Not the new 1:50 Mattel Batcopter prototype.

Well, we don’t always like to talk about stuff that’s still so far out in development that it may not happen. If it doesn’t have a distributor’s sku number attached to it,  I prefer to wait until it does, (or wait until it gets abandoned, and then dangle the development info like sweet & salty chocolate cherry tears…)

But I digress. So many people have been emailing me about the possible upcoming Hot Wheels Batcopter that I thought we’d talk about it a bit. AND since they (Mattel) *borrowed* a custom Batcopter photo from a fellow customizer, I have no issue messing with their wrath, as it were. The little Batcopter in the cluster photo is a custom 1:94 scale (roughly 1:64 or Matchbox/HO car size) Here’s how we get the scale by the way – the real Batcopter (Bell 47) is 31′ 7 long. That converted down to the 4″ scale of this little diecast is roughly 1:94 scale. But it fits in well with the 1:64 scale Corgi or Hot Wheels vehicles. And we used foreground forced perspective to make it look right with the other 1:50 vehicles in the photo. But likely the real Hot wheels version will be bigger and out of scale with these vehicles.

Hot Wheels-borrowed this custom Batcopter model shot.

So – first lets get the factual info out of the way, because it’s really minimal right now. Yes, the HW Batcopter is “confirmed” as going into production in 2012. And it will be part of the 1:50 line. That doesn’t mean it will be 1:50 scale. Only that it will be on that general card size. Like the Batcycle which was closer to 1:35 scale, it just needs to be part of that same blister-card set of vehicles for Hot Wheels to call it 1:50 scale. Remember folks, they’re a TOY company. Not a scale-model company. They don’t care about you. Only about your cash.

Also not the new Hot Wheels Batcopter.

That said, they did such a nice job with the Batcycle and Batboat that I’m personally stoked about it. Polar Lights has also hinted that they are not ruling out a Batcopter model kit in the near future. But all of that plus about $4.50 will get you a cup of iced Chai at Starbucks. It’s all wishful thinking until we get wind of a Sku.

Meanwhile, in the “wouldn’t it be great” category, we hope they get the wings right. There are two schools of thought on the wings. However, only one of them is correct. You can always tell a good Batcopter custom from a bad one based on the shape of the wings. The Batcopter wings were NOT rounded outward toward the fore edges like a cartoon Halloween bat. They may look like they curve go that way in some shots, but most shots in the movie were from the side or 3/4 and yes – in those angles it creates an optical illusion as though the wings were curved inward away from the cockpit toward the aft tail section. But they were not. Some modelers pattern the wings after what they assume they are seeing. (Witness the photo. No offense to Cesare, but this is totally incorrect.)

The wrong way to shape Batcopter wings. (sorry Cesare)

Few shots exist looking down on the copter from directly above, but enough evidence has been collected over the years by those in the know that reveal that the flattened shape of the wings actually form a swoop-out, like a stylized, drapy “V” from the cockpit.

Here’s a custom mego-sized copter from above that was not designed for scale accuracy, but which shows the wings close to their correct shape.

Custom Mego sized 1966 TV Batcopter

One of the best shots indicating the wing shape is a vintage photo that shows a planned Batcopter model kit from a well-known model company. The accompanying drawings and mock-ups show researched measurements and dimensions. The challenge after getting the right shape is to then curve them upward correctly, so they take on the correct parabolic effect. What was achieved with struts in real life is a bit of a challenge to get right (and symmetrical) in a scale model.

Flattened 1966 TV Batcopter wing pattern.

Lets hope that Hot Wheels does as good a job on their 1966 TV Batcopter research as they did on the Batcycle and the Batboat. (not that they were perfect, but they were certainly better than expected) We’ll let you know when we have any release data.

Plans for a (un-produced) TV Batcopter model kit.

And thanks to Andy who sent us the original links to the full versions of the fan films. This is more like it.

Batmobile Deluxe Edition

Okay, the video is only to show some photos of the finished snap-kit and a few WIP shots. Clearly it isn’t the best um – “review” we’ve done. We discovered the “Songify” app for the iPhone and what can I say, I’m easily distracted.

I was putting off this build because I wanted to have my 10 year old son Alex do most of it with me and we’ve been very busy with school starting etc. And I wanted to compare it to the glue kit, which we just got  a couple weeks ago. So we carved out some time the other night and I was happy that he was much more interested in doing this model with me than the last couple projects we attempted together. Score one big one for Round 2. It’s not easy creating an easy snap kit that adults will enjoy, or creating an accurate Batmobile kit that a 10 year old can build.Round 2 have done both here.

Let me remove any suspense by saying that I absolutely LOVED building this kit. Way more than I expected to. Yeah, it’s the Batmobile and yeah it’s the first real kit version of it since the aurora, but I really didn’t expect it to affect me this positively.

Before this gets all teary gooey lovey dovey, let me point out a few problems with the kit. And let me underscore that I am not reviewing this kit as its potential as a Batmobile adult kit – but as a snap kit, which is what it is. As a snap kit (marked as ages 10 & up) it is phenomenal. But there are a few issues with it that we should point out:

1. Instructions. The Instructions contain a few small  mistakes. I would have chalked them all up to possible translation issues, but I think they’re more likely just catches that didn’t get caught. To be fair, most of them — like showing the Futura steering wheel center hub as going on the compass, are because of decal issues (see below) and for the most part, my 10 year old son was able to follow them easily. There are a couple angled drawings that could be clearer for a kid. And I’m not sure why they’d bother to have you install the rear taillights only to cover them up by solid plastic grilles. (The deluxe kit will have photo-etched metal grills) But these are minor issues.
2. Decals. The decals are one of the weak links of the kit. Some of the designs are too small to be read. Some are about 20% out of scale. I would be more lenient about these, but I am holding the beautiful wet-slide decals that we had made for the 1:18th Hot Wheels car and they’re much better than the ones included in this kit. The two-part designs that seem to be the Futura and the Edsel wheel centers are both too big. The bazillion placards are too hard to read, and many of the small designs are out of register with the white layer that sits underneath the top art. Some of them should have had white under but didn’t. The assortment is great, but the quality isn’t up to modern decal standards. For example, the Barris emblems are so small, and don’t have enough white behind them that when you install them, they just blend into the car too much. Also, they are not easy to get off the backing sheet. They are tough for a kid to work with.
3. Parts & etching. 98% of the parts work great and look great. A few notable exceptions are the smaller details like the homing button, rollbar side indicators, start buttons, the rear antenna, and as mentioned – the beacon. For some reason, there’s no Batram lever for the dash in this kit. (maybe because they didn’t include the Batram itself?)
4. Quality. It IS  a snap kit, but there are still a couple issues with the QC on this one. 1 – there are a couple tiny chunks of plastic actually missing from the tops of my doors (see the images in the video) and there is a bad glue/paint bubbled up spot on the passenger side of the kit right at the top fin pinstripe. Not big deals, but they wouldn’t be acceptable if this were a “good” glue kit pro-build and would have to be dealt with.
5. Fit. Only a few things don’t fit together perfectly. The Batphone cord is maddening and doesn’t work the way they wanted it to. A few things, like the steering wheel, bat-beam, headlights etc. needed gluing. But for the most part, it works amazingly well as a snap-only kit.

As a bit of advice, anyone that’s planning to do take on the more challenging and adult level glue kit versions should absolutely build this kit first. It will show you many weaknesses or issues and allow you to figure out ways around most of them ahead of your master build. Some really, really nice work was done here and I’ll talk about some of that in my upcoming interview with Jamie Hood from Round 2 Models.

I have to confess that I enjoyed this kit more than I expected to, and I expected to enjoy it quite a bit. In building this model, it brought back memories of sitting on the porch as a kid with my Dad, assembling the AMT Enterprise (and learning to hate airplane glue with a passion.) The whole reason I model today as an adult is because my Dad built models with me. I’ve built models with my son before, but this one was different. Perhaps because of the care that went into making this an easy-assembling, but great looking kit. Perhaps just because it’s the Batmobile. But either way – Kudos to Round 2 for creating an experience instead of just another model kit.

Oh, and I promise I’ll be more specific and critical when I get to the glue kit.

Nicest set of 1:18 TV Crimefighter figures I’ve ever seen for the Hot Wheels car. Posable arms, hands. Brass bat-buckle, decal emblems… The works. Truly deluxe.

I can’t mention who made them right now. And we don’t sell them here. But we can tell you where/how to get them. Just subscribe to our list. (HERE) Our September email-blast that only goes out to registered subscribers will offer details on these figures (and other stuff) in about a week. Don’t blink or you’ll miss them.

Meanwhile, look what’s being done for 1:25 figures for the R2 model kit. Here’s a WIP photo below. This model is the best Batmobile kit ever produced and it’s a crime to not have great looking figures in it. Looks like Robin will get to be holding the Batphone and canopy. Cool! Again, we’re not selling these here. Just showing off some custom work.

Since most of the innards of this kit have been seen on the web already over on Eric’s site etc. I wanted to show some things that haven’t been discussed yet. This is  a great kit and I can’t wait for the third, deluxe version of the kit as well. The metal photo-etched set should make this kit a wonderful thing. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Here’s some thoughts about this kit.

1. The box. It’s been discussed ad nauseum that the Alex Ross artwork is a thing of beauty and a wonderful and appropriate addition to this monumental model kit. One could say that this kit deserves this level of packaging art. Lets look at the difference between this kit and the snap kit. First, we get a bigger, uninterrupted version of the Ross art. That’s great. But one of my favorite things is how well the rest of the package design meshes with the whole feel of the kit. Retro meets modern in a wonderful way. So much better than copying the same tired vintage Aurora style for the umpteenth time. And the fight-words on the  box walls, that you don’t even get to see until you raise the top lid of the box, are excellent.

2. The decals. We get the same decals that came with the snap kit. They make up the top left of the new decal sheet, PLUS we get all new art with pinstriping like the Aurora 1:32 reissue had, door bats, gadget placards, and some extras. There’s even a Penguin symbol for anyone that wants to build the Penguinmobile version. This takes me back to 1970 and drooling at all the other Federation constellation-class starships in the fleet that I could build IF ONLY I HAD 30 MORE ENTERPRISE KITS! There will be more Penguinmobile details in the Deluxe kit, from what I’ve been told. As well as some other fun stuff.

3. The body. Well, here’s where I am feeling lazy. See, the bane of a lot of Batmobile modeler’s existence is perfect pin-striping (color,accuracy and line width etc.) Even if you have perfected the cerise/orangey/red color of the striping, it’s pretty tough to match whatever color comes on the door bat emblems in the kit. Which means you either try your best or you make your own bat decals…it can be a challenge. Not that we’re not looking for challenges! But – I gotta say, eyeing that BEAUTIFUL pre-paint-job on the snap kit gets one’s gears turning. There wasn’t much of a question that it would be the same fit/body, but let me assure you that the parts all fit the same. They’re the same bodies other than the lack of opening hood or trunk on the snap version, and the lack of miles-deep black gloss on the glue version. So you can absolutely use the snap kit body with the rest of the glue kit if you want to forgo the opening sections. Or you can very carefully cut out your own openings.

I’ve stayed away from making suggestions to the folks at PL about this kit. But here’s my one wish – in the Deluxe version of the kit, they should make the body and lids pre-painted like the snap kit. Just my opinion. I’ve got plenty to paint in the interior. I can do without the exterior hardship.

I’ve got some thoughts about ways to go with this body. Stay tuned.

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