Audi R10 TDI LeMans 2006 from LMM + SMS

[Guido]

Originally Posted by freakmech

And to my knowledge there 1/24 F1's havent been a great success.

And what's that knowledge based on to say this? If they would salewise not have been succesfull for Revell, do you seriously think they would continue to come out with new releases? It's almost 10 years now that they have been continiously introducing new F1s. This is also due to Tamiya stopping their F1 series. If Tamiya would come back to the F1 market - with that I mean consistently bringing out 1 or 2 every year - Revell would have a hard time selling theirs, but since Tamiya gave up, I believe Revell is doing quite well.

[klutz_100]

I just love these "Let's all double guess the kit manufacturer" threads....

[MPWR]

Originally Posted by klutz_100

I just love these "Let's all double guess the kit manufacturer" threads....

Yeah, me too. Revell has been releasing new 1/24 kits every season. Is that really a sign of a line that's not doing well for them?

Yes, it seems that the Revell R10 is probably a rude shock and significant turn of misfortune for SMS/LMM. But one thing that this thread has made me realise is that I have no idea about the market for resin kits, and the people who buy them.

I definately consider myself a snob where it comes to kits- i.e., I simply wouldn't consider a Revell Enzo if a Tamiya Ezno is availible. Life is simply too short not to build great kits. But with regards to these two R10 kits, after reading descriptions and seeing pics of both, the plastic kit interests and excites me- and the resin kit kinda leaves me cold.

The plastic kit looks like a typical RoG kit- not Tamiya quality, but in the hands of a patient and capable modeler, it more than has the potential to be a stunning build. It has an engine- which has got to be the coolest part about the R10. And the decal sheet will be magnificent- the Cartograpf sheets in RoG kits the last few years have consistantly been the best I've ever seen in any manufacturers kits. Sure SMS puts out good stuff, but this is a case where I would hate to have to try to put out something to compare with what will come in the Revell box. Overall, it will be a decent to good kit with plenty of building to be done.

The resin kit of course looks great. Beautifully molded and mastered (wonder how consistent the quality wil be in production?, my cynical side asks), nice little PE fret. But there doesn't look to be alot for a builder to do- even if there is a pile of suspension components not shown. Sure if applying pretemplated CF decals and sticking little PE bits to resin is your thing, you'll have a ball with it. But these are simply not the tasks I enjoy in modeling- and a kit where that's pretty much it just doesn't appeal much.

And so it quickly becomes clear that snobbery and willingness to pay for quality aside, I am simply not the intended audience for the resin kit. Some people like to make a big deal over an imagined 'building vs assembling' division- but to me the resin kit really does seem to take away most of the building tasks that I enjoy. Someone else got to do all the fun detailing work, leaving me only with tedious finishing tasks. I'm certainly not going to pay more for that.

So there really are people who prefer resin kits? I'm really not trying to be critical or judgemental of anyone- this is a hobby, and everyone should enjoy about it the parts they like. But it never really occured to me that there are people who would prefer a resin kit to a plastic one.

For me, the best of both worlds would be if SMS would release a photo CD of all the references they've gathered for the R10, so I can buy the Revell kit and detail it like crazy myself. They can keep the resin, PE and CF templates.

[Spike2933]

I hope they have decals for the ALMS season of 06.

I already got the Lemans winner in a Minichamps and would like to make the ALMS version instead

[freakmech]

Originally Posted by MPWR

So there really are people who prefer resin kits?

In a sense, yes i do prefer resin kits. First of you may notice that i tend to only build Motorsport subjects. Take a look at what is availiable in plastic versuses what is availiable in resin. Far cooler and sometimes, believe it or not, even better detailed kits are availiable in Resin. Thats not to say i dont have a stack of Fujimi 917K's, because i do. Unfortunately, the 917s are not correct in body style for a few of the races they represent. The other beauty of resin.

Second, unlike you, I hate suspension and chassis building. My least favorite part of any build for me. 20 little pieces that all have to be painted different colors. Then finely assembled only to find that the ride height is completely wrong. Masking of all the little details molded to the chassis for paint. Arrrggghhhhh, i hate it. I love to decal and paint bodies. I love the crisp detail of PE.The resin dream. I dont like the price of resin but id rather pay more to buy a kit i "must have" on my shelf instead of buying a $30 kit that collects dust because Tamiya thinks i "must have" it on my shelf. So maybe you understand the resin market a little more now. Im not a snob, nor do i think im better cus my model cost more. I simple enjoy the subject matter of resin kits and the fact that i may actually finish it because my ride hieght isnt that of a 4X4 on a GT car.

[bvia]

Originally Posted by freakmech

Second, unlike you, I hate suspension and chassis building. My least favorite part of any build for me...... I simple enjoy the subject matter of resin kits and the fact that i may actually finish it because my ride hieght isnt that of a 4X4 on a GT car.

I agree on all points!!!

Bill

[Guido]

Originally Posted by freakmech

In a sense, yes i do prefer resin kits. First of you may notice that i tend to only build Motorsport subjects. Take a look at what is availiable in plastic versuses what is availiable in resin. Far cooler and sometimes, believe it or not, even better detailed kits are availiable in Resin. Thats not to say i dont have a stack of Fujimi 917K's, because i do. Unfortunately, the 917s are not correct in body style for a few of the races they represent. The other beauty of resin.

Second, unlike you, I hate suspension and chassis building. My least favorite part of any build for me. 20 little pieces that all have to be painted different colors. Then finely assembled only to find that the ride height is completely wrong. Masking of all the little details molded to the chassis for paint. Arrrggghhhhh, i hate it. I love to decal and paint bodies. I love the crisp detail of PE.The resin dream. I dont like the price of resin but id rather pay more to buy a kit i "must have" on my shelf instead of buying a $30 kit that collects dust because Tamiya thinks i "must have" it on my shelf. So maybe you understand the resin market a little more now. Im not a snob, nor do i think im better cus my model cost more. I simple enjoy the subject matter of resin kits and the fact that i may actually finish it because my ride hieght isnt that of a 4X4 on a GT car.

Weird that you can hate something about the hobby. Sure, I prefer some tasks over others, but that's only because I'm really good at them. But hating? I've never hated anything about scale modeling.

Buying resin vs. plastic.
Let's put it this way. I focus on certain collections: AMG Mercedes racers, Belga sponsored rally cars, Freddy Loix rally cars, Honda powered F1's to name some examples. I will always check if a model is available in plastic, first choice. If it is, and it is of an acceptable level of accuracy, I'll buy it. If it doesn't exist in plastic, only then I'll check for a resin kit of the same subject. So in this case, although I doubt I'll ever build an R10 as it doesn't fit nowhere in any of my collections, I'd buy the Revell kit and save a 100 euros to be invested in equipment or tools.

ps. Did you have a chance to look at my earlier question?

[ZoomZoomMX-5]

Subject matter is what interests me in a build before the consideration of whether it's a common mass-market plastic kit or a resin multimedia kit. They both have their plusses and minuses, and each kit is different in it's ability to capture the details of the real car.

My enjoyment of model cars is mostly from the external aspects; the design of the body, doing the paint/bodywork and finishing. I would be happy if every model was curbside; I don't really care much about detailing fussy mechanicals unless they're an integral part of the exterior design. I like simplicity and quality. I have more fun w/the exterior and detailing an interior than building a full engine and detailed chassis. Resin kits often are a great way for me to get maximum satisfaction from building. But when comparing a $27 Revell kit vs. a pricey resin kit of the same subject, I'll go w/the Revell kit and spend resin $$ on subjects that are not available through the mass market.

[freakmech]

Well im glad im not the only one who doesnt enjoy tedious detail you wont see when the car is sitting on a table. I thought i was crazy for a minute there Huudo, obviously i would buy a Tamiya kit versus a resin kit of the same car. But something like R10, im just excited to check out the SMS stuff and its the only car there slated to release that i dont have. I buy plenty of plastic but in the past 2-3 years there have only been a couple plastic race car kits i have had any interest in. Again, Revell, Tamiya, Fujimi, etc do NOT dictate what i think is important in the world of racing. I dictate what is important and seeing that i cant even watch JGTT races on my TV i could care less about Tamiyas recent releases. And yes i "hate" have to build chassis' because in the end NOONE sees them so they are a WASTE of time for me. Sorry i dont build models to post pretty pictures online so people will blote my ego with nice comments. I build models because i like to come home, relax, work with my hands, and in the end have a great, often historical, scale replica of a race car to admire sitting on my shelf. So if youve never gotten frustrated building a kit, never cursed at a build, never threw down the Xacto in disgust... Then i envy you for your all enduring love of the hobby. Otherwise stop being the saint of modelling and dont take me so literally. "you can not know love until youve tasted spite" someone once said. Loser

[freakmech]

Oh and i guess in the European market they might do well. Everyone i ever heard talk about them hates the fact that the F1's are 1/24 when every other company does F1 in 1/20 with the exception of Hiro who does some of there vintage F1's in 1/24. I dont know but i dont know anybody who builds there F1s. I dont even see threads here of 1/24 F1 builds. Maybe F1m.com would tell another story.

[CeeElle]

SMS has details about the kits on its revamped Web site now.

Originally Posted by MPWR

Life is simply too short not to build great kits.

wish I'd thought of that before I'd started this damned Monogram Porsche 904.

[Guido]

Revell had, what looked like a prototype, scale model of their R10 on expo in their booth space at Intermodellbau 2007 in Dortmund.

[manu80]

huh dosn't look great but like a big prototype.... specially after looking at the air outtakes. Let's hope it will look better.i've seen the LMM and it's kinda disappointing for the price it's sold.
Go revell go !

[godfather23]

Originally Posted by freakmech

Second, unlike you, I hate suspension and chassis building. My least favorite part of any build for me. 20 little pieces that all have to be painted different colors. Then finely assembled only to find that the ride height is completely wrong. Masking of all the little details molded to the chassis for paint. Arrrggghhhhh, i hate it. I love to decal and paint bodies. I love the crisp detail of PE.The resin dream. I dont like the price of resin but id rather pay more to buy a kit i "must have" on my shelf instead of buying a $30 kit that collects dust because Tamiya thinks i "must have" it on my shelf. So maybe you understand the resin market a little more now. Im not a snob, nor do i think im better cus my model cost more. I simple enjoy the subject matter of resin kits and the fact that i may actually finish it because my ride hieght isnt that of a 4X4 on a GT car.

True, true. What I really like about painting and decaling a body: No wires and whatsoever. I always start new projects saying to myself: "Now Robert, you won´t wire the engine or detail paint it!" Then I start browsing the forum and find this amazing detailing of the project, I´m about to do. Some say, I´m just a weak person!!

But then again, I´d take that Revell R10, keep everything that won´t be seen in black and just mess with painting and decaling!

[Carrera RS Fahrer]

Half-off-topic, but on the subject of contemporary LeMans car kits, does anyone know if any company is planning to issue a kit of the Porsche RS Spyder? There's already a 1:43 die-cast of it, but I'd like to build a kit. 1/12 would be a dream, like its Tamiya 910 forebear. I'll settle for 1:24 though!

BTW, if anyone's not following these cars week to week, the Porsche ended the unbroken winning streak of the R10 last weekend at Long Beach. It was spectacular to see and hear first hand, even more so given that the Porsche is a P2 car.