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DM ModelKits Ford Sierra Cosworth


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Nah, the hobby is still dying because you can't buy 1/25th scale kits of 60's poverty-spec land barges for less than $10 at department stores. Posting something like this is just additional shameless propaganda that the modeling hobby is thriving globally thanks to new markets, rapid prototyping, and a younger customer base engaging with new subject matter and not beholden to established brands. 

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Justin, Sarcasm Much?

Not a subject matter that I would buy, but always happy to see new kits.

DM MOdelkits , like NuNU and other new players, may never tool a kit that I want enough to buy, but I'm happy to see the hobby grow. Besides, most of the new kits I see posted here on the board are almost all Racing or Exotic/ Supercars, a category that I have no interest in. So, I'm not really the market these new tools are aiming for.

But, as I said, I'm happy to see them. Now give me the Ural 5920 Tractor/Truck or the mighty KirovetsK700 as as shown in the video, and I'm ready to buy.

 

 

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On 7/26/2021 at 11:01 PM, alexis said:

Justin, Sarcasm Much?

Not a subject matter that I would buy, but always happy to see new kits.

Well I think for someone like Justin who's in the hobby business and can see what he's selling and how strong sales have been in general in the past year, it's probably kind of frustrating that the Sky is Falling crowd is still out there bleating loudly into the darkness.  Testors ceasing production of the Model Master lines cause a major fit to be tied, and there are still people out there insisting Testors as a whole closed.  Which isn't surprising since we're nearly 3 1/2 years past the Revell sale and people still insist that Revell is dead.  No amount of data or evidence is going to change some people's minds about it, because their hobby shop closed, or their preferred brand of paint is gone, or the kits being made aren't the subject THEY want to see done.  American Car Modelers have an amazing ability to be incredibly insular as if the rest of the world and cars beyond 1971 don't exist.

These two Ford Sierra Cosworth kits plug a gap within the Rally Niche, and I'm sure most people who buy one, will buy both - the way Belkits sales tend to go.  DM is very large hobby supplier based in Portugal, and looks like they're taking a page out of the Domino playbook - the big Belgian distributor behind Belkits.

Look at this section of the forum, the most popular topics the past few weeks have all been about Atlantis releases.  I hope they sell a boatload of stuff and make all their money, because for all the "Hobby is Dying" nonsense in general,  I don't see what Atlantis' plans are beyond 2030.  The hobby isn't dying, but the customer base who want to buy 50-65 year old model kits certainly will be...

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10 minutes ago, niteowl7710 said:

Well I think for someone like Justin who's in the hobby business and can see what he's selling and how strong sales have been in general in the past year, it's probably kind of frustrating that the Sky is Falling crowd is still out there bleating loudly into the darkness. 

Nail on the head and thank you. That's just about entirely my point and it's one I have to contend with daily at my counter, and often with a strained smile as I have to patiently explain "Yes, Testors discontinued the Model Master line but look at all of these other amazing paints currently available", "Yes there's currently a slow-down in Revell production and distribution but that's due to corporate restructuring under new and much better financed owners", "Yes, there are fewer young modelers building hot rods and customs but there are still lots of young model builders primarily in Gundam and armor" and so forth. 

But no, there is a strong sect that ignores the huge and growing variety of product on my shelves, the vast improvements in tools and materials and paints, and the fact that every time they come through my door there are more customers and younger customers just so that they can remind me they used to buy whatever it is that Round 2 are reissuing for $2 with the money they made mowing lawns when they were kids. 

As to the Sierra Cosworths, I'm hugely excited for them honestly! We've had kits of the Subaru Legacy and the Mitsubishi Galant from this era but the Sierra sedans got overlooked. It's a HUGE gap in early 90's rallying and I'm glad DM is planning on plugging that gap. 

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20 minutes ago, Justin Porter said:

As to the Sierra Cosworths, I'm hugely excited for them honestly! We've had kits of the Subaru Legacy and the Mitsubishi Galant from this era but the Sierra sedans got overlooked. It's a HUGE gap in early 90's rallying and I'm glad DM is planning on plugging that gap. 

Ditto for the Sierra's always preferred the sedans over the "scuba dive" front-end hatchbacks.

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22 hours ago, Justin Porter said:

But no, there is a strong sect that ignores the huge and growing variety of product on my shelves, the vast improvements in tools and materials and paints, and the fact that every time they come through my door there are more customers and younger customers...

There's a slate of candidates for the IPMS eBoard that have all figured this out, instead of taking a giant BLAH_BLAH_BLAH_BLAH on Wargaming Miniatures, SciFi and Gundam for "killing the hobby", it's needs to be treated for what it is...a gateway drug into building all sorts of models.  There's been a big push within the Warhammer community to start weathering their gaming pieces with what would traditionally be considered "Armor Weathering"...well that means they need to get into hobby shops or online stores that carry that sort of product line, and eventually some of them are going to buy a model tank, plane or car as a result of being exposed to a wider world of scale modeling.

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Just now, niteowl7710 said:

There's a slate of candidates for the IPMS eBoard that have all figured this out, instead of taking a giant BLAH_BLAH_BLAH_BLAH on Wargaming Miniatures, SciFi and Gundam for "killing the hobby", it's needs to be treated for what it is...a gateway drug into building all sorts of models.  There's been a big push within the Warhammer community to start weathering their gaming pieces with what would traditionally be considered "Armor Weathering"...well that means they need to get into hobby shops or online stores that carry that sort of product line, and eventually some of them are going to buy a model tank, plane or car as a result of being exposed to a wider world of scale modeling.

Wargamers are some of my best regulars for supply sales because the typical gaming shop stops their paint selection at Citadel with MAYBE Vallejo Game Color or Army Painter at some of the bigger ones. Stop in through my door because you want fistfuls of AK Interactive and Abteilung 502 and AMMO by Mig products? Yessir rightaway sir! 

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Justin, I stand by what I said.

My son builds Warhammer stuff, and I bought Cars, Big Rigs, 1/48 & 1/72 Scale Aircraft,  1/35 Armour (including some of the Chinese 1000+ pieces Wunder-kits), 1/350 & 1/700 scale ships, and even a Few Space Ships, ranging from the Lindberg Moon Probe to the Atlantis NSEA Protector.

I've been buying kits since 1981, and I dare say that I missed the Golden Age of $2.00 kits by a good Twenty Years. I also remember how lousy many of the 'new' kits were in the early '80's, Translucent, Flimsy Plastic(Revell), and Flaking, Splotchy Chrome (Revell and AMT), Horrible 2-piece tires. And, Let's not forget the dreaded AMT 'decontent-ed" kits where huge gaps on the chrome tree showed what AMT had blocked off, in order to save what had to be 3 cents worth of plastic! Even as a Novice, I could see and deride the insult that product planners and accountants 40 years older than I was, were passing off to the public.

Lastly, I bought 2 Copies of the New Revell Landrover kit last year. I said clearly, that I'm always happy to see new subject matter. I wish DM, NuNu & Belkits much success. All I really said was that they don't tool up kits that Interest Me.

No More, No Less.

I regard (wrongly perhaps), that WRC cars are a Niche Market. A Larger one than NASCAR or 1960's Landbarges, but a Niche, nevertheless. I suspect that P-51s and BF-109s and Sherman Tanks all represent bigger sales numbers than WRC machines.  Tamiya, Italeri, and others do produce some older WRC kits from time to time, but only as an offshoot of the Stock kits of those cars that they have already tooled up.

What would by My 1/25-1/24 Niche?

Extreme OffRoad Machines (See the previously Mentioned Kitovets K700 and Ural Tracked Truck hybrid) for examples.

Camel Trophy Rally Cars, & Formula Off Road Cars.

and a 1912 Mercer Raceabout, to go with my MPC 1914 Stutz Bearcat.

Thank You.

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2 hours ago, alexis said:

Justin, I stand by what I said.

My son builds Warhammer stuff, and I bought Cars, Big Rigs, 1/48 & 1/72 Scale Aircraft,  1/35 Armour (including some of the Chinese 1000+ pieces Wunder-kits), 1/350 & 1/700 scale ships, and even a Few Space Ships, ranging from the Lindberg Moon Probe to the Atlantis NSEA Protector.

I've been buying kits since 1981, and I dare say that I missed the Golden Age of $2.00 kits by a good Twenty Years. I also remember how lousy many of the 'new' kits were in the early '80's, Translucent, Flimsy Plastic(Revell), and Flaking, Splotchy Chrome (Revell and AMT), Horrible 2-piece tires. And, Let's not forget the dreaded AMT 'decontent-ed" kits where huge gaps on the chrome tree showed what AMT had blocked off, in order to save what had to be 3 cents worth of plastic! Even as a Novice, I could see and deride the insult that product planners and accountants 40 years older than I was, were passing off to the public.

Lastly, I bought 2 Copies of the New Revell Landrover kit last year. I said clearly, that I'm always happy to see new subject matter. I wish DM, NuNu & Belkits much success. All I really said was that they don't tool up kits that Interest Me.

No More, No Less.

I regard (wrongly perhaps), that WRC cars are a Niche Market. A Larger one than NASCAR or 1960's Landbarges, but a Niche, nevertheless. I suspect that P-51s and BF-109s and Sherman Tanks all represent bigger sales numbers than WRC machines.  Tamiya, Italeri, and others do produce some older WRC kits from time to time, but only as an offshoot of the Stock kits of those cars that they have already tooled up.

What would by My 1/25-1/24 Niche?

Extreme OffRoad Machines (See the previously Mentioned Kitovets K700 and Ural Tracked Truck hybrid) for examples.

Camel Trophy Rally Cars, & Formula Off Road Cars.

and a 1912 Mercer Raceabout, to go with my MPC 1914 Stutz Bearcat.

Thank You.


I think there's a bit of a disconnect, Alan, because my comment wasn't at all about folks like yourself who aren't interested in early 90's Group N rally cars like these. Even I personally wouldn't call Sierra sedans a must-have in my book the way Hasegawa's Lancia O37 is. My comment was aimed at "sky is falling" naysayers who believe that because the hobby as they remember it isn't what currently exists therefore the hobby must be dying. 

And you're undoubtedly right on your Bf-109's and M4 Sherman thought. Even short run companies like Special Hobby or Dora Wings have a 109 in their catalog albeit sometimes an obscure type. They make money, no doubt about that.

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I'm just excited to get one. These were the cars my age group aspired to in school and while its a race car i'm sure one of the european aftermarket will bring out a stock interior like has happened with the bmw rally car and the escort. The engine bay is already available from uscp in their cosworth engine set as the escort cosworth was more sierra than escort. From memory the only difference was the escort had a little shorter bay but otherwise nothing really changed. I think these will sell very well in the uk simply due to the fact ford is the largest part of the 1/1 aftermarket. If you look at the prices of the esci ford kits before italeri rereleased they regularly went for over a hundred pounds, and 75 to 80 for a built up. The monogram and amt capri kits are heading the same way now with prices creeping up to 60 or 70 usually and any tamiya sierra is north of 90. I'm taking that as a good omen for this kit and i look forward to seeing what they do next

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Well, my memories of the Hobby are from the Early to Mid 1980's.

So 'that' was the Golden age for me. It was followed by a second Golden Age when I discovered eBay in the early 2000's.

No, I'm not Chicken Little about the Future of the Hobby. But, My wants and interests do not map well, on the global subjects that will be coming as the Hobby moves to markets that are growing, rather than markets that appear to be stagnating. (i.e. the United States). But, that is Okay in the long run. I'm almost 60 now, and my "Buying 10 Models at time" days are over. I'll never attend another Swap Meet/ Show, and I will not be hauling away a Minivan full of kits like I did in 2006.

But there is a time for everything, and lacking a Mercer or a Kirovets or a Tucker Sno-Cat, I'm done with Grails.

In Conclusion, It sounds if you and are a taking different parts of the same argument. :)

P.S. Let Me Know when you see the 1/25 1912 Mercer Kit!

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4 hours ago, alexis said:

P.S. Let Me Know when you see the 1/25 1912 Mercer Kit!

Put me down for one too!

I used to think that was pretty hopeless, but having seen what ICM have been putting out lately, maybe there's a the faintest glimmer of hope.

Apparently brass era cars are gaining popularity among younger collectors, so here's hoping it gets reflected in kit subjects.

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It is probably hard for many of us here in the States to understand the impact the Sierra Cosworth and other similar Ford performance production cars related to rallying and racing in Europe had back in the 1980's, 1990's and and so forth.  These were truly iconic products in their street form, and also in their racing derivatives.  As I began to have international assignments in responsibilities in my career at Ford, I heard stories about these cars from my UK and European colleagues about this, and to some extent also witnessed it firsthand.   In the UK and Europe, enthusiasts were just as passionate about these cars as we here in the States are about 1960's/early 1970's Mopars, SBC and BBC Chevies, GTO's, 1990's Japanese FWD performance hatchbacks, and today's modern ponycar offerings from Ford, Chevy, and Dodge.  Therefore I would think these new kits should have a broad appeal among the adult modeling community in Europe, and to some extent, worldwide.  

As as for model car building dying out, I of course completely agree with you guys that this is a long running and largely irrelevant pile of hogwash.  My go-to model kit store, the Model Cave in Ypsi, Michigan, has a larger, ever growing, and more diverse inventory of model car and truck kits, along with the supplies to build them, than any other place I have ever seen, excepting perhaps a couple of well-known hobby stores nearby to San Jose and Orange County back in the early-mid 1980's.  And the store owners Jon and Melissa report that those Gundam kits are among their best selling items, too!    

Offered FWIW....TIM 

PS - not to be outdone, let me assure you that our Aussie colleagues were/are also just as passionate about the performance offerings from Holden and Ford as well.... 

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Hi!

As someone who owned three (!) Merkur XR4Ti and one Scorpio, i'm partial to those Sierras, as they have been born overseas. I traded an 85 Thunderbird Turbo coupe for an XR4Ti that was driven by the Ford district rep in my neck of the woods, and even if the powertrain was the same, the chassis/suspension was infinitely more smooth and agile. Seats were hard as rock, but you know, you can't have everything. Nostalgia...

The Scorpio? One of the best cars I ever owned. A gentleman a few blocks from me has an old 88. He insist she still goes like new, and it looks like it does. 

Finally, I have the Tamya Sierra (85 vintage) in my stash, still untouched... Can't decide if I do it like mine was (transplanting the TurboCoupe 4 from Monogram's kit), or build an outrageaous mash-up of some kind. 

What do you gentlemen think? 

CT 

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14 hours ago, Claude Thibodeau said:

Finally, I have the Tamya Sierra (85 vintage) in my stash, still untouched... Can't decide if I do it like mine was (transplanting the TurboCoupe 4 from Monogram's kit), or build an outrageaous mash-up of some kind. 

Or swap the engine with the excellent Cosworth YB by USCP.

https://uscp-ua.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=69

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