Small Scale Military Headquarters

With all the hype in the 1/18 forum about the King Tiger, I noticed the same seller also had some 1/32 scale items for sale as well. Amongst those was a sdkfz 222 I had never seen before. Now I have 4 variants, 2 different gray ones, a tri-color one, and a tan/brown one, and this one that was being sold seemed to be a different one. It is gray like the other 2 except that the markings are different. I guess I wasn't the only one to notice because the dang thing went for $90! Take a look:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... MEWAX%3AIT



-Kevin

Things like that make wonder about whether there we won't see some more 21st stuff show up, its in a blister pack for retail, surely thats not the only one.

There may not be warehouses full of this stuff, but I believe there may be a few sea cans in storage that are full of the last that was imported.

These things are only stored so long, then the contents are auctioned off, may be we will see some truly one off last of the last.

Since at least three that I know of the first models offered were in blister packs, my guess is this one was a very early issue, not a late issue. That seller probably finally decided to give it up and did very well.

...... ya' mean these ? ... also included is a Tiger I tank #'rd 308 that's only different by just it's turret # ,..

+ it's in a blister pack card back.







->>>-----> " I got these awhile back " ... Apparently these were never released for some odd reason.


- MITCH v MG

The ones I remember were the Tank Destroyer and the M47 which were the first 21st I saw, and they were at a WalMart.

Good eyes Mitch! I had looked at that tiger to see if it too was a unique one I hadn't seen before, but after a quick glance I didn't think there were any identifiable characteristics. Looks like I was wrong, never picked up on that slight side angle shot of "308".

These are obviously carded prototypes that never made it to market. I doubt very seriously that you will see these again. I am hoping for some 32x planes to pop up. That would be interesting to see what they go for.

So, MG-42 (Mitch) and Panzerarm, do you think these where early releases or late releases?

I got late in the game and had never seen them packaged that way, are there more out there or is this just a fluke that this one showed up?

It's hard to tell. Initially 21st packaged their m41 Walker Bulldog and M18 Hellhat like this, but I don't think I ever saw any German armor in blisters. I definitely never saw the markings on those two German vehicles. In my mind it can go one of two ways. My first theory is that these are early releases that just never passed the "big retailer" test for being sellable or PC enough to sell in their stores, so they went ahead with the other U.S. releases in blisters, but shelved the German stuff until they later realized they would sell and then, by that time, 21st had opted for different packaging. The second theory, and to me the more valid of the two, is that they are late releases that were never released. IMO, these could have been the latest repaints 21st came up with after perhaps some research into which versions sold best (I wouldn't be surprised that it would be the gray ones since most people assocaite the Germans with gray panzers), and then going back to the original colors, but changing the numbering enough to still get us collectors in on the new stuff as well. The packaging reversion could have been another business decision to maybe cut costs (since we are all aware of the difficulties 21st Century was having staying afloat).

Of course this is nothing but pure conjecture, and we'll never know for sure unless someone involved in the company comes forward and tells us what was really going on.


-Kevin

Well, if anything, this latest Kingtiger and 222 release at least gives hope that something is still out there.

Not to sound stupid, but at the end of a Indiana Jones movie, they pan across a warehouse full of ?????

LOL! I think that is what everyone at this forum dreams of, a man with a fedora and a whip finding a huge forgotten warehouse full of unreleased 21st Century products in China or some shipping yard and then bringing it to light via a Monkey Depot-esque sale!

PanzerArm wrote:It's hard to tell. Initially 21st packaged their m41 Walker Bulldog and M18 Hellhat like this, but I don't think I ever saw any German armor in blisters. I definitely never saw the markings on those two German vehicles. In my mind it can go one of two ways. My first theory is that these are early releases that just never passed the "big retailer" test for being sellable or PC enough to sell in their stores, so they went ahead with the other U.S. releases in blisters, but shelved the German stuff until they later realized they would sell and then, by that time, 21st had opted for different packaging. The second theory, and to me the more valid of the two, is that they are late releases that were never released. IMO, these could have been the latest repaints 21st came up with after perhaps some research into which versions sold best (I wouldn't be surprised that it would be the gray ones since most people assocaite the Germans with gray panzers), and then going back to the original colors, but changing the numbering enough to still get us collectors in on the new stuff as well. The packaging reversion could have been another business decision to maybe cut costs (since we are all aware of the difficulties 21st Century was having staying afloat).

Of course this is nothing but pure conjecture, and we'll never know for sure unless someone involved in the company comes forward and tells us what was really going on.


-Kevin

Your first option is more reasonable to me given that these are packaged in the early style packaging that the Gray tiger and me-262 were released in. 21st did away with the blister packs and went with the boxed releases from then on.

So these were early releases?, the only thing I'd ever seen in blister packs were figures and weapons.

hworth18 wrote:Your first option is more reasonable to me given that these are packaged in the early style packaging that the Gray tiger and me-262 were released in. 21st did away with the blister packs and went with the boxed releases from then on.

Can you show some pictures of the tiger and ME-262 in blister packs? I don't think I ever saw those.

-Kevin

What is with these crazy prices for 222s!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... K:MEWAX:IT

I'm going to have to check and see if I have any of those gray ones NIB because man they are demanding quite a premium!


-Kevin

PanzerArm wrote:

hworth18 wrote:Your first option is more reasonable to me given that these are packaged in the early style packaging that the Gray tiger and me-262 were released in. 21st did away with the blister packs and went with the boxed releases from then on.

Can you show some pictures of the tiger and ME-262 in blister packs? I don't think I ever saw those.

-Kevin

Sorry, I meant the artwork, not the actual packaging.

..... I'm just curious but , hasn't anybody noticed something odd , especially about the 222 in particular here.

* Just study the pic and you'll notice that the SS plate insignias are put on top of the front fenders , not placed in back on the rear fenders where they should be. What you can't see though is , that there is a Wehrmact license plate stamped on the rear of the vehicle instead which doesn't make any sense. + there is like "green tinted glass blocks" inserted instead of the solid openings used for the armored window slits , and there's no simulated mesh painted on the glass on the gun turret like on the production model either.

* The Tiger tank # markings is hand painted on as well as the # 2 on the 222 , not pad stamped like some of the rest of the markings on it or what really went into production , @ least the same technique as on my set , look like this . The back of the cards are not any different from what 21st.C advertised on their normal production packs too , showing really nothing new or out of the ordinary. * Never the less , these are definitely , only test-marketing pieces. Thought I'd just point this out.




- MG

So Mitch, you bought these I take it ?

PanzerArm wrote:So Mitch, you bought these I take it ?

>>> Yes , but not on eBaY or from the same auction link you posted , if that's what you mean.
Somebody else won those. I paid alot less for mine.

* Edit :
............... also , the Tiger does not have the white Großdeutschland helmet marking painted on it that went on the drivers side of the production model either.


- MG