Airbus A300 in 1:400 Scale by Yu ModeLs
Modified: April 2024
|
|
If you are a collector of 400 scale in the West you could be forgiven for not having ever heard of Yu ModeL. They are one of a growing number of Chinese brands that have grown up over the past few years starting by getting models made using other manufacturer's production facilities and gradually expanding into their own production with their own moulds.
Yu ModeL have been around since at least 2020 and I have been an avid follower of them since they have made an interesting, if niche, line of Chinese classics. Of the 15 models made so far I own 9 of them and they have now used the production facilities of four others - namely Aeroclassics, HYJLwings, JC Wings and Panda Models. I have covered the story of Yu ModeLs at the site here already so check that out here:
Two of the releases they have made have been Airbus A300s using the Aeroclassics mould, but I know the owner hasn't been happy with that mould (he even got Aeroclassics to upgrade the tyres being used) and has overall had a quite poor experience with Aeroclassics in general in terms of the poor quality of their output for him. Regardless, Yu have themselves been working on their own Airbus A300 and a few days ago they hinted as to the first releases and gave me the go ahead to share some pictures of an early sample. Hopefully soon he'll be able to send me the full sample for a complete review here at the site.
The First Announcements
The first public hint of this new mould came a few days ago via Weibo as part of Yu's future model's announcement. The Il-18 is nearly ready and the Boeing 707 and HS Trident will be made by Aeroclassics also. The 737-700 will use the Panda Models mould but the A300s will use Yu's own all new casting.
Obviously both main versions of the A300 will be available. I'm not giving much away by saying that the German and French releases will be Lufthansa and Air France. The New Guinea model is obviously going to be the wonderful Bird of Paradise. This has only been made previously by Aeroclassics and is super rare:
Plenty of A300-600s have been operated in China so the identity of those aren't quite as obvious but I do know that they represent both passenger and cargo versions. Obviously only a few airlines have operated the A300-600 in the USA so options are limited to I think American Airlines, FedEx or UPS.
Early Sample Shots
Below are some shots of the first sample, which as you can see is the A300-600. As I understand it both moulds will be available. These images are obviously of a work in progress but one gradually nearing completion.
I'm not going to do a detailed review here as the mould is not fully complete and the pictures are a little grainy. I'll wait until I receive the sample mould for that, however broadly I'm really liking what I see. Perhaps the only initial suggestion is that the nosewheel tyre is perhaps a little large.
Possibilities & Challenges
There is certainly plenty of potential for this new seamless mould. As well as the entire catalogue of A300 releases made by Aeroclassics there are plenty of other A300s that have never been made. I wrote an A300 wishlist of unmade models just for the B4 variant back in 2018 and most still remain to be produced:
I am very excited for the possibilities that this new mould can create but nonetheless I don't want us to get too far ahead of ourselves. Yu ModeL is a small company and it remains to be seen whether they can support production of the A300 in any numbers. We have also got no idea of the print or QC capability of the facilities that Yu is using, but I have no reason to expect them to be inferior to any other 400 scale brand.
It is also important to realise that at present Yu are only available to buy via Taobao sites in China and not outside of it. This can quickly change if they can build relationships with foreign retailers and distributors, but that may take some time. Hopefully, like NG did, Yu will quickly build a name for itself and be able to get its models to the international customer. Stay tuned for more on this exciting new company and mould.
It is also important to realise that at present Yu are only available to buy via Taobao sites in China and not outside of it. This can quickly change if they can build relationships with foreign retailers and distributors, but that may take some time. Hopefully, like NG did, Yu will quickly build a name for itself and be able to get its models to the international customer. Stay tuned for more on this exciting new company and mould.