Tamiya getting into classic 32 Ford hot rod kits dream!

[rrb124@sbcglobal.net]

Was thinking about the struggles with the ancient tooling that takes place with all of the classic American 32 Ford hot rods kits. Was daydreaming that it would be a really big deal if Tamiya got involved and added the American Hot Rod to their extensive line up! The quality fit and finish, flash free parts and satin finish "chrome" would be over the top. They would be starting with an all new to them product. They could offer kits that already had a deep channel body drop and any radical chassis that could be conceived. How about even all wheel drive and or Jaguar XKE or Formula-1 type rear suspensions. Don't limit it to 32 Fords. How about Chevy, Buick, Pontiac etc. Maybe-one day!

[Mark]

Unless American hot rods become more than a niche item in Japanese culture, I wouldn't hold my breath.  Believe it or not, the items they do produce are chosen pretty much for the home market, meaning Japan.  Any additional sales are icing on the cake for them.  Besides that, in all likelihood they would go with 1/24 scale whereas the vast majority of American automotive kits are, or are claimed to be, 1/25 scale.  Monogram was the lone holdout for 1/24, and they flipped to 1/25 thirty years ago with the exception of their NASCAR kits which they no longer produce.

[Luc Janssens]

Somewhere I've read that their sales are 50% domestic 50% international, but don't know the breakdown plastic vs. RC.

Also IIRC the past Amercan subject matter like the Jeeps and Mustangs came thru the German distributor, not the American. So rather agree with Mark B. But who knows... never say never, remember the Chevy Astro Van's from Aoshima.

[stitchdup]

I think the most likely source for new hotrod bodies could be icm. their stuff would be stock kits but they already have some early stuff in 1/24 and the model a is the logical next step after the model ts

[LDO]

Tamiya street rods would be really cool, but until that happens, there’s always kit bashing. I think a Mercedes V-8 or V-12 would look cool in a street rod.
I just love, love, love this tiny roadster pickup. That’s a Jaguar XK series inline six. Tamiya makes a Jaguar Mk II saloon with the same engine. The race version may have Weber carbs, but I’m not 100% sure on that. 

[maltsr]

I was inspired by the above to build my own version, based on a Model A, Buttera rear axle and Tamiya Jaguar engine.

[LDO]

Nice! Can you show more photos of it?

[Daddyfink]

Tamiya has a worldwide market they have to cater to, and American Hot Rods are not a thing around the world as much as other subjects. American kit makers cater to the U.S. market. With the exception being Revell of Germany, and you will notice that most of their offerings are very Tamiya like. 

 

[maltsr]

28 minutes ago, LDO said:

Nice! Can you show more photos of it?

Cheers Lee. I have just uploaded some pics to my original thread to replace ones formerly hosted by Photobucket.

 

[Richard Bartrop]

It would be interesting.  Japan and Europe both have a pretty active hot rod scene, and let's be honest, hot rodding over here is pretty niche too.  The Japanese have been putting their own spin on hot rods too.  I actually wouldn't mind seeing something like the Rod Riguez offered in scale form.

We have seen the Japanese companies release hot rod kits in the past.  We say Doyusha rerelease Eldon's show car kits, and wayyy back when, Bandai offered motoriazed copies of Monogram's Little T, Green Hornet, and Blue Beetle.

I'm sure if Tamiya offered a Deuce roadster kit, it would be a glorious thing, but for the price they would want for it,  you could buy probably enough kits and accessories to kitbash the hot rod you want.

Edited January 8, 2024 by Richard Bartrop

[blubaja]

And on the other end, we had Revell attempt at making Japanese cars, and fail miserably. 

[willimo]

Or, we could just make better kits here, in the home market? Why isn't that the dream?

[willimo]

I don't know if they're even still around, but I started modifying my Revell '32 using Replicas and Miniatures of Maryland parts until I was using zero Revell parts. It cost a lot, but those parts are so finely molded, Tamiya could only dream of doing what they do.

[ChrisBcritter]

4 hours ago, Richard Bartrop said:

We have seen the Japanese companies release hot rod kits in the past.  We say Doyusha rerelease Eldon's show car kits, and wayyy back when, Bandai offered motorized copies of Monogram's Little T, Green Hornet, and Blue Beetle.

Whaaat?!? First I've heard of this - did Bandai clone the kit and modify it? How good a copy is it?

[Richard Bartrop]

15 minutes ago, ChrisBcritter said:

Whaaat?!? First I've heard of this - did Bandai clone the kit and modify it? How good a copy is it?

I never got that particular kit, but I did have the Little T and Green Hornet clones, which were called the the Ford-T and Green Bee.   This was round about 1970-ish, so my memory is fuzzy, but they seemed all right at the time.  THe Ford-T does sit higher than the Little T, presumably to make room for the motor.

And it looks like someone has the actual kit online, so you can judge for yourself.  https://public.fotki.com/DWDarby/model_cars/vintage_model_kits/bandai-monogram-lit/

 

[ChrisBcritter]

Thanks! Aaaand I'd better not make any comments about that typo on the box... 

Edited January 8, 2024 by ChrisBcritter

[sfhess]

Didn't Revell come out with a series of really nice 32 Ford street rod kits several years ago?

[OldNYJim]

Looks like that Beetle on the door needs some Gas X

[BlackSheep214]

On 1/6/2024 at 9:55 PM, rrb124@sbcglobal.net said:

Was thinking about the struggles with the ancient tooling that takes place with all of the classic American 32 Ford hot rods kits. Was daydreaming that it would be a really big deal if Tamiya got involved and added the American Hot Rod to their extensive line up! The quality fit and finish, flash free parts and satin finish "chrome" would be over the top. They would be starting with an all new to them product. They could offer kits that already had a deep channel body drop and any radical chassis that could be conceived. How about even all wheel drive and or Jaguar XKE or Formula-1 type rear suspensions. Don't limit it to 32 Fords. How about Chevy, Buick, Pontiac etc. Maybe-one day!

That will never happen - especially when Tamiya is a Japanese company. American hot rod muscle car sis not their niche in the market. You can dream on but it will not come to fruition.

[Richard Bartrop]

35 minutes ago, sfhess said:

Didn't Revell come out with a series of really nice 32 Ford street rod kits several years ago?

Yes, they did, and they recently released a very nice '32 Ford.roadster. 

[bobss396]

There will always be a good market for the '29-'34 Fords. It would be nice to see a new-tool '36 as well. Everyone has done the '40 Ford.

I was talking with the Revell reps at the NNL East when they had test shots of their '49 Mercury. I said, all well and good, but you guys screwed the pooch on this one. They asked why. I told them they should have done a '51 Mercury, dare to be different. I don't think I made their day. 

[Aaronw]

On 1/7/2024 at 7:02 AM, Luc Janssens said:

Somewhere I've read that their sales are 50% domestic 50% international, but don't know the breakdown plastic vs. RC.

Also IIRC the past Amercan subject matter like the Jeeps and Mustangs came thru the German distributor, not the American. So rather agree with Mark B. But who knows... never say never, remember the Chevy Astro Van's from Aoshima.

 

Or the breakdown between autos, armor, ships and aircraft. A large portion of their catalog is non automotive so a general 50% international sales could be and likely is dominated by the other categories. Unlike their automotive selection these other categories are much more international in subject coverage. 

[stitchdup]

Most of tamiya road cars were sold internationally in the 1/1 world. There very few of their road cars were japan only. For the japan only cars fujimi and aoshima are a better place to look.

[Luc Janssens]

40 minutes ago, stitchdup said:

Most of tamiya road cars were sold internationally in the 1/1 world. There very few of their road cars were japan only. For the japan only cars fujimi and aoshima are a better place to look.

Haven't got a clue, on percentages of domestic vs international sales of any category plastic model kits, would be nice tho, if one could peek at the figures.

One thing I do know; was looking at some leftover parts trees from a six-wheeler F-1 racer tooled in 1977 and thought, that's nice!

[Richard Bartrop]

An upgraded '36 Ford would be nice, and with all due respect to the people who think they speak for us, I could buy another one of Revell's '40 Fords.  They're also a great source of kitbashing material for traditional rods.  I suppose if Revell wanted to invest in the tooling, a '40 Sedan would be nice, or if they aren't, bring back Monogram's Pro Modeler '40 Convertible.

Edited January 8, 2024 by Richard Bartrop