Model Expo Expanding Their Plastic Kits

Maybe it is just me,  but I find it hard to get excited over a $32 re-release of the old Imai USCGC Eagle and the other 1/350 scale kits. 

The old Imai release sold for about $20,  and then the minicraft re-release was in shops for about $10.  Now Aoshima has them for $32--  no thanks!  

Thanks, tucchase! I got back into plastic sailing ship modeling just a few years back. I don't spend too much time at it, and I don't have much room for models, but I do have fun! I currently am at the rigging stage on two models (La Flore and Wappen von Hamburg) and am close to the same with my Hogarthian caricature of HMS Victory (Airfix). I would like to see new models of later 17th. and early 18th century ships, but as has been discussed on other threads, I won't be holding my breath...

Hi Galleyslave!  Welcome aboard!

jtilley

 

BOWSIE:

 

Hi

Could you let us know what the quality of the Aoshima Cutty Sark is like in comparison to the 1:96 Revell Kit ?

Regards, Bowsie

 

 

My personal opinion of the Imai Cutty Sark (now sold by Aoshima) has always been very high.  I've described it more than once as "the best representation of this ship in kit form - plastic, wood, or otherwise."  (I guess I should offer a small caveat to that now:  Academy has issued not one but two Cutty Sark kits since I made that comment.  I haven't seen either of them "in the flesh," but on the basis of photos both look pretty good.  There is, in fact, some reason to think that at least one of them is a modified copy of the Imai/Aoshima one.)

We discussed the comparison between the Imai and Revell kits several times on the old version of this Forum.  I just did a search, trying to locate some of those posts so I could put links to them here.  But when I did a search on "Imai Cutty Sark" I got nothing.  When I did a search on "Cutty Sark" I got three pages worth of posts, all from the past two or three months.  I know for a fact that those constitute only a tiny fraction of the total number of times we've discussed this subject.  (There were, for instance, at least two lengthy threads about the fire and subsequent restoration project.)

This is the first post I've made since the installation of the "new" forum.  I've refrained from taking part in the various threads criticizing it, because I figure we ought to give it a chance.  (As a certified curmudgeon when it comes to anything related to computers, I frequently take longer than younger people to get used to new things in cyberspace.)  But I have to say that so far I'm not at all favorably impressed.  I have yet to bump into any feature of the new version that's in any way superior to the old.

I hope this particular problem is due to the switch from one format to the other, and that the older threads will be made accessible again in due course.  If all those thousands of threads from more than a few months ago have been blasted into the ether, this forum has lost a huge percentage of its value to the scale modeling community. 

Hello, I am new here on the fsm forum. It seems that the format change occurred days after I joined! I agree with Prof. Tilley in his assessment of its comparative qualities, and hope that the past threads (the ones which seem to have gone missing) will be restored to us soon. I, like most people posting on this forum, would love to see more sailing ship models on the market; and I think the model companies might just be getting the message from us, judging from the number of "new releases" of old or re-tooled kits (oh how I wish airfix would re-issue HMS Prince!). I have never built an Imai kit, and I am aware that they were some of the best designed kits - but $185.00 for a 1/150 model kit? The quality must be astounding! I would like to say that I have enjoyed reading everyones' posts on this forum, and hopefully I will be able to add something to future disscussions

Hi Prof Tilley,

Thanks for your opinion, it is highly valued. I have been on the Cutty Sark at Greenwich a couple of times and intend building a plastic model of her.  I will use a lot of photos, Longridge's build book and  Underhill's Masting and Rigging of the Clipper ship as references. However, I first need to complete a Revell Fletcher which I am converting to the late war version of the USS Kidd. I am superdetailing her, using virtually zero photoetch. This will probably take me till the end of next year to complete.

best regards,

Peter Bouwer

BOWSIE

Hi

Could you let us know what the quality of the Aoshima Cutty Sark is like in comparison to the 1:96 Revell Kit ?

Regards, Bowsie

My personal opinion of the Imai Cutty Sark (now sold by Aoshima) has always been very high.  I've described it more than once as "the best representation of this ship in kit form - plastic, wood, or otherwise."  (I guess I should offer a small caveat to that now:  Academy has issued not one but two Cutty Sark kits since I made that comment.  I haven't seen either of them "in the flesh," but on the basis of photos both look pretty good.  There is, in fact, some reason to think that at least one of them is a modified copy of the Imai/Aoshima one.)

We discussed the comparison between the Imai and Revell kits several times on the old version of this Forum.  I just did a search, trying to locate some of those posts so I could put links to them here.  But when I did a search on "Imai Cutty Sark" I got nothing.  When I did a search on "Cutty Sark" I got three pages worth of posts, all from the past two or three months.  I know for a fact that those constitute only a tiny fraction of the total number of times we've discussed this subject.  (There were, for instance, at least two lengthy threads about the fire and subsequent restoration project.)

This is the first post I've made since the installation of the "new" forum.  I've refrained from taking part in the various threads criticizing it, because I figure we ought to give it a chance.  (As a certified curmudgeon when it comes to anything related to computers, I frequently take longer than younger people to get used to new things in cyberspace.)  But I have to say that so far I'm not at all favorably impressed.  I have yet to bump into any feature of the new version that's in any way superior to the old.

I hope this particular problem is due to the switch from one format to the other, and that the older threads will be made accessible again in due course.  If all those thousands of threads from more than a few months ago have been blasted into the ether, this forum has lost a huge percentage of its value to the scale modeling community. 

Hi

Could you let us know what the quality of the Aoshima Cutty Sark is like in comparison to the 1:96 Revell Kit ?

Regards, Bowsie

At one time Model Expo carried  a wide variety of plastic kits and featured them in their factory store in Broward County FL (can't think of the city at the moment).  I used to go there quite often.  They were very big on periodic big discount sales back then.  WS

Greetings,

All the Aoshima ships you see there are old IMAI molds. If they are for reasonable price I strongly suggest you grab one as soon as you can.