Still In King & Country's Corner! (2 Viewers)

[Njja]

Even though I did not attend this years show in Chicago I did follow along

closely on the Forum! It certainly appeared to be a terrific show, lots of

wonderful items and fantastic displays!

I would have to say that Figarti's LST-6 stole the show quickly selling out

the 3 displays, then also adding 15 pre-orders and most likely selling out the

initial 20 being currently assembled! When you consider the additional sales

of vehicles to fill these ships you most likely have sales in excess of $60K

which is very impressive!

I also noticed a couple of collectors listing quite a few retired King & Country

sets saying they were taking their collections in a new direction! Very

interesting indeed!

With Figarti's 88 & Prime Mover quickly selling out......it made we wonder if

there was a shift happening with some of my fellow collectors!

I was also impressed with Figarti's halftrack, M4 Sherman with fording stacks

and Priest! I seriously considered ordering an LST-6 but decided on an M4

instead to see a new items first hand for myself!

My collection is 90% King & Country, 8.5% Figarti and 1.5% what the heck is

that, so I looked forward to my new acquisition which arrived today!

The packaging for the Figarti M4 with Fording Stacks is really first rate. It is

very solid with a lift off lid. Internal foam is nice and tight to securily hold

model yet pliable enough to allow you to easily remove the model.

Model is quite unique, Rick certainly has a good idea deciding interesting

items to produce yet it is expensive at $179 compaired to King & Countrys

similar vehicles around $139.

I found model to be much cruder then I expected! It simply did not have

the sharp details I find on King & Countrys vehicles. I had it sitting next to a

K&C Crusader Tank which I really like and at $30 less....they was really no

comparison!

Now to the main reason I chose to write this new thread! As usual I had to

work on my Figarti Vehicle! I must say this is really getting old! One of

the fording stacks was cut to large and would not fit.

Doesn't quality control check this simple point?

Is there no quality control? I just don't get it!

I have opened literally hundreds of King & Country vehicles and Never

had to spend time repairing, or fitting parts together! I have had a few

damaged items perhaps 1 per hundred which I'm sure occur due to rough

handling during the delivery process. But the quality of the products, and the

fit of the models is second to none!

I am also an extremely loyal person, so when someone consistently provides

me with quality products thats the end of story as far as I'm concerned!

I like Figarti's innovation, their packaging is very nice. Quality control.......

I fail to see any. Each model should come with a bottle of Super Glue

and a set of pliers and a large magnifing glass! A small bottle of

25 year old Scotch might also make the process go

smoother!

King & Country on the other hand, always puts a smile on my face when I

open a new item. It goes right on display.....no repairs, no form fitting, no

headache.......just put it up and admire it.

So for what its worth to other collectors, King & Country is #1 in my book,

always has been, and always will be as long as Andy is at the helm!

I'll save my Super Glue for the other guy!

 

[spartan71]

I am sorry that your having such a bad luck with The Figarti pieces, Mind you knock on wood, since the m3 lee tank. I have had no problems with any of mine (paint flaking off).
Now as far as comparing the tanks, You said crusader vs. the sherman. Isn't that like apple and oranges??. Compare it maybe to another sherman maybe??
and as far as quality control, I fully agree. if somehow. something gets packaged . that has something wrong with it.and gets sold. It really sucks.
so it should have been caught.

 

[Njja]

I am sorry that your having such a bad luck with The Figarti pieces, Mind you knock on wood, since the m3 lee tank. I have had no problems with any of mine (paint flaking off).
Now as far as comparing the tanks, You said crusader vs. the sherman. Isn't that like apple and oranges??. Compare it maybe to another sherman maybe??
and as far as quality control, I fully agree. if somehow. something gets packaged . that has something wrong with it.and gets sold. It really sucks.
so it should have been caught.

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I have a couple of shermans sitting on my desk, I just happened to have

the crusader sitting on the work table where I unpacked the M4. The Figarti

Sherman is a different style looking like it has seen a lot of combat, where the

King & Country versions look like they were just built. I asked an impartial

opinion, the wife and she liked the K&C hands down.

I'm just tired of the "repairs" so far only the V2 and one of my LRDG vehicles

were OK right out of the box. I have had machine guns that don't fit, bent

railings, guns, gun mounts, paint repairs...it just gets tiring.

I would expect the LST-6 to require as much labor as an entertainment

center from IKEA

Yet even my oldest King & Country items Huey, Wooden Bren, are as solid as

a rock!

 

[rpk]

Love what Figarti has been doing with their vehicles of late, but I have to agree quality control has killed it for me. My Firefly had a misaligned barrel and the replacement had decals at various angles. The 8th Priest had the fender glued in at an angle so it was touching the gears and off center (would be throwing off some serious metal on metal sparks if actually occurred) and the M4 with fording stacks had the tow cable off at a weird angle and come unglued (the glue would be an easy fix, but correcting the angle so it actually went over the tank instead of around it not so much), and the fording stacks will not hold in the vehicle, they are essentially resting on the tank, and any slight movement can make them topple over. The Lee I had ordered at one point came with broken tracks and the first vehicle I tried, the winter Panzer IV, came with foam packing stuck all over the glue on the bottom, misaligned wheels, and a broken gun mount. The packing on the recent vehicles is excellent, so breakage didn't occur, but quality going into the packaging was another matter.

I could see the occasional QC issue, but with every one? I'm having bad luck, or they still have some kinks to work out. The K&C vehicles I have, and I have a fair number of them, don't have those kinds of issues. Might get the occasional broken part (rare), but not misaligned parts, out of whack decals and broken pieces.

 

[Blowtorch]

I also noticed a couple of collectors listing quite a few retired King & Country

sets saying they were taking their collections in a new direction! Very

interesting indeed!

elaborate?

 

[Toy Soldier Brigade]

I have been a little critical of Figarti products on this board in the past. I have had to do repairs on most of the sets I have purchased. I decided to try again and ordered the folding stack Sherman. I have to admit that the packaging is much improved, and it is a nice model. But yes I had to touch up a very noticeable scratch on the mantlet. With the new packaging I don't see any way that this damage could have happened in transit. It must have been this way when it was packed. I also had the same problem with the stacks not fitting. One was very tight and the other was so loose that I had to attach it with Tacky Wax. I have had to do the occasional touch up on some King & Country pieces, but not 95% of what I buy. I have preorder the US half track and the M3 artillery piece. Hopefully Figarti is reading these posts and working on the quality control.

 

[noli-poli]

The M4 Looks great! But, as NJJA said a lot of loose and falling parts (the tank commander's arm fell off). Also, the size is slightly bigger than the the Firefly (I was planning to rebadge one with British livery to go with my FF's). I guess I will have to selve the idea. Clearly these tanks were made by 2 different manufacturers. Some of the quality issues I could live with, but at the price collectors are paying, there should be no issues at all.

Overall, great details. However, putting them side by side with KC is clearly night and day. The two don't blend well in a diorama.

Quality control wise, KC is far superior! I just wished that KC produced these models (M3A1, M3GMC, & The US M7 Priest in particular).

Just my POV

 

[Njja]

I could see the occasional QC issue, but with every one? I'm having bad luck, or they still have some kinks to work out. The K&C vehicles I have, and I have a fair number of them, don't have those kinds of issues. Might get the occasional broken part (rare), but not misaligned parts, out of whack decals and broken pieces.

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An exact mirror image of my personal experience!

Now for a change lets keep this a nice civil discussion with no hot tempers!

I have clearly said:

I have quite a few Figarti items a dozen to be exact.

I like the items they have chosen to produce.

I like their packaging.

However:

Their quality control leaves a lot to be desired.

I have also stated my personal experience with King & Country well over

200 sets, consistant quality & No Repairs Required.

 

[IXEC]

All good, valid points. For myself, I'm still selling off ALL my K&C and going with Figarti, FL and TGM in that order. Detail overrules for me. QC will catch up. There is a BIG difference between the Figarti Winter Pz-IV & what's produced now, the QC is getting Much better now and I'm happy with it.

 

[Simpson & his donkey.]

Well I can not for one collect all and everything around and as well they can't be bought from the Military workshop so I will stick with K&C.He is the only guy who has come down to Australia to meet collectors in person so why should I get involved with another toy soldier company .I can't even buy all of what I want from this company before even looking elsewhere.Simmo.

 

[tdubel]

No offense as I am a big fan of Andy's and Rick's good stuff. That said, in my opinion, the quality control should be put on the Figarti board and the K&C praise should be on this board. All valid points, yet wrong placement, I never knew collecting brands was a contest? Buy what you want, review what you like. This is the kind of thread while good intentioned seems to draw the uglies.

For my 2 cents, Andy and K&C do a bang up job on nearly everything I bought except the latest Chaffee which took a few times.

Rick has improved the package and I have had no breakage for a long time, but there will always be exceptions.

As for the 2 companies, they really are very different in style, I happen to like both, but I don't compare the two, I simply buy what I like and collect what I like.

TD

 

[Njja]

elaborate?

......................................................................................................

Well of course each collector is free to do as he pleases, and change direction if he so chooses.

However there is an interesting phenomena called the "Hop on the Bandwagon" appeal. Quite a lot of people can be easily influenced to change
their opinions based on what they believe other people will do....Hard to
believe, but that is why they do not begin to post election results before all
the polls close.

I wondered if some collectors perhaps got caught up in the excitment and were making snap decisions before they layed in a large supply of Super Glue!

 

[rpk]

Tend to be a bit of a detail nut myself, which is the draw of the Figarti pieces, but I'm also a little obsessive about QC, especially at the price. The recent pieces are a significant improvement over previous Figarti releases. If they could get decals straight, parts attached properly/straight and cut down a wee bit more on the breakage I'd be a happy camper. I guess I'm in the "I want to believe" camp, in that I want what I see in the pictures, but haven't received one like that yet... which of course is like being taunted because they look very nice in the pictures!

Overall I'm actually very happy with the releases from a number of the players, as it raises the bar for everyone. Good to be a collector right now!

 

[Njja]

All good, valid points. For myself, I'm still selling off ALL my K&C and going with Figarti, FL and TGM in that order. Detail overrules for me. QC will catch up. There is a BIG difference between the Figarti Winter Pz-IV & what's produced now, the QC is getting Much better now and I'm happy with it.

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First isn't it great we are having a nice disscussion with no one getting mad!

Second, if you want to sell off all your K&C thats fine, as a collector you are

free to make any choice you want!

At least now you can see some of our concerns!

 

[Njja]

Well I can not for one collect all and everything around and as well they can't be bought from the Military workshop so I will stick with K&C.He is the only guy who has come down to Australia to meet collectors in person so why should I get involved with another toy soldier company .I can't even buy all of what I want from this company before even looking elsewhere.Simmo.

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Another interesting point! I tried digging my own Oil Well in the back woods

(so I could keep up with all the releases) but I broke the handle off my

shovel!

 

[Njja]

No offense as I am a big fan of Andy's and Rick's good stuff. That said, in my opinion, the quality control should be put on the Figarti board and the K&C praise should be on this board. All valid points, yet wrong placement, I never knew collecting brands was a contest? Buy what you want, review what you like. This is the kind of thread while good intentioned seems to draw the uglies.TD

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Perhaps I should explain my thread.

1. I didn't want to post my comments on Figarti's M4 on that thread because
I intended to discuss King & Country and did not want to cross threads and be negitive.

2. I started this thread so other King & Country collectors could share my experiences, and to see if it was only me. This has proved not to be the case, and should help others.

3. It is quite nice that we have had a nice sensable, intelligent discussion with no adverse comments or hot tempers!

4. This is simply observations both good and bad, and we are all intelligent and so far able to handle this quite well!

5. Good for us!

 

[Njja]

Overall I'm actually very happy with the releases from a number of the players, as it raises the bar for everyone. Good to be a collector right now!

......................................................................................................

I agree, you no longer have to wait a year to find something you like and want to buy!

Now you have to decide which of the items you want today, and which can wait till next month!

 

[IXEC]

......................................................................................................

First isn't it great we are having a nice disscussion with no one getting mad!

Second, if you want to sell off all your K&C thats fine, as a collector you are

free to make any choice you want!

At least now you can see some of our concerns!

Yes, it is civil and concerns are what makes for good improvements

 

[spartan71]

I guess the best way to compare the two, is how they fared in in the first few years that they existed??, are the miniatures comparable to each other. Does The first year or two, when King and Country were making the first tanks, in their product line. Compare with the first year or two of Figarti??
with the detailing, weathering, etc.
Simply,put. Does the first tank that KC made, look as great as Figarti's. or is the difference leaps and bounds??. Gentlemen and Ladies(covering my bases)
When you compare the two companies, It has to be the same age. how was k&C at two years versus Figarti at two years??
The two has/had growing pains, trying to perfect their products, So lets be fair. Of course I have to admit, The Quality Control. needs a little work.
As everyone that collects, in this hobby of ours. My K&C collection outnumbers my Figarti, 9 or 10 to 0ne. I love King and country, I buy them both.
Its apples and oranges. And I love them both.

 

[IXEC]

Oh, I almost forgot to add Collectors Showcase to what WW II, I like to collect.

To me, it looks like one could pair off K&C versus CS and Figarti versus FL. The pairing are about equal in price versus detail, somewhat and almost, it's tricky.

What's tricky, is which ones to spend the hard earned dollars on. So personal choice and ones wallet rule.