Roden confirm more WW1 kits are in development

[Dave W]

Roden have just advised me that they are proceeding with development of two more 1/32 scale WW1 kits for 2022.

The Spad XIII Late will be released first but Vladimir says the Sopwith One and a Half Strutter is now definitely on the production list for a mid-2022 release and they confirm a 1/32 scale Avro 504 will be released toward the end of the year.

Vladimir says Roden is persevering with its re-launched WW1 line, despite sales of the Spad XIII Early falling short of their hopes.

Roden re-launched its WW1 production line after a detailed Forum poll identified the wanted kits.

The message here is clear folks- if we want Roden and the other manufacturers to deliver more plastic goodness we need to be supporting them as much as possible.

Large scale WW1 aircraft still have a future thanks to Roden, Copper State and Lukgraph leading the field and a new Aviattic kit in development too.  There's still plenty of wind under the wings for our hobby!

Dave Wilson
Gold Coast
Australia

[loopyloop]

Oh that old fashioned Avro of mine?

[macsporran]

Thought-provoking comment that the SPAD hasn't yet achieved hoped for sales.

I think we should bear this in mind when voting for manufacturers to produce our wish lists. I voted for an SXIII from Roden and have bought one so far with certainly one "late" when available and probably two or three more after that. I hope others who voted have backed up wishes with purchases otherwise Roden and others may not trust such a poll in future.

We have some extensive wish lists on the Special Hobby thread. Hopefully all those wishes would likewise translate directly into actual purchases. I only asked for a Hanriot because I know I will buy it. (A Halb D.II too, if we're lucky). Maybe any analysis of the lists should factor in some "weighting" as to what would actually be bought against what it would be nice to know was available.

So, barring disasters, Mr Roden - I promise to buy a late SPAD, at least one Strutter and a 504K.
Mr Special Hobby, I promise to buy a Hanriot and a Halb D.II if available.
FWIW
Sandy

[kensar]

I suspect the SPAD sales fell short when it was 'discovered' that it appeared to be an old tool that wasn't released in the past.
It would seem the newest releases will be new, modern and up to date molds (sharper detail, less mold release angle), which should certainly be an improvement over the past molds.  Hopefully, the design would be improved, as well with better attachment points of the parts.

I think this news that Roden hasn't given up on the WW1 market is very good news and I would encourage them to strive to do the very best they can on these new releases.  I think they would be rewarded with sales from builders who don't usually build WW1 subjects.

[rolanddvi]

Is there a way to but from Roden direct?

Thanks,
Mike

[Russell Niles]

I too bought one of the Roden SPAD XIII (Early) when it was first released. I have bought and built almost every WW1 kit in 32nd that they have done. Furthermore I was saddened to read that their sales on the SPAD were shorter than they had anticipated, which leads me to a comment. Perhaps if they had done the molds on the wings to allow the modeler to either do the early or the late SPAD, all in one release,  sales may have been better.? I am not complaining about their way of doing business, far be it from me to complain about any or all of the 32nd kits that come available to us, just my own 2cents worth in this issue.

Russ

[Monty]

This thread provides a lot of food for thought. Do I like Roden kits?? Lots! Just look at my post in Completed Models... I support them all the time, as their choice of subject is great, and there is so much of interest in many scales. I have just received my Spad XIII from my LHS and already cut some plastic! Yes, some modelling needed, but nothing the (below) average modeller can't fix! So maybe another Early for me and two lates at least... Can I recommend them to my modelling friends? Yes, absolutely, and if you are into market research that is the only response that counts. As for the proposed releases, yes, Roden, My money is waiting! Always remember though, that our community is but a very small part of Any manufacturer's market... So Roden, concentrate on the box artwork, ease of assembly is important, and can I add just a little area of concern? The recent decals in the new XIII are a bit out of register on my kit, the colours are pixilated and simply not dense enough, and the outlines are blurry... I know Rick used them, but some of this shows for sure and could be easily improved.... But Thank You, Mr Roden, and more power to your company! Regards, Marc.

[KiwiZac]

Roden have just advised me that they are proceeding with development of two more 1/32 scale WW1 kits for 2022.

(...) they confirm a 1/32 scale Avro 504 will be released toward the end of the year.

I feel this video accurately surmises my feelings on this subject.

[austin08]

Hi all,

I'm keen on the next two 1/32 kits , the avro and sopwith. Neither have appeared as 1/32 kits before, early period planes as well.

Hobbycraft had already produced a 1/32 Spad XIII which built into a pretty good profile, with plenty of examples having been made on modelling pages over the last 20 years.
 
Maybe Rodens was a step up on that but it does provide another reason for sales being a little lower

Regards

Daryl

[petrov27]

I have done my part to support Roden and will purchase the late SPAD and likely even the Avro and Sopwith 1.5 though those were not subjects I was wishing for myself.

Regarding the SPAD, I do think having two boxings may have not helped it out with sales possibly? Personally there were a couple early subjects I wanted to do so for me it was no problem but I have seen comments and heard those that wanted "late" only to do USAS subjects so maybe sales will improve for the later boxing?

If I were them I would slap Eddie Rickenbacker's #1 SPAD on the "late" edition box top (despite that subject being overdone) and advertise the heck out of it....

[PrzemoL]

Great to hear that Roden are decided to expand their 32nd scale line.
And yes, I have 2 early Spad13s, and I will get the Strutter and Avro 504K definitely.

[rhwinter]

1 late SPAD XIII for me. 1 1/2 Strutter and Avro 504 MOST WELCOME, but I'll get then only if the overall quality of those kits comes near to the quality of CSM.
That's me!

[mbittner]

If only they would get back to 1/72 WWI production. Oh well... I kept hoping for them to release a Nieuport 28 in the One True Scale.

[joelrawson]

Thoughts on disappointing SPAD XIII sales. First, I have not been able to find a U.S. distributor. I buy through Sprue Brothers but I also look around. If I had found one for sale, I would have bought it. Second, manufacturers have the trick of kitting the less desirable variant of an aircraft first, then later bringing out the more popular version. In the case of the SPAD XIII, I consider the late version of the aircraft with square wingtips the most flown by US Air Service and therefore the more desirable. The United States is a large market. If you haven't distributed a kit within that market or that appeals to that market, I think it premature to judge sales potential.

[RAGIII]

Thoughts on disappointing SPAD XIII sales. First, I have not been able to find a U.S. distributor. I buy through Sprue Brothers but I also look around. If I had found one for sale, I would have bought it. Second, manufacturers have the trick of kitting the less desirable variant of an aircraft first, then later bringing out the more popular version. In the case of the SPAD XIII, I consider the late version of the aircraft with square wingtips the most flown by US Air Service and therefore the more desirable. The United States is a large market. If you haven't distributed a kit within that market or that appeals to that market, I think it premature to judge sales potential.

Just for the record I found this pretty quickly on a search. https://www.megahobby.com/categories/model-aircraft/1-32-scale.html . Personally I think the price is a bit high compared to what Sprue Brothers charge for the other Roden WW1 kits.  I didn't look for any more but I would think there are others. One wonders if Sprue Brothers simply made No Order from Roden?  I have also found in the past that ordering from one of the Ukraine E Bay dealers is often less costly even with shipping.

That being said My Opinion is that the Early SPAD XIII  has received Many unjust criticisms on other venues, often by Modelers that have never touched a Roden kit and didn't build WW1 until WNW hit the scene. Yes it could have been better but really does build up  nicely with a bit of effort!

I have stated often that as a a long time WW1 modeler  Roden kits were greatly received when they first hit the Market. WNW raised the bar but I have continued to support and build Roden kits .

I have also stated that I feel Roden needs to up their game in  some key areas, mainly Strut attachment pins, locating holes, and decals.  After that it is  smooth sailing for this Modeler.

I am Very pleased to hear that Roden is continuing development of the Strutter and Avro. I look forward to their release as well as the SPAD XIII late. Again I hope for and expect improvement on the two new releases, but will purchase these kits No Matter how much improvement is noted. 

Thanks for the update Dave.

Obviously JMHO 

RAGIII