New 88 pic (4 Viewers)

Hi Brad,
Thanks for asking.

I have solved the box problem. The gun and accessories will be packed in a separate box from the crew. As some know, the larger sets we have produced in the past have had very large boxes. In fairness this has protected the contents when they are shipped, but if you save the box they take up a lot of room. This means anyone receiving the 25059 product will receive two boxes. These will be labeled 25059 A&B.

The prototype that was made, and previewed while I was still working for 1st Gear had several issues that I felt needed to be corrected.
1. The ZF20 optical sight had been overlooked. I patterned a master to be added to the production model.
2. The gunners vision port door was not modeled on the reverse side of the shield and had to be corrected.
3. The gunners seat would not support the seated gunner when folded to the down position, this was corrected.
4. The Armor Piercing and High Explosive shells were not turned to the proper length or dimensions. They were too small so new and proper length shells were CNC turned for the two different types of ammunition.
5. The wicker shell panniers and the wooden transport boxes were re-patterned as they were too short for the correctly patterned shells.

The good news is that they are now in production.

Additional news, and this is the last update until I publish images, is that there will be an additional release of the gun in a completely different colorway. This version will be offered without the crew. This gun is in production at the same time for production simplicity, but will be released slightly later.

Three accessory sets will be released that will be useful to any Flak 18, 36 or 37.

In addition there will be two add on sets with all new crewmen, that can be used in addition to the 25059 gun and crew, or with the new paint scheme 88mm Flak36.
I will have more information on delivery dates for some of these sets in the near future, and will most likely preview the new gun and accessories in the winter collector's club magazine, The Standard.

As a side note to all of this...
We are the ONLY company that has routinely published a catalog and supplements previewing what is in development for later release to market. This is a marketing model that has been used for many years by several companies outside of the military miniature business, but perhaps this style of marketing has become anachronistic in the digital age.
If we were to publish what we delivered in the last 365 days....we would never be late on anything.
I hope this helps,
Ken
 
Thanks. The people at HB were asking so I will publish your comment over there.

See you soon.

Brad
 
Thanks for your excellent explanation of the corrections to the design that resulted in the production delay. All manufacturers should communicate with trheir customers this well IMO.
 
I think it is now around 4 years since this set was announced................
 
I do not know if it is 3 or 4, I am sure it has been years since the first pictures were released. Excluding the club sets, I also think it has been about a year since any new figures have been shipped out by WB, March of 2017 was the last shipment of new figures? May be the new norm at WB... Chris
 
It was the 2015 Chicago Show. I believe it is due out soon.
 
There were pictures at the March 2014 show, with release the following year 2015...........

Wait, so this was first seen 4 years ago this March? Does any collector remember a longer wait period between and unveiling and an actual item being available for sale?
 
I checked the March 2014 London Show thread; no photos of the 88.
 
No one guessed they would take 4 years to produce, almost as long as WW11 lasted. Patience is certainly a virtue and is being displayed by Britain collectors to the extreme. Robin.
 
They are probably in crates mistakenly labeled "Holy Grail" sitting on top of a crate marked "Arc of the Covenant, Do Not Open, Dr. Jones". My ACW limbers are in the same crate by the way.
 
No one guessed they would take 4 years to produce, almost as long as WW11 lasted. Patience is certainly a virtue and is being displayed by Britain collectors to the extreme. Robin.

Plenty of time to save the pennies needed :)
 

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