KP/Kopro

[NARSES2]

Nick
The Kopro brand was absorbed into the AZ setup a few years ago.

Ah, I did wonder Martin. The packaging was very similar.

Also explains a conversation I had with Mr AZ at Telford 18 months ago. He's English isn't brilliant, although it's far, far better than my Czech, he had said something about using two brands, one for their "higher end kits" (like the 109's) and another for "lower end/other companies re-pops", but I'd never twigged that brand might be KP ? Probably meant AZ going down the 3D design/steel moulds route and KP the more traditional limited run route ?

Hopefully they'll be at Telford this year, touching all the wood available, and I can have another chat with him on the Sunday. He's a nice bloke 

[Nick]

Are KP/Kopro under new ownership or management these days?

Hannants had a lot of new looking KP kits on the shelf the other day including F-18 Hornets which seemed out of their normal range. I'm sure these are from Italeri originally.

Nick
The Kopro brand was absorbed into the AZ setup a few years ago. And the F-18 kit is as you say most likely an Italeri tooling. There is past form for Italeri kits to be boxed by Czech firms. Bilek used to do it big time.

Bileks deal was to act as a sub contractor pumping out Italeri kits and was allowed to over produce  by a certain percentage to box up as their own offerings as part payment for their efforts.

These days leasing out tooling is a good 2nd income stream for model firms..........Although its nothing new.

Thank you Martin 

That makes a lot of sense and explains how KPs sense of quality seems to have gone up. I have an F-4 from Bilek and Scalemates says it started with Italeri in 1981. Looks like Bilek have only done etch and resin parts for the last 10 years now.

[NARSES2]

Ordered one of the new Seafires this morning, box says its a new tool

[The Wooksta!]

It'll be the newer Vb kit with some etch or resin, like the older Admiral one.

[NARSES2]

Once I get it I'll let you know.

Was the Vb any good ? I haven't seen it

[The Wooksta!]

Nice but the wing chord is apparently too narrow.

AML do a set of resin bulges to convert the Airfix IIa/Va kit.

[NARSES2]

Cheers mate

[jcf]

I'm minded of Tamiya's F1 car kits, which are in 1/20 scale, despite the fact that the ma market was in 1/24, but because they're so big it's now become the de facto F1 car model scale. And I bet that was for purely commercial reasons too.

Several Japanese model manufacturers had released sports and sports-racing cars in
1/20th well before Tamiya got into the game.
So, it's probably another example of serving
the home market as the first consideration.

[Old Wombat]

I read somewhere that several Japanese manufacturers tried to "metricise" the market, producing kits in 1/75 (v. 1/72, 1/76), 1/50 (v. 1/48), 1/35 (v. 1/32), 1/25 (v. 1/24), 1/20 (v. 1/18), 1/10 (v. 1/12, 1/9) scales (maybe others). Some of them failed because of the size of the international market (1/75, 1/50) but others either became the standard for a given field (1/35 - armour/military figures, 1/20 - F1) or roughly equal partners to their Imperial competition (1/25 - cars/trucks, 1/10 - figures/busts).

[PR19_Kit]

I could believe that situation, yes.

But what was the point? It can only be because they wanted to corner their own part of the market, and certainly in the F1 car model field it actually happened, there being very few 1/24-25 F1 car kits.

[TomZ]

But what was the point?

Kit,

That remark can only be made by a UK (or US) citizen! 
Why would you want to convert to standard metric measurements? Well..... because it's easier? More logical?

But I am well aware that I won't convince any of you Brits of that 

TomZ

[PR19_Kit]

But when there's a well established series of scales in the various genres, it's madness to go against the system.

[zenrat]

When compared to a street car in the same scale 1/24 Formula One cars are rather small.  Punters may have felt they were being gypped by the manufacturers resulting in them using a bigger scale.

[NARSES2]

I built some 1/75 armour when I was a kid, was it Fujimi ? My other memory of "scale differences" was comparing the size of an Airfix Sherman in 1/76, if that was what OO/HO was to a Hasegawa one in 1/72. The Hasegawa kit was massive in comparison, at least to a kid 

[Pellson]

But when there's a well established series of scales in the various genres, it's madness to go against the system.

In a way, I agree. But I really like the there's armour as well as aircraft in 1/72(-ish) so you can see the two categories together. Had just ships been manageable in the same scale, I would have stuck to 1/72 all over, however 10 ft/3 m carriers...