Category: Panda Models

Latest Indonesian Exclusives from Airshop Diecast

14/6/2024

Indonesia is a hotbed of retailer exclusives thanks to Harry's Diecast and increasingly Airshop Diecast. Kenney at Airshop Diecast has built a great business and strong relationships with both Panda Models and JC Wings. Over the past few weeks no less than 6 exclusives have arrived at his store covering a wide range of Indonesian aviation.

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Tail-sitters!

26/6/2022

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You spend hours organising your cabinets with all the models in just the right spots but there are always some that just refuse to do as they are told. These few are determined to point skywards rather than accept the touch of blessed tarmac. Tailsitters are a pain and require a range of solutions to solve. Just for fun here are the worst tailsitting moulds in 400 scale.

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Malaysia's MyHobbyHouse Exclusives

17/6/2021

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In recent times Asia has been a hotbed of exclusive releases for retailers and one of the most prolific has been the well known Malaysian store MyHobbyHouse, which continues to produce an interesting range of models from JC Wings, Panda and Phoenix for the Malaysian market. In this post I'll take a look at the latest and what they have coming up.

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Panda Models Chinese New Year Releases

13/6/2021

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Fantasy releases are not usually my cup of tea but I just acquired one from a short series of them which are quite interesting. There aren't that many models made by brands, which partly illustrate the brand itself (the Schuco Concorde comes to mind) however for 4 years Panda Models produced an annual release celebrating themselves and Chinese New Year.

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A Selfish 73G Wishlist

19/3/2021

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With NG Models and Panda now making new 737-700 moulds it opens up a substantial space for replacement and new releases for the type. Traditionally I'm a classics collector but there are a few geographic regions where my tastes stray closer to the modern so there are more than a few 73Gs that I would acquire - usually for operators from the late 90s and early 2000s. Seeing as I broke the news of a 73G coming I don't think it is unreasonable for a personal wishlist to get a look from NG!

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A Crusty Crusade: Tu-134 Wishlist

25/2/2021

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A Tu-134 had been one of the holy grail missing moulds in 400 scale and now thanks to Panda Models it has arrived. Panda don't seem to know what to do with it though and in about a year have only produced 3 models using it, even though they have both major variants of the mould available. I know some of the partners of Panda are interested in making some 134s and I hope Panda are going to ramp up production too. Here's what they should be making.

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2020: The 400 Scale Year In Review - Part 2

6/1/2021

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Despite the complications thrown up by 2020 the world of 400 scale model aircraft continued on its way with barely a gap in releases and all the major brands survived the year. Nonetheless competition is clearly rising and how long can the marketplace sustain the addition of NG Models and Aviation400 along the incumbents? In part 2 I'll look at the year 2020 for the remaining four brands and look forward to what 2021 may hold.

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Holiday: A Euro 737-300 Wishlist

15/4/2020

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The Panda Models 737-300 mould (once used by Aeroclassics also) is massively under-used. Panda has shown some interest in it, most recently with some easyjet and Jet2 examples but frankly they could be a lot more active. There are many series 300s left to be made and most exciting of these for me are the European charter airlines that took people to the sun and snow during the 80s, 90s and, with LCCs, even into the 2000s.

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New 1:400 Mould: Tupolev TU-134

6/3/2020

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Back in November I reported that Panda Models had said they would be producing a new Russian type in 1:400 scale. Since then Panda has gone largely silent and I was getting concerned for their survival, especially given the Coronavirus outbreak. However they are back and have announced that they will be making a new TU-134 mould in 1:400 scale. Now that's pretty exciting news!

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An Ordinary Boeing: A 737-400 Wishlist

4/12/2019

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The late 1980s and early 1990s are a curiously poorly represented period in 1:400 scale. NG Models has been making good use of its 757 to fill the gap but there are large numbers of MD-80s, early A320s and 737 classics that have been neglected. Panda already has an excellent 737-300 but hasn't been using it as much as I'd like. Now they are producing a series 400, which is a major gap in production. Here's a look at what they ought to make with the new casting.

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Classic A320s: A Wishlist 1987-95

14/8/2019

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The A320 family is hardly under-represented in 1:400 scale. Even so most manufacturers are fixated on the now and looking back to the service entry of the original A320 is way outside their interest. That’s a shame as there are plenty of cool models that have not been made for A320s from 1987-1995.

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2018: A Year of 1:400 Collecting in Review

15/2/2019

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It is now mid-February and with all the December releases (aside from the JC Wings ones obviously) arrived it is a good time to reflect on the year that was 2018 and what it meant for my collection. 2018 was an outstanding year for 1:400 Scale and certainly my pocket felt the pain of so many excellent releases but what was I buying and why?

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Short Stuff: A 737-600 Wishlist

6/1/2019

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Recently Panda Models have presumably leveraged their existing 737-700 mould to produce its shorter stablemate the series 600. The type was thoroughly unloved and therefore the number of operators of the type was limited. Panda have already made 5 737-600s covering SAS and Air China but there is a small group of further series 600s that can, and ought, to be made.

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Panda Models – June/July/August Releases

10/9/2018

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It has been a somewhat odd year for Panda Models. In some ways they have kicked on nicely from the excellent year they had last year, and in some ways their new focuses make their models both harder to find and of less interest to my collecting. Nonetheless both July and August’s batches have useful additions within them.

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Comac C919 New Mould Prototype Sneak Peek

18/12/2017

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Comac's new challenger to the supremacy of the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320, the C919, looks on paper as if it'll be a big success with 716 'orders'. The reality is that it is unlikely the majority of these aircraft will ever be built, however it surely can't be less successful than its Comac stablemate the ARJ-21? Either way its Chinese and new and so it is getting a mould in 1:400 scale and here are the first release photos of the new moulding.

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New Trends: Nosecones & Pre-delivery Aircraft

12/11/2017

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With the increasing number of 1:400 scale releases every month by the now 6 major brands in this scale it is small wonder that there have been some new ideas being introduced into the marketplace. Aside from altering the moulds themselves in terms of liveries the two newest trends have been for nosecone special schemes and pre-delivery primer aircraft. Whether you consider this innovative or a cash grab to create more model variants is up to you, but let's take a look at what has been made.

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April 2017 Announcements from Panda/Skywings/HYJLwings

3/4/2017

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Following Chinese New Year the manufacturers are getting back into the swing of things and that means there is movement at Panda Models, Skywings and HYJLwings also. Checking out taobao I see the next set of releases have been announced, which see new types for Skywings and HYJLwings and more great NEOs and MAXes for Panda.

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Comparing A330s - 1/400 Scale Detailed Mould Review

11/3/2017

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The A330 has surely transcended any sales projections Airbus realistically had for the type and has been the number one reason Airbus has had success in the widebody market since the mid-90s. It has now got a worthy partner in the A350, but still the A330NEO will mean production continues for years. Because of this success it is also a critical model in 1/400 scale for all the manufacturers and the modern moulds all have strengths and weaknesses.

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Skywings Innovates - New Models and a New App

6/3/2017

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Over the past two years Panda models has risen to increasing prominence on the 1/400 scene and this has been partly fuelled by their relationship with Skywings, who have released over 40 models using Panda's moulds but their own branding. Skywings look to be driving innovation in the Chinese market and have released the first mobile app for model collectors that I am aware of. Plus they have new releases on the way both modern and classic and a partnership with another 1/400 manufacturer.

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First 1:400 737 MAXs on the Market

27/1/2017

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Considering how fast the manufacturers usually are to produce widebody moulds (often before the new type has even flown) it is surprising that they are so much slower with narrowbodies. Even now not far from a year after A320NEO service entry only Panda has a useable mould on the market. JC Wings has announced a 737-MAX 8 but yet again it is Panda Models that has beaten everyone to the punch with actual releases.

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Who Are HYJL Wings?

28/12/2016

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Just recently, courtesy of a random photo on Facebook, I was tipped off to a new player in 1/400 scale. After a bit of searching about I managed to find their page on taobao but who they are is still not entirely clear. Several factors seem to ally them to Panda models but a couple of others suggest that they may be something different. It's hard to be sure but this is what I've been able to find out so far.

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The First A320NEO in 1:400 Scale

30/9/2016

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Up until now Panda models have been happy releasing just Chinese airliners with a rare Asian or Japanese addition. However this could be the moment they start to become mainstream. Whatever you can say about them their models are excellent and the printing fantastic. Now they've scooped all the other manufacturers with the first A320NEO in 1/400.

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Latest Indonesian Exclusives from Airshop Diecast

Tail-sitters!

Malaysia's MyHobbyHouse Exclusives

Panda Models Chinese New Year Releases

A Selfish 73G Wishlist

A Crusty Crusade: Tu-134 Wishlist

2020: The 400 Scale Year In Review - Part 2

Holiday: A Euro 737-300 Wishlist

New 1:400 Mould: Tupolev TU-134

An Ordinary Boeing: A 737-400 Wishlist

Classic A320s: A Wishlist 1987-95

2018: A Year of 1:400 Collecting in Review

Short Stuff: A 737-600 Wishlist

Panda Models – June/July/August Releases

Comac C919 New Mould Prototype Sneak Peek

New Trends: Nosecones & Pre-delivery Aircraft

April 2017 Announcements from Panda/Skywings/HYJLwings

Comparing A330s - 1/400 Scale Detailed Mould Review

Skywings Innovates - New Models and a New App

First 1:400 737 MAXs on the Market

Who Are HYJL Wings?

The First A320NEO in 1:400 Scale

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