Starting out in 1/200
 

Hi everyone-
I am new to collecting 1/200. I have a 1/400 collection, too. Some questions I have are: What brands are good? Bad? The best retailers? The worst? Any onther information would be greatly appreciated! I have pre-ordered the IF200 American A300.
Thanks in advance,
flying freak

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Plastic (Hogan, Herpa) is the best. Some people will argue that diecast is "better", but it gets all weird with zinc rot and costs soooo much more too.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

What manufacturers make metal diecast airliner models??? The only one I can find is Inflight...

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Welcome to the forum! Good choice on your first 1:200 model.

In diecast, Gemini200, Inflight200, Aviation200, Jet-X and JC Wings/Flightline200 are the most popular brands generally speaking. Phoenix and Herpa also realease some 1:200s in Diecast. Name an aircraft type and one of us on here can probably tell you which Manufacturer has the best version. To name a few, IF200 has spectacular 747 moulds in every series, which they share with others. 737s are one of Gemini200's best moulds, as is their 757 and L-1011 mould. From the 2 MD-80 Series moulds I believe Gemini's beats Jet-X's. When it comes to liveries, take a look at past and future releases and you'll probably find which manufacturer makes what you like.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

I collect 99.9% diecast. In my experience, this my summary:

Stick with die-cast. Super realistic, and like the guy in Jurassic Park says "Is it heavy? 'Yes.' Well then it's probably expensive."

Count on this:

Gemini over all is the best - Pretty wide range of products to date, super detailed, few mistakes, low price, easy to find. In my opinion their 757s, 737NGs, 767s, and MD-80s to this point are the best you can find. The only manufactuer I don't hold my breath with bare metal liveries.

Inflight200 - Also a wide range of products, very detailed, low qty's for the rare collector. A lot of their releases are harder to find and their prices are higher. As mentioned, their 747s are perfect in every variant to date. Nice L-1011 and DC-10-30 line, and the DC-9 and 737-200 lines are very well done. Their 707s are also very nice. Be careful of the 727 line, as they are just a touch behind Jet-x and Gemini.

Jet-X - At this point only has a few aircraft types, however what they do have is VERY nice. The 727s are perfect.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

I myself try to collect metal narrow-body and plastic wide-body models. I find that the large decast models are very pricy and kind of make me nervous when there are on display. For some reason the weight of the model (and the cost of it) make me feel like just a little nudge or shake of the shelf will send it crashing to the floor :p. For me keeping the diecast stuff to narrow-body models also keeps the cost of models down and makes it easier to display them. And by the way welcome to the forum.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

I'll give my top three manufacturers of 1:200 models.

Herpa Premium: Plastic: Very expensive and hard to find, but superb quality and accuracy. About the closest you can get to the real thing. The best of the best. Recommended: All moulds. Note: Model production ceased.

Gemini200: Diecast: Best bang for your buck. Decent quality and accuracy from my own experiences. Recommended: 757, earlier 737s (at one time there 737 mould was spot on, then they screwed it up), 777 (only manufacturer with this mould for diecast), 767 (only manufacturer with this mould for diecast).

Inflight200: Diecast: Expensive, but good quality and accuracy. Models are very limited. Recommended: 747.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Thanks for the warm welcome and all the information guys!

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Heres my recommendation:

PLASTIC:
- Best manufacturer is Hogan: very accuracy mould, snap-fit model so easy to store, good details, all models come with landing gear, decent price, variety mould in wide-body a/c, their best mould is Airbus A300, this mould is much better than any diecast A300 mould. Lots of livery, normal price just only around 35 to 40$. But they got some exclusive livery go for more than 200$ on the market.
- Herpa is share all plastic mould with Hogan, but their model come as assemble model with big box. Normally the Herpa model comes with a little extra details compare with Hogan version. But Herpa model price also more expensive than Hogan one. Herpa break up their relationship with Hogan from early of last year and now they developed some plastic moulds by theirself.
Herpa owned one model line called Herpa Premium and many ppl here think they are the BEST moulds in 1:200 scale. Herpa Premium models are super accuracy mould, come with super details: see-through cockpit and windows, real landing gears...etc. Their price are also very high, some rare models go for over 500$ on EvilBay..:D
- SkyMarks/Risesoon is the plastic model manufacturer from Taiwan. Their model quality nearly same with Hogan model but in different mould (some better than Hogan, some not but most of them are worse than Hogan). Their models also come in snap-fit box so very easy to store. They also have variety wide-body mould with lots of airlines. Their model's price normally from 30 to 40$.
- All other plastic manufacturers are not good, like PPC Wooster, Flight Miniatures...

DIECAST:
- Inflight200: One of the first manufacturer in 1:200 diecast market. All their moulds are accuracy mould, heavy metal, good details...but always expensive. Their most impressive mould is B747 with lots of airlines but limited number. This B747 price normally is over 150$.
- Gemini Jets 200: Their first 200 scale model release around early 2008 (as i remember) but now they owned lot of diecast moulds especially some new wide-body mould: B777, B767...Their models are in good quality, very detailed, decent price (most of them not over 100$)...They got some complains about quality control when the model arrival: movable antenna, landing gears, tail...etc. But overall in my opinion they are the best manufacturer in diecast market (like Hogan is the best in plastic field)
- AV200, Phoenix, Jet-X, JC-Wings...are the other diecast manufacturer, they not owned all their moulds, normally they share theỉr mould with Inflight and Gemini Jets.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

I have to agree with most of the advice given above.

I will say, though, that some models will likely never be available in diecast, simply due to their size. The A380 is a perfect example of that. I think it is fair to say that this will be a plastic offering for a long time. That said, the ones currently available are very respectable models.

Although I generally collect diecast, I do have some plastic in my collection as well. These models blend in almost perfectly. Many are getting more detailed as well, so keep an open mind when considering. I will say that some of the premium diecast makers (Gemini, InFlight) will often catch subtleties that some of the plastic (Hogan) makers miss. That said, in plastic, Hogan is my first choice. I really like their approach, and it seems to be getting better all the time. That's just my opinion, mind you.

Enjoy, as this is an absolutely fascinating scale, for sure! ;)

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Welcome in the 1/200 scale & first of all : very good choice about your
first pre-order : the AA A300 will be a very good model & will be fastly sold out.
Otherwise I will go first for Die-cast instead of plastic : why ??? It's just a
better feeling for me .
For the brands : Gemini 200, JC Wings is a quite good one with widebodies,
Aviation 200 (AV200) with non american airlines and Inflight 200 (IF200)
but the last one is quite expensive compared to the others.
I hope it helps a little ...

Arnaud :cool:

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Welcome! Buy a pair of 1:1 scale running shoes, and just sprint as far as you can away from your first model! Better run while you still have a chance :D:D Or be prepared for overstocked cabinets, closets, empty wallets and sleepless nights lol

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Ain't THAT the truth!! :D:D:D;)

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Hogan is the best for plastic. Another plastic maker that is very good is Aero Le Plane. Unfortunately, they do not make very many planes and their releases are pretty far apart.

For Die Cast, each manufacturer seems to have their best plane(s).

InFlight-Very good 747. Stay away from their 727's. They suck. Plus they are overpriced.

Herpa-good commuter props..

Gemini-Good price. Best moulds are the 757 and MD-80. I'm not as big of a fan of their 737's as others are but they are pretty nice.

Jet X-Best 727 in the market. Their MD-80's are not as good as Gemini

The rest are kind of hit and miss. Stay away from Aviation 200 737's. Their other moulds are nice.

Pheonix 200 makes a very good 787.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

..right up until the moment where they produce the 727 in your favorite liveries, in which case reason may well go out of the window... ;)

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Is that bad ? i want to buy the new Iberia 727 (love that liverie) but after reading this...I`m new at 1:200. Another opinion about it ?

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

The mould is not very good plus it's waaaay overpriced. But, if it's in a livery you like and you want it, by all means get it. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

The only Inflight I would consider buying is their 747, 707, or DC-8. They are very nice planes but they are expensive. The Inflight 747 is very good.

You may find Gemini or Jet-X making an Iberia 727. Who knows. They might. You would pay less money and get a far superior model. The Jet-X 727 is the most accurate diecast plane in the market IMHO...

Go to the database on this site and view Inflight 727's and compare them to the Gemini and Jet-X 727's. They are not even in the same universe on detail and accuracy. Plus they are about $20 to $40 cheaper per plane depending on where you buy them.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Gemini Jets are the best.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Agreed. The "rivet counters" will disagree, but I say consider the model from the perspective of the normal viewing distance. My 727s are usually around 8-12 feet away from where I sit when I can see them. Sure the IF is inferior in several ways - but unless you pick up the model, who can tell? The overall impression, and the livery is what is important to me. What matters to others may differ.

Make your own choices and be happy with them.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

You know what, since we all wrote so much in this thread I think we should bookmark this or designate it as the 1:200 model manufacturer and mould recommendation thread. That way when this question comes up again, this thread will have loads of info for any new 1:200 collectors to digest. ;)

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

I strongly agree! There have been numerous repetitive threads similar to these.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Yeah good idea.

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

While I agree that this topic comes up frequently, I don't think pointing somebody new to the hobby to a well-worn link is all that friendly. When I was starting out, I asked a lot of questions that I'm sure irked those who'd been collecting for awhile, but getting responses was part of what built my excitement. It's nice when people offer advice or welcome you to a forum. It makes me enjoy my hobby that much more.

And if it's too tiresome, well, the headline kinda told you what the topic was. Maybe don't click on it next time.

And Flying Freak - welcome to the hobby. I hope you have a lot of space and a reliable source income!

Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Both of Inflight's 727s are terrible. Vertical stabilizer too small, engines too big with exhaust nozzles twice the size they should be, big unattractive bulge where the one-piece wing assembly joins the fuselage, oversized tires and the general shape of the entire fuselage looks off.

http://i611.photobucket.com/albums/t...lightsw727.jpg
http://i611.photobucket.com/albums/t...ctra/sw727.jpg


The Jet-X 727-200 mold is extremely accurate. Unfortunately for the 727-100 it looks like Jet-X uses the Inflight mold (same problems as Inflight's -200).

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Re: Starting out in 1/200
 

Thanks for the info fellas.