Algernon Products have launched "Dive Bomber" website for product information and large size pictures >> http://www.algernonproduct.co.jp/divebomber.htm
They look like protoype/pre-production models, so they should improve by release date - if prior experience holds true.
Algernon Products: "Dive Bomber Series"
○ Type 33 Comet
○ Type 21 Comet
○ Ju-87D-5 Stuka
○ Ju-87G-2 Stuka
○ SBD-4 DAUNTLESS
○ SB2C HELLDIVER
+ Colour options
+Series Special (tbc)
Available: 20 April 2010
Wonderfest 2010 Winter (8-Bee) http://homepage3.nifty.com/8bee/wf2010winter/cafereo.html
Old News: here
wish the special for the Ju87D was a D-8 night bomber. Still nice to see the G-2 and D-5 to go with Dragon's D-1 and G-1 Stukas.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely be in the market for a few of the Helldivers and maybe the Dauntless.
ReplyDeleteThese look promising. The "If" series produced some great kits, even if there really wasn't much demand for the selection. The paint comes right off with alcohol and the fit was ten times better than F-Toys. Lots of detail in those kits! Come to think of it, the Navy & Marine Freak set was outstanding as well.
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping that their new found quality carries over to the future releases and continues to improve. The big birds, however, have been a bit bland and lacking in detail.
Do they have different designers/plants producing the kits? This appears to be the case with F-Toys as well, so much that one release is great while another is is just awful. Even Anigrand kits appear to have a huge gap between their various releases, where one set is crisp but with huge trenches for panel lines, and another set not so crisp but with much more hairlike panels. I've always wondered if the manufacturers have different teams working on the various releases, who apparently don't use the same technique for design and casting. Seems a bit strange, but perhaps not?
It was apparent that Popy had the same designer across its ranges and when he went they stopped producing models... A real shame.
ReplyDeleteAs for the other producers you guess is as good as mine especially for the likes of Anigrand, i think they have a team of designers, maybe different guys get to lead on the different projects?
as for F-toys they may do similar have a range of designers on their books? a lot of the gashapon companies actually have a low head count, so much is outsourced.
Takara obviously had a great team as they produced excellent items whilst it lasted.... :(
As fo F-toys both the commissioning of series and the relative quality varies.
Algernon, has to be fairly virtual and indeed may vary from series to series more than the other producers!
"artisic license" eh!?
Takara is dead? didn't know that they were best of the companies IMO...with F-Toys being prob second with their He 219s and Hs 129. Love my four 129B-2s I use for Flames of war, renumbered and lettered.
ReplyDeleteI think the only one of this set I am really interested is the Ju 98D-5 with the 2cm cannon to use as is, and then to convert some to D-8night-attackers.
Takara is not dead.
ReplyDeleteTakara are not however producing the range or number of series they used to.
Takara have produced two series this year in their GiMix Series..., these just happened to be two series of F-15DJ aircraft....
Not the variety of Tanks and Aircraft they produced previously.
I think everyone is thankful that F-Toys still produce aircraft, however most acknowledge that their aircraft series were some of the best mastered aircraft - perhaps in part due to their collaboration with Hasegawa (perhaps also the same reason Platz produce great kits)
as for this divebomber series, obvioulsy I am looking forward to see how the Stukas turn out, the last Bigbird series produced a nicely turned out set of models.
There is also a lot of interested in the yankee birds!