Small Scale Military Headquarters

I got the following e-mail from Admiral Toys:

The Panzers will ship from China on Tuesday the 23rd. We should have them 3-4 weeks after they ship. They will then ship out to retailer's.

That's odd, they posted back on April 13 on a different forum that the tanks were being shipped out the following week and would arrive in the US a few weeks later.

Yeah, I know, I saw the same info., but I guess they are behind schedule.

Huh?

I wonder if it is the L that is shipping then or one of the others. Last posting here seemed to indicate that the other two were pretty far along and would not be that far behind.
Thanks,
Eric

When I requested info about when the first Panzer III would be in their hands, I received the above e-mail

Admiral Toys now has pics up of the Panzer III Ausf H. Not sure if this is old news or not.

Interestingly I pre-ordered these (4) direct from Admiral Toys several weeks (now 2+ months) ago. The order was somehow lost in the ethers. I replaced the order, but their order acceptance program was down at the moment. I then pre-ordered from the motorpool, got a confirmation number and everything, but then, in a follow up email was told that their credit card acceptance system had been down (this was during their big remodel of the website) when I placed the order so I would have to re-order. Oh for three was all I could take. Now I see that fate was being kind as I have never had good luck with pre-orders and this wouldn't have been any better of a wait.

The first Panzer III has been released to those that ordered directly from Admiral Toys and will ship to retailers in a couple weeks. I ordered direct from Admiral and received my Panzers last week. Pretty nice overall.

Hi Itbcj,
We've ironed out all the "grand opening wrinkles" on our new website so you can still place a pre-order for whichever Admiral vehicles you wanted, if you're still interested. Not sure of what went wrong with your particular order since I dont have a name to go by, just a screen name. Food for thought if you've still got a hankering to obtain these replicas at pre-order prices.

Cordially,

Lightning2000
www.themotorpool.net

had been down (this was during their big remodel of the website) when I placed the order so I would have to re-order. Oh for three was all I could take. Now I see that fate was being kind as I have never had good luck with pre-orders and this wouldn't have been any better of a wait.

I placed a pre-order too with TMP, I think it was before their new site rollout. Is that a problem? Do I have to re-order then?

Like Itcbj, all you are giving me here is a screen name Mr. Football. You'll have to give us more to go on to check your order history.

Lightning2000
www.themotorpool.net

I had no desire to bad mouth anyone in my posting. I was only regaling you all with my own bad luck in pre-ordering. TMP support was very quick to inform me that my pre-order was invalid and I have nothing but respect for TMP and its personnell.
I was simply recounting that I was 0 for 3 in trying to place this pre-order and gave up at that point. I know when fate is dealing me aces and eights and I get out of the game.
My long term experience with preorders has been that they rarely come in on time and I'd rather pay the regular retail than find myself waiting (im)patiently for a slightly discounted item. In fact I have sat waiting for a pre-order (with neither TMP or Admiral) while the item I wanted was coming in to local retail stores. Boy is that frustrating. And what about when the expected (pre-sold) amount of product doesn't show up?
Lightning and TMP were as fast as in informing me that my order hadn't gone through and they couldn't have been more helpful. The same pretty much for Admiral- it just took a little longer to catch the error.

No problem Itcbj (I assume that stands for something I'm not familiar with). I've been frustrated of late too, but for other reasons. At least allergy season is over as it pertains to my sinuses. Things are starting to look up...

Lightning2000
www.themotorpool.bigstep.com

I've been using the Wal Mart brand of OTC Claritin combined with Nasalcrom (the latter a spray) and have been pretty good allergy wise although I'm not so sure the season is over for me yet here. When I lived in NYC it lasted from mid-April to late may, early June. When I moved to NCarolina it lasted a bit longer but after 20+ years here it was entirely manageable with the Nasalcrom. (In southern California the allergies were effectively non-existent.) Then when we moved to the beach two years ago my head exploded and I have had to take the OTC claritin and nasalcrom. Both just to survive. Our season down here should end in a week or three....

As I was unsure about any UK dealers handling this range I ordered mine direct from Admiral about three weeks ago and it arrived last week. I was most impressed with the way it was packed. It is a very nice little model. A nice change from all the late war German armour currently available. I'd put quality above FOV but just below Dragon. Nice 15 Pz Div Afrika Korps markings. I'll cetainly get their next Pz III release. Roll on the Crusader

I would like to hear from more of you who have received this model. . . what is the verdict? I read a very bad review at the Model Hangar. I have pre-ordered this one from The Motor Pool, so am anxiously awaiting this tank. Of course, the reviewer at the Model Hangar wasn't too high on the CDC tanks, which I think are the best diecast 1/72 to date, esp. their PZIV. Anyway, everybody has an opinion, so if any of the Forum members have received theirs, let's hear about it.

I received all (3) of mine and like them. There is room for improvement, but then again there is room for improvement even on Dragon Armor.

There are a few things inaccurate with the Admiral Toys Panzer III, but overall it is a nice diecast tank. I probably wouldn't buy 3 of them if I had it all to do over again, but it is a great addition to a 1/72 scale diecast tank collection.

Hi Philip,
We havent received our shipment but its expected towards the end of June. I cant comment on the tank thus far cause I havent seen it up close. As for collectability, the first release in any series is usually the most coveted, at least for now, especially years hence when other collectors enter the market and look for the first release. Just witness the first Dragon Wittmann Tiger. Nothing special about it except for kicking off the series.

Keep in mind too several factors -- thus far, no one else makes a Panzer III in 1:72 scale. Secondly, Admiral has a good marketing strategy in hand by keeping it from being mass marketed. Frankly, for $14-$18, I dont think you can go wrong with this vehicle. If you dont like it, I'm sure you can make back your money and them some down the road, if you're making a speculative purchase. If you're simply collecting, I cant imagine how anyone could dislike this vehicle given its features, price point, metal content, etc.

Just my two rubles...

Lightning2000
www.themotorpool.net

lightning2000 wrote:no one else makes a Panzer III in 1:72 scale

Altaya makes a diecast Panzer III in 1/72 scale. Two of the inaccuracies on the Admiral Toys Panzer III are not present on the Altaya Panzer III, but the Admiral Toys Panzer excels in many other areas over the Altaya Panzer.