[STARMAN 352ND]

Originally Posted by Gort

Forty-five bucks for a 1/72 tank/AFV? Doesn't surprise me in the least. In fact, I'd say this portends more of the same from other diecast manufacturers: shorter runs, higher prices, less metal. Get used to it, boys. The old days are dead and gone.

No kidding about the good ole days are gone....The price may be a tad high but so is everything else....Heck i got Gas for my pickup today just got 13.7 gallons of gas
and the darn thing cost me over $51.00....This is getting crazy i'll tell ya.
This will cost me to lose a few diecast a month paying for gas like that...
JP

[Legio LXXII]

As many others have said in the past but everyone might not agree with, I'll forgo the limited runs for lower prices. Limited runs mean nothing to me. I don't think $45 is something 1/72 collectors will or should get used to. 95% are still under $20 if you go through a competitively priced retailer. Another 10 years or so though, you never know.

[tankguy]

So what's the story on those Black Hawk dioramas? They look like they're going to be more than $100...will this be the K&C line of 72 scale?

[Legio LXXII]

Originally Posted by tankguy

will this be the K&C line of 72 scale?

That may very well be a perfect comparison. They're releasing three 1/72 diorama sets to begin with, I believe they will be around the $125 range.

[tankguy]

I should say something about Admiral's products. I just picked up a couple of their new Pz III Ms and have to say that these are beautiful and an absolute steal. They are every bit as good as Hobby Master's stuff and are very finely detailed. The entire line has been a real pleasure to collect with the only drwback being they have only released 3 different marks of the Pz III in as many schemes. I hope they do a couple more repaints each of the M & L models, and get to work as soon as possible on an N.

If you haven't picked these up you are really missing out.

[ChairmanMilo]

Originally Posted by tankguy

I should say something about Admiral's products. I just picked up a couple of their new Pz III Ms and have to say that these are beautiful and an absolute steal. They are every bit as good as Hobby Master's stuff and are very finely detailed. The entire line has been a real pleasure to collect with the only drwback being they have only released 3 different marks of the Pz III in as many schemes. I hope they do a couple more repaints each of the M & L models, and get to work as soon as possible on an N.

If you haven't picked these up you are really missing out.

tankguy speaks the truth. I have all three and they were an absolute steal. The Ausf H is my favourite - the subtle weathering makes it look great even close up. They display well next to Dragon Armor and Hobby Master, not to mention they're heavier than the products of all of the other companies (one of the Panzer IIIs weighs more than the Forces of Valor King Tiger, for instance). I have the fourth release - the winter camo Ausf L - pre-ordered and I hope they release more variants and/or repaints. A company that is this committed to quality and customer satisfaction deserves my business.

[Berkut76]

Originally Posted by tankguy

I should say something about Admiral's products. I just picked up a couple of their new Pz III Ms and have to say that these are beautiful and an absolute steal. They are every bit as good as Hobby Master's stuff and are very finely detailed. The entire line has been a real pleasure to collect with the only drwback being they have only released 3 different marks of the Pz III in as many schemes. I hope they do a couple more repaints each of the M & L models, and get to work as soon as possible on an N.

If you haven't picked these up you are really missing out.

Although, I also have three of Admiral releases, I have to disagree completely with tankguy assessment.

They are on cruder side, not much better than Matchbox models (maybe even worse) and definitely not a match for anything from Dragon or Hobby Master. I'm not impressed by metal content if comes at expense of finesse exhibited by HM and Dragon models. Fit and finish also lags behind the big Two.

Honestly, I wouldn't have bought a single Admiral model if it wasn't for the fact that Admiral was (maybe still is), a small US-based company.

Regards,

Sergey

[Gort]

Originally Posted by Berkut76

Although, I also have three of Admiral releases, I have to disagree completely with tankguy assessment.

They are on cruder side, not much better than Matchbox models (maybe even worse) and definitely not a match for anything from Dragon or Hobby Master. I'm not impressed by metal content if comes at expense of finesse exhibited by HM and Dragon models. Fit and finish also lags behind the big Two.

Honestly, I wouldn't have bought a single Admiral model if it wasn't for the fact that Admiral was (maybe still is), a small US-based company.

Regards,

Sergey

Completely agree. I own Admiral's first Panzer, and though it's a nice change from Dragon's Tigers and the like, Admiral doesn't compete in the least with Dragon's and Hobby Master's detail, accuracy or refinement.

[tankguy]

Well, you can't really compare Admiral with Dragon, as diecast metal and plastic kits are completely different beasts. I find plenty of big gaps and rough detail on the Hobby Masters - at least as much as on Admirals. I don't know how you guys come up with HM being so superior?

Look at the giant seams in the KV-2 in this thread: Kv-2 and tell me again about how "refined" HM tanks are. For diecast, sure. But any issues with the latest Admiral tank are no more than those typical of metal tanks. If you want "rough," look at the Altaya models.

But then again, I love the last two Matchbox Shermans, so what do I know.

[Gort]

I admit up front, tankguy, that I’m a dyed-in-the-wool Dragon Armor fan. Smearing every Admiral tank with the same brush probably isn’t fair, considering I own only one.

So I’ll amend what I said: In my humble opinion, my Admiral PZKPFW III Afrika Korps model doesn’t compete with my Dragon and Hobby Master tanks. Though it’s a decent replica, it’s marginal compared to Dragon’s and HM’s detail, accuracy, finish and refinement. I can’t speak for other Admiral models.