Admiral Toys Information Q&A (Jason)

scbvideoboy · Post by **scbvideoboy** » Sat Jan 06, 2007 7:59 pm

You need to get you a buddy here in the states and work some sort of arrangement!

Dave

VMF115 · Post by **VMF115** » Sat Jan 06, 2007 10:22 pm

Jason you need to make that corsair with goobs of detail in 1:18th scale if you did that I would buy a few of them.

scbvideoboy · Post by **scbvideoboy** » Sat Jan 06, 2007 11:03 pm

too many corsairs already in 1/18, something NEW and different to add to the collection please. Variety...

DH

VMF115 · Post by **VMF115** » Sat Jan 06, 2007 11:47 pm

scbvideoboy wrote:too many corsairs already in 1/18, something NEW and different to add to the collection please. Variety...

DH

That’s true but we don’t have a really detailed one with correct wing folding mechanism.

VMF115 · Post by **VMF115** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 9:50 am

AT drinking guessing game
Where every ones get toasted

We should have a new drinking game for all the 21-year old’s on this website
*Disclaimer not to be taken seriously, author of this post is a bit goofy this morning

Every time Jason gives a hint every one takes Drink. Mods take two drinks

Every time some one makes a guess that is wrong Jason and the rest of us takes a drink.

Every time some ones guess an A-10, F-14, F-15 Jason and every one
takes two drinks every time.

When we start a new page every one and Jason takes three drinks.[/list]

tmanthegreat · Post by **tmanthegreat** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 10:27 am

VMF115 wrote:AT drinking guessing game
Where every ones get toasted

We should have a new drinking game for all the 21-year old’s on this website
*Disclaimer not to be taken seriously, author of this post is a bit goofy this morning

Every time Jason gives a hint every one takes Drink. Mods take two drinks

Every time some one makes a guess that is wrong Jason and the rest of us takes a drink.

Every time some ones guess an A-10, F-14, F-15 Jason and every one
takes two drinks every time.

When we start a new page every one and Jason takes three drinks.[/list]

Catman & 7thvahunter, you littluns, cover your eyes

Then again, knowing today's teens...

VMF115 · Post by **VMF115** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 10:49 am

tmanthegreat wrote:
VMF115 wrote:AT drinking guessing game
Where every ones get toasted

We should have a new drinking game for all the 21-year old’s on this website
*Disclaimer not to be taken seriously, author of this post is a bit goofy this morning

Every time Jason gives a hint every one takes Drink. Mods take two drinks

Every time some one makes a guess that is wrong Jason and the rest of us takes a drink.

Every time some ones guess an A-10, F-14, F-15 Jason and every one
takes two drinks every time.

When we start a new page every one and Jason takes three drinks.[/list]
Catman & 7thvahunter, you littluns, cover your eyes

Then again, knowing today's teens...

They can have Mountain Dew But instead of taking a drink they drink a whole 12 once can. By the time they get done playing, them little teens will be bouncing of the wall.

*I do not endorse underage Alcoholic beverage Consumption

chunks · Post by **chunks** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 10:59 am

I'll take a Roy Rogers!!

tmanthegreat · Post by **tmanthegreat** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 3:45 pm

Seriously, though, I'd caution AT on making the 1:32 Corsair... While I'm sure it would have tons of detail and that alot of work has gone into the prototype, the Corsair offered by the competition is tough to beat and has already been avaliable for a while at mass retail and soon at the smaller retailers.

AT, with its philosophy of catering more to the small retailers and collectors as opposed to the mass retailers, has the chance to nicely fill a niche and produce less-common subjects in its 1:18, 1:32, and 1:72 scales. If there are any "common" aircraft that need to be reproduced (affordably) in 1:32, I'd go for the ME-262 and P-51. The only 1:32 ME-262 is less-than-acurate in its moulding and there's only one decent P-51 in 1:32 and it costs around $80 at normal retail. For aircraft origionality, why not a 1:32 Hellcat or Wildcat or an SBD Dauntless - and thats just for starters

KAMIKAZE · Post by **KAMIKAZE** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 8:52 pm

I agree T-man. Jason should definately stick to lesser known aircraft or spank everyone with 1/32nd scale B-25.

Mark

FieroDude · Post by **FieroDude** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 9:12 pm

As much as I want an A-10 someday, as well as some of the other "superhits" that nobody will make because everyone is so afraid someone else will beat them to the punch or announce the release of the same plane 2 weeks later, I tend to agree. Especially if Admiral continues to focus on smaller hobby shops and on-line retailers--these are where people looking for something "less common" will most likely turn. Walmart and Toys'R'Us get by as much on recognition factor (or, I suspect in the case of some of more obscure 1/32 armor releases, on "coolness" or "because I have the other 3").

I guess it's a case of turning a potential weakness (no large retail chain contract) into a strength (focusing on those items that other manufacturers might not touch because their retail partners don't have any interest). I highly doubt that there is a senior buyer at Walmart thinking "wouldn't a 1/18 Ju-88 or a 1:32 Kate be awesome". The buyer is thinking "3 linear feet of plastic airplanes and tanks, 40% under $15, 40% between $15 and $30, and 20% above $30". He might recognize a Mustang or a Tiger, but the rest is just a SKU and a price point. Places like Bad Cat and Military Toy Shop are the ones saying, "Cool! A P-61! This rocks!".

VMF115 · Post by **VMF115** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 9:21 pm

You have to ask, “what can Admiral Toys do different then the rest of the other guys?”
In other words what can Admiral Toys do to make them selves unique in this hobby?
I think AT should start to look more closely at the aviation enthusiast, and also advertise in the Warbird type magazines. Maybe they should add a bit more detail, not to the point of making it to expensive. And I don’t see a problem if the recreate another aircraft in any scale that the other have made, simply because they lack detail. If AT cane makes a better what ever has been made before like a 1:18 Corsair then they should. I will be more then happy to toss my Bbi Corsair aside just to make room for an AT version.

Also I think every aircraft has the potential to be made and to say that AT should only make the lesser of the know aircraft would be a mistake. it may work well in the short run but long term is not so great. I mean How many lesser know aircraft can you make?

And it what group would this be marked to? I mean if you are going for the young crown then most of the aircraft in the last 60 years could fall into that group. Or if you are going for the older crowd that could mean the obscured from history that should have been recognized for its contributions but did not…..cough….. cough P-61

I would focus on a different demographic and age group, something like this” when you where eight 21st century introduced you to the military replicas but now you have grown up and want something more, come check out Admiral Toys detailed 1:18 and 1:32 scale military replicas pieces.”

What can Admiral toys do different then the other guys?

VMF115 · Post by **VMF115** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 9:29 pm

FieroDude wrote:I highly doubt that there is a senior buyer at Walmart thinking "wouldn't a 1/18 Ju-88 or a 1:32 Kate be awesome". The buyer is thinking "3 linear feet of plastic airplanes and tanks, 40% under $15, 40% between $15 and $30, and 20% above $30". He might recognize a Mustang or a Tiger, but the rest is just a SKU and a price point. Places like Bad Cat and Military Toy Shop are the ones saying, "Cool! A P-61! This rocks!".

You might be surprised in how many elderly folks buy 1:18 military replicas “ I found out why I cant find any Pak 40s at my WM there is an elderly man who has been buying up most of the WWII 1:18 armor stuff…

And there is a member of the VFW who served in WWII and Korea who has a collection of 89 1:18 war birds.

When I go to WM I am not afraid to ask some one that’s looking at the 21st stuff if they collect and is it for themselves? Most of the people I ask are defiantly older then me, I would say late 50’s

FieroDude · Post by **FieroDude** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 10:49 pm

VMF115 wrote:
FieroDude wrote:I highly doubt that there is a senior buyer at Walmart thinking "wouldn't a 1/18 Ju-88 or a 1:32 Kate be awesome". The buyer is thinking "3 linear feet of plastic airplanes and tanks, 40% under $15, 40% between $15 and $30, and 20% above $30". He might recognize a Mustang or a Tiger, but the rest is just a SKU and a price point. Places like Bad Cat and Military Toy Shop are the ones saying, "Cool! A P-61! This rocks!".

You might be surprised in how many elderly folks buy 1:18 military replicas “ I found out why I cant find any Pak 40s at my WM there is an elderly man who has been buying up most of the WWII 1:18 armor stuff…

And there is a member of the VFW who served in WWII and Korea who has a collection of 89 1:18 war birds.

When I go to WM I am not afraid to ask some one that’s looking at the 21st stuff if they collect and is it for themselves? Most of the people I ask are defiantly older then me, I would say late 50’s

When I was thinking of buyers, I was thinking of the corporate buyers that order for the company, usually with a line like, "we'll take 200,000 if you can give them to us for $3.75 each"...

As far as retail customers, I tend to agree--most of the serious customers I see are our age or older. The 10-12 year olds typically look at an XD plane then spot the GI Joe Sigma 6 stuff down the aisle and opt for the sounds, lights, and launching missiles.

Birddog · Post by **Birddog** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 4:10 pm

I agree with VMF115 about it being a mistake for Admiral Toys to not spend some focused time and production on the "well known" or "sure hits" that we have yet to see like the A-10, F-4, F-14, F-15, etc. At this point it looks like no one else is going to offer them to us. In my opinion they might be "sure hits" but at this point I believe they are "uncommon" on the "to be made" list by the other manufacturers. Here's a weakness that can be turned into a strength.

bbi has fantastic products, but they seem to be "lost in space" in the 1/18 market. It seems that they have many lines of toys that concern more of their attention and they seem to be big retailer chain inclined (Toys R Us). I'm beginning to feel they are slowly backing out of 1/18.

Then there's 21st Century who again has fantastic products but I think FieroDude hit the nail on the head with them when he mentioned what a senior buyer at Wal-Mart is thinking. Not so much as obscure aircraft, but shelf space and price point. If the Avengers don't go over well, I don't think we will see any of the modern birds I listed above from 21st. They would require more shelf space and possibly a higher price tag. I think 21st would have to cut Wal-Mart out of the equation if they are going to produce any of these aircraft.

I think Admiral Toys has the best position of them all with their products and what they can choose to produce for two reasons:

1. Not restricted to things like shelf space, pricing, and
recognition factor by their retailers which means more subjects to
choose from.

2. They are concerned with the collector and what they want. The detail
some collectors clamor for could possibly become a reality due to the
benefits of reason number 1.

Put that hand in hand with the craftmanship and customer support Admiral Toys is showing and that's what this hobby needs to take it to the next level and keep'em coming. All this is my opinion of course.

VMF115 · Post by **VMF115** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 5:03 pm

Birddog wrote:
Put that hand in hand with the craftmanship and customer support Admiral Toys is showing and that's what this hobby needs to take it to the next level and keep'em coming. All this is my opinion of course.

I allso agree with Birddog on this

CW4USARMY · Post by **CW4USARMY** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 5:28 pm

Birddog wrote:I agree with VMF115 about it being a mistake for Admiral Toys to not spend some focused time and production on the "well known" or "sure hits" that we have yet to see like the A-10, F-4, F-14, F-15, etc. At this point it looks like no one else is going to offer them to us. In my opinion they might be "sure hits" but at this point I believe they are "uncommon" on the "to be made" list by the other manufacturers. Here's a weakness that can be turned into a strength.

bbi has fantastic products, but they seem to be "lost in space" in the 1/18 market. It seems that they have many lines of toys that concern more of their attention and they seem to be big retailer chain inclined (Toys R Us). I'm beginning to feel they are slowly backing out of 1/18.

Then there's 21st Century who again has fantastic products but I think FieroDude hit the nail on the head with them when he mentioned what a senior buyer at Wal-Mart is thinking. Not so much as obscure aircraft, but shelf space and price point. If the Avengers don't go over well, I don't think we will see any of the modern birds I listed above from 21st. They would require more shelf space and possibly a higher price tag. I think 21st would have to cut Wal-Mart out of the equation if they are going to produce any of these aircraft.

I think Admiral Toys has the best position of them all with their products and what they can choose to produce for two reasons:

1. Not restricted to things like shelf space, pricing, and
recognition factor by their retailers which means more subjects to
choose from.

2. They are concerned with the collector and what they want. The detail
some collectors clamor for could possibly become a reality due to the
benefits of reason number 1.

Put that hand in hand with the craftmanship and customer support Admiral Toys is showing and that's what this hobby needs to take it to the next level and keep'em coming. All this is my opinion of course.

Absolutely agree with Birddog! The aircraft he mentions (A-10, F-15, etc...) are well known and popular, and could be sold by many on-line toy retailers, and not just military toy sites. Birds this cool would sell well at the big-name toy etailers such as Entertainment Earth and such. Have you seen what some of their "toys" and collectibles sell for? and they've been in business for a long time so folks with money are visiting and buying items with a serious "coolness" factor. What's cooler than a 1:18th F-14 or A-10 that could be used with any number of action figure lines! AT could really capture a niche market. Lets face it, there really arent that many popular WW II single seat fighters left to make, so what would be next for AT? 21st appears to be starting to focus on smaller scales. BBi has any number of other toy lines, and TA could take the lead for 1:18. For AT to start to focus on smaller lines only keeps them competing with 21st, and the many other small scale makers.

My two cents anyway

Spudkopf · Post by **Spudkopf** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 5:52 pm

CW4USARMY wrote: Lets face it, there really arent that many popular WW II single seat fighters left to make

Hawker Hurricane
Any of the later Mark Supermarine Spitfires
Fw 190 A and F serires
Me163
He162
Ta152
Ta154
Gloster Gladiator
Mig's
LaGG's of any kind
Yak's
Macchi's
Fiat's
CAC Boomerang
F4K
Ki43
Ki100
Ki61
Frank
George
French stuff
etc, etc, etc............

Are you serious or did you ust mean popular US WWII aircraft

thetatau87 · Post by **thetatau87** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 7:15 pm

Spudkopf wrote:
CW4USARMY wrote: Lets face it, there really arent that many popular WW II single seat fighters left to make
Hawker Hurricane
Any of the later Mark Supermarine Spitfires
Fw 190 A and F serires
Me163
He162
Ta152
Ta154
Gloster Gladiator
Mig's
LaGG's of any kind
Yak's
Macchi's
Fiat's
CAC Boomerang
F4K
Ki43
Ki100
Ki61
Frank
George
French stuff
etc, etc, etc............

Are you serious or did you ust mean popular US WWII aircraft

IMO CW4USARMY is correct. I'm quite a fan of WWII aircraft, but you lost me on your list of "popular" aircraft when you got past the Me163. Hardcore collectors will want these, but not the average joe or even the casual collector like me.

Spudkopf · Post by **Spudkopf** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 8:40 pm

G'day Thetatau87 and CW4USARMY

After about the first four aircraft I’ll admit I was trying to pad out the list, but this was in an effort to try and show the untapped depth of WWII fighters especially non US fighters that may never be made due to the popular label.

[start_rant]

Having said that the war did not start or end at Pear Harbour, yet in 1/18th scale at present the only Zero available is a very early Mark of Zero, which most if not all had been pulled from service long before the time the F4 Corsair, P38 Lightning that are modelled even entered service, I know to the general public a Zero is Zero (or a Texan) but with attitude there would never have been a bubble top P47 and there never will be a razorback P51.

If you really want to take the popular argument to the extreme then as far as modern aircraft are concerned we already have the most popular aircraft in the form of the F16 and F18, with nothing to look forward to in the future other than the F22 and the JSF F35. And as your general public will not know any better, especially now that the F14 has been phased out of service, all they will see on the evening news are pictures of F18E/Fs zooming off the end of flat tops. With this attitude we will never see an F14 let alone a MiG 29, Su 27, F4 Phantom II, F15 Eagle, Hind D or the much needed A10 Warthog among many others.

So I’m sorry but I must disagree with both of you. If you are going to just run with the so called popular, then all AT, BBI and 21stCT should be doing is to just keep on re-tooling and re-painting Mustangs for the rest of eternity, do not get me wrong I love the Mustang but I also love the Bf109K4.

Currently the hottest selling scale model kit is 1/32 He162, and that’s a plane that probably never even fired a shot in anger.

[end_rant]

I have not in any way meant to offend any body here and I hope I have not , but the statement “Lets face it, there really arent that many popular WW II single seat fighters left to make” just got my hackles up and I felt compelled to respond rightly or wrongly.

Jackson · Post by **Jackson** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 10:13 pm

I agree to dis-agree and say the HE 162 is a purty bird I would want it just cause- samesame Fw. Ta152, Fw. 109 A-F,Yaks, Migs 1/3, Sea Fury, later Spits,Tempest- hell give me a Spad- Dr. 1/7, Albatross, now if the toy makers started making WWI aircraft they would sell, I know I would buy that era of aircraft and it seems that it can't be to hard to tool these birds with lots of detail and stamping them out at a cheaper price even and the birds don't get huge as with more modern jets and are very eye catching birds....... just a thought..realistic or not........ TJJ

esse aut non esse

tmanthegreat · Post by **tmanthegreat** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 10:31 pm

My hats off to AT's excellent customer service

I got my replacement ME-262 today from AT. This time around, the box was in perfect shape and my aircraft is flawless: screw covers, unblemished paintscheme, and all! Truly one amazing piece of work that I can now appreciate all the more!

Thank you Jason, Trey, and all the others at Admiral Toys

CW4USARMY · Post by **CW4USARMY** » Wed Jan 10, 2007 5:18 am

Spudkopf,

No offense taken. Remember, I would want and buy all the aircraft you mentioned! I am an extreme 1:18 enthusiast and have been with this forum since the early days when it was Groundpounders, but my point is that most folks would walk on by the aircraft you mentioned. Hell, they wont even buy Mustang's and Corsairs at our Walmarts unless they are on clearance and they are probably the best known aircraft by non enthusiasts. This leaves little incentive for 21st or anyone to invest the time and money to an aircraft that only a few of us would buy. Even the numbers on this forum that would buy up all these less known aircraft only make up a very small portion of total sales. I wish it werent so, but it is

This leaves little else for them to make except for the modern war birds.

VR,

Andy

jeffrowse · Post by **jeffrowse** » Wed Jan 10, 2007 6:00 am

CW4USARMY wrote: Hell, they wont even buy Mustang's and Corsairs at our Walmarts unless they are on clearance and they are probably the best known aircraft by non enthusiasts.

Best-known by who? The 'Top Gun' generation? Kids who have never known the purr of a Merlin at full chat as a Spitfire flashes past overhead? (We had 'em first, remember

)

It's a sad fact of life that real "toys" you can hold and admire (and yes, even occasionally play with) are not as popular as the latest little electronic gizmo that needs you (or more usually your relatives) to spend a small fortune every few weeks for the latest "must-have" game... Why waste time putting the wings on a 1/18th scale model that'll just sit on the shelf when you can ruin your eyesight and enrich some faceless megacorporation ??

Sorry, rant over, but I'm pretty sure there won't be many of you can name a dozen people they know personally (other than on this, or similar) forums or through clubs that prefer models to Playstations, GameCubes/DS's or X-Box. In fact, I doubt you could go to your local large shopping mall and find a dozen people 'into' models. Especially those under, say twenty-five.
I know there are exceptions but they are, sadly, just that - exceptions.

FieroDude · Post by **FieroDude** » Wed Jan 10, 2007 6:42 am

I recently heard a similar comment from a cashier at, of all places, Best Buy--some girl who couldn't have been over 25 lamenting that these days, if it doesn't do 95% of the playing for them, kids don't want it. What ever happened to the days when kids like me would take over whole rooms in the house to set up massive battles with their GI Joes? No flashing lights or recorded voice chips--just the sounds your own imagination created. I think that is one of the reasons I was so excited to see the 21st stuff start showing up in WM a few years ago, and the on-going growth in this industry.