BIG BOMBER KIT - 1:32 SCALE B-25J MITCHELL FROM HK MODELS, HONG KONG

Hong Kong Models is going bigtime for big planes, with a range of tasty-looking 1:32 scale bomber kits. And the first of these flying towards us is the HK North American B-25J Mitchell, due for release now.

Newcomer from Hong Kong

HK’s website welcome note says it all: “Our company was established in 2010, formed by a group of enthusiasts with modelers, Military fans and experienced mold maker. Combining with our historical knowledge, passion on modeling and creative tooling technology, we strive to bring you the most ultimate scale model in ever. As a model enthusiast, we know what you want, what you expect and we will make your dream come true. Keep close eye on our website, HK Models will be surprises you all!”

Hundreds of components provide fresh levels of B-25 detail in 1:32 scale.

New kids on the block

Mild language adjustments aside, this is really good news, for here’s a two-year-old team of keen model fans, eager to go head-to-head with established Chinese brands like Dragon and Trumpeter. But we say there’s plenty of room for quality, and now that 1:32 scale really does seem like the new 1:48, there’s plenty of room to grow into the big-kit space.

It's a big kit, with enough detail to keep you busy for weeks of construction.

Brief stats

Over 500,000 rivets represented

Highly-detailed Wright R-2600 engines

Detailed cockpit and bomb bay

Wingspan 643 mm (25.3 in)

Length 548 mm (21.6 in)

Contains 514 components

Loaded with detail

Tail gunner has raised canopy for wide rear view. Note open engine cooling gills.

About the B-25J

The B-25 Mitchell was a US twin-engine medium bomber, named after General Billy Mitchell, pioneer of US military aviation. The B-25 was used in every combat zone in World War II, and long after. The aircraft is generally reckoned as the finest medium bomber of those war years.

B-25 being test-flown shortly after manufacture in 1942.

2012 INCOMING - FINE MOLDS ‘SKY CRAWLER’ PUSHER-PROP KIT TO 1:48 SCALE

SMN report:

We’ve long had the popular modelmaking genre ‘Luftwaffe 1946’ catering for alternate-history buffs of European World War II-era warfare, but less well-known are alt-history scenarios for the Far East. So it’s all the more interesting to see this 1:48 scale Fine Molds kit, of a Japanese pusher-prop fighter.

Dramatic box-art (above) from Fine Molds for the Sky Crawlers.

Canard-wing Shinden

The Fine Molds ‘Sky Crawler’ is a nifty-looking machine, based loosely on the layout and appearance of the Kyushu J7W1 Shinden, an unusual aircraft that first flew on August 3, 1945, shortly before Japan surrendered to the Allies. Whether it would have proved worthy of combat against Mustangs and Lightnings is debatable, but the planned jet-powered successor certainly could have been a deadly foe. Comparison between the two (Sky Crawler below) is interesting - scroll down to the bottom for various Shinden pix. 

Push that prop!

The so-called Concept A kit has at least one unusual feature, the pair of contra-rotating propellers, which are fitted with a gear system. Gently turn on one prop, and the other turns in the opposite direction - neat. Like the Shinden, the Fine Molds model has small bumper wheels on the lower fin-tips, though its overall appearance has something of a droop-snoot, Pinocchio look. 

Nice details

Twin-nose wheels are included, as is crisply-moulded panel work - well done FM. Decals represent the fictional aircraft well, and extend to a set of finely-printed individual propeller-blade technical markings. Ahead of the flat-pane windscreen is a pop-up air-air refuelling probe. Such things didn’t exist in the 1940s, but we don’t mind - in the context of alt-history, it’s a neat addition that adds visual interest to the finished model.

About Sky Crawlers

Sky Crawlers started off as a series of Japanese novels, conceived and written by Hiroshi Mori. First published in June 2001 and spanning five books, Sky Crawlers tracks a group of young fighter pilots, against an alt-history backdrop - the world is at peace, though big corporations can’t cope with that, and have created Combat Leagues, set up to fight battles, as there’s money to be made from warfare. Stars of the show are the genetically-engineered ‘kildren’, raised only for combat in this endless pseudo-war. 

Air fleet flies to battle in Sky Crawlers (above). CGI (below) shows detail in the Fine Molds cockpit area.

Multimedia enterprise

In Japan, Sky Crawlers is big - apart from books and manga, the concept has been ported across to movies and video games. If you have a Wii in the house, try Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces. It has had some decent 8/10 reviews. 

Kyushu J7W1 Shinden kit here.

Shinden model pix courtesy Fine Molds and the Great Canadian Model Builder’s Web Page.

Blu-Ray DVD release of the movie (above) with a screen shot of the video game (below).

Neatly built Hasegawa model (above) and cgi multi-views of the aircraft (below.)

RADIO-CONTROL MINI COUPE FROM TAMIYA

SMN report:

Radio control (RC) fans have a chance to go racing with the Tamiya electric Mini JCW Coupe, modelled on the car that took part in the 2011 24-Hour Nurburgring race.

Lightweight body

The RC Mini Coupe is to 1:10 scale, and comes with a pre-finished lightweight polycarbonate bodyshell. The car comes complete with racing extras, such as the front-mounted spoiler and big tail wing, both designed to keep the real thing glued to the ground when hurtling along for hour after hour flat-out around the twist and turns of Germany’s famed Nurburgring racing circuit.

Front-wheel drive

The big 1:10 scale means you get a decent-sized model, even if the Mini is not a large car in real life - the body is some 375 mm (14.8 in) long, with a wheelbase of 239 mm (9.4 in). The chassis and powertrain reproduce the Mini’s front-wheel drive system, so handling is not unlike the real thing. Accuracy is reasonable, and while not a patch on an equivalent injection kit, does capture the flavour of the two-seater car well - and that includes the somewhat bizarro backward-baseball-cap roofline. 

Injection kit alternatives

If you don’t want an RC model, then injection kits of the Coupe model have yet to be released, but the Airfix 1:32 scale Mini is a reasonable kit of the standard model, and the Tamiya 1:24 scale kit of the original Mini is an escellent kit of the old-timer that started off the whole genre.

The Tamiya RC Mini Coupe is on its way - meantime, Tamiya has other Minis on offer here.

Tamiya 1:24 kit of the original Austin Mini Cooper 1275S here.

Airfix and other Minis here.

These pix show the squat, but quite appealing lines of the real thing.

Instrument layout may be high-style, but it lacks ergonomic clarity.

ON A ROLL - HOT STUFF FROM HASEGAWA

SMN report:

Hasegawa of Japan is bringing us hot new and revised products at a pace-and-a-half. Here a taste of what’s in store - space, sci-fi, aviation, and... girls!

Dreamliner

The 1:200 scale Boeing 787 Dreamliner comes in two flavours, JAL (Japan Airlines) and ANA (All Nippon Airways), differentiated in several ways, such as the differing engines used by the two airlines. At this scale, the changes are visually minor, but Hasegawa has detailed everything you need for an accurate finished model.

Voyager

Real-space fans have a treat in store with the 1:48 scale Voyager space probe. Two were launched back in 1977, their mission to record data and information about the outer planets. After swooping past Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, they are now drifting into interstellar space, beyond the Solar System. 

Golden Record

The Hasegawa kit includes a scale representation of the ‘Golden Record’, a video disc containing the sights and sounds of Earth. There’s one aboard each spacecraft, a time capsule message, just in case they bump into intelligent aliens, sometime in the distant future.

Flood of science-fiction

Sci-fi fans have their hands full with a bunch of Hasegawa releases. Perhaps the most interesting is the forward-sweep combat fighter to 1:72 scale, representing an aircraft featured in the PS3/XBox 360 video game ‘Ace Combat’. The machine is packed with  advanced design features, such as canted tail fins and swivelling engine exhaust. Convincing stuff this, even if it is pure fiction.

More sci-fi

Two more jets feature in the Hasegawa release list: a 1:48 scale Macrosse robocraft, and a 1:72 scale Macrosse Plus, in UN Spacy markings. Both are neat models, reissues of kits dating back to the 1980s. 

Robot attacker

Meantime Maschinen Krieger comes out shooting, with another 1:20 scale robotic fighting kit, the Grosse Hund, and very convincing it is too. 

Space fighter

The Creator Works single-seat space fighter is perhaps a little less so, if only because Star Wars and its X- and Y-Wings have trodden the same path so well. Still, this one’s not Star Wars, so brownie points for that, as well as for being to model aircraft-standard 1:72 scale.

Girl power

Last but not least, we have a series of combat jets painted in girlie shades, courtesy the Japanese anime series Idolmaster, which is hugely popular with young teens. Hmmm... an F-15 Eagle, F-22 Raptor and Sukhoi F-33 dolled up in pinks, greens and blues, plus pretty girls painted on the wings is a different take on the term 'warpaint', and makes a refreshing change from the oh-so-serious camo schemes that are the usual paint jobs on these jets.

Summation

We’d build them all if we had time - but given a choice of one, it has to be the Maschinen Krieger release for the sci-fi freaks at SMN Towers. Yes please: Ma.K just has to be the best non-Hollywood sci-fi kit series ever released.

All sorts of Hasegawa kits here.

Kit images courtesy: Hasegawa, Boeing 787: Eric Prado

MOEBIUS DRACULA WINS 2012 HORROR AWARD

David Jefferis reports:

There are some big smiles at Moebius Models this month, as the 1:8 scale Bela Lugosi Dracula kit won the 2012 Rondo Award. The Moebius win is one of several made in the horror genre, and is for the ‘Best Toy, Model or Collectible.’

The kit

The kit shows the famed Dracula actor bela Lugosi, as he appeared on Broadway in the 1920s. It’s made to 1:8 scale, and comes with the diorama base as shown, though the bat is not included, which is a shame. Due very soon is a deluxe version, which will include a female victim (one of his brides, I guess) and extra components to make the necessary larger base.

Other winners in the category

Runners-up: The Munsters (Diamond Select), Bride of Frankenstein (Diamond Select), Godzilla ornament (Carlton).

Honorable mentions: Twilight Zone bank teller (Bif!Bang!Pow!), Barbara from Night of the Living Dead (Emce)

Rondo: the Awards

The Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards (‘Rondos’ to those in the know) are named after Rondo Hatton, a relatively unknown B-movie villain and character actor of the 1940s. The aim is to celebrate the best in classic horror research, creativity, and film preservation, and is an online-only e-mail award, which this year drew more than 3100 votes from across the US and around the world. The Rondos are conducted by a 17-year old internet community, the Classic Horror Film Board, and that gives the Rondos a special weight, for there are no vested interests in the votes - it’s fans and specialists who do the choosing.

Rondo: the bust

The actual award represents Rondo Hatton, playing The Creeper from the 1946 movie House of Horrors, released by Universal Pictures. Two artists made the bust, sculptor Kerry Gammill and caster T.M. Lindsey.

Rondo: the history

The awards were first presented in 2003, at the Monster Bash convention in Pittsburgh. The ceremony is currently held at the Wonderfest convention in Louisville, Kentucky.

Moebius Bela Lugosi here.

Diamond Select figures here, including The Munsters, Captain America, Back to the Future, Thor, Star Wars, and much more. Totally ace.

More at Moebius here.

MARKLIN TINPLATE WARSHIP HMS ‘TERRIBLE’ SELLS FOR RECORD MONEY

SMN report:

An ultra-rare steam-propelled tinplate cruiser became the most expensive single toy ever sold at a UK auction on Friday, April 20, when it shot past the estimate of £40-60,000 GBP to fetch a record £76,000 GBP ($122,500 USD). 

Collection on the block

The ship was a model of HMS Terrible, part of a lifetime collection of toys and trains belonging to the late Ron McCrindell, who died in August 2011, aged 91. Auctioneer Hugo Marsh said of the sale: "As far as we are aware it is the most expensive single toy sold in the UK." It was bought by an anonymous overseas collector, so sadly we can’t report on the excitement of owning this delightful collector’s treasure trove. The 620 mm (24.4 in) long vessel, made in 1905 by Marklin of Germany, was one of 340 toys on sale. The model itself made the headlines 40 years ago, when it featured in a BBC TV show, steaming across the calm waters of Hampstead Ponds, in north London.

The Auctioneer’s description

We quote below in full, as it makes interesting reading, especially the mention of the TV series, and the real ship’s naval operations, though note that in Royal Navy service, HMS Terrible was classed as a ‘protected cruiser’, not a battleship: 

“A rare Marklin spirit-fired steam tinplate 62cm First Series Two-Funnel Battleship HMS Terrible, Cat. Ref. 4091, the hull hand-painted in cream and red, tan deck with simulated planking and tinplate clips for semi-round sailors, cream superstructure decorated with circular and arched-top square portholes and rivet detail, two masts, two torpedo net booms, single screw, forward and aft gun turrets, pairs of port and starboard gun turrets, lower deck and upper decks, raised ship’s wheel, fabric stern flag and pennant, two guns mounted on forward bridge and small gun in crow’s nest, all guns, crow’s nests and funnels painted in bronze, most with rivet detail, two davits, anchor, chain and pneumatically-operated rudder, the steam plant with vaporising burner..."

"...double-acting cylinder, safety-valve and slip-eccentric reverse, on wave-painted four-wheeled stand, circa 1904, G, one davit base repaired, lifeboats missing, one port side gun roof and searchlight replaced; see ‘The Art of the Tin Toy’, Pressland, D, New Cavendish Books, 1976, page 41, for illustration and discussion of this famous toy; for suitable Heyde for Marklin semi-round lead sailors to fit the deck-clips, see Lot 67 in this sale; see also the BBC2 television programme from 1972, ‘Ron McCrindell’s Toys’, in which Ron fires her up and runs her; the prototype was launched in 1895 and was involved in the siege of Ladysmith in South Africa in 1899 and the Boxer Rebellion in China in 1900.”

Free Marklin App for iPhone, iPad

Marklin is still going strong, with an international reputation for the excellence of its model trains in particular. These days, digital control  is the buzzword, and Marklin is a leader in this. There's also a free App available for those of us with iPhones and iPads.

Visit the App Store here for the useful and interesting Marklin App.

Visit Marklin here.

Visit The Saleroom here.

The real ship

The Terrible is shown below at the 1897 naval review to celebrate Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. The ship was just two years old at this time, and note that Marklin's designers 'lost' a couple of funnels when making the model. The drawings illustrate the Terrible and her sister ship the Powerful. Each vessel was armed with no less than 42 guns of various sizes, plus a quartet of torpedo tubes.