When is the Hawk Model T engine model kit due to be available again?
Good question! I'd be interested in knowing too.
RATS, when I saw the thread subject, I thought it was finally available. Oh well. . . .
I'm also waiting on the release of a model of the USS Olympia, Admiral Dewey's Flagship.
Gee, why would I want a model of that ship?
T'
David Dewey (and yes, I'm related)
Hmm, the Olympia model is in; Squadron didn't email me--so one less item to look for now!
T'
D. D.
Dave, did you find a kit somewhere?
John,
For the Olympia, yes. Hawk lists the kit as number 11083, the assembled engine as 11084, but no one seems to have them in stock yet. Ehobbies lists it as "arriving 2012" so we'll see!
T'
David D.
We need to bombard them with emails asking when the model will be released.
Olivia@processedplastic.com
Phone: (319) 365-5842
Fax: (319) 390-4488
They still manufacture 1:6 scale 1948 Ford V-8 and Dodge V-8 engine models which can be found on ebay, but they do not make the Model T engine anymore. Jim Patrick
A reality check. If Hawk determined several years ago that it was not profitable to manufacture the Model T engine and discontinued it for that reason, I seriously doubt that they will ever start back production. Afterall, they are in business to make a profit and it would not make good business sense to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in startup costs to manufacture something with such a limited appeal. If they destroyed the original model parts molds, it would be almost as easy for one of us to manufacture and market the model and I think we are all too smart for that, so don't hold your breath that Hawk will ever offer this model again. Jim Patrick
PS. I hope I am wrong because I would buy one myself. The only way we could get this is to somehow reassure them that there are a hundred thousand of us out here that would buy one, but there is no way to guarantee that.
Or it could be as simple as swapping out the die and molding some whenever they feel the demand is great enough. No different than Timken only running lots of some bearings once a year.
True, but, if there were no demand or very little demand for those Timken bearings, Timken may just make a business decision to discontinue the bearing altogether as obsolete.
The question is, is it worth it for Hawk to manufacture this Model T engine? They still have to tool up (if they still have the master molds), possibly taking a more profitable model off the machine, manufacture the model make the box, print the instructions and market it to their distributors who might or might not order them.
Model T'ers are a very select and comparatively small group, many of who might have a passing interest in a model of this type, but based on the price, might elect not to buy one. I know I wouldn't market an item to such a small special interest group especially if it required such risk and no guarantee of a payoff. Jim Patrick
Guys, guys,
HAWK lists it in their website. The decision to make them has already been made--we are just waiting for the product to get here (probably comes from China). EHobbies would not list them as "coming in 2012" if they weren't in the pipeline!
T'
David D.
I recently purchased a WWII M-18 Hellcat Tank Destroyer to build for my 94 year old neighbor, Gilbert Losh who was a radio operator in an M-18 Hellcat crew during WWII in Normandy, The Battle of the Bulge at Bastogne and a couple of other battles. Her survived the war without a scratch and, though he probably saw some pretty horrific things, he was not adversely affected by it and with a memory that is still sharp as a tack, enjoys talking about it. I wanted to build him the model as a token of my appreciation for what he did during the war.
I received the model, which was made in China. Overall, it went together fairly well and Gilbert sure appreciated it and it jogged his memory as to where he sat and who did what in the Hellcat. During the build, the instructions were poorly illustrated and difficult to read, with misspellings and grammatical errors. Several of the parts needed to be trimmed to fit properly and it required that numerous holes be drilled at precise locations as they were left off the mold during the design.
All I'm saying is that, if the Model T engine model is made in China, hopefully, it will be of good quality, but if it is anything like the M-18 I built, to expect for it not to be as precise as the models made in the USA. Jim Patrick