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Aftermarket details for new release models


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Just curious, really, after seeing AMK's rather lovely looking MiG-31 in the jet modelling forum, do companies like Eduard work with the kit manufacturers to produce their aftermarket goodies?

After all, while the kit manufacturers want to do a good job (or at least some do - others just do the minimum, insert company name here....) they clearly are limited by the injection technology and pricing / complexity constraints. A good set of aftermarket stuff complements their kit and helps sell them, so it would seem logical that they would encourage it and maybe allow them access to develop their stuff in parallel. Maybe they get some pre-production kits to play with?

Like I said, just curious, but I bet quite a safe ten bucks that some resin nozzles and cockpit parts will very quickly be available for the MiG-31!

Les

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Kit manufacturers do quietly send some aftermarket companies pre-production model kits so the aftermarket companies can produce those aftermarket goodies and have them released soon after the kit is put on sale to the modelling community.

Of course the smaller aftermarket companies probably don't get pre-production kits....but the bigger aftermarket companies do.

I'm not sure if all model kit companies do this.

There is a surprising amount of stuff done behind the scenes in secrecy.

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Work with? (as in, develop in concert with?) Not usually. Though Wingman/Kinetic seem to have a close relationship - some Wingman parts are definitely using the same files as Kinetic.

Typically it's either a matter of relationships, reputation or size. Eduard and AiRes can probably get test shots pretty easily because they're arguably the two biggest aftermarket entities, and there are likely manufacturers who'd see value in cross-promotion. (Ditto Aber and Fruil on the armor side) If you're a small shop but the people at a model company love your products, they may reach out to you. And in that vein, people who have smaller - but well established - aftermarket businesses often make connections in the industry and can occasionally source test shots that way.

Depends entirely on the companies involved though, both manufacturer and aftermarket. It's unlikely that Wingnut Wings is shipping a lot of test shots around to aftermarket guys. (apparently they're not even happy when someone does an upgrade for their kits long after they've been released... <_< ). On the other hand, Revell or Airfix are probably more willing to help the aftermarket guys out.

Also, bear in mind that an aftermarket company can do a lot of work without having the kits in hand in the first place. If you're doing, say, a set of decals for the upcoming Italeri Mirage IIIC, you can draft pretty much all the artwork ahead of time, then simply make a few simple adjustments to improve fit once the kit is on-hand - markings that wrap around the fuselage, tail or drop tanks. For the AMK MiG-31, you could probably do the entire decal sheet without the kit, since none of the markings really depend on the kit's actual geometry (stencils and insignia are of known dimensions; crests and special markings are going on relatively flat surfaces and dimensions can be determined from photos). A lot of PE can be drafted ahead of time, too. And resin parts that aren't fit-critical can be started as well: something like a wheel well can't, because it has to conform to precise dimensions, but you can make a set of accurate wheels and then simply drill out the mounting hole once you know the dimensions of the axle. That way, you can release the stuff soon after the kit hits, which may give the impression that you had some 'inside info', even though you didn't.

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The AMK MiG-31 look's so well made I don't think you're going to need any aftermarket. Except maybe some exhaust and nozzle covers .

Need cast metal landing gear and weighted tires. Every kit should have these two very important additions.

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Need cast metal landing gear

Oh dear lord, no. White metal landing gear are garbage! Sure, they won't break like styrene can, but they'll bend like a wet noodle and can be infuriatingly difficult to straighten properly. I am flabbergasted that SAC is so successful at simply re-casting kit parts in an inferior material.

Cast brass, corrections or extra detail, sure, but kit parts in white metal? Nah.

As for the AMK kit... ejection seats, replacement wheels and probably exhausts would be no-brainer detail sets. Those are three areas where plastic just can't cope with the complex, subtle shapes, and they're relatively visible on most finished models. A master-club-style pitot, too, as it'll be both finer and more robust than a plastic part.

And, FWIW, (and to bring it back to the OP), you can do most of the work for all four of the items without the kit on-hand: draft the ejection seat, then tweak the width/depth to fit the kit's tub; draft the exhausts then tweak the diameter to match the kit parts; draft the wheels then just cut the appropriately-sized axle hole; draft the pitot and PE, then just make the mounting point match the kit breakdown.

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Everyone has pretty much covered it. I'll just add that no kit is beyond the need of AM. Not if you have aftermarket acquisition syndrome. =D

As for the Mig 31. I'll wait for exhaust and a resin cockpit and wheels.

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Need cast metal landing gear and weighted tires. Every kit should have these two very important additions.

Funny, people have been building injection molded styrene models for almost 70 years now, and until the past 10 or so, none of them had metal gear legs. And I've never seen more than a tiny handful that collapsed under their own weight.

And as for weighted tires, if you're talking about most jets, they're fitted with high pressure tires that would have nothing but a tiny flat spot on them where they contact the pavement. Most weighted tires are more flat than weighted, especially the ones from Squadron.

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If the kit manufacturer is smart they will utilize a aftermarket company to provide kit parts/decals. I really enjoy the fightertown decals in some of the kinetic kits. It is nice to know the kit has high quality well researched decals. Unlike some that make a great kit and give crappy decals as an after thought (hasegawa...cough..tamiya...cough...cough)

Edited by graves_09
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Thanks for all your answers guys, I suppose I was thinking along those lines.

I think that we are now very spoilt with the models that are already available and especially so seeing what is in the pipeline. However there's always room for simple improvements on a lot of kits due to the limitations imposed by cost and styrene moulding technology and Eduard in particular play a canny game by bringing out their multimedia kits.

With a particular eye on the AMK MiG 31 and their announced F14, I'm hoping that they are working with the aftermarket guys. Eduard's resin parts for their own kits are exemplary of what can be done, clearly with full access, with little or no trimming needed to drop in. To have similarly quality enginered and moulded parts availabe for what look to be beautiful kits would be fantastic.

Here's hoping

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