1:32 Red Pill F-4B Phantom II Model

[Fran]

I just came across this....

a brand new 

1:32 F-4B Phantom II Model

 

from ..... Red Pill???

 

As Its better be good as it listed at the price tag of (pre-order price) - 340€....

 

 

 

For more pics check here:

 

https://hobbyzero.com/news/red-pill-models-to-release-new-f-4b-phantom-ii-model/

 

 

I will try to get more info...

 

Fran

[ScottsGT]

Interesting thread over on LSP. Getting shot down big time due to the cost.  That’s the side I’m on myself.  Just no way to justify another Phantom at that price point.  I built my B model for right at $300 USD back in 2015.  That was the Tamiya kit, intakes and GT Resin B conversion.  
I wish RPM all the best luck in this adventure as I’m sure a few guys will flex their wallets and go there.  But will it be enough to keep RPM in business?  

[BlrwestSiR]

The price is definitely going to be a challenge for some folks. They'll have to decide if the value preposition is there.

@ScottsGT, it's not much further off what you paid for your build, just in one box and not spread out over a base kit, conversion, and other AM. 

I think it's similar to what happened when Border Models released the Lancaster kits. Those who want one will get it and others will either wait for it to go on sale or possibly pick one up second hand. 

Of course a lot will also depend on the final quality of the kit. 

Carl

[nmayhew]

i think the difference with the Lanc is that looked ground-breakingly different / better than a) any other Lanc (yes I know there was 'just' the HKM in 1/32), but also b) arguably better than *any* other aircraft kit in any scale, ever; the cockpit looked (and still looks) like you have the best Aires resin detail set for sidewalls etc, and it's all injection moulded, and we know the engineering was at the time the best in the business being ex-WNW

I'm no Phantom SME, so I just look at surface detail, and if the first word that comes into my head is 'Italeri', then Houston we have a problem; in addition, I'm still seeing drop tanks moulded in halves, sprue attachment points on the surface of the part that 'shows' and therefore needs clean up etc, rather than hidden on the back side etc (I realise most companies still persist with this)

I think unless the final model's finish is significantly better than what we have seen so far then this will have an extremely narrow audience

I build almost exclusively WWII armour and aircraft in 1/35 and 1/32, but if - for instance - Kotare did a Phantom (and it's the Vietnam B as well as Brit later models for me) then I would jump at one; this however has little appeal

[Lusitanian]

There was a photo of the fuselage posted on Hyperscale.  The panel lines look like 1973 Matchbox.  For that kind of money it better be all-singing and all-dancing, and not have panel lines that form shadows.

[BlrwestSiR]

Hopefully in the next few days there will more pics posted as there's supposed to be a sample at the IPMS Nats show. 

Carl

[Martinnfb]

Yup, it would be nice to see a decent looking phantom. Especially for 350 Euros. Yet, I remain skeptical. 

[BlrwestSiR]

It would be great to be pleasantly surprised with the kit, especially since it's from a new company. That would be a great way to make a huge splash.

[dodgem37]

I’m at the Nationals now.  They call themselves Red Pill because their work is the real deal.  As in taking the red pill in The Matrix.  I’m not getting the B, but I will the C, next year.  You’ve got to see this detail, engineering, and tightness of assembly to believe it.  The connection between parts is along panel lines and is flawless.   Best detail I have ever seen.

Just my take.

Sincerely, Mark

[Count0]

On 5/9/2025 at 5:11 AM, BlrwestSiR said:

to go on sale or possibly pick one up second hand. 

This was me, but I never pulled the trigger. Enabler brothers have had it on sale at least twice, and both times I could't do it.

I have the 1/32 Revell Phantom I built as a kid in the garage. I can just wander out there and see how big it is and then put my wallet back where it belongs.

 

[HubertB]

4 hours ago, dodgem37 said:

I’m at the Nationals now.  They call themselves Red Pill because their work is the real deal.  As in taking the red pill in The Matrix.  I’m not getting the B, but I will the C, next year.  You’ve got to see this detail, engineering, and tightness of assembly to believe it.  The connection between parts is along panel lines and is flawless.   Best detail I have ever seen.

Just my take.

Sincerely, Mark

Thank you, Mark.

I have no dog in this fight, as I am not interested in the Phantom. But I fail to see the aggravation around this new release : the Revell kit is 50 years old, not totally accurate, and requires sinking a lot of money in AM to get a decent reproduction, which will not be a « B » any way. All summed up, you won’t be far from the 300 USD or more to get a potentially good Phantom, assuming you put as much sweat as TLC to achieve this result.

The Tamiya offering, still not a B, is a decade younger than the Revell kit, starts with a 3-digits RSP, and, again, requires a significant amount of AM, and work, to achieve a good result and correct some inaccuracies. This kit is far from the superlative quality and fit that has propelled Tamiya 1/32 aura to the sky, which started with their Zero, then the P-51 …

A 1/32 twin-engined jet is a lot of plastic, therefore a lot of steel to mold the said plastic … It has to be expensive. Even the cheap F-105 from Trumpeter retailed initially at a 3-digit RSP, and once you had bought all the correction sets available, you had pocketed more than 350/400 USD, with still some areas that were not properly addressed, like the canopy (I know, I did spend that much before reselling the whole lot for the lack of an accurate canopy ).

So, whilst I agree this seems a lot of money to begin with, it may not be that much if the level of detail and the accuracy of the new Red Pill F4-B make AM sets unnecessary.

Mark’s first-hand report seems to indicate the cash outlay may be justified, in the end. Hopefully this will calm down the nay-sayers.

Hubert

[denders]

Hi Mark, nice to have met you in person. 
 

The F-4 looked really good. I didn’t preorder one, but perhaps sometime down the road I may get one. I’ve got a Tamiya C and a Revell G with assorted AM to build first. And all sorts of other kits too.