[Admiral Toys Inc.]

Dear Members,

Yes the American International Toy Fair is just days away. New artillery will be seen at toy fair, a Pak 40 in 1:72 scale. This of course will be accompanied by the German 88 that has already been talked about. I love the detail on the Pak 40 and think you will as well. It has great movement.

As far as tanks go, you will view for the first time a production version (minus production paint) of the Crusader that we have been working on. It looks great. Also available is the Panzer III M, which is completed with production and will be in our warehouse in a matter of weeks. The skirt has been thinned, and the turret retooled.

Now for the news that I have been waiting to disclose to you and our retailers: What will be talked about with our retailers in length at toy fair is the production numbers we will be producing the 1:72 scale line. Almost every item in the 1:72 scale lines will be switched to very limited numbers. I know this forum likes to know exactly what limited means, so I will tell you. Limited means less than 1,000 world wide distribution. And in most cases less than 500 units world wide distribution, without re-releases. Now that is limited!!!

So if you are a retailer do not forget to stop by our booth, 5813. And if you are unable to attend, we will have daily posts on the Admiral Toys’ website with photos of new releases and information in the news link, which someone here is welcome to cut and paste to this site.

Regards,
Jason

[Rubberduck]

Well, that's great news!
And here are some great pics...
Panzer IIIM
Panzer IIIL winter

[easy8]

Great news Jason! Can't wait to see the PAK 40!

easy8

[Berkut76]

Will SU-100 and Japanese Tank will make an appearance as well or have these molds been canned?

Regards,

Sergey

[djjeffhall]

Rubberduck,
Thanks for linking the pictures. The winter panzer looks awesome.

[Cardinal]

Originally Posted by Admiral Toys Inc.

Dear Members,

Yes the American International Toy Fair is just days away. New artillery will be seen at toy fair, a Pak 40 in 1:72 scale. This of course will be accompanied by the German 88 that has already been talked about. I love the detail on the Pak 40 and think you will as well. It has great movement.

As far as tanks go, you will view for the first time a production version (minus production paint) of the Crusader that we have been working on. It looks great. Also available is the Panzer III M, which is completed with production and will be in our warehouse in a matter of weeks. The skirt has been thinned, and the turret retooled.

Now for the news that I have been waiting to disclose to you and our retailers: What will be talked about with our retailers in length at toy fair is the production numbers we will be producing the 1:72 scale line. Almost every item in the 1:72 scale lines will be switched to very limited numbers. I know this forum likes to know exactly what limited means, so I will tell you. Limited means less than 1,000 world wide distribution. And in most cases less than 500 units world wide distribution, without re-releases. Now that is limited!!!

So if you are a retailer do not forget to stop by our booth, 5813. And if you are unable to attend, we will have daily posts on the Admiral Toys’ website with photos of new releases and information in the news link, which someone here is welcome to cut and paste to this site.

Regards,
Jason

It's good news indeed that production runs will be limited Jason .

I do have one concern though and it relates to you mentioning that in "most cases" the production run will be "less than 500 units world wide" which, in my opinion, is far too small for 1/72 die-cast armour models at the particular (hopefully reasonable) price-point at which they may be offered. I believe that production numbers between 1000 - 1500 would be more appropriate (depending on the number of different versions/liveries that are to be produced from each mould of course).

My reasoning is based on the fact that armour die-cast tends to be generally cheaper than aircraft and is very popular in 1/72 scale, not only for collectors, but also some wargamers and the like. My concern is that with production runs of 500 you are going to be upsetting many potential customers and not realising the profit potential of your great products (looking forward to the Flak 36/37 "88") .

Good luck at the show!

[Legio LXXII]

Originally Posted by Cardinal

I do have one concern though and it relates to you mentioning that in "most cases" the production run will be "less than 500 units world wide" which, in my opinion, is far too small for 1/72 die-cast armour models at the particular (hopefully reasonable) price-point at which they may be offered. I believe that production numbers between 1000 - 1500 would be more appropriate (depending on the number of different versions/liveries that are to be produced from each mould of course).

My reasoning is based on the fact that armour die-cast tends to be generally cheaper than aircraft and is very popular in 1/72 scale, not only for collectors, but also some wargamers and the like. My concern is that with production runs of 500 you are going to be upsetting many potential customers and not realising the profit potential of your great products (looking forward to the Flak 36/37 "88") .

I agree fully. Wargamers make up a good portion of the customer base that buy 1/72 diecast tanks, yet manufacturers ignore their buying trends. Bet there's not too many collectors buying 24 of a specific tank, unlike several wargamers I know that do this on a regular basis.

[MoMo]

Good point LegioLXXll!

I would agree that production runs of 500 are far too small to meet the potential demand of a product which needs to be exposed in the last of the model/hobby shops, but which will ultimately be bought out by collectors hooked into Admiral's home site, and those mail-order companies which carry Admiral products.

I cannot understand the reasoning behind these low production numbers. They do not make economic sense for the manufacturer. They only make sense if you wish to create a 'Collectible' which will instantly rise in second-hand value for the buyer. We have seen companies which promised this in the past, with 'Certified' production numbers. That benefits anyone who wishes to capitalise their investment, provided no more of that model are made.

The problem begins when ( a la Corgi ) the same model/set appears in what has become known as a ' de-certified' condition! These cost much less than the original production run, but without the numbered piece of paper which seems to mean so much to the speculator, rather than the collector.

I don't give a monkey's love boogie about the limitation of models. All that I would like is a guarantee that if I like the 75 or the 88, I'll be able to purchase a few of them. Enough to satisfy my primitive collecting drives!

Creating here today, gone tomorrow editions will not endear Admiral to the collecting fraternity. This kind of haphazard relationship between Company and Collector will not work. There is only an amophous, tenuous link created which has more in common with the Oklahoma land-grab than the ' romance of modern commerce'. ( H.G. Wells, " Tono Bungay " )

Limited numbers only make sense if the models reappear later in another guise!

MoMo

[djjeffhall]

MoMo,
Maybe the limited production runs of 500 is simply because Admiral is only going to sell 500 of each? Better to sell out than have 500 extra tanks taking up warehouse space.

[Copland]

500 units! Worldwide? I agree that is too low. Wargamers buy these in large quantities! Also, is the tank now going to be $25.00 and up, because it is a "limited Edition?" For the most part, Dragon is already ca. $17.00 - $22.00, per issue. What about the cost, Jason? I do realize that Dragon is mostly plastic, while Admiral is mostly metal, but, Dragon is hard to beat in detail and quality - IMHO.