Prices?

[Rcfiddy1]

Seen today a big bump in prices on a lot of planes. Wonder how long before prices come down. I was going to buy a new plane but decided to stick with what I have for now. I guess the days of 3-4 new planes a year are over.

[OV10]

:Scared: WOW.....just checked the price of the L-39 ARF+ on my wish list and it went from $269 to $325. That's a 21% hike :Angry:
Looking at the rest of aircraft it looks like it was the FlightLine and Freewing stuff that took a hit of 15-20%. :Straight-Face:
Parts seem to be untouched but........:Not-Talking:

[xviper]

Yikes! I think this will just make me (and others) be more discriminating about what and when to buy. I've got an overflowing hanger right now anyway.

[OV10]

Yikes! I think this will just make me (and others) be more discriminating about what and when to buy. I've got an overflowing hanger right now anyway.

I wish I had an overflowing hangar :PLOL but this certainly is just going to put the binders to several on the inferno replacement list. :Crying:
As you said XV...........more discriminating now ;)

[jadams812]

Had the A-4 in the shopping cart last night. Deleted it tonight. I just can't justify paying a 20+% price hike. A little advanced notice from MRC would have been appreciated. Also, the price increase percentages appear to be all over the place, even within the same model options. No apparent rhyme or reason to it.

[JamesonC]

That's not a little price increase, that's a big jump on quite a few. Also see some "sale" prices that are higher than the old price! :Thinking::Not-Talking:

[Helmsman52]

Well ok.... mmmm... I may just have to pass on anything new for a bit... :Confused:bummer :(

[F106DeltaDart]

Looks like a lot of the prices have jumped for the helis as well. Some of the Superscale 700s have gone up by nearly $200, and a lot of the 500-600 size fuselages have some up by $50-$100 as well. Dang, looks like the tariff effects are really starting to hit in force.

[PhantomNut]

Glad I got my L-39 and F-4 recently. I won't be buying any more new models with the current price increases. Some are just way too much!

[Twowingtj]

I'm sure that there are a lot of factors coming into play here. In addition to tariffs, the cost of shipping has gone up significantly as well. Motion operates on fairly low margines anyway. We can't expect them to take a loss and still offer us the quality birds they do at a good price point. Let's not forget best in the industry Customer Service. Still my "Go To" retailer for the products they offer.:Cool:

[F106DeltaDart]

I'm sure that there are a lot of factors coming into play here. In addition to tarrifs, the cost of shipping has gone up significantly as well. Motion operates on fairly low margines anyway. We can't expect them to take a loss and still offer us the quality birds they do at a good price point. Let's not forget best in the industry Customer Service. Still my "Go To" retailer for the products they offer.:Cool:

Definitely! It sucks that it had to happen, and Alpha has said before that raising prices were a last resort. They wouldn’t have done it if it wasn’t absolutely necessary.

[RCRandy]

I am new to the electric/foam airframes but thought after flying wet fuel for 25 years and now flying giant scale aerobats I would add something to the mix. Just purchased the L-39 a few weeks ago but have not flown it yet.I only purchased 2 batteries at this point and was postponing buying a high output charger until I see if these EDF's are for me. The price increase will make me evaluate my fun factor and if I want to invest any more money into more foamy jets.

I think a few smaller price increases spread over a longer period of time would have been better than one huge increase.

[Valkpilot]

I am new to the electric/foam airframes but thought after flying wet fuel for 25 years and now flying giant scale aerobats I would add something to the mix. Just purchased the L-39 a few weeks ago but have not flown it yet.I only purchased 2 batteries at this point and was postponing buying a high output charger until I see if these EDF's are for me. The price increase will make me evaluate my fun factor and if I want to invest any more money into more foamy jets.

I think a few smaller price increases spread over a longer period of time would have been better than one huge increase.

Small businesses can't absorb sudden jumps the way conglomerates like Horizon can. And it's not like you didn't see it coming: https://www.hobbysquawk.com/forum/mo...141277-tariffs . Maybe this will stimulate the 70 mm and below market.

[themudduck]

The MRC fan sites on Facebook completely blew the !&#$ up last night over this. I was surprised by how many people (fans) gave really negative comments about how horrible MRC is. As if MRC did this just to screw us. One person said that their margins are "ridiculously high" and the "executives" should forego their million-dollar salaries. :wacky LOLwut? Its just ignorant and any hobby-shop owner in the USA (if there are any left) can tell you that this business is not a gold mine. I mean, we all know what happened is because of the tariffs - but I am simply amazed how many folks think that the tariffs are hurting China. Stiggin it to them!! News Flash - Customs tariffs are paid by the receiver, not by the shipper. It increases the cost to the consumer, not the manufacturer.

Anyway I agree that the price hikes are nasty and MRC absolutely should have braced everyone with an announcement first. HOWEVER the fact is that these planes are underpriced for what they are. Somebody on Facebook posted "why should I pay this much for foam - I will never buy from MRC again!!!1!!. Well I have never seen such high-quality models in my life! My new Corsair is such a beauty and it has so much detail that I am tempted to display it in my living room. I don't even want to get it dirty! When you consider this Gold level of quality, then add up all the prices for the major components (large 3-blade prop with metal hardware, large brushless motor, large ESC, circuit boards, rotating retracts and retracting tail wheel, 11 quality servos (9 are digital metal-gear), the decals and bits, these add up to at least $300 by themselves) - and then consider that shipping is included in the price (that will run $50 - $80 depending on what part of the country you're in), its like you're getting the plane for $100. Not only is it a flat-out bargain, there is no way I could build something this nice and I am a builder. I have a Top-Flite balsa Corsair (glow powered with OS120) and the MRC Corsair makes it look like a Yugo. I mean I may as well toss the old one right into the firepit...

We've just become completely spoiled with these fantastic airplanes and low prices. Now, the prices are a lot higher but the product is still superb.
I would not be sorry if I had paid $500 for this model. My 2 cts.

[AirHead]

Yikes! I think this will just make me (and others) be more discriminating about what and when to buy. I've got an overflowing hanger right now anyway.

I remember reading one of your replies and I believe you mentioned 145 planes? Obviously different sizes and prices over the years but that is an airport full of aircraft. You must have a separate house for those or ceilings full of hooks and cables suspending the fleet. Incredible. I have a frugal count of 20 planes, but I need to devise more space for a growing collection. The truth is, EPO planes with all their components really are at the cheaper end of flying. Imagine a giant balsa warbird with a Moki 400 and all the components and hardware involved!? Probably $8000!? Times that by 145...One can get a trailer of foamies for that coin....

[Rcfiddy1]

I cant understand why these foamies never seem to drop in price even after a year or 2. Its foam for petes sake. A 55in tv can be had for less than a foam airplane nowadays. Glad I have a few to fly untill the wings come off. I wont be buying any planes for awhile. And if I do it might be a balsa.

[xviper]

I remember reading one of your replies and I believe you mentioned 145 planes? Obviously different sizes and prices over the years but that is an airport full of aircraft. You must have a separate house for those or ceilings full of hooks and cables suspending the fleet. Incredible. I have a frugal count of 20 planes, but I need to devise more space for a growing collection. The truth is, EPO planes with all their components really are at the cheaper end of flying. Imagine a giant balsa warbird with a Moki 400 and all the components and hardware involved!? Probably $8000!? Times that by 145...One can get a trailer of foamies for that coin....

Well, I've gone through about 150 planes by now but I only still have about 45 planes in my possession. The rest have been crashed, sold or given away. At 45, I'm still overflowing. Space is at a premium for storage.
If all my planes were of the older balsa and gas powered, I would not have nearly as many.

[flyAA]

While no one wants to see prices go up it’s an unfortunate reality of life. As time goes on things get more expensive. Just the way it is.

My hangar is full. But I’m going to go buy another plane just to show support for motion. They’re running a business. I want them to make a profit and if they don’t then you can say goodbye to all these awesome, relatively cheap airplanes they’ve been coming out with.

[Snake]

Sad day Motion RC see you around.

[themudduck]

I cant understand why these foamies never seem to drop in price even after a year or 2. Its foam for petes sake. A 55in tv can be had for less than a foam airplane nowadays. Glad I have a few to fly untill the wings come off. I wont be buying any planes for awhile. And if I do it might be a balsa.

Foam is made from Oil... in general, over the years oil prices have risen. However the total amount of foam in these planes amounts to about a cup of liquid, and its the cheapest part of the plane.

But that really isn't what drives the price of these models...

The cost is in the molds, and the electronic parts, and the labor to produce these finished planes, and the logistics chain. It takes money to design, produce, distribute, warehouse, and market these models. The foam itself is a blip on the radar.