If WGA really want to satisfy a gap in the market, plastic 28mm WWI tanks would be a big hit I'd wager.
The only previous 28mm WWI tanks made were Warlord's resin ones - they made British Mark IV Male, Female and Hermaphrodite:
The infamous German A7V:
And the French Renault FT-17 and Saint-Chamond:
These looked pretty good, but in their infinite lack of wisdom Warlord have now stopped making all of them except the Renault to make further space to satisfy their insatiable desire to make new WWII stuff. With these gone, the only other WWI tank model kits available are in 1:35 (too big) or 1:72 (too small) scale, meaning hobbyists either have to revert to one of those scales for WWI gaming (the former being too big really to make suitably-large armies and the latter being difficult to convert and kitbash models) or scratch-build their own (which I'd rather not do). Thus I put it to the legion of WGA fans to back me up here - plastic 28mm WWI tanks, at WGA's normal prices, would be a need well and truly satisfied, not just for WWI players but also for Sci-Fi players wanting to convert their own armoured vehicles for whatever human or alien race they are fielding (as WWI tanks, because most had no turrets, are arguably more of a 'blank canvas' for tank converters than later machines).
What do you think of this idea? Any particular WWI tanks you'd like to see other than the usual suspects above?
I would love to see all of the above WW1 tanks released in plastic,along with the French Schneider and British Whippet. I don't game,model or collect any Warhammer stuff,but their tanks that I have seen pictures of, look really close to the rhomboid shaped British tanks of WW1.I would think that the WW1 tanks in plastic, could also be used as proxy tanks in Warhammer. You could always add lasers and turrets to them.
I'd really like to see a detailed 28mm ft 75 bs and the other less known renault ft variants as I've only found a 75 bs low poly 3d print and the others in different scales.
Are there any other manufacturers of 1/50 scale WW1 tanks out there? The only ones that I know of are all in resin. And all are in 1/56 scale- Warlord, Trenchworx and Brigade Games. HLBS, I believe, have quit making WW1 tanks.
Rubicon have listed on their Forum a Renault FT-17 in 1/56 scale that in the process of being made in plastic, but they have slowed down their production in the last few years
@Mark Hoffman As I said at the beginning of the thread, Warlord have ceased production of their WWI tanks, but Trenchworx and Brigade Games (and Phalanx Consortium @JTam ) are still making theirs, though theirs are in metal or resin which, while still nice, is not as desirable or convertible as plastic these days, hence my appeal for a specifically plastic range here.
Interesting to hear Rubicon may be making a Renault FT-17 in plastic, but they seem to be WWII-focussed and the FT-17 may being made simply because some nations like China were still using it right up until WWII. I'd like to be proven wrong and see them start a WWI range, but currently I'm not hopeful.
Skytrex carries the old Warlord WW1 line of tanks.
Rubicon have been focused on WW2 vehicles, but have started to branch out , and have started a line of Vietnam War figures, and have two British Centurion tanks. They have in the works quite a few post war vehicles,Soviet and American, and a Huey helicopter.
But to get back to your original post, it would be great to have WW1 vehicles in plastic. Hopefully Wargames Atlantic will be the manufacturer to pave the way down this unexplored avenue ,as they have with some of their 28mm infantry sets
That's great news that Warlord haven't ditched them completely and Skytrex has taken over their manufacture. It would have been a real shame to see such quality miniatures disappear.
Still, as you have said, it would be even better if Rubicon or WGA (or even both) develop plastic versions, especially as the latter are building their 28mm infantry range anyway.
The FT is the best kit to do in plastic - it became the tank adopted by many nations postwar and it (or locally made versions) saw service in most interwar conflicts, even through to WW2.
Soviet T-18, Fiat 3000 and the US M1917 are all copies.
Logically plastic kits are very costly to make, and WWI's aren't so "glamorous" as WWII's ones. The producers will always make models that will sell well, ipotethically one could try with paper models, or 3D printing, if available.
There are some sites that offer for free some paper models, such as this :
