Thanksgiving Series: Tamiya Inc

For the next few days I am going to review some of my favorite companies within the modeling community that have done a spectacular job in offering quality products to model builders new and old.

Introduction: Tamiya Inc.
Tamiya Inc is a company from Japan that has expanded its interests to America and Europe. According to the website, the company philosophy is to "provide excellent models and products" and I would say they have hit the nail on the head and then some. Tamiya products, in my experience have been second to none. The model kits are very expensive but are also very detailed when they are complete. Maybe it was an advancement in plastic injection molding technology or maybe this company knows what they are doing. Tamiya has expanded into the RC world too: providing an outlet for aircraft flyers and RC vehicles alike. Parts are again second to none as you would expect from probably the finest modeling company in the world. In my opinion only Airfix and Revell can compete.



Models
In particular I have had experience with their 1/350 ship line of models. Tamiya moved forward with a line of very popular battleships that are quickly becoming harder to find as they run out of print. I have completed both their 1/350 Yamato and their 1/350 New Jersey (well the Yamato is almost complete so I can vouch!) and I can say that I had very little problems, if any, constructing these model kits. Everything seemed to fit together and Tamiya made it very easy to convert their 1/350 battleship line into RC. I was successful (with a roommates help) in converting their Yamato kit into an RC Boat. As you go through the steps of constructing the model and even assembling the RC parts you begin to realize the engineering behind the kit and where Tamiya thought ahead for you to make your life easier.

Their tanks are mighty expensive but are some of the best stuff I have ever seen. Tamiya, in my opinion is the top competitor for armor models. Now I like to stick with ships but I sometimes build aircraft and some armor in the interim. Their tanks are very expensive but can come out to be beautiful models. I am currently working on a SDF.Ausf.251/1 (half track) model and I was amazed how the suspension system allowed for excellent axis rotation of the front wheels (not that I need it: I am permanently fixing the model in a diorama). I have not built their cars but I would assume the same level of quality is there.

Paint
In the paint department Tamiya does pretty good. I exclusivly buy their spray paints for larger surfaces that I need painted (such as a 1/350 hull for one of my ships). The spray goes on nice and easy and I believe that there is a bit of primer in there as well- which helps the paint to stick even better. I have taken my Yamato model down to a local lake for testing. I have not final coated the Yamato and the paint held up well despite me driving it around for a combined total of 2 hours time.

I can't say much for their handbrushed paints other than I would not recommend Tamiya paints for handbrushing: I have found better results with Testors or PollyScale. I have heard that they are pretty good for airbrushing but I am not at that stage yet of my model building career to use an airbrush. When I tell people I don't use an airbrush for my work they look at me like this 0_0. All of my work up to this point is done without an airbrush, though if I began using it I think my paint expenses would go down... or up? I have no idea.

Tally-Up
Model Kits: * * * * * (5 stars) Some of the best in the industry
Paint: * * * * (4 stars) So-so for handbrushers, EXCELLENT spraypaint; pricey.
Prices: * * * ( 3 stars) Expensive Products, but second to none.

Taimya Inc. brings forth excellent kits to the fray for model builders; however their selection of kits can be limiting depending on the series (they only designed so many 1/350 ships T_T) and their paint is pretty good except for their smaller jars which I would not recommend hand painting with. Their product are expensive but totally worth it. DO pick up a Tamiya kit and see for yourself how you like them.