Everything seems to indicate that Tristar has stopped trading. Their Web Domains have been sold off, expired or are in the process of renewal and their on-line store (in China) is no longer available.

Thre HAVE been stories that their moulds are being sold on to another company. None of that has been confirmed however.

If this IS indeed the case, it's unfortunate, but not entirely unexpected. Tristar never had the best distribution in the world - something that nowadays is absolutely vital.

Personally speaking it's always sad to see a company with so much imagination vanishing and it really has to be hoped that their products find their way into other companies catalogues...

This is a real shame if it's true as Tristar kits were great kits, and really set the standard, such as their 38(t) range.

Lets hope these great kits won't die with the company.

James

Best pick up any of their Pz I ausf A or 38(t) based vehicles I might see in the LHS's then.

Pity.

i hope the moulds get passed on to another company, the kits were top quality, still are. so far their panzer 1 early/late has been my favorite build.

From what I've read, and as with all of this information none of it comes from official sources, the moulds have been sold to AFV Club, which would make sense in that they've had a working relationship in the past, AFV Club supplying the gun for Tristars Marder kit.

I'm sure that given the quality of their kits their moulds will not sit languishing on a storeroom shelf somewhere. Consider the Max Peerless kits and how those original kits are still being produced under several different company names.

I think one of the other contributing factors to their demise was their choice of subject meant they were many times in competition with Dragon.

They certainly shouldn't have failed because of the quality of their kits, I think nearly all got very good reviews.

if true then it's unfortunate,I mainly build Allied but I loved their Marder IIIH and Flakpanzer 38(t).No sign of their British Airborne figs and trikes then.......
If it is AFV that have picked up their moulds then lets hope we see them get the same treatment as the old Skybow pressings
fingers crossed in these uncertain times......

I think one can be 100% certain that the very valuable molds were just dumped into the ocean. Whoever bought them from Tristar is certainly going to use them to recoup the purchase price.

Nooooooooo!

Being a 38(t) nut I'm very sad to see this kind of turn-out. Let's face it, their 38(t) and Pz.Kpfw.I kits set the standards and ran circles around the competition. I don't really want to take the chance of hoping that these kits will still be released by other companies, I guess all I can do is buy the last ones, now I just need the cash....... donations gladly accepted!

Sebastian

Their Panzer IV kits were supposed to be very good as well. Such horrible news. I was hoping to get their Tauchpanzer IV kit someday.

Sad news. Maybe this will induce some of their competitors to get sensible about pricing?

Sorry, whatever was I thinking?

It's unfortunate to see them go under and I too hope their molds will live on in the hands of another manufacturer. I'm a big fan of their 38t family of kits and while they seem to have lost out on the head-to-head competition with DML in the end, their products were still top of the line in the accuracy and quality department.

I had been debating about getting one of their kits. Looks like now I'll have to jump on it. 38T or a Panzer III. If word has gotten around, maybe it will be whatever is left on the shelf.

I don't believe for one minute that we will see the end of these fine kits, although they may not be branded with the Tristar name on the box.

With all the not so good models still being put out by other manufacturers including re-boxing of each others it would be a total injustice for these not to see the light of day again.

As I've mentioned before rumour has it that AFV Club are involved. I was just thinking imagine if somebody like Lion Roar was to get the moulds. They seem to be moving into the kit market. Re- issue the kits but add in their detail sets and a metal barrel and you've got quite a nice combination.

Alan

I, too, certainly hope another company continues to produce Tristar products. I haven't purchased any kits, but I was pleasantly surprised at the quality and workmanship of the three styrene figure sets I'm working on right now.
I think their figures are even better than Dragon's Gen. 2s, although their selection is quite limited. I may have to visit my local hobby store and pick up a few more for future projects.

This is a sad reality of the horrible economic times that we live in. It may not have even been what Tristar did or didn't do right or wrong. I have only one of Tristars kits. Two really as I bought the 38(t) G and the interior separate. Hope to get some more before their gone but I will have to see. Maybe they can pull an Accurate Miniatures out of their hats. Too bad. Sad but it is the reality of our current global situation.

I posted a question related to this yesterday about their website which I could not access. It looked like it was dead. Now I know why.

Too bad, I never purchased any of their kits but was hoping to someday as I heard good things about them.

Those that had some contact with Tristar, said initially that there was some sort of re-building/re-organisation going on, and maybe things like the webpage have lapsed. No news maybe doesn´t mean the end. Maybe its just wishful thinking on my behalf ... I really hope this is not the end of Tristar. They are my favourite company ... love both their figures and armor!

Great News! Great News! The speculation about Tristar is unfounded and they are still in business their website is up and running again.

http://www.tristar-model.com/

For a discussion on the latest see the Track-Link Forum.

http://www.track-link.net/forum/news_industry/16337

Some changes are coming but it will be good for modelers per Lawrence Quah.
They seemed quite perturbed about the rumours and speculation regarding their demise and I guess this is justified. Being new again to the hobby I would like to try their kits since I have heard so many good things about them from some very experienced modelers on this forum.

Regards,
Dave.

Fantastic news! Thanks for updating this thread!
Jamie

Glad to hear it. I have a couple of their kits in the stash and collection.

yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

rumours of Tristar's demise have been greatly exaggerated hoorah!

I am from Hong Kong. I think I can give you all the latest information on Tristar. Tristar is still alive!

Tristar had a retail shop in Hong Kong but it had been closed down six months ago and moved to a small office building nearby. As I observed, it was due to poor retail business and high rent.

I tried to visit the new shop but found that the door was locked and seemed that the new shop was not supposed to open to public. What a shame that the new address still had not been updated since the move.

At this stage, we can assume that there is something happening in Tristar.