Hobby Master

Product Spotlight: (Tom) cat on a Hot Tin Roof

HA5202

“We sat at the end of the runway, our F-14’s GE-110 motors humming, awaiting our clearance to begin what would be the last F-14 Demonstration ever. The Air Boss’s voice crackled over the radio: “Tomcat Demo, you’re cleared to five miles and 15k feet. The air show box is yours.” At that very moment, I distinctly remember what my Commanding Officer told us before the show: “Fellas, make it memorable… just not too memorable!””

– Radar Intercept Officer (RIO) Lieutenant Commander Joe “Smokin” Ruzicka shortly before flying the last F-14 Demonstration flight, 2006

Our latest cache of military hardware includes this F-14 Tomcat, which bolted off the deck for its final time in 2006. The second in Hobby Master’s growing fleet of F-14 Fleet Defense Fighters, this beauty bears the insignia of VF-31 “Tomcatters”, and is painted in a stunning low-vis camouflage scheme intended to make it blend in with its nautical surroundings (HA5202).

The F-14 Tomcat program was initiated when it became obvious that the weight and maneuverability issues plaguing the U.S. Navy variant of the Tactical Fighter Experimental (TFX) (F-111B) would not be resolved to the Navy’s satisfaction. The Navy requirement was for a fleet air defense fighter (FADF) with the primary role of intercepting Soviet bombers before they could launch missiles against the carrier group. The Navy also wanted the aircraft to possess inherent air superiority characteristics. The Navy strenuously opposed the TFX, which incorporated the Air Force’s requirements for a low-level attack aircraft, fearing the compromises would cripple the aircraft, but were forced to participate in the program at direction of then Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara who wanted “joint” solutions to the service aircraft needs to reduce developmental costs. The prior example of the F-4 Phantom which was a Navy program later adopted by the USAF (under similar direction) was the order of the day. Vice Admiral Thomas Connolly, DCNO for Air Warfare took the developmental F-111A for a flight and discovered it was unable to go supersonic and had poor landing characteristics. He later testified to Congress about his concerns against the official Department of the Navy position and in May 1968, Congress killed funding for the F-111B allowing the Navy to pursue an answer tailored to their requirements.

The F-14 first flew on December 21st, 1970, just 22 months after Grumman was awarded the contract, and reached Initial Operational Capability (IOC) in 1973. While the Marine Corps was interested in the F-14 and went so far as to send pilots to VF-124 to train as instructors, they were never fully sold on the aircraft and pulled out when the stores management system for ground attack munitions was left undeveloped, leaving the aircraft incapable of dropping air-to-ground munitions (these were later developed in the 1990s).

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Product Spotlight: There’s a Prowler on the Grounds

 

HA5001e

“Without question, the arrival of the EA-6B Prowler on the carrier deck established airborne electronic attack as an invaluable, ‘don’t leave home without it’ part of every Navy and Marine strike mission.”

– Rick Morgan, LCDR, USN (Ret.) and historian for the Prowler Association

They’re finally in. Hobby Master’s eagerly awaited inaugural EA-6B Prowler Electronic Warfare Aircraft (HA5001) is now vaulting from our deck and winging their way to everyone that ordered one.

The Northrop Grumman (formerly Grumman) EA-6B Prowler is a twin-engine, mid-wing electronic warfare aircraft derived from the A-6 Intruder airframe. The EA-6A was the initial electronic warfare version of the A-6 used by the United States Marine Corps in the 1960s. Development on the more advanced EA-6B began in 1966. An EA-6B aircrew consists of one pilot and three Electronic Countermeasures Officers, though it is not uncommon for only two ECMOs to be used on missions. It is capable of carrying and firing anti-radiation missiles (ARM), such as the AGM-88 HARM missile.

Prowler has been in service with the U.S. Armed Forces since 1971. It has carried out numerous missions for jamming enemy radar systems, and in gathering radio intelligence on those and other enemy air defense systems. From the 1998 retirement of the United States Air Force EF-111 Raven electronic warfare aircraft, the EA-6B was the only dedicated electronic warfare plane available for missions by the United States Navy, the United States Marine Corps, and the United States Air Force until the fielding of the Navy’s EA-18G Growler in 2009. The last Navy deployment was over in November 2014, with the full withdrawal from US Navy service in early 2015.

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Hobby Master Makes a Forced Landing

new_F-14_landing_gear

Looking to up their game in the face of rising competition, Hobby Master announced that they have rejiggered the landing gear for its expanding range of F-14 Tomcats so that they no longer show ribbing on either side of the undercarriage. The ribbing had originally been designed as a means of direct reinforcement to prevent potential collapse of the landing gear, but responding to collector concerns, a more refined version has been crafted that does away with the vertical ribs and makes the model look more realistic. Well done, Hobby Master!

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No Reason to Be Afraid of Hobby Master this October

HA1209

Responding to a call for action for more Vigilantes, A-10s, EA-6B Prowlers and what not, Hobby Master took the wraps off of their latest spate of products due out in October. Three of the models portray aircraft embarked on the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) during 1978, among them a Prowler assigned to VAQ-135 “Black Ravens”, and a pair of RA-5C Vigilante strike bombers attached to Reconnaissance Attack (Heavy) Squadron 6.

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Additionally, look forward to ogling a Supermarine Spitfire Mk. IXe that was piloted by the Israeli Air Force’s Ezer Weisman, as well as Colonel Francis Gabreski’s P47 Razorback Thunderbolt fighter. All of these new introductions have been posted to our web site and are available fro pre-order.

HA4703

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Hobby Master: I think We Were Supposed to Make a Left Turn at Albuquerque

HA5001e

Every time I make a driving mistake, I think back to the Bugs Bunny cartoon from the 60s, where he gets lost boring a tunnel searching for Pismo Beach and instead finds Aladdin’s treasure. Apparently the shipment containing the May cache of Hobby Master products must’ve followed suit, since it is now expected to reach our distributor next week. After they get it unloaded, we are now probably looking at taking delivery of our order sometime in mid-June. Sorry, but some times these things are beyond our control and appreciate your patience in the matter.

HA5202

On the plus side, we should be awash in Hobby Master releases throughout the month, since the June Hobby Master releases are slated to arrive at said distributor the third week of June. That is, barring any further driving mistakes, sun flares, comets passing through the solar system, etc. Often times it pays to make light of these types of mishaps. Getting worked up over it does no one any good and the anticipation caused by the delay tends to make their last mile delivery all the more worthwhile.

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Defending the Fleet: When Does Redundancy Cause More Harm than Good?

 

HA5204

Its Fleet Week here in New York City, an annual celebration where several US Navy warships sail into the harbor, drop anchor then permit the curious to board the ships and peek around. While the NYPD’s Harbor Patrol is tasked with protecting the ships from potential acts of terrorism, it seems as though several diecast model makers have taken it upon themselves to provide an extra layer of security by offering a growing pantheon of 1:72 scale F-14 Fleet Defense Fighters.

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Earlier this week, we discussed how newcomer Calibre Wings is kicking things off by offering two 1:72 scale exemplars of the venerable F-14 Tomcat. Earlier today, we learned that longtime modelmaker, Hobby Master, will be building models based upon the exact same schemes – one portraying VF-1 “Wolfpack” and the other VF-103 “Jolly Roger” – which will likely make it to market before the Calibre Wings offerings are cleared for takeoff. Keep in mind, we already have a long list of F-14s produced by Century Wings, as well as a couple of birds from True Scale Models, who managed to nab the Top Gun license to help sell their wares.

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Frankly, with so many other air frames to model, as well as loads of other squadrons to tap, the news that more of the same is falling on deaf ears, nothing more than a bid to steal the thunder from another modelmaking house. I’d like to think that somehow this type of one upsmanship should be left to the political scene, instead of muddying the waters in an increasingly crowded market where assets could be put to better use. Obviously, we wish them all well, and hope that every model produced sells like gangbusters, but all this duplication of effort does is create added inventory at the distributor and dealer level, and likely leads to discounted pricing to move inventory. The end user might like the temporary respite in pricing, but the distributor and dealer will have to think twice about bringing in new SKUs if this type of war for the collector’s wallet, continues unabated.

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When the Leaves Fall, Hobby Master Flies High this Autumn

HA5303

Hobby Master is continuing to push forward its “jet-centric” approach by announcing a litany of modern era diecast military aircraft this fall. While several aircraft were previously announced, the new warbirds include two takes on the soon-to-be-released MiG 23 Flogger – one flown by the Lybian Air Force during the 1989 Gulf of Sidra Incident (HA5302) and a second in Russian livery but flown by the USAF’s 4477th Test Squadron at Tonopah, Nevada (HA5303) to determine its flight characteristics.

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Also up for consideration is one of the F-14s that tangled with the Lybian MiGs during the same crisis (HA5206), another look at the F-22 Raptor (HA2815), a third take on the S-3 Viking Anti-Submarine Aircraft (HA4903), and a 1:48 scale model of Adolf Galland’s Messerschmitt Bf-109E3 fighter. These and other new introductions have now been added to our May 2016 New Additions section.

 

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Is There a Flogger in Your Future?

HA5301

At long last, images have finally surfaced for Hobby Master’s upcoming 1:72 scale MiG 23 Flogger fighter. The variable-geometry swing wings are clearly in evidence, as is the opening canopy, weapons loadout and seated pilot figure.

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Expected in July, with more schemes and variants no doubt waiting in the wings, ahem, it looks like another war winner has sauntered into the Hobby Master stable.

HA5301d

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Hobby Master Fires Up their Production Machine

HA5002

We were beginning to wonder what happened to Hobby Master in the wake of February’s Chinese New Year. Turns out, they had several projects in the offing, all slated for an August release. Among them are their second portrayal of the Grumman EA-6B Prowler Electronic Warfare Aircraft (HA5002), two eagerly awaited F-111 Aardvark Strike Aircraft (HA 3017 and HA3018), an Iranian F-14 Tomcat (HA5205), all-new 1:48 scale P-51B Mustang (HA8508) and another take on their 1:72 scale M48A3 Patton tank (HG5508).

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All of these items along with several others have now been posted to our web site and we are now accepting pre-orders for them.

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Hobby Master Shows Us Their July Fireworks

HA5301

While several products have now been delayed until July, Hobby Master did reveal detail concerning several new warplanes also expected that month. Among them are the first MiG 23M Flogger, which was announced previously but never assigned a firm price (HA5301). We’ve learned that its coming in at just $99.99, thereby making it affordable and a key release for 2016.

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Also slated for July is a 1:48 scale replica of a P-47 Thunderbolt flown by a member of the Tuskegee Airmen (HA8454), a third example of their 1:72 scale F-14 Tomcat (HA5203), and a F/A-18C Hornet flown by VFA-25 “Fist of the Fleet” (HA3528).

HA5203

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