Bad Cat's annual Memorial Day Sale is in full swing now. Great deals on diecast airplanes and tanks.]]>Bad Cat's annual Memorial Day Sale is in full swing now. Great deals on diecast airplanes and tanks.]]>
We are implementing some trial software that some customers may encounter while they are shopping for diecast tanks and airplanes in our store. The software involves a pop-up, discount coupon, and a count-down timer and should be a popular addition to our store once everything gets perfected. If you experience a bug, get timed-out, or otherwise have an unsatisfactory experience with this experimental feature please give us a call at 1-888-848-4690 and let us know about it.]]>
It's now late Friday afternoon and I think (crossing fingers) that we've slayed the last of our website Gremlins. We've had a slew technical issues that suddenly raised their ugly head. Slow page load times (called latency in the business) prevented many from completing checkout earlier in the week. After many days of searching, we discovered the culprit to be the newsletter signup section causing compatibility problems with the host. Once fixed in an unrelated bug, Yahoo!, Paypal, and our credit card processor, decided they would stop speaking electronically to one another and transactions could not be processed. This issue has also been remedied.
We apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced and hope anyone left out in the cold will try to place their order again as all should be working correctly now. We appreciate everyone who contacted us letting us know the issues they were experiencing.
Thanks again.
Rob
BCAT
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War Master 1:72 scale diecast have been extremely popular since their debut last year. The pieces of this line have excellent details and features, but at the same time, are very competitively priced. Collectors love value and War Master certainly brings value home in spades. The May shipment is enroute and due here in just a couple of days. Among the armor pieces coming are an M35 Duece-and-a-Half, Panzerwerfer, Jagdpanther, and Hetzer. Two diecast aircraft are also in this shipment; a Stuka and a D.520.]]>
Dragon has announce the summer release of the world's first Flak 36 88mm gun. Filed in the "why didn't I think of that" category, the Flak 88 has actually been on the 72-scale collector's wish list for a long time, just nobody seemed to listen until now. The Flak 88, as it is commonly called, was at first an effective anti-aircraft weapon and then was discovered to be a deadly accurate and reliable ground artillery piece as well. Dragon's first photos of the Flak 88 look stunning. Preorders are open now for this new release.]]>
Less than two business days after it arrived, Merit is reporting the 1:350 USS Hornet (Battle of Midway Version) has now sold out. We have a handful of ships left for general sale but after they are gone, that will be all she wrote. Preorders for the 70th Anniversary Edition of the Doolittle Hornet is still open but we expect these to be delivered and sold out soon, as well.]]>
It's been 100 years since the ocean liner Titanic went to the bottom of the Atlantic. To honor the famous ship, we have brought in a 1:265 scale replica that is absolutely out of this world. This amazing piece made by Authentic Models is constructed primarily of wood with brass touches. Stretching 40 inches in length and measuring 14 inches high, this masterpiece is museum quality and is one of the rare treasures of the collecting world. It is crated and shipped LTL to your door. The Authentic Models Titanic is offered at a price so low, we're not allowed to advertise but place it in the shopping cart and you'll get the best quote on the 'Net . . . it's still far from inexpensive but nothing of quality ever is!!
If the RMS Titanic model ship doesn't fit your needs or budget, we have also marked-down dozens of other items at or below cost. There's definitely something in the store priced right for everyone.
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For years we've sold the EZ Build Model line to collectors. The line consists of about three dozen aircraft of various scales that require some assembly. The kits are prepainted and go together with a screwdriver without the need for glue. Once finished, a durable toy, light on detail is the end product. We recommend the EZ Build as a project for children with parental supervision. Nevertheless, intrepid collectors continue to buy these pieces for adult collections and use them strictly as collectibles.
Now comes EZ Build's Deluxe 1:48 line and the game has changed as the In Air group is realizing that sales to collectors are significant. These models are big and the detail has been increased from light to moderate. So far, there are two entries, an F-35 and a Blue Angels Hornet. The 1:48 F-35 is a pretty darn nice display model and is still priced at under twenty buckaroos. Of course it is still durable enough to be a toy but this piece has a really nice look to it and would not be an embarassment to any collection. It should also be noted that models of the F-35 are rarer than the molars of a female chicken. Nobody makes an F-35, especially in popular 1:48 scale aircraft. "Construction" takes about 10 minutes and you'll have a very solid piece that is a healthy 14 inches in length. The wheels are retractable and the kit also comes with a display stand.
I really like pieces that bring good value to the table. The EZ build lines certainly do this and they last forever, too.
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Merit International h announced their April shipment from China will include a Special Edition 1:350 scale Dootlittle Hornet (CV-8) in celebration of 70 years since the historic raid. This plastic model ship will include 16x B-25 aircraft each with the crew names written on the fuselage. In addition, the packaging will include a series of 16, 3x3 squares with a history on each plane that participated. Production numbers of this piece will be very small so one can expect this collectible to be super rare in the future. Preorders are open now and these should arrive in about 3 weeks or so.]]>
Once filled-away in Naval Archives, the Combat Action Reports from the US Navy really cut through the clutter and misinformation heaped on epic battles from the passage of time. I just finished reading the report of Yorktown Commander E. Buckmaster written on June 18, 1942 following the Battle of Midway. The report transports the reader to the calm, followed by sudden confusion of a major battle. The report really gives and insight on the damage control aspects of the Yorktown along with the damage that was inflicted on the mighty vessel. The heroic efforts to save the ship followed by her eventual tragic sinking by a submarine are outlined in precise detail.
Air operations are also discussed. One passage I found particularly interesting was the assessment of the Wildcat and the opinions formed about the F4F-3 vs the F4F-4:
"The fighter pilots are very disappointed with the performance and length of sustained fire power of the F4F-4 airplanes. The Zero fighters could easily outmaneuver and out-climb the F4F-3, and the consensus of fighter pilot opinion is that the F4F-4 is even more sluggish and slow than the F4F-3. It is also felt that it was a mistake to put 6 guns on the F4F-4 and thus to reduce the rounds per gun. For the opposition now being encountered the combination of 4 guns and 450 rounds per gun is much superior to the 6 guns with 240 rounds per gun. Many of our fighters ran out of ammunition even before the Jap dive bombers arrived over our forces; these were experienced pilots, not novices. It is strongly urged that the Navy be supplied with a fighter that is at least equal of the Zero fighter. It is believed that 4-50 caliber fixed machine guns give sufficient fire power for carrier based fighters, especially in view of the loss of performance involved in adding two additional guns."
Do your self a favor and read this report, found HERE. You'll have an added appreciation for the heroism displayed during the Battle of Midway, as well as, some insight derived from a first-hand account.
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