Here''s another ''teaser'' from Dragon about their new series of kits!

Vinnie

Dragon's new 'Smart Series'

If you have comments or questions please post them here.

Thanks!

Hooray, Dragon are listening to the people who can live without 18 piece sprockets

Whats new about "snap-together-kits" ? :-)

Just kidding, personally I think dragon was on a sidetrack with those "over-complicated" kits lately like the Pz IV.

Some of their 'points' wording is lost on me...
They state:
ENHANCED PLASTIC PARTS~ Reads that the plastic parts replaced by PE previously have been 'souped-up'...and end with "In these kits metal parts are a necessity!"
Also that they cater for OOTB MODELLERS~ And hint at no more weld seam work or filling, and close with "These kits are ready to be built as soon as the box is opened"... Um... yep, as far as I'm concerned, all kits fall into this category? They didn't actually state that weld seams are accurate, and that parts fit like a glove though... I thought this would be the main selling point here?
All the wording is spot on, but maybe some meaning is lost in translation?
Maybe it's just me... All in all, if there is a kit going to be produced that is all plastic, clean and accurate and easy to build, then bring it on!

okay...i got it...easy build kit..with lesser parts without sacrificing quality. i think its lesser thrill than building those complicated kits. you know the 'old school kits'..

Sounds good to me, the sooner I can get the canvas ready for paint the happier I am.... :-)
Now I'll just have more to finish projects!!!

Hmmmmm interesting

I remember a thread not so long ago , started by Jim Brae but dont quote me :-) , regarding kits becoming over complex and therefore are these kits too daunting for new or inexperienced modellers.
After recent experiences with some of the newer Dragon kits , Flak36 and PZIV Vorpanzer , I must admit as much as these kits where beautifully designed and enginered and I thoroughly enjoyed building them, at times I did find myself thinking "do we really need 8 parts to build one tyre ? "

Im wondering with Dragons advancements in slide mould technology that they are thinking along the same lines , who knows maybe this new "smart range " kits will build OOB as easy as a Tamiya kit but with the depth of detail and accuracy of the recent Dragon kits, of course if Dragon make their instructions a little easier to follow , that would also be a great help .

I still hope that modellers will still continue to have a choice , the Dragon "super kits" with incredible detail and hours and hours of build time and the "smart " kits that build OOB with great results.


Ian

lol,I thought the same thing about the Pz IV roadwheels. At first"great! It will be so much easier to paint those tires.... took me twice as long to build them than it wouldve if I had to use my template to paint them.
These new smart kits sound interesting, and possibly even fun. A break from the super detailed kits from time to time. But my worry would be , are these simplified parts going to be over simplified? Too many parts that need to be "hollowed" out? This is like seeing a teaser preview of a new Star Wars Episode I movie thats "Coming Next Summer" ...wow awesome I cant wait....and then "what the and then we get Jar Jar Binks!? I hope not..

Smart kits ! Screw the hype and tell us what the new kis are! Mrosko

What was secret kit from Dragon Expo anyways?

Ah, c'mon-Jar Jar was cool :-)

I for one will happily wait to see how the new kits look and go together. It was a major step for me to move from the easy build Tamiya offerings to my first Dragon kit. I still aint got the hang of the miniscule pe parts and usually end up throwing them in the spares box anyway.

Someone was joking about these being Snap Together kits, but quite frankly, to me the hobby desparately needs decent kits that are easy for kids and parents working together to build over a short period of time. My boys are both in their teen years now and have pretty much put modeling behind them in pusuit of other things.

I think one thing that made it harder to get them hooked on modeling was the wide gap between Snap together kits (which were often engineered so poorly as to need glue, putty and rubber bands to stay together) and really quality kits that were far above their readiness level.

Lee

Well stay tuned Lee!

Vinnie

My first impression of 'Smart Kit' was that it would be smarter than the judges at contests. Next was that it would research itself and correct the little mistakes that DML miss during the CAD/CAM process. Or that it's smart enough to tell when to take out the trash before SWMBO yells at me for the 8th time.

Of course the other thoughts were that they started to make better instructions. Personally I like all of the parts that get thrown into the box. IMO is that DML has been and will continue to kick Tamiya's butt with detail and value. Give me the million little pieces to put together from the box just like I would do if I go nuts and Super-Detail for an AMPS contest.

Or does the 'Smart Kit' come with a DVD/CD of research to help with the building, detailing, painting and weathering process. Like 'colorized' battle pictures and such.

Or the 'Smart Kit' will tell you that in the future this kit will be upgraded with new parts and such like the Panther D with the slide moulded tracks after I spent nights on end drilling and cleaning out track guide horns.

I'm thinking "Bandai Gundam" quality and SNAP fit. The technology to make kits without glue is already there. BUT...the problem with Bandai kits is that one can never ever testfit them because the fit is so tight and precise, once snapped, the pieces are near impossible to take apart ever again without damaging them.

Bandai Gundams also come "molded in color," (if a tank came this way, the MG would be black, the taillights pieces red, the tracks black, etc.) but of course the true modeler paints them.

I kind of agree too. While construction may be a lot faster and easier if SNAP, I think we modelers are more interested in what the kit is than how to build it per se.

The bit that gets me is ENHANCED PLASTIC PARTS~ Reads that the plastic parts replaced by PE previously have been 'souped-up'...and end with "In these kits metal parts are a necessity!"...which is followed in the next paragraph by metal parts will not be included. Translation problem? Do we get metal parts or not...or are they going the Tamiya route with die cast chassis?


:-)

I'm looking forward to seeing these kits. OOB modelers' world may never be the same.

I just hope they aren't going backwards in there approach to designing models to over simplified i like the steps they have taken with there new kits i also agree with what some of the other guys have said about having easier to build highly detailed kits to build for less experienced new modellers also i have to agree with MROSKO cut the hype!! and tell us what the new so called Smart Kits are all about .....

there is way too much hype on his. I have a feeling like an earlier post stated that we are about to get "Jar Jar Binked !!"

Come on guys, this is great news! It means Dragon has finally worked the slide mold technology good enough to be able to release that Panzer Donkey that we've seen teased before.

This does sound very interesting though, us newer model builders do enjoy a bit of a challenge but sometimes you feel like you're making little progress on some more complex pieces. If Dragon can release the quality of kits they have been releasing made a tad easier, it's only going to make it easier on newer modellers. It helps grow the hobby and allows people to build stuff they might not have before. So I take it we'll be seeing a new line of Tiger kits in the smart kit line?