All kit producers read

[BrundelFly]

Do you produce a model kit? Thinking about starting to? Do you know someone who does?
If you dont know,....I have some interesting news for you.

There are Kit Builders in overseas, who are buying up garage kits in the US and using them as masters.

While there have always been recastings, this is somewhat different.

Technology has taken this to a whole new level. Kit parts are being scanned, and parts grown. Other circles I run in, are telling me "its a growing wave that no one has ever seen before"

Look at all the Small and larger versions of kits that most of us already have. Alien Queen, STAR WARS SHIPS...etc..

Anyhow, if you are making a kit, its not longer a question of MAYBE your kit is going to be recast.

It's going to be recast pretty much immediately, and done so on a much larger scale than anyone has experienced previously. Might ask yourself...is this worth doing?

Our Mark II sold very well. Our Mark VII didnt. Neither did the Ewing.
Some of that is economy, but evidence is showing there are other variables.


Just thought you should know.

Frank

 

[vaderdarth]

good points Frank.

 

[mslz22]

Thanks for the info Frank, this is discouraging news to say the least....as if doing this in the first place was not difficult enough, this really begs the ? if it's worth it at all to do at all.....
mike

 

[moffeaton]

That's why I price my kit runs for a "one wave" scenario and get in and out asap - I sell the initial castings and retire it. Lunadiver kit sold for a higher price than I wanted to price it at (shipping included), I got about 50 kits out of the caster's molds, and I'm done forever with that kit. I have 9 left over though, so it wasn't a sell-out - if they sell, cool. If not, I'll have them for trade fodder. I even sold one to China... I KNOW it'll be recast. And I'm okay with it - I made my nut back/what I wanted, profit-wise, on the ones that sold.

It's the psychological game/rationalization to make myself feel better, when I eventually see a recast selling for a fraction of the cost. I'll still be livid (6 months of your life with R&D and master building, $2k in donor parts, etc)... but like you said, it's the reality of the situation.

 

[moffeaton]

Oh, Mike - it's really not worth doing, if you ask me. Not as a solid money making venture, anyway. You end up earning $2 an hour when the dust settles... and that's if you don't LOSE money at the end!!

 

[micdavis]

Inevitable. It sucks, but inevitable.

Moff's got it right.

Do the initial run and get out. It's the only way to stay sane.

 

[ralphee]

I guess this was the case with the Finemolds/Anigrand Falcon? Cant say id buy any crap from Anigrand as it all looks blooming awful anyway, but im pretty sure they just scanned the 1/72 FM kit.

lee

 

[PHArchivist]

I guess this was the case with the Finemolds/Anigrand Falcon? Cant say id buy any crap from Anigrand as it all looks blooming awful anyway, but im pretty sure they just scanned the 1/72 FM kit.

lee

Is that possibly how they did the Star Destroyer?

 

[Robiwon]

I can't comment on the Anigrand Falcon, but I have an Anigrand Star Destroyer at home. I have seen a lot of build threads on Randy's kit (which I think is the kit your refering to) and they are not the same. This topic came up on SSM in regards to another Anigrand kit being broken down the same as a current kit that was on the market. Same brakedown but the Anigrand kit was bigger. They were accused of upscaling someone elses kit. Anigrand showed photos of their modeler creating and building the Anigrand master for their kit. Turns out the American garage kit was not recast afterall and the topic was dropped.

By the way, the Anigrand Star Destroyer assembles beautifully! I had all parts cleaned up and the whole ship "stacked" together in a day and a half. No warpage, no broken parts, nothing twisted or missing.

 

[jawsmodels]

Its a terrible thing this concept of theft. I would hate to think talented guys like yourselves would stop making beautiful replicas for us not so talented wannabe's to buy so we can have a piece of the dream.

 

[GKvfx]

Tamiya ran into a similar problem about 10 years ago. All of their molds are cut in Japan, but after a few test runs, they were shipped to China so the Chinese factories could do the production run of kits. As they were experimenting with advanced molding techniques for their kits, they found themselves having to ship over not only the molds, but the technology to use those molds. Tamiya had been accustomed to having a certain number of "extra" kits popped out of their molds for domestic sales inside of China, but now they were, essentially, providing a tutorial on how to make better model kits to what would become their competition.

Tamiya's solution was to set up a Tamiya owned and operated factory in the Phillipines to handle the production runs.

Though not a 1:1 comparison, it does show that this democratization of technology for the masses has a ripple effect.

I guess it's our turn now. Bummer.

Gene

 

[BrundelFly]

I dont know...it seems to be migrating towards folks making things available for a smaller and smaller group of people..who all know each other.

Which is fine with me.

Im going back to being a BUILDER. I have had enough producing.

We are still moving forward with the SLAVE 1, and ill dump some kits/ projects I have in the works, but I wont be developing anything new, publicly available ever.

 

[Ghadrack]

Im going back to BUILDER. I have had enough producing.

We are still moving forward with the SLAVE 1, and ill dump some kits/ projects I have in the works, but I wont be developing anything new, publicly available ever.

That's a pretty big loss for the modelling community, I've bought a couple kits from you over the last year and all I can say is thanks for what you've done. I hope you can find a way to work things out to offer more kits someday.

 

[cosmic_x]

That's a pretty big loss for the modelling community, I've bought a couple kits from you over the last year and all I can say is thanks for what you've done. I hope you can find a way to work things out to offer more kits someday.

I second that! I hope we will still see at least the B-Wing

 

[modeleers]

It's a money thing & so long as buyers ask, "interested, depending on the cost" all of us ModelMakers are living in a World of enterprising Pirates who are more than happy & Very willing to sell them cheap Knock-offs.

 

[timeslip]

Frank, what kits do you know of being "RECAST"? I know I've seen a handful of my friends kits show up on Ebay and was lucky to get them pulled. I do have to say as of now I've been lucky not to get hit. But I know it is just a matter of time.
George
www.timeslipcreations.com

 

[Clerval]

I've never made anything publicly available, at best have made castings for about 6-8 people, and let it go. I can't stand the thought of re-casting, and at the same time hate to think of the work I do just sitting on a shelf or being 'collected' to be re-sold. My basic thought for everyone who wants ships, props, whatevers: learn to build them.

Excellent topic, but unfortunate that it had to be brought around.

 

[swpropmaker]

Hummm.. that sucks... Im thinking like Moff... on future kit runs.. Do a quick numbered run.... then done.....

I'll be in and out like Col. Quaritch on Mother tree..... "Papa Dragon commin left.."

Besides.... like Frank..... its time to build some of the kits I have stacked in the closet.... They have gone without attention for far to long!

Steve

 

[BrundelFly]

Hummm.. that sucks... Im thinking like Moff... on future kit runs.. Do a quick numbered run.... then done.....

I'll be in and out like Col. Quaritch on Mother tree..... "Papa Dragon commin left.."

Besides.... like Frank..... its time to build some of the kits I have stacked in the closet.... They have gone without attention for far to long!

Steve

Steve!!
Go get your kits and come out of the closet!!

 

[Art Andrews]

This has been happening for decades in corporate America. Millions spent on research and development and as soon as a new product is brought to marker it is bought up by China and Korea, reverse engineered and then produced and priced to undercut the original manufacturer.

I also know Sideshow has been struggling with this same issue lately... so much so that they are taking a serious look at places like the RPF as a SOURCE for this kind of recasting!

Really sucks.