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Posts Tagged ‘Round 2 Models’
Polar Lights Model Kits: 1:350 scale Klingon K’t’inga update
UPDATE [11/8/2018] Klignon K’t’inga kits (and light sets) landed at our warehouse on Monday 11/5. It usually takes 1-2 weeks for kits to make it to retail once we receive them. So look for kits in just a matter of days!
Hi All. We just wanted to mention a few quick things about our all-new 1:350 scale Klingon K’t’inga model kit, and we won’t bury the lead. THE KIT IS ON THE WATER! That means it is currently on its way across the ocean to our warehouse. It should arrive there before the end of the month and reach retailers the first week of November. So, get your Halloween costume finished. By the time you finish your trick-or-treat candy, the kit will be here.
It has come to our attention that we haven’t really given much detail on one of the aspects of the K’t’inga’s Lighting Set. That is the photo-etch sheet that we have included in it. Many have asked what is included in that and why it would be needed. Well, there are several factors at play here.
Some of the details on the studio model were too slight to properly replicate with injected styrene. We did the best we could with those parts in the kit, but the photoetch sheet allows us to offer parts closer to the original model. There were additional parts we wish we could have included, but they didn’t lend themselves to PE. In those cases, there is no better answer than to scratch build replacements. Modelers that are that particular will no doubt have the capacity to figure out how to do that.
Two copies of this piece get stacked to create a more authentic replacement for part #76.
In a few cases, we didn’t have exact copies of kitbashed parts to copy when we started developing the kit. In those cases we worked form photographs and got as close as we could. Once copies of the real parts were found for reference, it was too late to change the part and stick to our release schedule. So the PE parts represent the real parts more closely.
Another significant part of the sheet are window frames for the battle head. At 1:350 scale, (or 1/2 studio scale if you prefer) the windows on the cobra head and the bulb became very small. In fact, they are so small it is hard to inject them completely clean of flash. tool drafting also make them somewhat mis-formed in some places. We don’t mean to make it sound worse than they really are because the plastic parts aren’t terrible in this regard. They just aren’t as perfect as some will want. Now even the photoetch isn’t a perfect answer for the problem we wanted to address either because it WILL impact the accuracy of the model. The window frame strips are to be glued to the surface of the model which means they will protrude slightly unlike the studio model. So there isn’t a “perfect” answer, but we want to provide as many solutions as we can and let modelers decide which way they want to address it. Keep in mind that dealing with photoetch can be tricky for the uninitiated. It is intended to be used by experienced modelers.
lastly, we just want to mention that there is a an advance preview build going on that is hosted on the allscaletrek.com website.
You can find the threads for that here for the K’t’inga model kit.
and here for the Lighting Set.
They have also reviewed our recent release of the 1:1000 U.S.S. Grissom and Klingon Bird-of-Prey.
Star Trek Model Kits: U.S.S. Grissom & Klingon Bird-of-Prey 1:1000 scale
With a great license like STAR TREK, there is no end to the subjects we can introduce as new kits, but sometimes the question does arrive of “What should we do next?”. That question is usually tied to the investment needed for tooling the kit. It isn’t easy to do large, grand scale kits very often, but there are plenty of ships to consider at smaller scales like our popular 1:1000 scale kits. Except for maybe the Klingon K’t’inga, we have represented most of the recognizable ships in one scale or another. However, it seems like nearly every time we’ve asked modelers what ideas they had in mind, we often found one ship asked for over and over… The U.S.S. Grissom. The Oberth-class ship is a bit of a departure from the usual Starfleet fare. Though a fan-favorite, the Grissom was infamously taken out by a Klingon Bird-of-Prey in STAR TREK: The Search For Spock before other Oberths went on to appear in three more films and several episodes of ST:TNG. The ship is a relatively small design with an accepted length of 120 meters. That gave us bit of pause to do as a 1:1000 scale kit. A kit of this size wouldn’t be substantial enough to stand on its own. Though a 1:350 scale kit of the ship seems very appealing, we felt the need to check the reaction to a smaller investment first and come back to a large scale later if that seems feasible. So, what could we do? We could have reboxed our Enterprise Refit and included it in that like we did with the Botany bay in our TOS Enterprise kit, but I wanted to hold out on that and see if teaming the Refit with a dry dock kit might be viable later on. With the Refit still available and our recent U.S.S. Excelsior release, it became apparent that the last of the ships from STIII: The Search For Spock was the Klingon Bird-of-Prey. A smaller ship with a debatable length of about 90 meters, we could afford to team the two ships together in a 2-piece set and allow modelers to build a collection of every ship from that film. The KBoP is a beloved design and is in my personal list of top 5 space ship designs.
The Grissom is based on CAD work by Angelo Bastianelli and the KBoP will be based on our larger AMT kit. The Bird-of-Prey will come with two sets of wing baffles to build in either cruising or attack modes. Both kits will feature snap assembly to fit right in line with our other 1:1000 snap kits.
A few things to note on the mockups. On the Oberth, the factory made a couple mistakes. they grew an earlier copy of the deck. So the mockup shown here has the incorrect detail on the back the rear edge of the deck also shows more detail than we will end up with in production. They put a base rod hole in the bottom large enough to accept the rods for our 5″ dome bases, but these kits will come with our small bases, so that will be less obtrusive. On the KBoP, they forgot the base hole altogether. More significantly, they were supposed to grow two sizes of the ship. the one shown in thepics measures about 3 1/2″ long and would be comparable to the kit included in the AMT Adversary Set. At this length the ship would have been 90 meters long “in real life”. However, this deviates from the debated, but generally agreed to length of 110m. The second mockup was to be about 4 1/2″ long to bring it in scale with that measurement. The detail looks great at the smaller size, but we will most likely kick it up to the larger size. Let us know what you think in the comments.
Here, for the first time, is a look at the upcoming kits. The set is scheduled to be released by May 1st. So look for it at Wondefest 2018.
Now, I’ve been mulling “something” over… We are working on another brand-new kit. It will be big, and probably unexpected. I wish I could talk about it. It is really driving me nuts. It has been in the works for a long time already, and we are nearly finished with the CAD work. We will probably get a mockup within the month of January. I was hoping to hold out on this announcement until Wonderfest, but if we manage to stick to our development timeline, the kit should be out in August. In which case, we will probably announce it before that. I’ve been considering announcing it now as a Christmas gift to all of the sci-fi modelers out there. BUT, we all know how these things go. Any number of circumstances could crash down on the project. So I won’t say any more except…
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year! I hope one (or more) of your gifts is a model kit, but even more than that I hope you receive the peace and joy behind the season.
Lindberg Model Kits: Mini Lindy’s: An Illustrated History 1980s & 90s
This is the 3rd and final part of an illustrated history of the Lindberg’s Mini Lindy line based on found images, catalogs and info from some modeling sites.
In 1980 4 more garage kits were made under the Truckin’ Big series.
All new tractor trailer kits were made in 1982. A mix of 2 semi-trucks (GMC Astro & Ford CL-9000) and 4 trailer variations made up the 8 releases. The first 4 in these series were reissued in slightly different packaging at some point before 1987.
In 1984 the addition of a tanker trailer lend itself to 4 more truck kits.
In 1990 the Miniature Mint Collection 2-packs were introduced. The 1990 catalog showed 6 kits, No. 72301-06, showing 8 previous cars and 4 new ones. Ultimately only 4 of the 6 two-packs were released. In 72303, the 1932 Ford was replaced with the newly-tooled 1990 Corvette ZR-1. In 72304, the MG-TD was replaced with the newly-tooled Lamborghini Countach. From what I can tell the 1990 Camaro Z28 and the Ferrari Testorossa were never tooled.
The final Mini Lindy release was the Super 8: Street Machines in 1991 feature 8 cars: 1964 Corvette, Jaguar XKE, 1970 Corvette, 1967 Mustang, Corvette ZR-1, Chevy Pickup, Lamborghini and 1968 Camaro.
Some of the dates and images were found on these fantastic sites….
Commenters let us know……Should we bring these back? What kits do the modelers want to see?
Lindberg Model Kits: Mini Lindy’s: An Illustrated History 1970s
This is part 2 of an illustrated history of the Lindberg’s Mini Lindy line based on found images, catalogs and info from some modeling sites.
In 1970 the existing kits from the 60s were rereleased with new packaging and item numbers; 8 under the name 1971 Hot Shot and 8 under the name Mod Rod which included psychedelic flower decals. Other Mod Rod versions of previous cars were made available though a mail-in promotion; they came in plain boxes but included Mod Rod decals and instructions. These included the Porsche Carrera, the “1971” Corvette, the Ford Mustang, the Jaguar XKE and probably more.
In 1971 8 of the original trucks were rereleased under the name Big Wheels. That same year seven new cars were released under the name 1972 Super Sport. The ’68 corvette was included to round off the 8. New cars included the Cadillac Eldorado, Lincoln Continental Mark III, Chevrolet Vega, Buick Riviera, Gremlin, Monte Carlo and Pontiac Grand Prix (in catalog as Grand Ville). The Super Stock series are some of the more difficult to find Mini Lindy kits. One interesting thing to note is that the Pickup Camper was a Ford now it is a Chevy. The box art is the same as the 1960s but has been altered slightly. I believed the pickup was altered for a dealer promotion, because the Camper can be found in pink & orange striped Chevy promo boxes. The chrome grilles look different but the bodies are similar enough that the tool may have just been altered. It still has the number 22 on the underside of the body.
In 1972 some of the trucks were released in 2-packs.
In 1975 10 trucks, vans and bus were released under the Hi Rollers series. The back of the packaging showed all the releases except for the 2 buses.
In 1976 8 cars were rereleased in the Speedy Wheels series.
In 1977 the Van Go series added a new twist to 8 previous cars with bold graphics and glitter in the injection plastic.
In 1979 the Car and Garage Kit series include a plastic garage with windows and an opening garage door. The Cadillac Eldorado and Lincoln Continental Mark III returned for the first and last time.
Look for my next post for part 3 – the 80s & 90s.
Some of the dates and images were found on these fantastic sites….
Lindberg Model Kits: Mini Lindy’s: An Illustrated History 1960s
This is an illustrated history of the Lindberg’s Mini Lindy line based on found images, catalogs and info from some modeling sites.
Part 1 – 1960s
The first 24 Mini Lindy cars were produced between 1967 and 1968 with the first 16 appearing in the 1968 catalog. The vehicles were HO scale plastic kits that included clear parts, chrome parts, metal axles, rubber tires and a decal sheet. They came in black boxes with the model illustration appearing in a white oval. On the reverse side appeared a rear view of the vehicle. Three variations on the packaging appeared: a basic box, box with a flap for hanging and a cellophane version that was just the basic box with the back illo cut out. On the back of the flapped version was a list of kits numbered 1 to 32, though at that time only 24 had produced. The list also changed a bit on kits 17-24.
In 1969 7 “red box” kits were released; kits were numbered 25 to 31. An oddity… #32 Ryder Moving Truck appeared in a black box. Not sure of the release date but given that the kits were released in groups of 8 generally I would think this would have been released with #25-31, but I don’t know. The list on the flaps changed again to reflect the final 32 kits. Seems as though #25 Pontiac Firebird, #28 Jaguar D, #29 Bobtail T, #31 Station Wagon Vista-Cruiser, #32 Stake Truck, and #32 Oil Truck were unproduced. The 1969-70 catalog still only showed the first 16 kits.
Look for my next post for part 2…….
Some of the dates and images were found on these fantastic sites….
Lindberg Model kits: Big 1/16 Scale Serpent Sho-Go Rod!
After 47 years and some tooling work the Serpent Sho-Go Rod is ready to roll again! The kit has had quite a few variations over its long history. The first appearance was in Pyro’s 1965 catalog as the TeeNT Sho-Go Street Rod and the Gee-T Custom Show Car. The Serpent variation first appeared in 1966 as the Cobra Tee Way-Out Rod.
In 1970 skis where added to the Gee-T and it was re-christened as the Sno-Skeeter, the Cobra Tee became the Serpent, and new parts were tooled for the 4th version – the Laramie Stage Ghost. In 1979 Lindberg released the TeeNT as the Bull Horn Street Rod. Supposedly, it was renamed as such because, when loonies at Lindberg obtained the tooling, they thought that the horns from the Laramie were meant to go with the TeeNT.
The Serpent is a big, fantastic rod at 1/16 scale. It sits at over 8 inches long and 5 1/2 inches tall. The kit features snakeskin textured side panels & upholstery, detailed engine, rubber whitewall tires and slicks, an extra cobra throne seat, antique cowl lamps, custom bucket seats with cobra headrests, seat belts, custom exhaust pipes and twin steering controls. Parts will come injected in blue, black and clear. Alterations to the kit include improving the way the bucket sits on the frame and adjusting the stance of the 3rd seat to better match the box art.
For those wanting a more custom look the Serpent comes with a slew of bonus parts including front & Rear fenders, chrome wheel covers, chrome gas tank, alternate cowl lamps, and chrome air cleaners. An all new feature for the Serpent is a large, snake-themed decal sheet. Slithering your way this May!
Lindberg Model kits: 5 Space Ship of The Future! Back from the Past
Blasting from the past is Lindberg’s 5 Space Ships of the Future. Considered to be Lindberg’s most iconic and sought after kit, the futuristic 5-pack will finally be available for the first time since its originally release way back in 1958. Along with 5 complete model kits, the release will features vintage boxart, retro-inspired decals, and a few new twists. The 5 decal sheets are remastered from the 1958 versions but with a better fit and details, and include all new decal options inspired by the kits rich histories. Also for the first time ever parts are injected in a spaceship grey.
The all new full color tray features amazing models painted, assembled and photographed by E. James Small. Check out more of his work at smallartworks.ca.
Lindberg Model kits: 1959 22ft Owens Deluxe Cruiser Boat!
Following the release of the 1959 Century Coronado, we have the 2nd boat found hidden in the Lindberg tool collection — the 1959 22ft Owens Deluxe Cruiser with Twin 50HP Outboard Motors! With smooth lines and sturdy built, this is the roomiest 22 foot yacht. The combination of distinctive two-tone colors makes a beautiful boat and the large deck and spacious cabin makes a comfortable experience. Equipped with twin outboard engines – this luxury cruiser has been designed to combine performance and functional benefits with the beauty and comfort.
Like the Coronado the Owens boat also is connected to another famous designer, Raymond Loewy. Raymond Loewy was know for creating logos for Exxon, Shell, BP, TWA, Nabisco, Quaker, and the U.S. Postal Service. He created the USCG stripe as seen on Lindberg’s US Coast Guard Patrol Boat. Most notably he redesign the glass Coke bottle, replacing the embossing with white letters and changing the contours to create the iconic shape we know today.
Lindberg Model kits: 1620 Pilgram Mayflower!
This month set sail with the Pilgrims on the Mayflower. Build this 1:250 replica of the famous ship that establish the first English settlement in the new world. The Mayflower is joining Lindberg’s growing fleet of small scale sailing ships. At 5.5 inches long the kit is packed full of detail with molded flags, preformed sails, decorative hull and wood grain deck.
The Mayflower includes new packaging featuring the 1963 boxart, easy-to-follow instructions, display base with nameplate and Cartograf decals. The new decal sheet includes flags, name for display and stern decoration.
Lindberg Model kits: 1959 Century Coronado Boat!
For those fans of mid-century chrome and bubble tops Lindberg has a kit for you. We found a few boats hidden in our tool collection that haven’t been seen since the 1960s and the first one to be released is the 1959 Century Coronado. The 21-foot Coronado was the flagship of Century’s line of runabouts and was known for its luxury and styling. The boat was designed by Richard Arbib, mostly notable for his watch and automobile designs, including the 1957 Hudson Hornet. If you would like to know more about the Coronado and see some pictures check out “The Cadillac of Boats”on WoodyBoater.com. Also check out some of the articles at Forgottenfiberglass.com or CarStyling.ru about Richard Arbib’s car designs.
Features include: full color decals, vintage boxart, display base, chrome parts, plastic flags, sliding canopy, and a removable engine cover.
Above: Richard Arbib’s Coronado designs and photos of the real thing. Below: More of Arbib’s designs including the 1957 Hudson Hornet, the 1952 Packard Pan-American Roadster, the 1954 Ford Atmos, and the 1956 Astra-Gnome.
