Hi Dave - glad you put this one up
As a 1/72 and 1/48 scale guy, I would very much welcome and be excited by any release in these scales. Roden's moulding technology has come a long way from the early 2000's when they first made their mark.
There are many esoteric choices I could put forward, and would dearly love to see, but I am a bit too much of a realist to suggest them. Many probably wouldn't be popular enough to see a decent return. For Roden, I would think that there would need to be a decent chance for a well-selling subject to help lure them back into the WW1 realm. They would be well served in not repeating subjects already kitted by other manufacturers like WNW or CSM. Some preferences / suggestions from me:
1/72:
- R.E.8 - the 50s airfix kit is in need of replacement.
- I second a new Nieuport 28 - having built the old Revell kit, we're in dire need of an update. Some nice USAS colour choices here too.
- Sopwith Pup - we have the HR kit and old airfix kit - the former is hard to get hold of and the latter is rather old and inaccurate - lots of colour choices here; it would make a popular subject, I think.
- Roland C.II - the old airfix kit is ancient and inaccurate. I think this would be popular given relatively simple layout and interesting markings.
- Hannover CL.III - as above.
1/48:
- Sopwith pup (there seems to be some ground swell for this from what I can see above...) - the Eduard kit is old and in dire need of a refresh. The Aeroclub kit is hard to come by. I think this could be quite popular if offered with standard and Whitehead cowls. Again, many paint options!
- R.E.8 - the old Aeroclub kit is in dire need of a modern update - the RE8 would probably be a popular two seater.
- Finish off their plans from way back when for a BE2e!
- Avro 504 - plenty of interesting schemes here.
- DH9a... ok that's probably asking too much
- A Halberstalt D model - Eduard promised us a D.V way back when and it never materialised. The old Blue Max kit is nice but needs lots of work.
- Maybe a new Hannover CL.III, Rumpler, Albatros or LVG German two seater; these seemed to be popular in the larger scale and would be a nice counter in Roden's catalogue to their British two-seaters.
I would be a very happy chap if any of these made it to fruition.
I am sure i'll think of more as the red wine sets in....
Cheers,
BC