[hworth18]

Originally Posted by dragon53

HWORTH18:

Did the rep give any reason why Wal-Mart is dropping 1/18 and what, if anything, will fill the void?....like more 1/32?

I was told that 1/18 just didn't sell as Walmart had hoped (they almost always ended up in clearance) and that the 32x stuff would be carried more.. 32x sells much better and rarely sits on the shelves for long periods..

[lanslide]

Any intel on the 1/48 scale 21st Century models I use to see at Walmart? They went on clearance a few months ago too and I haven't seen them since! I still want that Aleutian Tiger P-40E.

[dragon53]

HWORTH18:

So is 21st Century trying to get Target or ToysRUs to carry 1/18 planes to fill the void left by Wal-Mart?

[hworth18]

Originally Posted by dragon53

HWORTH18:

So is 21st Century trying to get Target or ToysRUs to carry 1/18 planes to fill the void left by Wal-Mart?

IIRC, I was told that TRU would probably pick up more stuff, but I don't remember if the A/C were included in that.. This is one reason we haven't seen much new XD A/C coming from 21st (other than the Me-262 which was already in production)

To add to this, and going back over the email, the rep said that they expect Walmart to pick the A/C line back up, hopefully for the spring/summer assortment, but we won't see anything till then, and it isn't guaranteed..

I didn't ask about the 1/48 stuff, but considering it sold quite well, I would expect it to continue to be carried by Walmart..

[STARMAN 352ND]

I don't think we will see many 1:18 now days at Wal Mart....
21st also needs to pick up a little better with their Quality control when they send their stuff out...Too many flaws in paint and other etc
will hurt them as well...That might of been the problem with WalMart too many returns on the 21st Century products....In the long run that could of been the reason for a clearance sale at Wally....I have been lucky so far at finding good planes from them with no flaws ...But i have read others have had
paint flaws on their BBD P-51D Mustang and a few others.
I don't think the 1:18 line is dead by any means...21st Century just needs to regroup and put out better quality products..Looking forward seeing their
F4 Phantom in 2008.
Also their 1:32 line seems to be moving in the right direction they have came out with good P-51B/C molds and the new P-51D mold as well.
Lets see if they make a P-38J Lightning and P-39 Aircorbra in the 1:32 line.
JP

[V12Man]

Originally Posted by STARMAN 352ND

I don't think we will see many 1:18 now days at Wal Mart....
21st also needs to pick up a little better with their Quality control when they send their stuff out...Too many flaws in paint and other etc
will hurt them as well...That might of been the problem with WalMart too many returns on the 21st Century products....In the long run that could of been the reason for a clearance sale at Wally....I have been lucky so far at finding good planes from them with no flaws ...But i have read others have had
paint flaws on their BBD P-51D Mustang and a few others.
I don't think the 1:18 line is dead by any means...21st Century just needs to regroup and put out better quality products..Looking forward seeing their
F4 Phantom in 2008.
Also their 1:32 line seems to be moving in the right direction they have came out with good P-51B/C molds and the new P-51D mold as well.
Lets see if they make a P-38J Lightning and P-39 Aircorbra in the 1:32 line.
JP

That would be insane to have those I would buy both at first chance!!!
Mike

[1250ships]

I suspect the 1/18 didn't sell because they are just too big. No parent is going to buy that for Junior to play with. The 1/32 and 1/48 are better impluse buys.

[dragon53]

I would have preferred 21st Century's Steve Ritchie F-4D in 1/32 scale instead of 1/18 simply because 1/18 is too big for a modern jet fighter. The F-4C/D is my favorite plane and I want to able to hold it and look at it very from various angles. The 1/18 Phantom is 41" long---that's too big and heavy to comfortably hold it up. A jet replica that big is suitable for display only.

Also, I have doubts about ToysRUs, etc. carrying a 1/18 modern jet fighter because it's too big. If Wal-Mart is abandoning 1/18 prop planes at 21" long, that may be a harbinger of ToysRUs not carrying 1/18 jets, too. Based on my experiences with my Wal-Mart Big Beautiful Doll P-51, I'd rather see the plane first and inspect it for defects before I buy it. It's easier to return a defective plane to a store than pack it up and send it back to an etailer.

I hope BBI comes out with a USAF Vietnam version of their 1/32 F-4J, particularly an F-4E with the Vietnam/Tigershark nose paint. Since 21st Century beat them to Ritchie's F-4D, maybe BBI can come out with Ritchie's F-4E which he also flew in downing MiG-21s.

[smartd]

Originally Posted by 1250ships

I suspect the 1/18 didn't sell because they are just too big. No parent is going to buy that for Junior to play with. The 1/32 and 1/48 are better impluse buys.

Retail stores also measure sales by footage. An airplane retailing at $39.99 and consistently being cleared out at reduced prices is generating little revenue for the store compared with the amount of space it ties up.

[jlspec]

One problem at the WM near me is the 1/18 were stocked on the top shelf (see associate for help with items on top shelf) where they sat, even on clearance. After they were moved to eye level they were gone in 2 weeks