[stalag8611]

I'm curious as to why I never see any references to Armour Collection 1:100 issues. I have 28 in that scale: A-4E Skyhawk; A-1H Skyraider; F-16 Wild Weasel; 3 F-86s; 2 P-38; 2 P-47s; 2 P51s and a Galland Bf-109, to name a few. Am I the only collector on this website to own one or more of these little beauties? Yes, I know the small scale prohibits dead-on accuracy, but if I want full cockpit detail I'll go to 1:18 or larger. LOL

The A-1H is a diamond, a real standout, and I wish I could find it in the scale I now concentrate on: 1:72. When I started collecting diecast aircraft, my wife started it all by giving me a gift of a P-51, a P-40, and a Spitfire, Mk V, the most expensive issue in the 1:100 was an F-4, "Black Bunny" at $30.00, which I actually detoured out of my way to buy in Scranton, PA. Now, the average price of a 1:100 in my hanger is $57.00, if you can find one. Mine are not for sale.

So, what went down? Scale too small and ignored? Too costly, too toy like at $18.00/average price? I'm curious and I'd like the input from the knowledgeable contributors to TMH.

[STARMAN 352ND]

They look nice and i do have 3 1:144 scale bombers (B-29,B-17,B-52)and that's about it none in 1:100.
There is a co-worker who's son collects them and i must say there not all that bad he had some really nice looking fighters in that scale that i saw.
But for me that scale is too small.
JP

[pulqui]

I have a few Armour and the complete series from Atlas, in France, Fabbri/Italeri from Italy, France and Spain, and the Air Combat Collection from the UK/US. I also have the complete Helicopters of the World series from Italy. I really like them. There is a world out there besides 1:72 and 1:48!!

[ZS-VAN]

I have 3 french air force fighters in 1:100. All from the Armour Collection. Two Mirage IIIs and an F100. Very nice and then the only place I could find Mirage IIIs. I wanted more but the UK company I got them from sold out.

I also have a small number of 1:144s. A SAA DC3, 3 Sunderlands and a Vulcan, XH558. Also very nice.

[swoop]

I have 14 Armour models and I think they are pretty nice. I began my collection with these. Problem is... I need the room for other preferences.

[PappyB]

As you know, the Armour 1:100 line has been pretty much defunct for a few years now, with the explosion of competition it's really lost mindshare, which is probably why there isn't much talk about it.

(Skysurfer just posted about his 1:100 CDC stuff the other day -- it happens :-) )

I used to collect this line, it's what really got me into the hobby -- you can see my collection here.

http://www.diecastace.com/review_FM_1100_index.html

The F-4, F-14, F-15, Tornado, and F-18s I think were really good particularly for the time... (the F-4 Mig Killer was the first piece of diecast I got with a real "wow" factor -- still really dig that model). Most of the WW II stuff, not so much IMHO -- the P-51 is particularly poor I think. I don't have any of the helicopters but they looked pretty nice. Same with teh F-5 and Skyhawks, which also look good -- and seem to command the higher prices on ebay.

"Back in the day" these were $20-$35 a pop, so when 1:72 stuff started saturating the hobby shops for the same prices and better quality (CDC's QC was all over the map -- I got a Harrier that looked like it was glued together by an uncoordinated monkey ) it kind of pushed CDC's 1:100 off the shelves.

Now you can get 'em for $10+ aftermarket, but that wasn't always the case.

I haven't seen the few FM 1:100 releases myself to comment on those.

I haven't had my 1:100 collection out on display for some time, but I can't bring myself to sell 'em off either...

[RonO]

I have the Armour FJ-3 and MP F-80, F9F, F-84 and B-25.

I now focus on 1/72 but my space is limited for 1/72 bombers. 1/144 seems too small, at least Corgi and Dragon's bombers do not move me to buy. But the MP B-25 looks to be a good size and I would welcome a line of quality 1/100 bombers and transports.

Ron

[skysurfer808]

This has become one of my favorite scales for size reasons. I've got quite a few, not enough to give a more detailed inventory aside from what I posted in the FM/A thread. Still, Armour came out with quite a few airframes and liveries. I agree with PappyBs assertion that their QC is all over the place, but most of mine are just fine. Their P-51 isn't all that great, and wouldn't be worth the original list price, but since they have declined in price, they aren't all that expensive. Not all the WW-2 planes have turning props, in particular my Spit, P-40, FW-190 and BF-109 all have fixed ones. Still, left in the plastic case they look good, and are in Flight, which is my favorite display mode. I particularly enjoy the fact that Armour put out a group of adversaries, whose colors really do please the eye.

As for value, I've seen and bought armours for as low as 6.00, but the typical average is 10-25, with 30 being my absolute ceiling (though I paid more than that for my Death Rattlers Corsair and Gray Ghosts phantom.) I agree that this scale got swamped under the 1/72 and 1/48 craze, so they got let go at fire sale prices. Now that Armour isn't making them anymore in the original plastic cases, their value has in some cases skyrocketed. I've seen one Ebay seller who has a buy it now price of in excess of 100, in some cases up to over 200. Foreign liveries seem to be the most valuable, with the Israeli Air Force commanding the highest prices. The price for the IAF F-4, F-15 and 16 are obscene, being in the 200 range.

I have a feeling that the reason this line commands such high prices for certain liveries is the fact that it is more popular as a scale internationally. Remember that most people living in Europe and Asia don't have American size houses. Therefore space is at a premium (something I can appreciate since I live on an island). 1/100 armour allows one to amass a collection to scale that goes from ww2 to the present. That's just Armour. Another good 1/100 company is GE Fabbri, which put out a fine line of fighters and Helos. They are also the only line that has an F-8 Crusader in diecast. Fabbri also has the most accurate Mirage III in 1/100, a silver Israeli Air Force example that has become almost impossible to find.

I like the fact that the models can be displayed while still in its original packaging, which allows one to appreciate them without taking them in and out of the box. Franklin Mint lost this when they re-released their 1/100 line with new packaging. Now you have to unwind wires to get the models out of the box, which makes it easier to mess them up taking them in and out. Still, their Mig Killer F-4E is a nice model, and is much more accurate than the original armour release. It is most likely my only Franklin Mint 1/100 as I have most of Armour's original types.

Hope this helps,
Skysurfer808