ORIGINAL: Dick T.
If Hobbico provided a breakdown of expenses (and profit margin) involved in the current priced $479.00 P-6E ARF it would stagger the imagination of anyone with a brain. Others will deny the reality or simply believe they are getting screwed.
Part of it too is consumer expectation.
Arf's are seen as a somewhat commodity item where the consumer wants all sorts of support, return, fixes, etc.
This increases the overhead and people involved, which must be factored into the prices.
Horizon and Hobbico tend to be quite good to their customers when it comes to support, but that has to be paid for somewhere, in part leading to the higher prices from them.
The Arf's mentioned as being better and cheaper, normally do not come with the same levels of customer support.
Many consumers forget this when making the comparison, or later complain about a lower cost vendor who does not provide parts, as Hobbico does.
Hobbico's planes may not be as detailed as a KMP plane, but you do get better parts availability.... and we see a price disparity.
Though in this case I am concerned about the "limited run" entry in the advertizing and it's implications.