Ok Boys Truth Or Dare

[Das Boot]

OK, for the last damn time, who bought the appendage molds from David Merriman? I’m tired of this BS. Was it Matt Thor? Was it Loyalhanna Dockyard? Crap or get off the pot. Whoever it was, is not forthcoming in producing them. Use it or sell it. Enough is enough. There are people who would be willing to pay for them.

[Subculture]

Sub cluedo? Was it Colonel Mustard in the library with the RTV rubber?

[wlambing]

Appendage molds for what class vessel??? Can't help if we don't know.

[He Who Shall Not Be Named]

OK, for the last damn time, who bought the appendage molds from David Merriman? I’m tired of this BS. Was it Matt Thor? Was it Loyalhanna Dockyard? Crap or get off the pot. Whoever it was, is not forthcoming in producing them. Use it or sell it. Enough is enough. There are people who would be willing to pay for them.

Let me put out this fire while it's still smoldering:

Once the sales numbers for each fittings kit (1/72 GATO, TYPE-7, TYPE-9 and others) dropped I pressed Bob to take all masters and tools and suggested he (or a subsidiary of his) produce and sell them without Ellie and me in the loop. The intent was to reduce our cut of the pie to keep the price at a point where people would be more willing to purchase them. I forced Bob's hand, but he kindly took these items anyway. Once those boxes were on the FedEx truck, D&E Miniatures' involvement with that line of products ended.

However, fittings kit production did not fit Bob's business plan. With the evolving technology of 3D printing, our method of production became obsolete. In that new environment the fittings kits we once produced became loss-leaders; dead weight to anyone with a Replicator; much too labor intensive to render a worth-the-effort profit.

Why invest labor in a process I developed when you can, by robot, produce product quicker, cheaper, and better than anything Ellie and I could do by hand?

The answer -- from a businessman's perspective -- is a simple one. Out with the old. In with the new.

As far as I know all D&E Miniature masters and tools, sent to Bob, have been disposed of. That option was always in the cards -- why keep a non-selling infrastructure in hand when you need room for money makers. Such is business, boys and girls. Ellie and I spilled no tears over the matter.

So stop *****ing. They are gone.

Make your own stuff. Or have the robots make it for you (and while at it, have them wipe your collective butts for you as well).

Welcome to the 21'st Century, Bugg's.



David
Last of the Luddite's

[Ken_NJ]

If you are following my Type XXIII build, I have been utilizing the parts that came with the styrene kit and making them into usable parts for a working model. Granted the one part that might be the most difficult is the housing for the prop bearings which I used a lathe for. Most people don't have a lathe. I'm an amateur at it but I made it. There are other ways you can do that housing, use your ingenuity, you are trying to build a submerging model submarine which uses that brain power we have. And none of the parts for the XXIII were made with a 3D printer. I have one of those but not up to speed on it and I can still do it without the 3D printer. Having a fittings kit is not the only solution. My two cents.

[Das Boot]

Let me put out this fire while it's still smoldering:

Once the sales numbers for each fittings kit (1/72 GATO, TYPE-7, TYPE-9 and others) dropped I pressed Bob to take all masters and tools and suggested he (or a subsidiary of his) produce and sell them without Ellie and me in the loop. The intent was to reduce our cut of the pie to keep the price at a point where people would be more willing to purchase them. I forced Bob's hand, but he kindly took these items anyway. Once those boxes were on the FedEx truck, D&E Miniatures' involvement with that line of products ended.

However, fittings kit production did not fit Bob's business plan. With the evolving technology of 3D printing, our method of production became obsolete. In that new environment the fittings kits we once produced became loss-leaders; dead weight to anyone with a Replicator; much too labor intensive to render a worth-the-effort profit.

Why invest labor in a process I developed when you can, by robot, produce product quicker, cheaper, and better than anything Ellie and I could do by hand?

The answer -- from a businessman's perspective -- is a simple one. Out with the old. In with the new.

As far as I know all D&E Miniature masters and tools, sent to Bob, have been disposed of. That option was always in the cards -- why keep a non-selling infrastructure in hand when you need room for money makers. Such is business, boys and girls. Ellie and I spilled no tears over the matter.

So stop *****ing. They are gone.

Make your own stuff. Or have the robots make it for you (and while at it, have them wipe your collective butts for you as well).

Welcome to the 21'st Century, Bugg's.



David
Last of the Luddite's

Many people, including myself, liked them. It would have been nice to have had a chance to experiment with the molds. I have messages from Matt 2 years ago that he had them, and he was going to produce the appendages, particularly for the Type XXIII and Seaview. Then I never heard anything else. I sent a screenshot to your email.
Casey

[Ken_NJ]

At this point I'd say assume they no longer exist and whoever may have them may not want to invest the time and effort into making them available as the boats they were made for are no longer being built in quantity with the availability of other newer products available on the market.

[Das Boot]

At this point I'd say assume they no longer exist and whoever may have them may not want to invest the time and effort into making them available as the boats they were made for are no longer being built in quantity with the availability of other newer products available on the market.

Ken, it doesn’t matter anymore. I just hate being lied to. Those were the best appendages ever produced for the Type XXIII and the Seaview. Whether they’re in a corner someplace or thrown in the garbage can, they were still gold as far as I’m concerned. Some of us don’t have the time or the talent to produce anything close to what they were. People say yeah, we love our RC submarines and here’s what we can give you, and here’s what you could do, blah blah blah. I don’t have the time left, or the inkling. I have followed your thread on the Type XXIII, and I could never, ever, come close to what you’ve done. Of course David is a legend upon himself. A man’s just got to know his limitations, and I know mine. I could run rings around people as far as electronics go, but to produce what you guys do, no way. Anyway it’s a moot subject, so I’m done. I’m sorry for being such a pain in the ass, but disappointment is a hard thing to get over.

[Subculture]

As I recall, a production of the fittings kit was mooted depending on demand. Doubtful that demand was there.

[RCSubGuy]

Let's wade through this ocean of tears and get to the point.

Everyone says, "Oh woe is me! If only those were around, I would definitely buy them!" I say BS. I did it. I took the time to produce and list those kits. Sales? Maybe one a month.

Ask David. They're time-consuming to produce. Tally up the hours for each kit and you get a fittings kit that costs more than the model kit itself. What David did was absolutely a labor of love, not labor for actually making a living off that stuff.

No, I didn't pitch the molds. They were liquidated to a player in this hobby, but he has made it known that he has other priorities and cannot offer them at this time. Will they crop back up? Maybe. If he's smart, he'll charge $200/set or not do it at all.

Let's be real here, people. Modding the existing kit parts is not rocket science. Making bulkheads is basic fabrication. To be honest, rigging up these plastic kits requires the most basic amount of skill that any RC submariner should have. If that's not in your wheelhouse, either from a skill or time investment perspective, you're in the wrong hobby.

[Das Boot]

Let's wade through this ocean of tears and get to the point.

Everyone says, "Oh woe is me! If only those were around, I would definitely buy them!" I say BS. I did it. I took the time to produce and list those kits. Sales? Maybe one a month.

Ask David. They're time-consuming to produce. Tally up the hours for each kit and you get a fittings kit that costs more than the model kit itself. What David did was absolutely a labor of love, not labor for actually making a living off that stuff.

No, I didn't pitch the molds. They were liquidated to a player in this hobby, but he has made it known that he has other priorities and cannot offer them at this time. Will they crop back up? Maybe. If he's smart, he'll charge $200/set or not do it at all.

Let's be real here, people. Modding the existing kit parts is not rocket science. Making bulkheads is basic fabrication. To be honest, rigging up these plastic kits requires the most basic amount of skill that any RC submariner should have. If that's not in your wheelhouse, either from a skill or time investment perspective, you're in the wrong hobby.

Bob,
You’re telling me that people looking at Ken’s Type XXIII could do what he is doing with that kit as “basic fabrication”? Also, the person who got the molds from you, shot me a lot BS, and that same person, as you know, is all hat and no cattle. He always, always, always, has “other priorities”. Send me the freaking molds, and I’ll have some stuff out in a few months. I’m not looking at making any money, I’ll do it for my cost. Let’s be honest, Bob. I got some stuff from those molds that someone who was working for you did, and they were crappy. That was for the 1/72 Skipjack. I’ve heard time after time, that the only thing stopping folks from making RC submarines out of the Seaview and Type XXIII, are the appendages. If I’m beating a dead horse, then so be it. But by God, let me at least try.