[hworth18]

How were you introduced to diecast models?
My collection started with CDC Armor (Franklin Mint) planes.. I had purchased about 5 or so when I started looking around for other local diecast retailers.. I found Onmark Intl on the web and realized they were only a few miles from my house, so I paid them a visit, was shown the new Corgi Avaiation Archive line and I knew 1/72 was the way to go..

Did the collecting bug take right away?
Yes, because that's just the type of guy I am..

What elements of this hobby, or hobbies in general, make you want to be collector versus being the owner of say two examples.
I love WWII military aircraft.. I like collecting the different types of A/C and paint schemes which make the planes unique to a certain theater of war or pilot in history.. I also like the fact that, unlike my NASCAR collection, my aircraft collection is somewhat of an investment and I am just not throwing my money away on something I can't give away a few years from now..

I know this is a tough question, but that's why I pose it.
Submit up to three model suggestions.
Explain your choices.
If I were recommending diecast to someone, I would find out what their area of interest is (I.E. WWII, Korea, Vietnam) and either suggest that they try one or buy them one as a gift to get their interest peaked.. I personally would recommend 3 planes, all of which are what I consider to be the finest examples of diecast A/C produced today..

1. Eagles International: P-51B "Ina the Macon Belle"
2. Corgi: Bismark Swordfish
3. Carousel1: Fw190-D9 "Red 4"

[djjeffhall]

Mhackl,
Hey there.

I take it this is coming from more of a sales point of view so I'll try keep it a little more practical. Hopefully this will help spur some sales your way, or provide info that you can feed back to the manufacturers.

How were you introduced to diecast models? - Purely by accident. I stumbled upon the FOV F-14 and some matchbox 1:72 planes at a couple of different local stores. I wasn't looking for planes (Or tanks) at the time but they caught my eye. Not very helpful, I know, sorry.

Did the collecting bug take right away? - Pretty much. Once I saw one, it spured to to start poking around on the internet. Google works wonders

What elements of this hobby, or hobbies in general, make you want to be collector versus being the owner of say two examples. - Again, another answer that won't help you much, but I've always held this perverse fascination with WWII era machines. My Dad fought in the Philippines and like so mny from that era, wouldn't say ANYTHING about his time overseas. (He told me tons about his convalescence including some great stories about the wheelchair races down the corridors of his hospital.)


Submit up to three model suggestions. - For someone who has never seen a diecast but likes planes I'd try anything P-40 or P-51. P-47, Corsair or P-38 next. Americans are more likely drawn toward and familiar with American planes. (For me personally, I searched for hours for a Dauntless, but don't know that I'm the typical WWII buff.) I would also suggest one of the better manufacturers like Corgi, Dragon or Hobby Master, versus one of the second tier manufacturers. A few years ago I found some Yat-Ming planes somewhere. Bought a bunch of them and put them out. While they are nice, they did nothing to draw me back for more. The FOV Tomcat, despite its flaws, and the matchbox birds said to me, "This is good. I wonder if there is anything else like it?" At that point I started google searching, took a chance on this toy company I'd heard of called Corgi who made a B-17 and it was all downhill.

Or course if the person if a modern buff, then the Dragon F-16 or F-15 are a great place to start.

Hope that helps.

[mhackl]

Even thought the root question of the thread is about what model to suggest the intent of the question is angled more towards the philosophical aspects of what makes you a collector and what initially triggered that. I certainly understand that you would need to take the interests of the customer in to account. By asking for your three suggestions I'm looking more at your reasoning than the selection itself. I'm not really looking for the golden bullet answer but rather attempting to better understand what makes the collectors market tick.

[Canucklehead]

1. How were you introduced to diecast models?
Matchbox Collectibles were the first models I acquired. I had seen other brands before but MB was far cheaper, and I liked the subject material.
2. Did the collecting bug take right away?
No, not really. I liked the models, but I collect enough other stuff that I wasn't solely focused on collecting die-cast. My collection didn't really blow up until I started on other brands like Corgi and Dragon about three or four years in.
3. What elements of this hobby, or hobbies in general, make you want to be collector versus being the owner of say two examples.
I don't know. I've always collected stuff, just like others here. GI Joe and Star Wars figures, comic books, and trading cards when I was a kid, CDs, comics, action figures and die-cast now. I like stuff. Always have, probably always will.
4. Submit up to three model suggestions.
-Gemini Aces "Ding Hao!" P-51B Mustang 1/72
-Corgi A. Galland Bf 109E 1/72
-Witty Wings Spitfire Mk.IX 1/72
5. Explain your choices.
They are some of the favorites in my collection, so that's why I would suggest these. I like the low cost, small display area required, and range of product available in 1/72 scale, and for someone just starting a collection, I would want to show what different companies offer. Otherwise I figured if you're going to have three, you may as well have the three most iconic types of WWII.

[TopHat]

Originally Posted by mhackl

Even thought the root question of the thread is about what model to suggest the intent of the question is angled more towards the philosophical aspects of what makes you a collector and what initially triggered that. I certainly understand that you would need to take the interests of the customer in to account. By asking for your three suggestions I'm looking more at your reasoning than the selection itself. I'm not really looking for the golden bullet answer but rather attempting to better understand what makes the collectors market tick.

Understood. I just don't think anyone can objectively recommend any model without understanding the specific interests of the potential collector. That was the only point I was making. Didn't mean for it to come across as being critical.

[djjeffhall]

Mhackl,
Hey there.

Then I totally stand behind P-40, P-51 and P-47 in that order for the first plane. I started by purchasing a bunch of Dragon birds locally and the fiddly bit thing was not an obstacle or even something I ever considered, so I don't really think manufacturer is an issue. Corgi, Gemini or Dragon would do. Its only after someone becomes more familiar with the options that they start to to worry about whether or not they like fiddly bits, or not worry about fiddly bits. Getting a nice looking bird is issue number one. (Also, I never noticed the lack of swazi on the tail until someone on a forum pointed it out. I was happy to have a bird that REALLY looked like a FW-190D.)

For their second plane, I'd get either an BF-109 of FW-190 so they can sit them side by side. After that, they are either hooked and going into a frenzy or never will be.

[jim]

1 , I think it was a friend of mine that bought into diecast, he then bought me a Connie and that led to me buying a couple .

2, Back then I was so busy with work and other stuff I just didnt have time. I have only been a serious collector for around 2 years.

3, Why do I collect? I cannot answer that in a small space and I dont want to bore people. So I shall just say that its the history technology and the excitement of aviation. But most of all the "extraordinary" breed of men that flew them.

4, I think one of the 1/32 Corgi models, lets say any of the Me109s (great camos) ,the Corgi Swordfish, Any of the Carousel P40s.

My explanation of those choices is as follows, I chose the Me109s 1/32 to show a potential collector what a great piece of diecast feels and looks like. Beautifully made and good heft. Something solid to own. The Swordfish represents the finer more accurate and also more delicate side to diecast . I think the Swordfish shows just how far diecast has come on over the last few years. (ok the wings are plastic but !). My third choice of the P40 is because THEY ARE THE GREATEST cough , hmm sorry about that. But I hope you get the point.
That is that its fun FUN FUN. We all have our favourite planes and collect what we like. We have our heroes and so collect the planes they flew. For me the P40 has all that and more.
Its a rich and varied hobby and also gives the collecter what I like to call pride of ownership.

OK I have to admit that I love old warbirds, I shall never be able to fly solo in one nor will I ever be able to own one so I fill my shelves with dreams.

[SkyBuffalo]

How were you introduced to diecast models?
I have always liked the WWII planes, but I'm not sure of the source - possibly from "Baa Baa Black Shep" like PappyB. I built a number of plastic models as a kid. I remember a HUGE B-29 model hanging in my room - had to be near three feet long. Plus I still have a big sketchbook of about 30 different airplane drawings i did in big magic marker and colored pencil from about 4th or 5th grade. The models stopped when I was a teenager, then nothing until my early 30s, some years back. I ran into some Model Power planes at a local Hobby Lobby store and bought several.

Did the collecting bug take right away?
I just had about 4 or 5 MP planes for about a year or more, then eventually started getting a few more. Then I went online and found the entire MP collection and ordered a whole bunch. I guess that's when the bug officially hit me. I got all the MP planes I wanted and had them for about another year, then I thought, what WW2 planes don't I have that MP doesn't make. So I started seriously looking online and found the MH1. Unfortunately, this coincided with the beginning of the IXO frenzy and this dragged me into collecting 1/72 big-time. I got a bunch of IXO and some planes from other companies. This lasted until last autumn when I decided to replace all the MP planes I could with 1/72 versions. So my collecting, strangely, went in stages, going from a few MP (which was all I could find locally), to a bunch of MP from online, to other 1/72 planes, and finally to all 1/72 scale versions. And this all stretched over 4 to 5 years. It really wasn't until I received my first IXO planes from Spain that I knew I had it bad.

What elements of this hobby, or hobbies in general, make you want to be collector versus being the owner of say two examples.
WW2 was such as global conflict with so many countries involved and so many different aircraft taking part in it. There's just SO much that could be collected. Even if you focused on one country, one ocean, one theatre of operations or such, there's a lot of models you could collect. And many of the stories are great! I want to have which good guys are battling which bad guys and vice versa.

But, as has been said, it depends on the person and what has triggered them. Is it a specific plane - from a movie or such or a relative who flew one? Or do they just like the looks or the history in general?
EXAMPLE : I just recently started working with a lady at work and talked to her about my WW2 plane interest. She told me she fell in love with the C-47 Skytrain from a visit many years ago to a WW2 plane graveyard in Oklahoma. She got to tour a C-47, plus she had stories from an uncle who was a paratrooper in WW2. So, for the heckuvit, I went out to the Hobby Lobby here in Wichita and bought her the MP C-47 "The Argonia". I found the history of the plane and C-47 in general, typed it up in a 1 page sheet and give this to her along with the plane. She loved it and had to keep it away from her 3-yr old grandson who wanted it. And since I've replaced a bunch of my MP planes with other 1/72 versions, I donated quite a few more of my MP planes to her. She's got a small collection going now, started with a visit to a junked C-47.

Submit up to three model suggestions. Explain your choices.
Again, this is hard. It depends on the person and where their interest started. Whether it's modern jets or WW2 or whatnot. For WW2, and if you have no specifics, I would go with 1 plane from each of the three big players - American, British and German (I go with German as opposed to Japanese because there are a lot more examples of the German planes). But the British or American planes could be from the Pacific theater, though.
1.) American Pacific example - Dragon F4U Corsair or HobbyMaster SBD Dauntless. Represent the Navy.
2.) British Mediterranean Example - Corgi or Dragon Spitfire - my choice would be a Mediterranean / North African Example to show an alternate theatre.
3.) German European Example - A Mess. BF109 - Could be Dragon, Corgi or GeminiAces - just an example that fought in the ETO.

[SKUNKY]

Originally Posted by jim

OK I have to admit that I love old warbirds, I shall never be able to fly solo in one nor will I ever be able to own one so I fill my shelves with dreams.

Yep