[vaindioux]

Hi

I am a casual 1/72 jet aircraft builder, I build 2 or 3 a year. I love building kits but don't have enough time, so I am looking at adding to my collection with diecasts. I like jets any eras or countries in 1/72.
Which brands to look for, I don't need the best, but I don't want junk either.
Any recommendations on which mail order have good prices?

Thanks a lot

Patrick

[smartd]

Originally Posted by vaindioux

Hi

I am a casual 1/72 jet aircraft builder, I build 2 or 3 a year. I love building kits but don't have enough time, so I am looking at adding to my collection with diecasts. I like jets any eras or countries in 1/72.
Which brands to look for, I don't need the best, but I don't want junk either.
Any recommendations on which mail order have good prices?

Thanks a lot Patrick

I get the impression you are building airliners??? You will find info here on the MHII and some like minded souls who will direct you to other places as well.

Best advice,..... LEAVE NOW. do not start buying diecast, you will empty your wallet and lose your model building skills. The people here will teach to to slur your words, chase women and drink beer.

By the way, welcome Patrick hope you enjoy....... but don't say you were not warned.

[Berkut76]

Originally Posted by vaindioux

Hi

I am a casual 1/72 jet aircraft builder, I build 2 or 3 a year. I love building kits but don't have enough time, so I am looking at adding to my collection with die-casts. I like jets any eras or countries in 1/72.
Which brands to look for, I don't need the best, but I don't want junk either.
Any recommendations on which mail order have good prices?

Thanks a lot

Patrick

Firstly, welcome to the board Patrick. Secondly, it's tough to answer your question without knowing what jets appeal to you as any company can make an excellent model of one aircraft just to follow up with a disappointment on the next.

The only exception to his rule is Century Wings. Although, CW models are pricey, their F-14As and A-6s have proven to be excellent. Hopefully, A-7 and F-8 will continue this positive trend. However, you should be warned that if you are accomplished kit builder you might find assembled die-cast models lacking in detail and finesse.

The other jets I can recommend are the underrated Corgi Typhoon Eurofighter and Meteor as well as some F-86 Sabre models. I also like Witty Wings Su-27s, F-15 and F-16 single seaters, but other members of this board will probably disagree with me.

Hobby Master F-104, A-10 (other then the first two releases), A-4, and MiG-21 are excellent models as well that won't put too much hurt on your wallet.

Well, that's certainly a start for you, and I'm sure other members will chime in as well.

Regards,

Sergey

[Lakota Mech]

You can't go wrong with Century Wings though pricy Hobby Masters is catching up with their new F-4's HM has a good selection as well as Witty and Dragon. Corgi's are ok but more expensive than HM for the most part. As for deals Try Aim higher jets,Burbanks house of hobbys, Aikens. Bad Cat or Onmark and the Flying Mule has good deals. Pete's collectables is another so alot to choose from just look at some of the sponsors below the pages will give you a good start. Also if you buy the Flight Journal magazine there are tons of adds for diecast dealers. I got addicted last year from a add from Diecast Direct. LM

[planenutsfrog]

Hello Patrick, and welcome !

Just as Sergey wrote, CW's products are probably the best at this scale.

Then is HM (exceptionnal value for money !).

Dragon's F-18, F-15, F-16 and Me-262 are very nice too. So are Witty's F-15C/J, F-16, F18 and Su-27.

Finally Corgi, without forgetting Gaincorp, whose Su-32/34 and 33 are pretty good too.

PS : Je suis à Brest, et toi ?

[Lakota Mech]

I might add you just have to shop around. some dealers have better selections than others.

[Captain Eddie]

Patrick, I have nothing to add, especially as I don't collect jets, but I do want to say: Welcome to the insane asylum! (and smartd has good advice about LEAVING NOW!)

[Epapazian]

Welcome to the forum, Patrick.

As for your interest in diecast, I suggest that you do a bit of homework and decide what planes you really want in your collection, initially, in contrast to those lower down on your priority scale. In my opinion, the best way to go about this is to consider eras, first---like WWII--- and, within eras, campaigns, genres or countries. Also important in any rational plan is consideration of storage and shelf space and how you prefer to display your models. Are you a wheels-down or up guy? Must your models have decent stands? What about pilot/crew figures? And, last, but not least, are you looking to buy the best version of each model you can find and move on to the next plane, or do you intend to load up on particular aircraft, buying many versions, marks, etc of each?

Let's say, hypothetically, that you find the Battle Of Britain at the top of your list in terms of interest. Let's also assume that you are starting off exclusively in 1:72nd scale, if for no other reason than it offers the widest selection of replicas at fairly affordable prices. So you make a list of most famous BOB combat planes. They are all familiar names---Spitfire, Hurricane, BF-109, BF-110, JU-87, JU-88, HE-111, DO-17Z come to mind first, followed by others active in the same general arena--Blenheim, Hampden,Hudson, Lysander, Wellington, FW-200, Fiat CR 42, Fiat BR-20, HE-115, etc. Of course, you want to get your marks straight. There's no point putting a BF-109G on this list as it wasn't around during the BOB. So, more homework is required.

Next, you need to determine what's out there for you to buy. The obvious way is to select a number of online sellers---The Flying Mule, Diecast Direct, Pete's Collectibles, and others and start to scan their listings, pictures, prices, etc. You will soon find that planes like the Spitfire, Stuka and BF-109E are available from many manufacturers, but that the appropriate BF-110 and JU-88A are only now in the works by Corgi and no one else. Also, some planes---the DO-17Z, for example---just aren't available.

The last step is also fairly obvious. Check the many posts and reviews on this forum, plus any other sources you find, for each plane. Look carefully at all of the pictures. Then pick out the best version of the plane and buy it. From then on, it's going to be a trial and error process---with many disappointments. However, I believe that an organized approach, including lots of research and some measure of discipline, is a far better way to go than jumping in and buying lots of models in lots of scales, covering many eras---in a rush to get started.

Anyway, good luck. It's a great hobby.

[vaindioux]

Hi

Thanks everyone for all the tips and warm welcome!

To smartd :

I get the impression you are building airliners???

No I build military jet fighters and bombers.

To Berkut76:

Secondly, it's tough to answer your question without knowing what jets appeal to you as any company can make an excellent model of one aircraft just to follow up with a disappointment on the next.

Well seeing the answers so far, I think I will actually research each plane that interest me individually here and then purchase. I honestly like and collect all jets, from the german "Komet" to the latest american fighters. Ok you want more specifics, I like the vietnam era phantoms for example, I like the US navy crusaders too, love the French Mirage 2000 and the 1980's to present Russian like Mig 21, Mig 29, Sukhoi SU-35 and so on..

However, you should be warned that if you are accomplished kit builder you might find assembled die-cast models lacking in detail and finesse.

I am average, I have never looked at diecasts for that reason in the past, they looked like toys more than replicas I could collect, but that's years ago. What I have been looking at online is amazing. I just have no time to build.
I made the mistake to ask on a modelling forum what they thought about diecasts, I almost got turned into ridicule, that's sad as these 2 hobbies are so closely related.

To lakota:

Excellent list of links, thanks a lot.

To planenutsfrog:

"PS : Je suis à Brest, et toi ?"

Merci pour les conseils mon ami. Je suis de St-Raphael dans le var mais j'habite aux USA a Atlanta depuis pres de 17 ans. Amitiees sinceres, A+
Thanks for the tips my friend. I am from St-Raphael in the var dept. (France) but I have lived in the states in Atlanta for the last 17 years.Best regards ,see you soon.

To Epapazian:

I like your organized approach. I have started researching heavily. Hobby master seem to rock my boat, lots of stuff I like in my price range, and you can get a very accurate idea with all the super size pics available. I don't like a particular era of jets, but I like certain aicraft like the Mig-21 so I have started looking at that. I like mostly jets but for some reason like the WW2 Bf-109 so I am looking at that too, especially all the variants of each planes. I just don't want a "Bf-109", I want specific variants.

Thanks to all again

Patrick

[skydriver]

Welcome to the forum, and these guys are right. Get out early while you still have money in your retirement plan.

But, if you really want some good deals, look around this forum, and see if there are any postings you can contribute to from your experience in building model aircraft. Or any other postings where you feel you can contribute to. Then once you have 10 postings ( I believe it is 10 ) you can have access to the classifieds section. There you will find members who are selling some of their collection at excellent prices. I was an exclusive WW2 collector, but recently started my modern jets collection with 5 aircraft ( F-15, F-14, and F-18 ) purchased for a heck of a deal from one of the members here. As a matter of fact, he still has a few available.

You will find this forum to be both informative and entertaining. I am comming up on my one year anniversary soon, and it has been a great year.

Good luck, and again welcome.