Originally Posted by
Max-U52
Jeff, your description is pretty accurate. The way I heard it (and this is strictly grapevine so accuracy is questionable at best) is that Heng Long is a family company (like Tamiya) and there was some kind of split and one member started Taigen. That definitely explains a lot of the similarities.
However, I do believe Taigen has some original molds, like the Sherman.
I'm not sure I'd call them RTR toys, though. Maybe high end toys, or entry level hobby grade. They do offer a lot of DIY upgrades and mods.
That's an interesting bit of info, I never heard that regarding HL.
Tamiya isn't really a 'family' business, just privately owned. They were a family business when they made wood ship kits right after the war, but once the son broke into styrene injection, they were on their way to becoming a multinational monster in the modeling world.
In terms of toy/hobby description, yeah, it's a grey area. I guess I see hobby grade as more of a commitment. Horizon hoby sells a bunch of $100 planes and helis that come with Txs (RTF). They are excellent, cheap and a great entry into RC flying, but really are toys. You either crash and decide the hobby is too frustrating, or you keep pushing and decide to take the next step. Hobby is the next step with dual rates, expo, flaps, LG, etc. Just painting the same $100 RTF plane better and charging more isn't the next step to learning how to fly.