Wow! Wowee, Wow, Wow, Wow!

Years ago, actor/comedian Christoper Walken performed a sketch on Saturday Night Live, one in which he played a so-called sophisticate speaking to the camera as if there was a supposed woman in his apartment. Decked out in a smoking jacket and likely living in a simple and unremarkable one-bedroom apartment in Manhattan, the performance struck a note with me. In fact, I oftentimes try to mimic his daffy performance for anyone who is willing to give me a moment of their time. Anyway, I’ve always been struck by that skit, both for its comedic value, his range as both an actor and comedian and its application in real-life.

USAF Northrop/McDonnell Douglas YF-23 Air Dominance Fighter – 87-0781, Dave Maurice, “Gray Ghost”, PAV-2, 412th Test Wing, Edwards AFB, California, 1990 [Low-Vis Scheme] (1:72 Scale)

Which leads me to the point of this blog post. Last week, we finally got in our batch of Hobby Master 1:72 scale Northrop YF-23 air dominance fighters, after waiting for what seemed like an eternity for the shipment to reach our shores. When we put this item up for sale on both our web site and on eBay, I couldn’t believe how quickly it sold out, even when we nudged up the price a bit to throttle sales. As you might imagine, the first batch is now gone and we obviously under-anticipated demand for this model and its legacy as a potential aerial platform.

We’ve since placed a large re-order with our distributor, who claims more are expected in November. Quite frankly, I wouldn’t be surprised if we never see another piece as they get gobbled up by collectors worldwide. I know they made quite a few of these models and even with the tariffs imposed on product coming in from certain countries still managed to break our sales records with inquiries about its availability still filtering in.

USAF Northrop/McDonnell Douglas YF-23 Air Dominance Fighter – 87-0800, “Black Widow II”, PAV-2, 412th Test Wing, Edwards AFB, California, 1990 (1:72 Scale)

Anyway, we’re leaving this model up on our web site and are still accepting orders should they indeed materialize for the holiday rush. Just as importantly, however, is the second release of the YF-23, known rather surreptitiously as the “Black Widow II”. Painted in matte black, we believe this version will also sell like hotcakes, possibly even breaking the first model’s sell-through rate which, as I’ve already pointed out, may have been our fastest selling aircraft model in our 25-year history. Food for thought if you don’t mind waiting a bit, have space set aside for this beauty and have your heart set on what many believe should have been our nation’s fifth generation air dominance fighter.

Update: If sales are any judge of a model’s success, then I think we can safely assume that Hobby Master’s initial release of the YF-23 will be hailed as the 2025 model of the year, perhaps usurped by the dark grey/black follow-on release expected by year’s end. We don’t acknowledge runaway “runway” hits all that often but it certainly appears as if the YF-23 may indeed receive these honors when the year is out. We did mention to Hobby Master that a navalized version of the YF-23 was planned by the aircraft manufacturer back in the 90s, featuring, among other things, more robust landing gear, canards and other external improvements so there’s a possibility that they may examine its feasibility as a potential model come the new year. What follows is some information on the at-sea version, excerpted from, you guessed it, Wikipedia.

A proposed naval variant of the F-23, sometimes known unofficially as the NATF-23 (the proposed naval variants were never formally designated), was considered as an F-14 Tomcat replacement for the U.S. Navy. The original HSF configuration of the F-23 was first considered with the initial DP500 design but would have had issues with flight deck space (it was to be no longer than the F-14), handling, storage, landing, and catapult launching, thus necessitating a different design. By 1989, the design was narrowed down to two possible configurations: DP533 with four tails and DP527 with two V-tails and canards. DP527 was determined to be the best solution. The NATF-23 design was submitted along with the F-23 proposal for full-scale development, or engineering and manufacturing development (EMD), in December 1990. However, by late 1990 the Navy was already beginning to back out of the NATF program and fully abandoned it by FY 1992 due to escalating costs. A wind tunnel test model of DP527, tested for 14,000 hours, was donated (with canards removed) by Boeing St. Louis (formerly McDonnell Douglas) in 2001 to the Bellefontaine Neighbors Klein Park Veterans Memorial in St. Louis, Missouri.

Share This:

Product Spotlight: “One a Day in Tampa Bay”

USAAF Martin B-26C-45-MO Marauder Medium Bomber – Lieutenant Leo Lampman, “Miss Arkansas”, 444th Bomb Squadron, 320th Bomb Group, Montesquieu Airfield, Algeria, 1943 (1:72 Scale)

After leaving the confines of New York City nearly three years ago, we decided to set up shop here in West Central Florida, or more specifically in Wesley Chapel, which is about 30 miles northeast of Tampa. Since then, I’ve come to learn a lot of things about our adopted new city, in particular its important contribution to the US war effort during the Second World War.

The Martin B-26 Marauder medium bomber played a critical role in the prosecution of the air war, taking on many low-level bombing missions for which it was suited. For an aircraft which initially attracted such unwanted nicknames as ‘Widow Maker’ and the ‘Flying Coffin’, and had training crews referring to it as, ‘One a day in Tampa Bay’ because of the high number of aircraft lost to crashes, the Martin B-26 Marauder actually posted the lowest loss rate of all USAAF bombers during the Second World War.

A high-performance aircraft incorporating advanced technologies, the Marauder was a delight to fly but had some vices which could cause problems for the unwary and inexperienced. However, some design modifications and a revised training program soon improved the aircraft’s fortunes.

After some time in Florida, the 444th Bomb Squadron were sent to England before completing their training program. They stayed for just over a month before being sent onwards with the rest of the 320th Bomb Group to North Africa and operations across the Mediterranean Theatre.

The Group was awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation for pressing home an attack against Axis troop concentrations at Fondi, in support of the 5th Army’s push towards Rome, despite coming under heavy enemy anti-aircraft fire.

This particular aircraft was one of the most flamboyantly decorated of all the 444th BS Marauders, with striking sharks’ teeth to put fear in the hearts of enemy fighter pilots, and beach belle artwork on both sides of the aircraft’s nose. Look for this particular model to join the bomber stream this November.

Share This:

Panzerkampf Returns to Nap-of-the-Earth Flying

First hinted at several months ago on their Facebook account, Panzerkampf has officially announced plans for the addition of four more Hind attack helicopters to its growing fleet of rotary wing aircraft. This time around, four versions of the Mil Mi 24P gunship are being introduced, each based upon an important operator that runs the gamut from the Soviet Union to the Ukrainian Air Force.

Currently, the squadron is expected in November, although tariffs and other mitigating factors could have an effect on their true dates of arrival. We’ve listed all four new introductions to our Panzerkampf helicopter section and are currently accepting pre-orders. Interestingly, the MAP has been reduced to $124.99 from $129.99, so we’ve also lowered the price on our existing inventory of Mi-24 choppers.

Share This:

Corgi Wraps Up 2025

Late last week, Corgi announced their Aviation Archive introductions for the balance of 2025. While there were no major surprises in the accompanying video, the lineup did include a pair of 1:48 scale World War I efforts, along with an all-new 1:72 scale Beaufighter and a 1:48 scale USMC Harrier jump jet that pays tribute to the Black Sheep squadron of WWII fame. Now that Hornby has indicated that they are shuttering its US Corgi operation, it is possible that these new aircraft models may appear from our US distributor in early 2026. The prices we are currently listing for these models do not reflect any tariffs being applied to product coming in from China so we may have to increase these prices shortly once our distributor has officially announced their addition to the Corgi range.

Royal Flying Corps Sopwith Camel F.1 Fighter – B7190/C, Walter ‘Hinch’ Hinchliffe, “Donner Wetter!”, No.10 Squadron RNAS, Teteghem, Dunkirk, February 1918 (1:48 Scale)

Royal Flying Corps Bristol F2B Fighter – C4636 – Lieutenant Anthony Arkell, “Devil-In-The-Dusk”, No.39 Squadron, England, May 1918 (1:48 Scale)

RCAF Bristol Beaufighter TF.X Torpedo Bomber – LZ451 / EE-M, “The Ancient Mariner”, No.404 “Buffalo” Squadron, RAF Dallachy, Scotland, October 1944 (1:72 Scale)

USMC Hawker Harrier AV-8B+ Jump Jet – VMA-214 “Black Sheep”, Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona, 2022 [Commemorative Scheme] (1:48 Scale)

Share This:

Air Force 1 Couldn’t Evade our Radar

You may remember that a couple of months ago, I created a couple of blog posts indicating Air Force 1 had already produced models based upon some of the latest Chinese aircraft that have come to the fore. Today we learned that these models will be made available for North American collectors thanks to an initiative by Historic Aviation.


Slated to buzz our airfield in early 2026 are a 1:100 take on the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army Air Force Chengdu J-36 Stealth Fighter along with a 1:72 scale rendition of the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army Air Force’s Shenyang J-50 Stealth Fighter. While the J-36 isn’t available in 1:72 scale, its dimensions adds up to a fairly substantial model, measuring about 13-1/4″ wide by 13-1/4″ long. Should they offer up a 1:72 scale version, then we will ascertain its costs and notify everyone about the development. Both models have been listed on our web site and are now available to pre-order.

Additionally, a 1:72 scale USAF General Atomics MQ-1 Predator drone is anticipated this November. The Predator was released way back in September 2021 and is finally being re-introduced as part of the AF1 product portfolio. Look for the Predator to take wing this November.

The jury is still out regarding the 1:72 scale Avic White Emperor stealth fighter being offered by KDW. Its not clear if KDW is an arm of AF1 or a completely different entity, so it may be some time before we learn if they can be imported at an affordable cost due to the tariff war currently being waged by the United States and the PRC.

Share This:

The Art of War: 2027

Back in 2024, Chinese President, Xi Jinping, said that the Peoples Liberation Army would be ready to act on the island-nation of Taiwan by 2027, meaning his forces would be prepared to invade the breakaway republic should diplomacy fail. In keeping with that theme, the Chinese armed forces put on a massive military parade earlier today that ostensibly celebrates the eightieth anniversary of their “victory” over Imperial Japan in the Second World War. While a good deal of new armament was on display, much of the newest weaponry was designed with keeping the West at bay should they decide to help defend the tiny island-nation from a PLA airborne and amphibious invasion.

As if this sabre-rattling wasn’t enough, several defense-oriented outlets on YouTube have amped up the rhetoric by providing what they believe would be a play-by-play scenario of how an attack might take place. Granted each has merit based upon past Chinese exploits and their continuance to field more and more armament, it remains to be seen if they truly believe they can succeed in the face of the combined might of Taiwan, Japan, Australia and, of course, the United States.

Share This:

Tales of Transparency: Incoming

There seems to be no shortage of issues popping up of late which have direct effects on the sales of product coming into the United States. Recently, the Trump administration ended the De minimis Tariff Exemption that had been in place for several decades. “De minimis” is a Latin phrase meaning “about minimal things” or “trifling,” and it refers to something so small or insignificant that the law will not consider it. The term is used in various legal and tax contexts, such as the de minimis fringe benefit rule in tax law, which excludes small, infrequent benefits from taxable income, and the de minimis rule for imports, which allows low-value goods to enter a country duty-free. 

The U.S. de minimis exemption started in 1938 when the Tariff Act of 1930 was enacted to allow low-value imports (initially $1 or less) to enter the US duty-free, saving the government the expense of collecting small amounts of revenue. The threshold was raised over time, most recently to $800 in 2015, but the exemption was ended for many goods on August 29, 2025. Needless to say it now costs quite a bit more to order goods from overseas and is designed to make online shopping from overseas a thing of the past. Some countries have even halted overseas shipments to the US until it becomes more clear who is responsible now for paying these duties. 

Additionally, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held Friday that Trump overstepped his presidential authority when he imposed levies on virtually every country in the world as part of his April 2nd “liberation day” announcement. Before court action, Trump’s tariffs were set to affect roughly 69% of U.S. goods imports, according to the Tax Foundation. If struck down, the duties would impact just roughly 16%.

The ruling injects a heavy dose of uncertainty into a central tenet of Trump’s economic agenda, which has rattled the global economy since April. For now, the appeals court ruling states the duties on goods from most countries — as high as 50% for a few countries — will stay in effect until Oct. 14, to allow the Trump administration time to appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Thus far, the tariffs have been applied to incoming product this summer but could be halted or even rolled back to pre-“Liberation Day” levels should the Trump Administration fail to overturn this decision. President Trump maintains that the tariffs are still in effect despite what the Appellate Court says, which could lead to the Supreme Court having to step in to settle the matter.

Needless to say, product manufactured in both Bangladesh and China — the two principal regions where diecast collectibles are presently made — may no longer be affected by Trump’s retaliatory tariffs, meaning both wholesale and retail prices could well be lowered significantly for at least the foreseeable future. Thus far we haven’t heard back from our suppliers as to what they plan to do and when and how it will impact our business.

Share This:

Corgi Passes the Torch

Earlier today we learned that Hornby Hobbies USA has decided to shutter its Corgi North American distribution channel in an effort to reduce expenses and bring about a more streamlined experience. The Corgi product range will now be handled exclusively by Motor City Classics, which is based here in Florida.

The following announcement was made in regard to the Corgi hand over:

Share This:

Tales of Transparency: Did Tariffs Kill the Golden Goose?

I seem to be in a rather talkative mood of late, in large part due to new items being announced, the all-important holiday season approaching, and, of course, tariffs. As of August 22nd, 2025, there still seems to be no adequate resolution to the trade war occurring between the US and certain parts of the world, most notably the two biggest culprits Trump has singled out: Bangladesh and China. Currently, goods imported from Bangladesh into the US face a 37% duty placed upon them, making many products, including diecast collectibles, rather pricey as compared to items released before the trade war brewed up. While the tariffs haven’t made it impossible to import new diecast collectibles into the US, they have made it very expensive even for the well-to-do. For instance, Hobby Master’s recently announced MiG-25 Foxbat MAP will weigh in at $179.99 for the first six months after its roll out, While discounts and free shipping offers can be applied to help soften the blow, the net price is still well above the price a MiG-25 once fetched just one year ago.

On the other side of the ledger, product manufactured in mainland China may face a tariff increase of upwards of 145% if no agreement can be reached, making them all but impossible to import and sell within the US unless the asking price is drastically slashed to clear inventory. Corgi’s upcoming B-17, “Royal Flush”, which is already in the hopper and supposed to show up next month, still has no final wholesale price even though we are one month out from them hitting the streets. Other new introductions face the same predicament, and may need to be diverted to other parts of the world if both countries cannot back down from their present positions.

Thus far, the Trump Administration has signed an executive order extending the current tariff truce with China by another 90 days, moving the expiration date to November 10th, 2025. While this delay helps in the short-term, it isn’t a stay of execution, which means much of the toy industry is still languishing in limbo as to what they can and cannot do. Companies based in China — among them Corgi, Panzerkampf, Legion, Dragon, Waltersons, Air Force 1, Calibre Wings, JC Wings, et al — are in a pickle, and therefore face an uncertain future unless some sort of mutually beneficial agreement can be reached by year’s end between the two warring parties, otherwise these companies face an uncertain future that could include closing. While they can still make product for other parts of the world, the fact remains that the US represents the lion’s share of their business and so this uncertainty can come back to haunt them for the foreseeable future.

For now, we’re going to keep our hand on the tiller, hold our breath as we sail into harm’s way, and act as if nothing has changed even though, for all intents and purposes, they have. We’re not sure where this will all lead but suffice it to say that a good deal of grumbling is already occurring from virtually every sector in the industry unless a satisfactory resolution can be reached between the world’s two biggest economies…and quickly.

Share This:

Films in Focus: WWII with Tom Hanks

Ordinarily, we don’t comment on all of the military-themed flicks destined for both the small and large screen unless they are of particular significance to the average enthusiast. In the case of actor, Tom Hanks, he’s agreed to both host and narrate a lengthy 20-part mini series covering the entire scope of the Second World War. Hanks is no stranger to WWII, having produced and starred in a number of pet projects from Greyhound to Saving Private Ryan. He also helped to dedicate the National World War II Museum and played an integral role in the making of the 4-D film Beyond all Boundaries, which has been updated and currently plays in the Solomon Victory Theater in New Orleans, Louisiana.

WWII with Tom Hanks was ordered by The HISTORY® Channel back in 2024 in conjunction with the A+E Factual StudiosTM group and Nutopia. With the 250th anniversary of the formation of the US set for 2026, the series is scheduled to begin airing on Monday, Memorial Day, at 8PM EST. Subsequent episodes are slated to run each Monday thereafter, finishing up some time in October. For more information on the series, you can visit this link.

Share This: