I just now watched the 2024 Airfix kit preview line-up on YouTube and I wasn’t impressed. There will be a new tool 1/72 scale B-24J from Airfix, but mostly their releases will be more of the same. More Spitfires. More Mustangs in a variety of scales, all the way up to 1/24 scale. More Bf-109s. Plus there are many new tool kits in 1/72 scale. Not much in 1/48 scale though. What I would like to see is more variety. New tool of classic kits like the 1/144 scale Boeing 314 Clipper but in 1/72 scale. New tool kits of the classic Ford Tri-Motor in 1/72 scale. And how about more trainers in 1/48 scale. New tool kits like the AT-6/Harvard. New tool kit of the Vultee BT-13/15. New tool kits like the PT-19 and the PT-22 with the 5 cylinder Kinner motor. All in at least 1/48 scale and maybe 1/32 scale. So many not so obscure but important aircraft that are overlooked by manufacturers.
The B-24 is interesting, but the MSRP is ₤46, so, around fifty bucks? That seems a little expensive to me for a 1/72 Liberator. The 1/48 Bulldog does look pretty cool.
That depends on where you look. I buy 1/48 Monogram airplane kits, including the large kits they issued in the 70s. I look for them at $20 to $25 apiece, before shipping, on eBay, or at shows or meetings. I’m willing to be patient, of course. I don’t buy the latest boxings that I see on retail shelves because yes, they are pricey. $20 to $25 for the single-engined aircraft is too much. Those, I look for at ten bucks.
Kit collectors have impacted the market, too, but I don’t need an original box, or even decals or the instructions, like they do. Again, I can be patient.
So, yeah, $60 for a 1/72 B-24 kit is a bit much for my taste.
I’m curious to see what Airfix wants for the Bristol Bulldog, too. I didn’t see a price for that.
I should add, too, that I’m not averse to paying a higher price for a kit. I’ve bought some of Dorawings new kits and paid around $50 for kits like the P-43, and the Vultee Vengeance. I understand that the price reflects the quality of the kit and what went into producing it. Just that in this case, for an Airfix 1/72 B-24, the retail price seems a little high. Maybe I’ll get to see it in person and change my mind, too.
I love the shiny new better-engineered kits as much as the next guy…but (purely personally) at this point in my life, I’d rather ‘tart up’ an old Lindberg kit or a decent easy-build type than pay beaucoup bucks for new versions of ‘the same old stuff.’ There ARE exceptions, of course – we all have our weaknesses for a favorite type or that ‘dream’ project. [:D]
But I’ve already got more stuff in the stash than I’ll live long enough to build…even being fiercely optimistic. (And probably 3x that in decal sets waiting for a build.)
I want to thank y’all for your input. Baron and Greg, I tend to agree with you on the cost of new tool kits being released. Most of my purchases are at shows and swap meets. Rarely do I HAFTA HAVE the latest and greatest. I did recently pick up the new Academy 1/48 A-10C. The kit has decals for the Flying Tigers at Moody AFB and I was stationed at Moody back in the late 60’s. Generally speaking, most of the kits in my stash go back 10, 20, 30 years or more.
Still, I would like to see manufacturers trainers in 1/48 and 1/32 Scale.
