Is the new Airfix club worth it?

[Tw122l3]

Ok so before i start ranting, i have already joined the Airfix Club, and fo rteh first time in my 40 odd years of making models too!

However, i'm now wondering if it was worth it. Yes i got the plus pack with the Nakajima Kate model. But lets face it, thats the standard kit already available but with an extra set of decals.

There's no longer any discount of kits, there appears to be no Airfix club members only page (Most links just take you to the advert for the membership, and the on on the FAQ page still shows as coming soon!). I can see that theres exclusive tins available according to the page, but nope, when i check thier all out of stock, and appear to be empty tins that seem a bit expensive for a piece of metal anyway.

Theres no member competitions, heck, no competitions at all. I did get the members only magazine, but to be honest, it took 5 mins to read and i didnt think it was all it could be.

I also wanted to be able to have another one of the Kate models, so i can build one and keep teh other boxed, just as its an exclusive. But i cant see where i would go to buy it (and yes i know its out of stock) as theres no page for it.

So, what have i got for my money? Some pieces of paper that show the same as on the website about membership, a small piece of plastic disk, which really would have been nicer if it was embossed metal, an exclusive kit (but not really, just extra decals), a membership card and a newsletter come magazine.

Sorry but i dont think Airfix should have released teh club yet if they havent put thinkgs in place for members, such as a members only page, member only discounts etc. I know some have waited over a year for it to happen, but it seems its happened just to stop people moaning about there not being one, and all thats happening now is me moaning about there being a club with no content.

Right rant over. I have to say thanks to airfix as my daughter bought me the BAR lightning Kit for my birthday but it came with only 1 half of teh fusalage. Contacted Airfix and they sent out the missing sprue (even though its a discountinued model so had ot come from new version).

But please can we have some member only content and offers soon?? please??

[Ratch]

It was worth it to me to trade the Flying Hours I had accumulated.

[Tw122l3]

It was worth it to me to trade the Flying Hours I had accumulated.

What about newbies who dont have any flying hours? Would you still say its worth it for them? I have a few hours to claim, but trying to save them all for a big kits (have 30 so far).

[craig_godwin]

I would have to say no, unfortunately.

And with the new amount of flying hours on kits (the new 1/48 Chipmunk only has 1 flying hour on it) it will be impossible for members to save enough hours to get anything other than a series 1 kit. I thought the "new" club was going to be better value for money and with more for us members, according to what Airfix put out anyway, but unless they are going to dramatically reduce the number of flying hours needed for kits then it seems to have gone the wrong way.

Sorry Airfix but I cannot see me renewing my membership based on what I have seen so far.

[Pete-1210491]

I can't see why club members don't get double point on all kits bought .

Or 50% off flying hours required for redeemed kits .

A company I buy some of my kits ( all different makes ) offers the same type of bonus points and rack up quickly ..they also have double point offers on kits .

This promotes sales . I would buy kits not on my radar but for the points it's worth the purchase .

[Frederick Kullas]

I think the changes to the Club are making it better and 'is it worth it?'. To me yes. I build a lot of Airfix kits and so does my dottir and a couple of my sons when they have time so I get all the Flying Hours. Well, its only fair, I bought the kits for them. joy

I'll not tell you just how many £££ I've saved on kits using up all those Flying Hours, but its a lot more than the Club membership price and now we are getting the 10% discount again.

Things are looking better

[Tw122l3]

I think the changes to the Club are making it better and 'is it worth it?'. To me yes. I build a lot of Airfix kits and so does my dottir and a couple of my sons when they have time so I get all the Flying Hours. Well, its only fair, I bought the kits for them. joy

I'll not tell you just how many £££ I've saved on kits using up all those Flying Hours, but its a lot more than the Club membership price and now we are getting the 10% discount again.

Things are looking better

 

 

I cant say i've saved any money using flying hours as so far i only have 30 or so and am saving up to get the max 60 to use on a kit. But unless you've been a member for years do the flying hours really save you that much overall?

As for the 10% discount, if i shop around i can save more than that by buying from an online store, and sometimes even a local model shop when they do deals. 10% isint much, though it is better than nothing i grant you!

[Frederick Kullas]

I cant say i've saved any money using flying hours as so far i only have 30 or so and am saving up to get the max 60 to use on a kit. But unless you've been a member for years do the flying hours really save you that much overall?

As for the 10% discount, if i shop around i can save more than that by buying from an online store, and sometimes even a local model shop when they do deals. 10% isint much, though it is better than nothing i grant you!

 

 

 

 

I keep a spread sheet for my flying hours, cos I like doing spread sheets. A flying hour token costs zero pence. A kit by flying hours costs only £4.98 (Airfix postage) + 68p to post the flying hours = £5.66. As an example, a Series 4 kit (30 flying hours needed) now costs £21.99 (new Beaufort kit) £21.99 - £5.66 = a saving of £16.33.

 

 

I build about 50 models, mostly Airfix ones, in a year. My family builds about 15 to 20. When buying 2nd hand or old kits I look for ones which have more flying hours on them. eg, if there are two issues of the kit available I'll buy the one with flying hours on it. Also, it used to be the number of flying hours was the same as the kit series, ie 2 f/h on Series 2, 3 f/h on Series 3 et cetera. And some of my model club members pass me their few f/h tokens. Thus I have about 80 to 100 flying hours a year

 

 

I have only one LMS which sells Airfix kits. It costs me more to get to him than the 2 or 5% he discounts only some very few kits by, overall he is about 10% over the Airfix RRP anyways, eg the Series 1 Hurricane, he has had it at £8.99 and Airfix has only just recently put its price up to £8.25

 

 

[steven_kerfoot]

As I've just commented on the Club Model Kit thread, the cost of membership is now £30 or £27 for members renewing with the 10% discount. This is the only form of membership available. Previously I've opted for the no-kit membership, last priced at £14.99, because while some Club Kits are worth having, I don't want two Hawks in 1/72, and already had the 1/72 Kate from last year. So, having spoken at length about people asking if the Club was value for money, and with the consensus being not really, what Airfix have done is to offer no increase in value for money, but exclude anyone who wanted the basic club membership. With Flying Hours now very difficult to build up, due to very few now issued per kit, (I bought a Vulcan and that had four, a Valiant I bought had three) that is now no longer a good reason to be in the club, especially since I just cashed in my last FH on a Sabre. I realise the Club needs to pay for itself, and that Flying Hours are a bonus, but Airfix make the Club Kit, so that's not going to cost them more than £6, with the rest moving nowhere near half way the price. The discount, again, that only affects people who buy direct from Airfix. My humble opinion, the Club is not value for money, as they say, I'm out.

[Ratch]

I wonder how you derive the cost price of £6.00 Steven. Do you have some sort of insight into Airfix's labour, overhead and materials costs?

[Kenneth ONeill]

"Is the Club worth the price?"

I am not a moderator, and would say "maybe, year to year, depending on the kit(s)". Never mind how much they cost Airfix to produce, the LMS sticker price of a Hawk is ~£10, and you get two with custom decals (Maybe £6 if you bought them from Hannants?), so I come up with the extra expenditure for the club as ~£4 this year, if you want the kits.

[AirportsEd]

Having wondered about whether or not I should join the Airfix Club I received membership as a surprise Christmas present. I didn't already have the Kate model so was happy to receive that and wanted a copy of the Airfix model list book so I was pleased to receive that too.

It also gives me the opportunity to trade in the flying hours I have collected.

On the other hand, I though the magazine was a bit underwhelming.

Overall (considering I didn't pay for it!) I'm pleased with it, but the Hawks don't float my boat, so will I renew it at the end of the year...?

Decisions, decisions...

[Steve1707821616]

Is there a 'club light' option, that is cheaper, similar to last year? I dont want the 2022 model, the hawks, I only build ww2 stuff. Anybody know? Thanks

[Ratch]

No, it is one club option. I would imagine that the multi-option club (when you take in overseas membership too) was a logistical nightmare for Airfix and they've decided to offer one option only this year.

[Sailorman]

No, it is one club option. I would imagine that the multi-option club (when you take in overseas membership too) was a logistical nightmare for Airfix and they've decided to offer one option only this year.

 

 

Actually Airfix are working on a ROW (Rest of the World) club option. The details aren't fixed as yet. Hopefully they'll issue them soon.

 

 

I asked about the possibility of allowing member to select any kit within the same Series when they join but it seems that in the past this proved to be a nightmare for them. That is the reason there is no choice and only one kit is provided across the board.

[steven_kerfoot]

Is there a 'club light' option, that is cheaper, similar to last year? I dont want the 2022 model, the hawks, I only build ww2 stuff. Anybody know? Thanks

No, that was my choice in the past, but Airfix, having often plagued me with emails last year which referenced whether the Club was worth it or not, seem to have formed the opinion that yes, in spite of all evidence to the contrary, it was value for money, and in fact kept everything the same, apart from doubling the cost of any membership, and the like it or lump it attitude to having the Club kit.

 

 

Next we'll hear that with fewer members this year the Club isn't worth running it after all and it'll close.

[Grumps123]

Today I received my Airfix Club package. I can honestly say that I am happy with it and the value is very good IMHO.

Hopefully, next year it might be a double kit of a WW2 aircraft.

[treker_ed]

For my tuppence of opinion - I think it is worth it.

I've renewed this year out of my own pocket. I'm sort of medically retired, but do not receive any sort of income from pension or other government sourced income. My wife is in a reasonably well paid job and receives remuneration commensurate with that employment. She very kindly gives me a monthly allowance with which to do as I please. It's not a huge amount, but it suffices for my meagre needs.

Short term may seem expensive, however... Purchasing direct from Airfix will give me a 10% discount on each order. There are a number of kits to be bought this year (1/24 Spitfire Mk IX, 1/48 Avro Anson, Blackburn Buccaneer etc) I will probably save more than the cost of the membership. On top of that, by the time I've bought all them, with the flying hours I've already accumulated, I'll probably be able to get a series 7-9 kit!

So in my personal opinion, yes, it's definitely worth it!

[treker_ed]

For my tuppence of opinion - I think it is worth it.

I've renewed this year

Short term may seem expensive, however... Purchasing direct from Airfix will give me a 10% discount on each order. There are a number of kits to be bought this year (1/24 Spitfire Mk IX, 1/48 Avro Anson, Blackburn Buccaneer etc) I will probably save more than the cost of the membership. On top of that, by the time I've bought all them, with the flying hours I've already accumulated, I'll probably be able to get a series 7-9 kit!

So in my personal opinion, yes, it's definitely worth it!

 

 

It may be a little bit of thread revival - but I think in this case it's fairly worth it. Going back to the whole "is it worth it?"...

This years club membership (purchased in the UK) was £30, they gave an automatic 10% discount, so saved straight away on that. Of the 2022 releases, I've bought all that have come within my interests, saved over 60 flying hours and manged to order a copy of the Avro Anson with the accumulated hours. In total that's over £70 in discounts - twice the cost of the club membership! I would say that membership has definitely been good value this year! Not including the club kit of course which is also adds to the value. I will more than likely renew next year, especially after seeing next years kit at Telford. Exclusive 1/72 FR.9 Meteor!