Tamiya 1/24 Aston Martin DBS

[Chuck Kourouklis]

...I did use a little filler at the top edge of the trunklid where a small filler piece is added between the taillight panel and the edge of the spoiler. That one seems odd to me, haven't figured out why that ended up a separate part. If I study it long enough it might make sense...or I could build something else and not worry over it. Squish it in w/enough liquid cement and you'll probably not need any filler, it's a fairly tight fit.

Funny that it's the one bit I've forgotten to mention, but that's the single piece that got me thinking Tamiya went out of their way to control sinkmarks in the body. If the entire ducktail as defined by that panel were a solid piece, I think we would have seen a fair number of divots there.

[tim boyd]

Thanks for those pictures!

I see the top half of the engine block is molded to the fender liners and the bottom half...oh wait, there is no bottom half of the engine....

Seriously, guys I was not planning to take the engine and put it in a street rod model. I was looking forward to building a box stock miniature of the real car.

Aston Martins these days are serious road cars and the engine is a key factor in that. Some of us still enjoy assembling each component of the model car as a miniature replica of the real thing, and in a car like an Aston, the engine sure is a part of the experience. I remain really disappointed that Tamiya could not see fit to put in a stand alone engine in their replica of a 1/1 scale car as important as this one.

I've complained enough about this now so thanks for your indulgence and I will go on radio silence on this subject....TIM

[Zoom Zoom]

Funny that it's the one bit I've forgotten to mention, but that's the single piece that got me thinking Tamiya went out of their way to control sinkmarks in the body. If the entire ducktail as defined by that panel were a solid piece, I think we would have seen a fair number of divots there.

I do believe you have solved it! The piece fits quite snugly, unlike a similar filler in the same basic spot used on Fujimi's Ferrari F355 coupes.

[Chuck Most]

Mold line or none, those castings look incredible. Almost like raw metal. Tamiya kits are generally molded well, but this one looks better than any Tamiya kit I've built in the past. The fact the 1:1 car is drop dead gorgeous doesn't hurt, either!

[Chuck Kourouklis]

"almost as if"? I think we should give them the credit where it's due... Tamiya's 1/32 Spitfire IX (which I have in the "build pile" right now) is just FULL of examples of incredibly careful thought...

Yep, Matt, I have my Spitfire 9, too. Also have one of the 1/32 Zekes, the 1/32 F-16CJ, plus a fair number of Revell AG, Monogram, Academy, and Trumpeter birds for comparison. The Spitfire is a truly wild opus of clever design - especially the cockpit breakdown, the powertrain and framework, and those paper-thin engine cover panels and magnets - even if the 16 remains my all-time favorite aircraft in scale. Though if Tamiya ups the ante yet again on a new 1/32 P-51D, I may have to reconsider that.

"Almost as if" really has more to do with the pure conjecture on my part than it does with denying Tamiya their due. The only aspect of the Aston that mystifies me is the omission of any dividing, light-blocking partition where the radiator and core support should be.

After all, Astons are Fords no longer, so it's not as if Tamiya was obliged to screw them up -

meh, I take that back. At least there isn't any obvious disdain from Tamiya for this subject, as there certainly appeared to be for those SN95 Mustangs.

[sjordan2]

Here's an Aston I wish someone would kit.

http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/4516/Aston-Martin-DB2-Team-Car.html

[LDO]

Here's an Aston I wish someone would kit.

http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/4516/Aston-Martin-DB2-Team-Car.html

Good luck. Look in 1/43 resin for that one. Even 1/24 resin would be a dud.

[Foxer]

Yeah, at that price point, a full engine and full engine compartment detail are certainly not too much to expect. But, on the other hand, from what I have seen, the appearance of the finished model suffers not in the least from not having them. So, as that famous IBM commercial once stated, "YOU make the call!"

This is an interesting take on an excellent kit. I've always had problems with the way the Japanese perceive the builders of their kits. The make the most "detailed" looking models from a purely stock build, as if we all are only going to build a "Yamato battleship" as it was on October 12, 1943! No consideration is given to the possibility of someone ... OMG! .. switching engines or frenching the tail lights. This is maybe just a culture thing, but there ARE tuners in Japan now! Please give us a WHOLE car for all that money!

[horsepower]

A LHS in my neighborhood has one for $69.

I passed.

In fact alot of the import kits have gone up to the $50-60 and up mark.

Guess they just don't want to part with them..

I think this is just a reminder that models are like oats, there are cheaper choices out there, if you don't mind them being passed through the horse first.

[LDO]

Once again, I agree that the number of people who would have spent $71 for a V-12 to drop in the '32 hiboy is pretty small. Virtually nonexistent. The complaints about this are a non-issue to Tamiya. Hey- no one is stopping anyone from building their own V-12. No one is stopping me from frenching the taillights on my Yamato.

[RodneyBad]

I think this is just a reminder that models are like oats, there are cheaper choices out there, if you don't mind them being passed through the horse first.

If I can find a cheaper one, I'm all over that like white on rice

Maybe stick the motor in a 32 Chrysler

[jbwelda]

the thing is, the motor "insert", especially when its mostly obscured by the intake etc sitting on top of it, replicates what you see in the engine compartment of a prototype. so to me thats what the kit is supposed to replicate and as typical for tamiya, it replicates it pretty well.

i was looking at the kit the other day and was pretty impressed with the amount of photo etch that was included. its almost like this kit incorporates an "upgrade kit" and that partially explains the price (i think it was 72$ at the LHS).

but that brings me to a problem ive had with tamiya lately: this factory upgrade kit they want to get another 30$ out of you for. seems like its been standard for their big time new issues and some reissues for a while now. i really hope they (tamiya that is) dont come out with one for this DBS because thats really asking a lot: 70+ for the kit and another 30 for the (almost mandatory for anyone who really wants to build one) "upgrade".

if i am spending 70$ for a kit, i dont want it compromised from the factory and in need of extras. aftermarket i would be ok with, but from the kit mfg themself, i think it borders on extortion!

[RodneyBad]

If I can find a cheaper one, I'm all over that like white on rice

Maybe stick the motor in a 32 Chrysler

Did find it as low as $50.

may just have to get it for some reason.

[gasman]

Did find it as low as $50.

may just have to get it for some reason.

I paid $53 for mine, including shipping,

[sjordan2]

On a somewhat related note, I see that the Bond DB5 that debuted in "Goldfinger" will be auctioned in October; expecting about $5 million. This might stir up some added interest in Aston kits.

http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2010/06/01/bond_car.cnnmoney/?source=cnn_bin&hpt=Sbin

[sjordan2]

For their next act, Aston Martin is introducing a contender in the four-door sports car wars, the Rapide, their first sedan in over 20 years (remember the Lagonda?).

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-car-review-20100610,0,4751792.story

[Luc Janssens]

You're right. Separate part or not, same problem would exist.

Maybe not Harry, if the hole would be part of the core of the tooling.

BTW Tim & Bob made me go back to this tread, after reading their comments, on the all new Amt Camaro glue kit postings...

 

[MrObsessive]

I've passed on this kit for that very reason, the lack of a complete engine. I'll echo Tim's thoughts as I think that as gorgeous as this car is, the engine is its roots as to why it's so good in the 1:1 world. Not to mention as much as Tamiya was charging for this kit-----sorry, I can't past an omission of an item that should be its showpiece. 

However if some were happy building the model as is sans complete engine, more power to 'em. 

With Round 2 coming out with that new Camaro, and offering it WITH an engine and a snapper without, maybe this'll be a game changer and we'll see both options for kits in the future from both foreign and domestic kitmakers.

[niteowl7710]

The thing is with the way the engine insert fits into the model no one who doesn't know it's not a complete engine would ever have any idea that it's not.

I don't believe that anyone was really going to buy a $35 (or $70 if you insist on LHS it) just for the engine to put into another project. Well O.K. maybe a handful of people, but not en masse like LS swapping,  or putting another style of engine in a street rod,  etc. Because the exotic engine swaps I see around here are 99% cheap hobby shop RevellAG Ferraris rather than anything out of any Tamiya or Fujimi kit.

[Zoom Zoom]

Ha, after 6 years people are still griping about the DBS!  I'm surprised Hobby Design hasn't filled the void as they've done with other Asian kits that came either with incomplete or engine at all. There's a sliver of a market for Tamiya DBS buyers/builders that would gladly pay the price, because the hobby attracts enough OCD builders that want it all...regardless they're going to have an impressive model at the end of the process.

Tamiya listened and learned from the criticism of the DBS and other forays into simplification. The customers have spoken, they pay Tamiya's premium prices and they expect the entire premium Tamiya experience beyond simple subject matter. Done. Since then their full-detail kits are again as complete as expected. Their current kits prove that they know what their customers want and are staying on top of the game-both curbside and full-detail, and in a few instances US prices are lower than expected vs. previous products. There they go, making me respect them even more! Meanwhile I'm working on my vintage Pacer wagon kit that is in no way, shape, or form even remotely "Tamiya-like". I'm disappointed that the well-respected, well-earned term "Tamiya-like" was co-opted in the Camaro box review as a negative; it's completely at odds with my own personal experience building multitudes of Tamiya (among many other) kits. Maybe I'm reading far too much into it, but on the surface it seems unnecessary and somewhat dishonest, given the context and the fact that if Tamiya kitted the DBS today it would be truly full-detail. Tamiya doesn't deserve the swipe IMHO, and the Camaro needs to stand on its own without a hint of artificial support, especially if the intent is to do it at the expense of another manufacturer that doesn't even compete directly. If it's a great kit, the world will know soon enough as they actually get built. And I hopefully will enjoy building the Camaro soon enough 

[MrObsessive]

Well said Bob! BTW, the Aston is a nice kit, it's just the ones I've seen for sale they're asking too much for it. I'm one of those "OCD" builders as you know, and I'd like this kit all the better if it came with just a bit more than a "reasonable facsimile" of an engine. Of course, left up to me I'd have the thing run on its own with high test gas powering it in that scale! Who knows, I could get adventurous someday and make a complete engine for it anyway, just to satisfy my "Obsessiveness". 

Now the Camaro kit I do think will stand on its own merits if it builds as good as it looks. I might stray from my scheduled builds lined up and tackle this one if the mood truly strikes me as I do think it's a fabulous looking car.

If Tamiya had kitted the new Mercedes 300SL with just an insert for an engine, I might be screaming a whole lot louder! The Benz straight six is truly a work of art on its own, and I liked that kit so much that I got TWO of 'em!

 

[tim boyd]

Well. OK, I can see the different points of view here - I think there are legitimate points made on all sides.    .

As I probably said years ago in this thread, I took the omission of a real engine from the DBS kit as a real affront to all that the Aston Martin brand and development team stood for in the current range of "DB-" products.  Much more than the latest high priced, low volume Lexus supercars that few will remember in 10 years, the engine was/is the sole of what an Aston Marti product.  Have any of you ever heard an Aston V-12 started and revved?  Run through the gears?  The only way Tamiya can make up for this grievous (in my opinion) error is to reissue the kit with a full engine included - as it should have been from the start.  

What's more, I still don't think Tamiya always gets the engine right.  Let's take the new 300SL kit.  In the real car, there's a heat-shield type part that runs directly beneath the exhaust headers.  Without having a 1/1 in my driveway but having studied photography extensively, this appears to me to be an entirely separate part - but on Tamiya's model kit, it's molded together with the exhaust headers.   Given the highly prominent/visible position of this assembly in the SL engine compartment (It's the first thing you see when you open the hood),  they should have been molded as two separate parts.  When I saw that in the kit, it alone was enough for me to put the kit box on the "maybe I'll build it someday" pile rather than the "desk-clearer" kit I had hoped for and expected.  

Having worked in the 1/1 scale auto industry for 35+ years, I often observed a tendency to place foreign-manufactured cars - particularly from the Japanese brands - above their American counterparts, whether deserved or not.  Sadly, I've sometimes observed the same discrimination in the model kit world    While no one would rightly say that ALL Tamiya kits are lacking in the engine compartment (and I think that is perhaps Bob's point), and the American kitmakers have never delivered the kit after kit superior consistency that would fully rank them the Asian kit makers, I do believe that kits developed by the American kit industry are often superior to their overseas competition in the way they design and manufacture their engines and engine compartments.  

I realize many of you ((probably most of you) will probably disagree with me on this, but that's my view.  In the meantime Bob maybe you can convince the Tamiya team to do another Aston kit with a proper, fully detailed, separate engine.  Or maybe a '62-'64 Berlinetta Lusso.  Yeah, that's it, do the Lusso with a proper kit and engine, and I'll permanently cease and desist on this.

Until then.... Cheers (smile).....TIM 

Edited August 13, 2016 by tim boyd

[Exotics_Builder]

 I'm surprised Hobby Design hasn't filled the void as they've done with other Asian kits that came either with incomplete or engine at all. There's a sliver of a market for Tamiya DBS buyers/builders that would gladly pay the price, because the hobby attracts enough OCD builders that want it all...regardless they're going to have an impressive model at the end of the process.

Hey!!  I resemble that remark

[Exotics_Builder]

 

I realize many of you ((probably most of you) will probably disagree with me on this, but that's my view.  In the meantime Bob maybe you can convince the Tamiya team to do another Aston kit with a proper, fully detailed, separate engine.  Or maybe a '62-'64 Berlinetta Lusso.  Yeah, that's it, do the Lusso with a proper kit and engine, and I'll permanently cease and desist on this.

Until then.... Cheers (smile).....TIM 

Berlinetta Lusso please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[martinfan5]

The Aston Martin kit is well worth whatever price you pay for it,  even with it not having a full a engine, and I really dont understand how quick people will dismiss what is a great kit for the simple fact that it may not have a 100% complete engine, and judging a entire kit on the bases of wether it has an engine or not is just stupid.