To make it even more difficult – WNW has some excellent After Market sheets on sale as well... Pfalz DIIIa

Thanks. Wish I had seen those at the time I ordered. Degelow's all-black Pfalz is very nice.

Hi again

My Albatros has arrived :



My gut instinct is, with the Albatros being such a popular subject - if you want one, I wouldn't wait too long to get it, or stocks could run out.

All the best

Rowan

Great stuff. It' s great looking kit. I was going to order one, then we had a problem with the boiler that cost 130 quid to fix. Real life and this home owner malarkey sucks! I consoled myself by buying Rodens D.III kit from a cheap hobby store in Poland. Worked out half the price of the UK rrp. If anything it will be a good kit to practice woodgrain with. Although I have heard a lot of good things about their Albatros kits. I wasn't too impressed with the SE.5, just lacked finesse in some areas. I think it might be one of their earlier efforts.
Still waiting for my pup and pfalz.

Hi Stephen

I got the SE.5a "Hisso" just over a year ago and, at the time, the circumstances made it just too emotionally "heavy" to tackle straight away - although I must say I thought it looked a gem. I'm really looking forward to building it someday, though.

All the best

Rowan

Don't get me wrong it is a good kit. The engine and Lewis guns are very nicely done and will look great when built up and painted.
In comparison the stitching detail on the fuselage is a little soft and Roden represented the aileron pulleys with decals. On the Sopwith Tripe they had improved on that with molded in detail. I have an idea that might work though.
They also forgot location points for the rigging and a diagram.
I don't want to sound like I'm overly critical of it. They won't be too hard to solve.
I'm itching to get started on it but have too many others on the go at the moment.
I'm undecided as to which scheme to go for. Either Mannock or Grinnell-Milne's red fuselaged machine.

I know I am coming in late for the original; conversation but I'll throw in anyway.

Rowan, I am with you on this one. I ordered 2 a couple of weeks ago and should have ordered more. Just ordered 2 Eindeckers before the free shipping goes bye-bye.

But Stephen back to your original question. The correct method for picking a WNW kit is as follows.
1. Print the list of kits.
2. Tape the list to a wall.
3. With a dart in hand have someone blindfold you and spin you around
4. Throw the dart.
5 Order the kit it lands on.

You can go wrong with any of the one mentioned. I've done the 2 Albatros D.Va's, Roland... just started the "b", 2 Snipes and a Harry Tate. Loved 'em all.

I'm just glad it's a fairly small range or I would find it harder to choose.
I would have ordered the Albatros had real life problem's not intervened. Although I could probably live without hot water for a month in favour of a kit, not so sure my other half would approve!
I might raid my savings for one though. Is it the 15th or 17th free shipping ends? It will be interesting to compare prices once the new system starts.

I'm going to wait for the European shop to open and see what the prices are like, just kicking myself for missing the Fokker D.VII versions. I must get a Fe.2b and Roland C.II before they go.

I think I might do the same Luciano. I can't see p&p being too expensive in Europe.
The one I regret missing is the Hannover Cl.II. I live in hope that they might one day reissue some of the sold-out kits.

Looks like the DH.2 is off the lists. It's sold-out!

/Mikael

Wow! Wasn't expecting that one to go. Luckily I still have Eduards rather nice 1/48 kit in the stash which I am perfectly happy with.

Hi Mikael

Thanks for the heads-up. I must admit I'm surprised to see the DH.2 sell out so soon too - if for no other reason than I thought the complexity of the rigging might scare some people off. Perhaps it was never produced in the same numbers as some of the simpler kits?

I'm chuffed to say I'm lucky enough to still have our sample of this superb kit safely on one side while I gird my loins to tackle it!

All the best

Rowan

Hi Rowan and Stephen

I was a bit surprised too I must say. But I guess the DH.2 has a certain look that makes it stand out. I know other builders, not into WWI planes, who bought it just because it is a bit different – and apparently cool?

That said – I did buy one myself a while back – and like you Rowan – very pleased I did I have built the Roden DH.2 in the past – not a bad little kit at all, if one is prepared for a bit of work  – just syaing

All the best

I don't know what possessed me at the time, but I bought the DH2 and the Fokker E III Dogfight set when they first came out a few years ago, I'm glad I did. I have eight of the OOP kits in my stash of 14 kits so far, and use the philosophy that I'll buy ones that appeal to me right away (if I have the cash) and ask for others as gifts for Xmas, birthdays etc. I sure hope WnW re-releases some of them again, but I suspect they will wait for the whole line to be produced first, and they will likely go up in price (remember when they started at $59 USD?). So I guess it's best to buy early. Hopefully Sir Jackson won't tire of his model company. Considering how manufacturers have come and gone, it's pretty unusual to have one plastic injection molded company like WnW with one scale, one genre and one benefactor in business, with such dedication to accuracy and quality.
VR Russ

I had been looking at Rodens and it does look pretty decent. Like I I'm happy with my 1/48 at the moment, but nice to have that one still available if I decide to get it.
Got my Roden Albatros D.III today and a very nice looking kit it is. Couple of rough spots but nothing that can't be solved. Also thinking of getting their SSW D.III.
Still waiting for the Pup and Pfalz.

Hi Stephen,

The Albatros is really good – I've built a few. The Siemens has some issues though. Mainly the panel lines – they are like trenches and would ideally need to be filled in and re-scribed to look decent.

/Mikael

Thanks for the advice. I've got a bottle of valejo water based putty that might work to fill them a little.

Stephen

Stephen,
I've built Roden's Siemens and Dreideckers, and found them both quite challenging in the fit department, more so on the SSW. It might have been just my kit, but the wing to fuselage fit, fuselage halves, and engine cowling on the SSW left a lot to be desired in the fit department. Also, those huge engine cooling louvers are molded solid (but can easily be hollowed out) It does build into a very nice model though. As for the decals, I learned too late that the application of heat (from a blow dryer) is what's needed to get them to settle down-- but once done they look really nice. The DR1 had problems in the cowling and tail areas. The Roden SE5 and the Albatross I, II and III are all very nice, go together quite well, especially if you can get the Encore kits with upgrades, and are easy to build. Their separate engine kits are quite nice too.
VR Russ

Thanks Russ. I'm going to look up some builds of the Siemens before I commit. Not afraid of a bit of work if it needs it. Built a couple of their 1/72's and I know Roden sometimes need a little persuasion.
In the meantime I have enough to be getting on with. Hoping to make a start on the Rumpler as soon as I finish my Airfix Whitley.
I've tracked my Pup and Pfalz and found that they are in country but currently being held hostage by UK customs. They are probably subjecting them to who knows what kind of searches. No doubt the ransom note will arrive soon.

Stephen,
I think you will like the SSW if you build it. tht big engine is rather nice detailed up, and if you cut out the louvers, it really stands out among WWI aircraft. I've superdetailed Hobbycraft's Sopwith Camels, Built a couple of DR1s, Nieuport 11s and 17s, Wingnut Wings DVII, even an Aurora 1/48 Breuguet XIV conversion, but when I take all of them to shows-- the SSW is the one that gets all the attention, and I'm convinced its because of that big engine. If you do build one, be sure to look up Stephen Lawson's info on the "counter rotating" engine/prop-- there's a lot of mis-information regarding the engine-- only the prototypes had a counter rotating engine-- Stephen has cleared that up pretty well.
VR, Russ

Thanks Russ, I'll look it up on here.
It is a very pugnacious looking little fighter and the big engine does make it look over-powered for its size. I can certainly see why it would get the attention.
It's in my list of must-buys anyway.
I'm always surprised that Roden never did a Fokker D.VII. Ok it may never equal WNW's, but surely it would sell like hot cakes now. Maybe we could convince them?

Stephen,
I've almost given up on Roden producing any more 1/32 scale WWI aircraft, they haven't released anything for a couple of years- I think the last one was the ski-equipped SPAD VII. I have several of their kits (I collect 1/32 scale aircraft, up to about 40 now from all manufacturers), but I've been a little disappointed in the quality and pricing of Roden 1/32 kits lately. A Nieuport 23 here costs about $58 USD, for another 20 or so bucks I can get a WnW kit. Is it possible Roden are no longer trying to compete with WnW? It's a shame, as their Albatros D series, SE5, and Sopwith Tripe (and the SSW) are all rather nice. I'd love for them to produce a float version of their DI. There are lots of early WWI and pre-WWI aircraft they could produce, but they've been rather dry lately, and now I see they are moving into 1/35 vehicles (although I think I just saw an ad someplace for a brand new 1/144 C141).
VR, Russ

I did hear that Russia had increased the cost of oil exports to the Ukraine and Roden moved their factory to a safer location. Not sure if there's any truth to that or if it's rumour. It would explain the increase in price and producing smaller aircraft. I was excited to see that they have released a brand new RAF VC-10 tanker in 1/144. One of the real classic jet designs. I've always wanted to display one in flight refuelling another jet. Revell's 1/144 Tornado can be built with the refuelling probe extended, which is quite surprising given the tiny scale.
Maybe if the political situation changes, Roden might be in a better position to invest in more 1/32 WW1 kits. Till then I'll continue to buy what they have. They're doing good stuff in difficult circumstances.

My ransom note arrived today. £19.70 for the two kits wasn't too bad. I was expecting more. I'm going to wait till the European distributor is up and running till I get another from them. It will be much quicker!

There was another very serious circumstance why Roden stopped developing their WWI 1:32 range. This occurred already in 2009, and was called Wingnut Wings. I think Roden had a very "sobering awakening" when WnW hit the market with products they could not compete with. – A price vs quality comparison left their offering somewhat in the shadow of the new player. Remember a single seater from WnW was $59 with free shipping (and this was before the customs and Parcel force et al got wise and started slapping fees on every parcel coming from NZ).

At the same time it would seem (noted by some members of this forum) that Roden had lost some of their capabilities in the kit development. This seemed to make the quality of the end product suffer somewhat. While still being quite good in a pre-WnW world, they were not in the same league in peoples eyes, and this was certainly a hot topic in many forums. Roden sales must have dropped dramatically.

Unfortunately the Nie 24 series were a bad move that made things worse. I seem to recall this was developed as a short run kit for a client of Roden's. However when the client could not go through with the project, Roden released it under their own brand – much to the despair of the modelling community. Now, I have not built it myself, but it got a lot of "stick" by some as a "bad" kit...

Roden did try to re-start the 1:32 range – there was a vote on their website and forums gave their ideas freely. I think the SPAD VII on skies was the result of this drive... This is in my opinion a very nice kit, but I guess it was not as enticing as say a Fokker DVII or a two seater LVG. The decision must have been to move into, for them, more rewarding territory – 1:72 armour and 1:144 planes as it would seem.

Perhaps the new shipping and pricing policies of WNW will open up for Roden once more – their prices of the 1:32 range has levelled out, and even dropped, while WnW has been on a steady increase. It is also worth noting, that tough Roden revolutionised WWI plane modelling, they were never able to tickle the fancy of the mass market in the same way as Wingnut Wings have. I often read things like "I was never into WWI planes until i discovered WnWs" So they have certainly broadened the market like few before.

Even so it remains a niche market – and I doubt there are many of the newly "won overs" that would be satisfied with a product that doesn't live up to the standards of what they have gotten used to. So if Roden wants to get into the game again, they would need to develop products that feels similar to the competition to make use of the new broader marketplace. However, this would possibly increase their prices too?

Now, personally I'm a great fan of Roden, and I would love to see more from them. I also think that without Rodens trail blazing we would not have Wingnut Wings. So if the above seems like criticism of Roden, this was certainly not my intention, WWI plane modellers owes Roden their thanks for what they achieved.

All the best
/Mikael