HASEGAWA SPACE RAIDER BLOWS IN

Hasegawa’s futuristic 1:20 scale Falke Anti-Gravity Armored Raider is now generally available, and it’s getting some good reviews. The Falke is part of the Ma. K (Maschinen Krieger) sci-fi universe, originally created back in the 1980s by Japanese artist Kow Yokoyama. Hasegawa is now developing the series, and the Falke is the first of what we hope will be many more to follow.

Interestingly, the Falke’s canopy is opaque, as is the pilot’s helmet. The series is set some eight centuries in the future, so it looks like heads-up displays have seen some development in the meantime! In fact, hi-def surround video is no pipedream - Google has an amazing hi-def video room on demo. Inside the room, screens seem just like a window on the world - in the Falke’s case, a window on the universe.

The Hasegawa Ma. K series is bound to be a success - let’s hope future versions in standard scales - 1:35, 1:48, and 1:72 – will be released. As built, the 1:20 scale Falke measures some 286 mm (11.3 in) long, and is available from various outlets, including Amazon, Frontier Models, and Hobbylink Japan.

USEFUL SIZE-O-METER FROM THE NETHERLANDS

Dutch Telesale is an online supplier that has a surprisingly useful set of pages (top picture) on its site. These chart the length and wingspan of a range of aircraft, at various scales, in both Imperial and Metric measurements.

For example, a 1:24 Boeing 777-300 would be a whopping 121 inches (3073 mm) long, but at 1:500 it’s just a palm-of-the-hand 5 inches (148 mm).

There are some nice things for sale on DT’s site too, including a Herpa Wings 1:400 Airbus and DC-3 pair (middle picture), commemorating old and new airliners in Cathay Pacific's fleet. From Spark there is a tiny, yet beautifully detailed PininFarina Modulo concept car to 1:87 scale.

The Modulo dates back to 1970, yet still looks utterly futuristic, like a rocketship on wheels. It’s one of my all-time fave designs, not least for the slide-forward cockpit canopy (bottom picture). Wow - imagine something like this as a 21st century hydrogen-electric ecomobile, on sale in your downtown auto showroom. Gimme! Now!

You can visit Dutch Telesales here.

ONLINE AUCTIONS MAKE IT EASY TO BUY AND SELL COLLECTIBLE MODELS

For model collectors, the internet has proved a treasure trove of opportunity. While it’s still a huge pleasure to haunt swapmeets, collector fairs and so on, online auctions offer an extra dimension of mouthwatering collectibles.

Here we feature just two samples from current auctions provided by The Saleroom, which sends a click-thru pot-pourri of sales via email regularly.

The Bing live-steam locomotive is in big Gauge 1 (about 1:32) scale, and is a true antique, dating from somewhere between 1906-1912. It’s hardly cheap, at a guide price of £8-10,000 GBP ($13-16,400 USD), but as the old saying goes, “They’re not making them like that any more”. So it just has to be a top-class investment, as well as a thing of beauty and hugely desirable. On top of all that, it’s still in working order!

Incidentally, the German Bing company was mega when this locomotive was made - in 1905 Bing had the biggest toy factory in the world.

The Corgi Chipperfield Circus diecast collection is easier on the pocket, with a guide price of £400-600 GBP ($655-983 USD) and is also highly desirable, especially as the showcase is included.

You can visit The Saleroom here. Once registered, you can receive heads-up emails on a host of auctions around the world.

1:43 HERGE’S TINTIN DIECAST COLLECTIBLES

Hergé’s Adventures of Tintin are among the world’s most popular children’s books, with more than 200 million sold since the first title was published in 1929.

Today the world of Tintin has gone far beyond strip-illustration books (known in Europe as ‘bande dessinée’, or BD) to include shops, magazines, audio, collectibles and for the model fan, a delightful range of 1:43 scale vehicles.

Editions Atlas produces a whole range of diecasts, all based on illustrations from Tintin books. The 1960s-era Triumph Herald convertible and Beccles 305a caravan shown here are from a scene in The Black Island, and come complete with four excellent figures, including Tintin and Snowy the dog leaning out of a window. The Beccles has a full interior, including curtains, cooker, seats and table.

These collectibles are a little different from most 1:43 diecasts, insofar as they are slightly cleaned-up, simplified versions of the real thing, rightly echoing the character of Hergé’s cartoons. So don’t expect chrome plating or jewel headlights, but the models are all the better for it, and - something SMN likes very much - a slightly satin finish, which is so much easier on the eye than a super-gloss paint job.

This set is priced at £39.50 GBP ($64.70 USD); you can order from specialist suppliers, including the Tintin online store here.

ps. A future diary date for Tintin fans - Stephen Spielberg is making two movies, first one due in 2011. Visit the site here.

AIRBUS MISSING

As the A300 entry below went online, news arrived that an Air France Airbus A330-200, en route from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, with 216 passengers plus crew is missing over the Atlantic Ocean. Our profound best wishes and hopes go to all concerned.

AIRBUS IS 40 YEARS OLD

At the weekend, Airbus celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Franco-German agreement that launched its first aircraft, the A300. The twin-jet’s maiden flight was in October 1972, with Air France putting it into airline service two years later. Production continued until 2007 after more than 800 had been built.

Perhaps the A300’s most unusual role is as a zero-g weightless trainer for European Space Agency (ESA) astronauts (top picture). The aircraft climbs, then gently pitches over in a parabolic arc that gives trainee astronauts some 20 seconds of weightlessness for each manoeuvre.

Changes to the aircraft include fitting out the interior with padded walls to cushion floating astronauts during zero-g flights. For a model project, the markings are the main items to be changed.

You can find details of the zero-g special at the ESA site here.

There are quite a few A300 ready-builts available, include those made by Herpa, Gemini Jets and Dragon Wings in 1:400 or 1:500 scale. Try the Scale Model Store here.

The old Airfix 1:144 kit can still be found on eBay and some retail outlets. Currently there’s an eBay offering at a Buy It Now price of £18.00 GBP ($29.00 USD), which sounds fair, especially as the A300 is no longer marketed by Airfix. Visit here.

BUGATTI VEYRON 16.4 GRAND SPORT IN PRODUCTION. FOR THE REST OF US: A NICE LITTLE MODEL!

Bugatti enthusiasts have been panting for an open-top Veyron, and now their wishes are answered (top picture). So far, more than 30 customers (aka richness incarnate) have put down markers for the new 16.4 Grand Sport version. No more than 150 of these will be made, each at an ex-factory price tag of €1.4 million Euros ($1.97m USD).

Still, the money buys a vehicle that will top out at 253 mph (407 km/h), though that’s with the roof shut - driving with the wind in your hairpiece will be limited to less than half of this. The Bugatti Grand Sport does look good though... aargh, if only!

Meantime, for dreamers and mortals, there are some nice open-top Veyron models available, though at very much ‘collector’ prices. They include the resin 1:43 Looksmart 1:43 (middle picture) at about €175 ($246 USD) and the metal 1:18 MR 100-model Limited Edition (bottom). There’s a good offer on this currently on eBay, with a ‘Buy It Now’ price of $345.00 USD (€245).

Visit eBay here.

Visit Bugatti's home page here.

Pictures and info with thanks from our Dutch colleague Jaap Horst, who maintains a Bugatti models site here.