Heller 2018

[landman]

11 hours ago, martinfan5 said:

Its not our fault, blame your country for the following fees that get attached to each parcel coming from the USA

" brokerage fee, processing fees, and the GST or HST fee "

Those are actually added to the shipping fees. And the shipping fees are always $12-15 to start from the US. GST and HST are taxes we have to live with. We pay them when we buy stuff here too. They have nothing to do with shipping. Nobody pays HST for stuff bought in the US.Brokerage fees are only charged by UPS. They can be as high as $30 even if there is no duty. That is why I always try to avoid UPS and prefer the mail (USPS). When I restored my '34 Chevy I was buying stuff on eBay all the time, most of it from the US. Most sellers shipped UPS by default. I'd be curious to know how many hundreds of dollars I paid for brokerage fees for duty free old car parts. Processing fees are usually from the shipper, they include packing etc.

Edited January 26, 2018 by landman

[landman]

11 hours ago, martinfan5 said:

I know, I dont get it either,  I know it sucks for you guys though.

I bought four truck engines on eBay. They arrived here in a box about the size of the box for a car kit. The shipping was $8.......from Greece.

[landman]

1 hour ago, Junkman said:

The tractor is a reissue.

 

 

 

 

A long awaited reissue, I must say. Prices for these were going a bit gaga lately.

What range? I mean price wise.

[landman]

13 hours ago, Richard Bartrop said:

There's some good stuff in that list, and it's nice to see they haven't given up on the classics.  The Delahaye and the Talbot Lago could be a starting point for someone ambitious enough to tackle making any of the Figoni & Falaschi or Soautchik  customs.

I'm sure someone will attempt it.

[Snake45]

How's the Heller XKE Jag? Anyone built it? Better than the old Aurora/Monogram/Revell offering, I'd assume?

Couple things in the catalog sorta interest me. It might be fun to hot-rod that Citroen that looks a little like a '34 Ford. I'd chop a section out of the 4-door body and make it a shorty 2-door. Bet it would look pretty cool.

[Junkman]

10 minutes ago, landman said:

What range? I mean price wise.

I would guess the usual EUR 25-30 range.
It's not yet listed on the websites of the big mailorder shops, which usually sell Heller kits a bit cheaper than the actual Heller shop.

If you need help with finding mailorder shops in France that ship internationally, please feel free to ask.

[Junkman]

16 minutes ago, Snake45 said:

How's the Heller XKE Jag? Anyone built it? Better than the old Aurora/Monogram/Revell offering, I'd assume?

They are heads and shoulders above those, but still not really good.
Not only are they 1980s tools, but the E Type appears to be notoriously difficult to get right proportion wise.
The DHC is quite okay, but the FHC IMO has a slightly too high greenhouse and the tailgate/backlight are incorrectly shaped.
They also have the steering wheel on the wrong side, but that should be a relatively easy fix.
 

[Junkman]

I really do appreciate the reissue of the R8 Gordini, prices for which have gone nuts lately.
It's a well travelled set of moulds, having been issued by AMT and Union in the interim, so I presumed it lost.
I really do hope the equally worldly-wise tooling of the Alpine A210 and the racing Ferraris survived and see reissues soon.

I also appreciate the comeback of the C4 van (for which they apparently lost the 'Waterman' licence) and the Hotel Taxi.
Either of these make excellent bases for tow truck conversions and yes, hot rods.
 

[Daddyfink]

I want this! And a tractor, please! 

[landman]

1 hour ago, Junkman said:

I would guess the usual EUR 25-30 range.
It's not yet listed on the websites of the big mailorder shops, which usually sell Heller kits a bit cheaper than the actual Heller shop.

If you need help with finding mailorder shops in France that ship internationally, please feel free to ask.

That translates to $46 CAD.

[Junkman]

Is that a good or a bad thing?

[lysleder]

45 minutes ago, Junkman said:

I really do appreciate the reissue of the R8 Gordini,  I presumed it lost.
I really do hope the tooling of the Alpine A210 and the racing Ferraris survived and see reissues soon.

I also appreciate the comeback of the C4 van (for which they apparently lost the 'Waterman' licence) and the Hotel Taxi.
Either of these make excellent bases for tow truck conversions and yes, hot rods.
 

They used to make some racing Ferraris, and some Porsches too. But what would make me go into a complete tailspin would be a release of their open wheel formula cars. The McLaren, the Brabham, the Lotus.

The Alpine I could do without. The Tamiya one is a better kit

[Mike999]

12 hours ago, Anglia105E said:

That is an impressive catalog but what are Heller kits like to build?

Many of the 1/24 cars will test your masking skills.  Heller often molds the side windows as part of the inner door panels.  The Hispano-Suiza K4 has a divider between the driver/passenger compartments that is one big clear piece.  But it does have very nice detail molded in, for storage cabinets etc.  The K4 interior side panels are also clear, and one panel has a built-in clock with readable numbers and hands.  That tickled me. 

An old saying about Heller - they never use 1 part where they can use 5 parts.  But that also means they're nicely detailed.  Just take your time and study the instructions carefully before gluing anything. 

Those Renault 4CV's have full engine detail (in the rear) and an opening front trunk.  The Paris police version ("Pie") has a different body with cut-down doors, a wooden bench seat and a police radio. So it's not just a "decal job" off of the stock 4CV.

It's great to see some real oldies like the Citroen C4 Fourgonette (delivery van) again.  Even if it does drive down the eBay price of my originals.  Old-timers may remember that those originals were released in a couple of different versions with beautiful decals.  One for a Borden's milk delivery truck, and another for Waterman fountain pens.

[Junkman]

22 minutes ago, lysleder said:

They used to make some racing Ferraris, and some Porsches too. But what would make me go into a complete tailspin would be a release of their open wheel formula cars. The McLaren, the Brabham, the Lotus.

The Alpine I could do without. The Tamiya one is a better kit

 

Tamiya never made an Alpine A210. Only Heller did.

They made two racing Ferraris, a P4 and a 512S, which can both be pegged exctly against the GT40s they lost out to.
They also made two racing Porsches, a 908 and a 917. The 917 is naturally superseded by the Fujimi, but the Heller's oily bits can be used
to decurbside a Fujimi. The 908 is sadly best forgotten, its proportions are way off.

The formula 1 cars would be nice to have indeed. They are the Lotus 49, the Brabham BT33 and the McLaren M7A.
They also made Matra and a Brabham formula 2 kits.

Edited January 26, 2018 by Junkman

[Junkman]

And sure enough there was a ghost in form of a Matra 650:

 

 

 

And plans for a Matra MS80 F1:

 

Why those were never issued is unknown, in particular the MS80, which actually won the GP WC in 1969.

 

 

Edited January 26, 2018 by Junkman

[landman]

1 hour ago, Junkman said:

Is that a good or a bad thing?

I suppose it isn't that bad. Regular basic AMT kits are about $36 at Michaels.

 

[Junkman]

That's roughly what they sell for in GBP over here. Which is bad.

Self import isn't any better, thanks to the insane postage cost from the US, a 12 Pound processing fee per parcel
and a horrendous 20% VAT on the invoice amount including postage.

Don't start the revolution without me!

[Anglia105E]

Thanks to Michael in South Carolina, and always good to hear from someone who knows their subject. I also like the Citroen C4 Fourgonette delivery van and so far I haven't built one because it wouldn't have been a vehicle that you would expect to see on London streets in 1958. There are lots of model cars that I would very much like to build, but they have no place in my period diorama, such as the 1950's American cars, which really appeal to me. The purpose of the diorama is to display the models, rather than put them on a shelf or in display cases. Heller do seem to provide us with a choice of cars that seem to have been largely ignored by other kit manufacturers.

David

[Aaronw]

2 hours ago, lysleder said:

They used to make some racing Ferraris, and some Porsches too. But what would make me go into a complete tailspin would be a release of their open wheel formula cars. The McLaren, the Brabham, the Lotus.

The Alpine I could do without. The Tamiya one is a better kit

Tamiya does an Alpine 110, not a 210.

[Snake45]

32 minutes ago, Anglia105E said:

There are lots of model cars that I would very much like to build, but they have no place in my period diorama, such as the 1950's American cars, which really appeal to me. The purpose of the diorama is to display the models, rather than put them on a shelf or in display cases.

David

For some reason I am getting a mental image of a tail wagging the dog.

[ChrisBcritter]

Nice to see the Renault Estafette is making it out of limbo; maybe I'll build one as a phantom U.S. market Petit-Panel (which was canceled at the last minute). You know the drill: faded blue paint, CA black plates, oil smoke stains all over the back, and a bunch of surfboards.

And I guess I'll have to buy this:

Never thought I'd see a model with my name on it...

[Anglia105E]

You are probably right Snake.... by restricting myself to 1950's, London, Rolls-Royce and Bentley, this immediately rules out a lot of cars that I cannot have in the scene. Is that what you mean? One day I need to build a second diorama that would not be so restrictive.

David

[Richard Bartrop]

2 hours ago, landman said:

I suppose it isn't that bad. Regular basic AMT kits are about $36 at Michaels.

 

At the PM Hobbycraft here in Calgary, the AMT kits are creeping into the $40+ range, and honestly, what Heller is offering interests me a whole lot more that most of AMT's latest offerings.  Now I will probably bite the bullet and shell out the $43 they want for the Model A reissue. Forget the $50 they want for the "original Art edition".   $40 for a Lindberg rat rod?  Sorry, Round 2, but its not gonna happen.

[Richard Bartrop]

1 minute ago, Anglia105E said:

You are probably right Snake.... by restricting myself to 1950's, London, Rolls-Royce and Bentley, this immediately rules out a lot of cars that I cannot have in the scene. Is that what you mean? One day I need to build a second diorama that would not be so restrictive.

David

When I was growing in the Vancouver area,  there were a fair number of British cars sharing the streets with the big befinned American iron, so a Canadian diorama might do the job.

On the other hand, it's not necessarily a bad thing to be selective about what you build.  It's one way to avoid ending up with several lifetimes worth of unbuilt kits.

[Anglia105E]

Wise words indeed Richard Bartrop...... and it's funny that you should mention a Canadian diorama, because I have an idea lurking at the back of my mind that would involve Victoria, British Columbia and the old Rolls-Royce dealership that was there. Plimley Motors Limited I believe ( also in Vancouver ). Now that would be an interesting diorama for sure.....

David