fighter D-8084 was unusual in that it carried the “Charlie Chaplin” artwork on the port side engine cowling.
Corgi AA28802 is now in stock and ready for immediate shipment.
AFV British Valentine Mk. III Infantry Tank – 8th Royal Tank Regiment, 7th Armoured Brigade, Libya, November 1941
The Armored Fighting Vehicles of World War II line is back on track, now that the holiday season is fast coming to an end and production has resumed in Asia. We’ve done some shuffling around and the next six vehicles in the range are currently up on our site and available for pre-order. Currently, the next batch of vehicles are slated to arrive in the May/June time frame, although this could slip if issues related to the global supply chain have not been remedied. Moreover, there has been a slight bump up in the price to $39.99. Still, considering their weight, size, features and overall appearance, the line represents great value. When compared with Corgi’s smaller 1:72 scale vehicles now selling for $74.99 or Forces of Valor’s 1:32 scale series pegged at $89.99-$129.99, the AFV series speaks for itself and offers many vehicles that are simply not available elsewhere from any manufacturer.
One final note. If you pre-ordered any of these items at $34.99 we will still honor this price once your order is ready to be shipped. Any future orders will, however, be set at the revised price of $39.99. Our original goal was to release six vehicles every sixty days. Obviously both the pandemic and disruption in the world wide logistical network has altered things somewhat.
In a related announcement, we will soon be unveiling an all-new series dubbed Warships of World War II. Imagination notwithstanding, this new series offers up a wide assortment of diecast preassembled battleships and aircraft carriers that sailed the seven seas during the second world war. Each is scaled at 1:1250 and five warships have made the initial cut with more due to put into port in the coming year. Enjoy!
So, as some of you may know, we purchased a new home in Florida back in April, with construction beginning in a week or two. Barring any issues with the build, we hope to move in sometime this summer, likely in July, if everything goes according to plan and all of the materials arrive as advertised instead of sitting in the belly of some cargo ship. As a result, we will likely have to start packing up our belongings as well as our inventory in June and postpone any new inbound shipments until such time as we can accept their delivery in Florida. That said, we will likely run an inventory reduction sale beginning in May which will run for the entire month, possibly increasing any discount by an added percentage each week in an effort to reduce our physical footprint both here and in Florida, thereby lessening the amount of merchandise we have to transport 1,500 miles. We will discuss this in greater detail as we get a better idea if the move is going according to plan. One final thought. By moving to Florida, I guess it means I’ll have to start taking up pickleball, dining at 4PM and driving by staring through the steering wheel instead of over it. Ah, the price we pay not to have to shovel snow anymore…
In other news, we have begun introducing “pricing uniformity” across all of our categories. In keeping with our philosophy of leaving sold out items up on our web site purely as a means of reference, we also realized that this created a bit of confusion in terms of pricing. For instance, we sold some of the earliest Hobby Master A-10 Warthogs for around $50 back in the late 2000s but the latest versions are commanding prices of around $115. So, we’ve raised the prices on the earliest releases to conform with today’s prices all in an effort to demonstrate how their value has likely appreciated over the years. In point of fact, many of the early releases are fetching even higher prices than current market prices so please take these new prices with a grain of salt. Again, it does not mean we have them in stock, but if we did, we would be selling them at today’s prices since they are, after all, limited edition collectibles that are highly sought after world wide.
With the holiday shopping season in full stride, Hobby Master seized the opportunity to announce their release schedule for August of 2022, which, as they like to do, covers just about every era and scale they offer up. Of particular note is their first ever Lockheed F-15EX, the latest in a long line of upgraded air dominance platforms in the longstanding and highly regarded series of Eagle twin-engine fighters. While stealth is still of paramount importance to the US Air Force as we head into the mid 2020s, its clear that we still need an effective aircraft capable of carrying a huge load of air-to-air missiles to the FEBA should the stealth aircraft run out of weaponry. The F-15EX, working in conjunction with more stealthy aircraft such as the F-22, F-35 and upcoming sixth generation fighter, fits that bill nicely demonstrating that older air frames still serve a useful purpose on the aerial battlefield. Here now the rest of the August line up:
Hobby Master’s 1:72 RCAF Canadair CF-104 Starfighter Interceptor – 104733, 1 Canada Air Group, West Germany, 1964Hobby Master’s 1:72 Imperial Japanese Navy Nakajima B5N1 “Kate” Torpedo Bomber – 9-348, Sanzao Dao, 14th Kokutai, South China, 1939Hobby Master’s 1:72 Imperial Japanese Navy Nakajima B5N1 “Kate” Torpedo Bomber – A11-311, Lt. Ichiro Kitjima, Aircraft Carrier Kaga, December 1941Hobby Master’s 1:72 USMC Douglas SBD-2 Dauntless Dive-Bomber – Major Lofton Henderson, VMSB-241 “Sons of Satan”, June 4th 1942Hobby Master’s 1:72 US Navy Douglas SBD-3 Dauntless Dive-Bomber – Commander Howard Young, Commander of the Enterprise Air Group, 1942Hobby Master’s 1:72 USAF McDonnell YF-4E Phantom II Reconnaissance Aircraft – 65-0713, Air Force Test Center, Edwards AFB, California, 1985US Navy Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat Fighter – Warrant Officer Donald Runyon, VF-6, USS Enterprise (CV-6), 1942Hobby Master’s 1:72 US Navy Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat Fighter – Lt. Commander John Raby, VF-9, USS Ranger (CV-4), November 1942Hobby Master’s 1:72 USAF Lockheed-Martin F-22 Air Dominance Fighter – “Cripes A’ Mighty,” 192nd Fighter Wing, Langley-Eustis, Virginia [Low-Vis Scheme]Hobby Master’s 1:72 US Navy Northrop Grumman E-2D Hawkeye AEW Aircraft – 168599, VAW-121 “Bluetails”, USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), September 2018
Oftentimes we have our heads down, nose to the grindstone, working on the mundane and as a result fail to take notice of news that could have a significant impact on our business. For instance, back in July, Hornby, the parent company of Corgi, completed an acquisition of the Oxford Diecast Group, a British-based maker of diecast cars, aircraft, train accessories and other segments of the hobby industry. The take over involved the purchase of the remainder of LCD Enterprises it did not already own, a holding firm that represented Oxford and its owners Lyndon Davies and his wife Catherine Davies. Lyndon Davies is currently the CEO of Hornby after having moved over from Oxford a few years ago.
Thus far, we aren’t certain how this will impact things going forward, since neither our present distributor of Oxford nor the new owners have said anything regarding the take over. We expect further news in January, since this is the time both Hornby and Corgi typically announce their new wares for the coming year.
For more information on the take over, visit this link.
Over the last few months, we’ve slowly been building out our JC Wings military diecast aircraft section aimed at reflecting some of their newest warbirds looking to take wing. Earlier today, we added a batch of new models that were first announced back in September but, for various reasons, we had to wait until December to list properly. Currently we do not have firm release dates for any of these models, so we are assuming they’ll reach us some time this spring, which of course, could change if the issues with the supply chain haven’t been remedied. Anyway, here now the latest models added to our catalog:
JC Wings US Navy Grumman F-14D Tomcat Fleet Defense Fighter – VF-2 “Bounty Hunters”, 2002 [Low-Vis Scheme] (1:72 Scale)JC Wings US Navy Grumman F-14D Tomcat Fleet Defense Fighter – VF-2 “Bounty Hunters”, 2002 [Low-Vis Scheme] (1:72 Scale)JC Wings USAF Boeing F-15E Strike Eagle Multi-Role Fighter – 4th Fighter Wing, 75th Anniversary Edition, 2017 [Anniversary Scheme] (1:72 Scale)JC Wings Vietnamese Sukhoi Su-30MK2V “Flanker-G” Fighter – 923rd Fighter Regiment, 2012 (1:72 Scale)JC Wings USAAF North American P-51D Mustang Fighter – Raymond S. Wetmore, 370th Fighter Squadron, 359th Fighter Group, 1945 (1:72 Scale)JC Wings Israeli Defense Force General Dynamics F-16I Sufa Fighter – 253 Squadron “The Negev Squadron”, 2015 (1:72 Scale)JC Wings US Navy Boeing F/A-18E Super Hornet Strike Fighter – VFA-14 “Tophatters”, 2019 [Anniversary Scheme] (1:72 Scale)JC Wings Ukrainian Mikoyan Gurevich MiG-29MU1 ‘Fulcrum-C’ Fighter – 2019 (1:72 Scale)
To borrow a catchphrase from baseball, “we’re headed into the bottom of the ninth and things ain’t looking that good for the home team.” Today we learned that the December Forces of Valor shipment that was supposed to come in around the end of November will likely arrive at our distributor in early January. Despite re-routing the shipment from Savannah, Georgia, to New York, virtually all of our ports are too congested to be of much good taking in product for the holidays. Between the ports getting slammed to the shortage of truckers hauling the goods around the nation, 2021 is stacking up to be a dismal year. Likewise, the September/October shipment of Hobby Master products, which was also diverted to New York, will almost certainly suffer from the same fate and get delayed again. There’s a possibility it could arrive in late December, but I think you know as well as I that is most likely wishful thinking on everyone’s part. Follow-on shipments are, from a figurative sense, almost certainly “in the same boat”, meaning they will likely get pushed back as well, although there’s no telling by how many days, weeks or even months. Its conceivable that a lot of what we were expecting could arrive en masse within a 30-90 day time frame some time in 2022, although here again there’s really no way of knowing since everyone is remaining mum, shrugging their shoulders and twiddling their fingers, although not necessarily in that order.
We’ve also put in a call to Corgi to determine where they stand but here again we fear the worst. Its entirely possible that everything still to come in for 2021 may get pushed back into early 2022. If that’s the case, we’ll certainly have a bang up New Year, Presidents Day, or Easter, depending upon when all of this stuff finally gets here. Obviously we will continue to update everyone should things suddenly take a turn for the upside, but we’re trying to remain realistic instead of optimistic based upon everything that has transpired thus far. Black Friday may have one meaning for some retailers but quite another for others.
Note: After we put this post to bed, we learned that three Corgi Aviation Archive aircraft arrived at our distributor and are now on their way to us. Also, our Solido military vehicle order came in so we will be making shipments to everyone that pre-ordered these vehicles later this week. Additionally, our first pair of JC Wings military aircraft are now en route to us, although it appears as if the balance of our order will likely arrive some time after the New Year. As it stands now, the only remaining shipment still AWOL for 2021 is our September/October Hobby Master shipment. No firm date of arrival has been set and our distributor is working in earnest to ensure that this shipment still comes in for holiday disbursement.
On December 2nd, our distributor reported that their Forces of Valor shipment, originally slated to arrive in late November/early December, is now expected in late January. As a result, we have pushed back this shipment to February, since its more than likely it will still be affected by port issues, warehousing problems or trucker shortages. We’ve also pushed back other FOV products that were purportedly due in early 2022 to spring 2022, although here again these items could be delayed even further for any number of reasons.
As a bit of bright news, Corgi reported that several Aviation Archive models are expected to clear customs shortly and arrive at their facility in Portland, Oregon, within the coming days. Of course, they are also indicating that they have been inundated in orders, largely due to the late arrival of these and other items that have been repeatedly delayed by disruptions in the supply chain. So, while the models listed below may be reaching their warehouse soon, it likely means they will transit the US and reach our facility in NYC around the second week of December, barring any further calamity. Its possible these models will be available in time for Christmas although we aren’t making any promises since several of the major carriers (USPS, UPS, FedEx) could themselves be overwhelmed with late orders as more product, stranded at sea for weeks and in some instances months, finally make it off the cargo ships and on their way to their ultimate destinations.
Under ordinary circumstances, things are typically very fluid for the month of December, as product updates are passed along to us on a weekly basis. This year, said updates are being exchanged almost on a daily basis, as the manufacturers and distributors struggle to get their cargo containers offloaded, into their facilities and on their way to their retail network. While some items are being shunted into 2022 others look like they may still make it under the tree for 2021. Fingers crossed.
