1:72 Pre-Built Aircraft Companies which one?

[USCGMK2]

Hello,

Well as I've run out of approved room for 1:18 and close to my 1:32 and 1:48, I went and picked up some of the MRC/Easy Model 1:72 aircraft from a Hobby shop that is going out of business. I do like them and for the price I could start a new collection. But as I browsed around on Evil-Bay, I noticed other companies that had 1:72 A/C's. I wanted to get peoples opinion on which have the best to offer.

I noticed:

MRC/ Easy Model
IXO
WarMaster
Corgi
HobbyBoss
HobbyMaster
FOV
MatchBox
Dragon

I'm sure there are others. I do like the option of the plug in landing gear to make it look like it's flying or sitting on the field. I'm the person that per my craziness needs 10 versions of the Corsair or Zero, and I figure 1:72 allows me the room and price to do it. Now I just need to sell off some 1:18 and 1:48 to pay for the 1:72.

[aferguson]

much what i went through a year ago.

a quick run down:

MRC/ Easy Model: as you noted most models aren't bad but there is the odd clunker so beware
IXO: no longer in production and variable in price. Quality widely varies. All have horrible inked panel lines
WarMaster: repaints of ixos...models never look as good as photos, beware. Most are poorly executed
Corgi: for the most part good to very good but not always. EXPENSIVE. Only option for bombers
HobbyBoss: do they make prebuilts?...i thnk they just make kits
HobbyMaster: usually good quality and priced better than Corgi...mostly jets in 1/72
FOV: older line i only like the B-25 and B-26 as i feel there are better options for the fighters
MatchBox: long out of production...good for the price of the day. So-so at current prices
Dragon: usually pretty good but not always....out of production so prices can be steep now

Others:

Altaya: they do subscriptions and make unusual subjects; quality not bad; prices usually reasonable
Oxford: they do repaints of Atlas and make their own stuff. Accuracy varies but prices are pretty good.
Amercom: similar to Altaya. Very reasonable prices. Accuracy all over the place though. Nice helicopters.
Skymax: good quality and a bit better priced than Hobby Master. The odd clunker though so beware.
Century Wings: super expensive but quite nice....i don't like the deep panel lines but others don't mind
Gaincorps: out of business, mostly jets. u/c fixed down. Accuracy: meh Expensive
Witty: frustrating, they always look good but usualy have one big error.
Sky Guardians: same company as Witty
Falcon: like Witty, frustrating. Usually one major error per model
Aviation72: don't have any yet but i think they are like Witty, maybe better

Witty, Falcon and Aviation72 are not cheap which makes their spotty accuracy unacceptable in my books.


I find with 1/72 pre-builts it is very important to read reviews before buying or at the very least look at a bunch of good pictures of the actual model. Will save money and heart ache. If you want enormous variety then be prepared to buld model kits because besides fighter sized planes and a few Corgi and FOV bombers there isn't likely to be anything else made in 1/72. 1/144 offers great variety in pre built bombers but at half the size of 1/72.

[Dauntless]

As far as I know, the ones that have positional landing gear (up or down option) are IXO, Corgi, Hobby Master, Skymax, Dragon, Century Wings, and some of the Forces of Valor.
Though a few of the newer Witty Wings like the P-38 have this option now.
Some companies have all their planes with gear down only like Amercom, or gear up only (unless fixed gear) like Oxford.

One other company which makes nice WWII aircraft (haven't bought any jets) is Gemini Aces, though their P-38 is actually a Witty mold, it's not too bad. Their Spits, Bf-109F, and the P-51B/C are exceptional as 1:72 die cast aircraft go, with a few mistakes on some of the first few releases.

With each company there are some really nice planes and some not so good to down right duds. Even the really accurate, and outstanding ones can have little faults to them also.

Also like Aferguson said it's good to read reviews, or just ask. There's a few here that like talking about them.
I went through the same thing about two years ago when there was not much else to buy in 1:18 and 1:32. Though I refuse to sell what I have (saved the boxes for storage)
I got some invaluable advice right here when I went 1:72, then 1:144.

[snake]

Think Aferg, and Dauntless have covered the brands pretty well.

There are lots of pictures available online, so that is a big help, especially when starting out. You should utilize this resource.

I would stay away from the more "budget" lines, but they frequently make aircraft that the major companies don't.

[USCGMK2]

Thank you all for the input. That's why I like to buy in person, when possible but kind of hard to do these days at least where i'm at here in Hawaii. Looks like i'll be building some kits as the scale is limited to fighters, I did see the Corgi ($$$) and FOV bombers though. The main thing is the Wife approves of this size!

[snake]

Not limited to fighters at all, USCGMK2.

The Corgi four engined heavies are fairly expensive, but their twins are more reasonable. B-25, Catalina, Wellington, He 111, and Ju52.

And HM / Skymax have done the Devastator, Dauntless, Helldiver, Stuka, Kate, Val, Beaufighter , A-26, A-20 etc.

Here is a link to the HM/ Skymax website run by Hawkonevoodoo. Take a look.

http://hobbymastercollector.com/

And other lines such as Oxford, IXO, have done some much more obscure aircraft.

There really is a large selection, and some of the larger aircraft have been done in 1/144, and 1/200. Would be really large in 1/72, so a good compromise.

And for jets, tons of selection as well. With HM and Century Wings being the leaders in this area.

1/72 is the most popular scale, with the greatest variety, by far.

Much more in this scale than just fighters.

[Dauntless]

Resident of Hawaii huh?
Any preference for Pacific theatre planes?

Being born in the territory of Hawaii, or rather an outlying island in the Pacific, that's where my interests were and where I started collecting at first. Hobby Master and Skymax (which is owned by Hobby Master) covered those planes like Snake mentioned very nicely. My first was the Battle of Midway Devastator, and it went from there onto the other aircraft in the PTO, including the Japanese dive and torpedo bombers. They made a few Pearl Harbor aircraft too.

IXO has quite a few obscure examples of WWII Japanese planes, mostly fighters, and one torpedo bomber. They are getting harder to find these days, but come up from time to time. They have their faults like the black inked panel lines as Aferg mentioned, but some are unavailable anywhere else.

I have since bought many WWII aircraft from other theatres, and every once in a while save and spring for a twin or heavy bomber from Corgi or Hobby Master.

[tmanthegreat]

My personal two favorite diecast companies have been Corgi and Hobby Master. Corgi is the "traditional" diecast line; Hobby Master is relatively new. HM planes generally feature a little more detail and functionality than those made by Corgi and other companies. The two have worked in a complimentary fashion: Corgi focuses on the WWII heavies, mediums, and WWII fighters mostly with some dabbling into the Cold War and Modern eras. They largely have a favoritism toward British aircraft and paint schemes (gee I wonder why!)

Hobby Master has a pretty varied offering in a variety of scales - in some ways more so than Corgi. They have focused largely on Cold War era and modern jets in 1:72, but have some excellent WWII offerings, including some unique twin-engine planes like the A-20, A-26 and Bristol Beaufighter. You can get the entire century series of jets from Hobby Master (F-100, F-101, F-102, F-104, F-105, F-106) and other Vietnam era classics like the F-4 Phantom, Mig 21, and UH-1 Huey. There are a variety of modern jets, including some used by foreign countries like Japan. I've long enjoyed the fact that most HM planes come with removable canopies, detailed cockpits, and removable pilot figures. Just adds a nice dimension to the models. Their 1:48 scale offerings are quite well done (save for the recent P-51B) and they have some obscure inner-war 1930s aircraft as part of their 1:48 lineup.

I would advise taking a look at some of the online retailer websites to see what's available in 1:72. The Flying Mule, Diecast Junkie, OnMark Diecast, 3000 Toys, The Motor Pool, Aikens Airplanes, all feature a huge selection of diecast 1:72 items made by a variety of manufacturers.

[USCGMK2]

Dauntless- Just stationed on Oahu, originally from Mississippi, but everyone thinks I'm local since i'm half Japanese or as the yard birds call me Hapa Haole. Yes, pretty much all PTO A/C and mainly IJN A/C.

[Dauntless]

Well that's cool. Yeah miss the islands, we had Japanese neighbors on Kanton island (from such a young age I cannot eat wassabi to this day lol) used to live on Maui when I was young too. Now I'm in the desert wtf.

I don't think you would regret getting the HM Kate and Skymax Val if you like the IJN aircraft. I have three of each.
Unmatched detail, the only 1:72 versions you can get in die cast anyways.

[USCGMK2]

Yes, I've seen those and thinking of getting at least one of each. I went to shop at the Pearl Harbor Memorial and picked up 1/72 P-36 for 10.00, they have a Wildcat and a B5N2 KATE (1/144). They're made by a company Legacy of Valor/Tribute to Valor.

[aferguson]

what do you think of the Legacy of Valor P-36? I've been tempted to get one as it represents an intersting subject but i've heard it's a pretty cruddy model.

what are your thoughts on it?

[Epap]

Here's a picture of the Pearl Harbor P-36 from Legacy Of Valor, with a few improvements added. As can be seen, those rivets stand out but for the price, what the heck:

[Epap]

Here's the underside:

[Epap]

Yes, I've seen those and thinking of getting at least one of each. I went to shop at the Pearl Harbor Memorial and picked up 1/72 P-36 for 10.00, they have a Wildcat and a B5N2 KATE (1/144). They're made by a company Legacy of Valor/Tribute to Valor.

I know about the F4F and, I believe, a B-17 in a smaller scale, but this is the fist time I've heard that they put out a Kate.

[aferguson]

boy, yeah, those are definitely rivets. hm....

thanks for the pictures, very helpful.

[jlspec]

Yes, pretty much all PTO A/C and mainly IJN A/C.

Witty makes what I think are probably the best Zeros plus they have a lot of paint schemes

[USCGMK2]

Yes, it does have rivets! I'm just going to put it in the back of my new collection.

They have a green Kate I thought it was 1/72 when I 1st saw it a few months ago but paid no attention as I was just getting some books from the shop. I went back and actually looked at it and it's not 1/72, but 1/144, I should've snapped a picture. Doesn't look like it has landing gear though. They're on sale for $8.95.