I went to my local hobby shop on Saturday and the price for the
Hannover that everyone has been talking about is US$40.
So I looked at an open kit and said...... No. Too much, sorry. I like
all the brass, the micro tubes, the white metal, but really.... $40 for that?
Have to draw the line somewhere, I guess.
Maybe I'm griping on a Monday morning, or maybe this is the same old
thing -- another model company that's pushing too damn hard.
Stephen Tontoni
stonto@seaccc.sccd.ctc.edu
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I think more likely a case of another model company realizing the need for
accurate pricing for a low demand product in a very small market.
When I think about what it costs to go to a 2 hour movie, concert or pro
sporting event, I try not to worry too much about the cost of a kit. Granted I
am not a static modeller so I am not really that familiar with the current
costs. It seems, though, that the cost, amortized over the time to build,
factored with enthusiasm for the prototype, should be the formula for
determining value. I mean, how many of these kits are really going to be sold?
How upset are we when we discover the kit we had planned to buy is no longer available
due to lack of demand or sell out of the first and only kit run?
Another concern is some sort of reward for the folks making the investment in
tooling rare types. I wish I could buy all the kits and plans for WWI r/c
designs I like, but instead I try to keep just a little ahead of my building
schedule. Right now I am way ahead, but that is another story.
And Stephen, you are right. You do have to draw the line somewhere.
Thayer Syme
San Francisco