Amalgam Collection - Questions for the manufacturer.

Sorry to the mfg,. and to anyone else who may take issue with this but..... it is impossible to believe the quoted build time of 400 hours per model. Of course the models are beautiful, and the 356 Speedster is a nice addition to the line, however that is simply far too many hours for what is being assembled. Certainly there is a lot of development time as well as costs, but not 400 hours or so to paint and assemble the parts for each model.

Bottom line at this point with these and all other models.... if you like the model(s) and want one or more, and can afford to indulge, then buy them.

 

I believe only in parts number but not building time
I think they build each model in a batch of 4-8 and 400 hours possibly is the total time needed for all the batch quantity to be produced.

Could Amalgam clarify this for us?

 

Partnumbers don't say much...
I have a Minidelta P3, the model contains 2000 individually placed rivets, and the radiator is at least 60 parts.

 

lots and lots of parts..
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+1. It's all relative.

That P3 is a great model Hans.

 

I know this isn't crucial but 2000 rivets sounds a bit on the high side. Coincidentally I am about to count the rivets on the P3 Spyder so will see how accurate the number is.

Build time has many factors to consider. I work on anywhere from 4-5 models at a time moving from one to another daily. Normally I will spend about 40-50 hours on final assembly on a 1/12 model once all of the pre fitting , sub assembly and paint work are completed.

 

Exterior + interior, including the top of the tanks..
Used 2 entire bags of the old style rivets, with the spyder, an improved kind of rivets were added.

I glued them on after painting the body, and painted every single head with a drop of paint.
Some better than others to add realism, don't forget the paint on the rivets is the first to wear off in racing

These models are super-realistic, if you weather the panellines with a darker red, you can see the panels don't fit perfectly, just like on the real car.
I got the advice of Patrick not to cover the car in a high gloss, they weren't at the time and details on the shape of the body shows better than with a perfect shine.

 

Not sure I need advice on building techniques but I'll take it for what it's worth

Many of these are personal preference and all builders have their own style and approach...this makes each one unique in their own right. How "glossy a model is has always been in debate...it has been for the past 25 years that I have been building professionally.

If we are shooting for realism I guess one should shoot paint out of a rattle can, add some dirt and body dents, etc. Doesn't make for a museum quality model but may make some arm chair critics happy.

Personally I prefer a thin and supple finish and this takes a lot of time and effort to bring it to a decent level. A 'hard" shine isn't my preference. Decals over the paint are clearly more accurate but in the long run they tend to degrade if they are not of the best quality. But this is a whole new can of worms.

 

Rivet count P3 Spyder:

Exterior aprox 640

Interior pe panels and dash aprox 420

 

Peter, you are one of the pro's in this line of work, and I am in no position to critizise

There is a lot of discussion about paint, gloss, detailling and everything else that comes with building. Nowadays a lot is made using 3d printing, a blessing, but also a shame.. the artform of modelmaking is disapearing.

I am very interested in the build of the P3 spyder, just to see how your approach will be.
I have no doubt it will be a fantastic piece, the kit in itself is a work of art.
A good piece shows the name of its builder, and there it is... "thats why I am not a fan of amalgam.." But before opening another "can of worms" that a personal preference..

Amalgam is like bbr, and is another factory that makes perfect models without a personality..

Amalgam, please start selling kits!!! I will be the first buying them.

 

coupe has more but its not the point..
Number of parts have nothing to do with the quality of a model..

 

Never said it was However my client wanted to know and it came up here as well so I counted them. It's sort of odd the coupe would have nearly twice as many but it is what it is.


Not SOP

 

In respect to 3D printing I agree...it tends to take away the hand crafted art, however it still requires a good artist at the helm [unless they choose to scan the real car].

Not a big fan myself but it has it's place.

 

I think some Amalgam model added weathering effect which added another dimension ( if not personality) to appreciate. E.g. Amalgam 1/8 Jaguar D-type long nose
I think parts count does mean something when compare different models within a brand undercsame scake. Of course parts count might not be directly proportionate to the overall quality of the model - e.g. Cmc models famous for its parts count and complexity but not too good at the stance, accuracy in scale/ proportions in general.

 

Thanks for the reply
But I was hoping you would also comments on your recent claims about parts count updated on models in the official website. Is this something that planned for the future ? ( as I could only find the hours to make one )

 

Isn't the master made in 3d printing?

Kits would be awesome!

 

I would consider purchasing a kit. But please, as with all of your products, take a look at what is currently being offered by other manufacturers (BBR, MFH, Exoto, CMC, etc.) and think about how Amalgam can differentiate itself in this space. Yes with quality but also in the models you select to reproduce.

I like the P3/4 as much as the next guy. But do we need yet another one?

-F

 

The last time kits were offered they were 75% of the fully built replicas.

 

Lol

 

What would make them less interesting.... ;-)

 

Yes, they will need to lower their kit prices if they want to sell any. Should be inline with Hiro kits or it won't even be worth trying.

 

If they were to offer any kits again, I would definitely not expect them to drop their kit prices to be even close to Hiro prices.

 

Can Amalgam pls kindly let me know where is the parts count information you were referring to in ur updated websites?