Wingnuts Albatros B.II sold out ?

[Suffolk Lad]

Bo and Warren - It's a Typo I'm afraid, I guess a sort of getting old thingy 

BII  (or maybe Bll) it is.

Apologies for any confusion created 

Tug

[ALBATROS1234]

justin, i wasnt talking about the new albie b.ii i was speaking in general terms more toward the really popular models like the d.vii and alb d.v/va market, it just seemed like it to me that every time a version sold out you would see the newly sold out version for sale at ridiculous mark-up and it seemed to be the same couple guys doing it trying to capitalize. of course its not illegal, but its messed up that someones looking to squeeze a bit of extra money out of loyal enthusists.it is immoral and crappy at the least.

[ALBATROS1234]

i wasnt speaking of a modeller like you michael who bought the kits with every intention of building them ,then cicumstances forced your hand and you had to sell a couple to make ends meet. hell ive done the exact same thing. it actually made me physically ill to have to sell something i wnted so badly to keep. i am speaking of guys who noticed that the oop kits were selling for high prices so they bought ones likely to sell out in order to try double their money. it is very much like going to a casino of course but it is as much a sickness as gambling is imho. they are like professional "flippers" they buy to flip and take advantage. its people like this who drive that market up and cause the kits to go oop quicker in the first place

[Pgtaylorart]

justin, i wasnt talking about the new albie b.ii i was speaking in general terms more toward the really popular models like the d.vii and alb d.v/va market, it just seemed like it to me that every time a version sold out you would see the newly sold out version for sale at ridiculous mark-up and it seemed to be the same couple guys doing it trying to capitalize. of course its not illegal, but its messed up that someones looking to squeeze a bit of extra money out of loyal enthusists.it is immoral and crappy at the least.

Yes, I agree, Scott. It's very messed up knowing that there are probably many OOP WnW kits just sitting in someone's garage with no intention of being built, and now as Des has stated, they are not fetching the price on eBay that they were at first. So now they just sit while the owner waits for the price to go up again. Yes, it's legal and it's how capitalism works, but this is just a simple hobby, a pastime. No one's getting rich pulling this nonsense.

George

[lcarroll]

It appears that my comment regarding "speculative" buying or investing in these kits has kindled a lot of commentary and even a bit of emotion. Please be assured, folks, I in no way meant to direct the question or observation at any Member here nor do I feel it could be. Given the outrageous prices asked (and paid) for OOP Wingnut Wings Kits until recently (and yes, the W29 Duelist Release fixed that to a large measure) it is quite likely that some enterprising spirits out there see an opportunity to make a quick buck, it is the way of the world after all, and after a bit of research buy Kits strictly to resell at a profit. Sadly for us it can limit or preclude our obtaining one as Justin points out.  The culprits are the same people that "flip" all sorts of rare items for a profit.  I recall long before the Internet and EBay watching the price of Cabbage Patch Dolls go absolutely crazy at their Christmas release when the number released fell well short of demand. Des raises a good point, these Kits have been issued up front as "Limited Releases" so if you can afford it and want one, the sooner you order the better. I missed two, and refuse to pay 3 or 4 times their original price on EBay etc. That's on me and I'm a slow learner, I need to be quicker in future! As far as those who have had to sell some of their treasures you have my sincere sympathy, real life can get in the way of a good hobby at times, I hope things develop such that you can re-acquire what you've had to let go.
   Last, I'm glad we've cleared up the I's and 1's thing, I'm still trying to determine how the rest of the world can refer to a great product like Q Tips as simple cotton buds, then on the other hand how can a Canadian talk, we call thin aluminum "tin foil"!?
Cheers,
Lance

[Dave W]

Hi Lance

I noted your comment "I keep checking to hopefully find a "Harry Tate" for less then a mortgage on my home!!" and I wondered, given we are talking about OOP kit values now, what you would regard as a fair price for an RE.8?

This is not a trick question and I'm not about to hit Ebay with an over-priced OOP kit, but given all the talk about what people charge for OOP kits,. I'd be interested to know the gap between what people would be happy to pay vs the outrageous prices some people charge.

When it was available the WnW RE.8 cost $US99 which in Aussie currency equals $138 today.

Dave Wilson
Gold Coast
Australia

[WarrenD]

Dave,
        Go to evil-bay, do a search for WNW RE.8, and filter it for completed auctions. That will give you and idea both of what people are asking, and what folks are paying.

As for the rest of you, well . . . . you really do leave me shaking my head.

Warren

[15badcats]

Just be patient I paid 110.00 with shipping for my RE8 on ebay buy it now after it was sold out Just keep a sharp eye and be quick on the buy it now button I see quite a few of the OOP kits for decent prices and I do think they've gone down quite a bit recently

[Eric Armstrong]

Dave,
        Go to evil-bay, do a search for WNW RE.8, and filter it for completed auctions. That will give you and idea both of what people are asking, and what folks are paying.

As for the rest of you, well . . . . you really do leave me shaking my head.

Warren

One is on eBay for $248.00 US right now.

[WarrenD]

Dave,
        Go to evil-bay, do a search for WNW RE.8, and filter it for completed auctions. That will give you and idea both of what people are asking, and what folks are paying.

As for the rest of you, well . . . . you really do leave me shaking my head.

Warren

One is on eBay for $248.00 US right now.

But whether it sells of not is another matter. If you look back over the last several months, the WNW OOP prices are kind of all over the place.

Warren

[lcarroll]

Hi Lance

I noted your comment "I keep checking to hopefully find a "Harry Tate" for less then a mortgage on my home!!" and I wondered, given we are talking about OOP kit values now, what you would regard as a fair price for an RE.8?

This is not a trick question and I'm not about to hit Ebay with an over-priced OOP kit, but given all the talk about what people charge for OOP kits,. I'd be interested to know the gap between what people would be happy to pay vs the outrageous prices some people charge.

When it was available the WnW RE.8 cost $US99 which in Aussie currency equals $138 today.

Dave Wilson
Gold Coast
Australia

Dave,
    I know they've been going for much more but I'd be willing to pay up to $150-160 US, the Postage is a real killer so were talking around $200 US/$260 Canadian. When available the kit went for max. $130 Canadian. Beyond that price is, in my view, unreasonable.
   By coincidence Justin has offered to look into one in NZ which is listed about where I've just stated, hopefully it's still available.
Cheers,
Lance

[Michael Scarborough]

Just to be clear, I wasn't referring to any of you scum-sucking, mouth-breathing, low-life, cottin' pickin', low-life (oops used that one already), bottom-feeding whiners when I posted earlier.

Seriously, though....Warren is correct; if you want to know the history of all this eBay business, type in the name of the kit...when it comes up, click on advanced search, then click on sold listings. And here's a really perfect example of just how "all over the map" the prices can be: on Sept. 14th, one Re8 sold for $110 and another sold for $250. Same kit, same day, but a huge difference in price.

As far as what a "fair" price for this kit would be at this time, IMHO, there is nothing such. It's like the antique furniture market or anything else that is in demand and also in limited supply. It's worth as much as you want to pay for it. As everyone has said, it's a free market.

But consider this: I believe the consensus of opinion has been that for most of their existence, Wingnuts kits have been underpriced and sent without postage costs. I'm just finishing up the W.12 and starting on the DFW and, I will say again, that the level of engineering and quality in these models is SECOND TO NONE, at least as far as WWI 1/32 aircraft go. (Even the new kits at $119 are cheap when you consider the quality compared to what you pay for resin kits like those from HPH.) So, at these eBay prices, the Harry Tate is coming in at about the same price as a Tamiya Mosquito. Yes, there's more styrene in the Mossie box but I have the kit and, IMHO, it is no better researched, engineered or manufactured than the Harry Tate. (Which I had but sent to Oz for $175., BTW)

With all due respect to my colleagues, I think there is a sense of unreality about this whole topic of pricing for both OOP WnW kits and new WnW kits. When you compare the price of the Wingnuts kits, the free shipping, and bear in mind their quality, which is superior to all competitors, frankly, I think Sir Peter was being amazingly generous when he decided on how these kits would be priced. Sadly, a lot of people seem to now feel that we are somehow entitled to always have it that way, regardless of the increase in quality, size and complexity of the kits, not to mention what the world financial markets have done since the first kits came out.

Just my 2 cents.

[Dave W]

I have never been a collector of kits with an intention to sell them for profit if they sell out. I am a rather enthusiastic kit buyer who has by good fortune managed to acquire a few kits that have gone OOP and now command silly prices. Its my intention to make them, health permitting.

My interest in the OOP Wingnuts kits thread was piqued by lance's comments about his quest to find a RE.8 for a fair price.

Lance has a deserved reputation on this forum as a top quality gentleman and I really hope he is able to source an RE.8 at an affordable price. As he says, international postage is a real deal killer and if there's an RE.8 available in NZ, I just hope the postage from there to Canada is realistic. I don't buy from US mail order firms now for postage cost reasons.

Lance - if the NZ deal does not come off, please PM me. You are closer to getting that elusive RE.8 than you may imagine ! 

cheers

Dave Wilson
Gold Coast
Australia

[stefanbuss]

Lance has a deserved reputation on this forum as a top quality gentleman and I really hope he is able to source an RE.8 at an affordable price. As he says, international postage is a real deal killer and if there's an RE.8 available in NZ, I just hope the postage from there to Canada is realistic.

Lance, i keep my ingers croosed for you on the possible Re8 deal.

I don't buy from US mail order firms now for postage cost reasons.

Indeed. it's nice to see the "black Friday" adverts from Squadron et al, but with shipping costs higher then the kits' prices (and import tax on top of that, too), it's a "no way" business for me nowadays. Sad, as I used to buy a lot of books via the US, as they were to be had much cheaper than here in imperial Germany. But those seem to be happier days longe gone.

Stefan

[Des]

I am in the same boat Stefan, my purchases from the states are limited to very small packages, like small brass nuts from RB Motion, anything larger and the post prices skyrocket.

Des.