Why is Tamiya Panther 35065 so cheap?

Because it is an early 70s era inaccurate tank model. Definitely not up to modern standards.

Well, it is an old release that has a giant list of inaccuracies, I don't know how this affects price, but it really is a basic enty level model that you can enjoy if you are not hung up on accuracy.

Steve

It's an old kit, and by modern standards it's lacking in detail. I built one years ago (just starting out) and it's a toyish kit. If you're thinking about building a Panther I'd recommend a more modern kit or some aftermarket goodies.

Recall the old saying, "You get what you pay for"? This is true with many of Tamiya's early entries. They were great in their day, but are ancient by todays standards. Tamiya's Panther G's are great kits, but come without any of the goodies that you'll find in Dragon kits i.e. PE grilles, indy tracks, aluminum barrels. Only drawback is that Dragon has a rather old Panther G which is affordable, but lacks PE parts. Their A's are top of the line and still quite affordable compared to Tamiya. If you want an A version, get Dragon. If a G version is what you want, I recommend Tamiya, they have 3 different ones.

i have two and they are cheep because they are old and are made of very few parts

such as the turret is only about 8 peices, and the hull has the suspension arms molded on
by the way i recomend the Panther G steel wheel by tamiya, a bit pricy though

QUOTE: I built one years ago (just starting out) and it's a toyish kit.

ah ... so its at my skill level?

-Kevin

because its cr@p

geez Jon, ya know...there are modelers out there who prescribe to the 'Walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, looks like a duck, must be a duck" philosophy. The kit itself is not crap. It actually builds up quite nicely, things fit.

Yes, it's an old kit (I think the turret is in the wrong location on the hull IIRC), and it's not accurate in detail, but it's not going to matter to someone who's starting out, or hasn't got the experience, budget, or desire to jump into a $40 new-tooled kit with PE and indies.

As an advanced modeler with a few hundred builds under his belt, I would much rather see someone start out on something like this, enjoy it (even with all it's faults) and continue on in the hobby. Toss a new Trumpeter or Dragon kit to a young modeler, or someone just starting out, and it's Frustration City...here we come. Chances are we lose that modeler because their initial experience was bad. They can't make that model look like the ones they see here, there's too many parts, it takes too long...the excuses go on and on...

So...'fess up, you've built one in your past, haven't you? I admit I've built at least 5 in my day...and I still actually have one sitting on the shelf in an ambush scheme. From anything more than 2 feet away, it looks like a Panther.

Jeff

I see... That's why the Tamiya 1/35 Pz. Kpfw. IV Ausf. D is very cheap too...

I never said that the kit was bad or that it didn't build well. I answered his question as to why it was half the price of other Tamiya kits. It's just old and inaccurate. When completed it will look like a Panther and like almost all old Tamiya kits from the 70s, great starter kits for the beginner.

Yup, it's old and inaccurate, but I sure did love it waaaay back when all I had ever seen were Monogram 1/32 armor kits (and the ocassional 1/48 Aurora and Bandai kit).
Great beginner kit. Goes together smooth, resembles a Panther. Mine was motorized, and it still runs like a champ to this day!

Golly. Ok guys, I got the picture. I was just browsing through Military Hobbies and every Tamiya tank seem to be in the C$49-$59+ range while this one was C$25. I just wondered. Thanks for the warning though. Doesnt sound like something I'd be happy with.

Really Tamiya does not put out crap so to speak IMHO. It is an old kit yet fun to build and test new techniques on. Bocelli FSM did a Panther Kit roundup a while back. Find that issue and they cover most of the Panthers in various scales.

i got one of these for $10 from the half off hobby lobby sale and used it to practice a winter white wash on and simple because i had nothing much in it to lose i had a great time with it, now i will grant you that im not the most experienced when it comes to detail and peticulars about the panther and such but i thought it looked ok and like i said had a lot of fun trying new things on it.

I agree with Jeff, but I think it needs to be understood that originally these kits were primarily intended for the toy market, not for a yet-to-evolve static display population. Pick up any old Tamiya moldings like their M48/M60, T-34 etc. and the first thing you notice are copper shafts for axles, motorization holes, and molded in directions to show you which way the batteries should fit. I don't think Tamiya was as concerned over whether the tracks were "accurate" as much as whether they were good enough to work as some child watched his creation roll over his barricade of erected blocks.

Of course they're not up to today's standards. They weren't intended to be. Buy one, put it together and have a good time. Or use it to learn how to put on PE, resin interiors, zimmerit, or learn painting and weathering. Enjoy the hobby...

Gip Winecoff