Zealandia Models - Retro Dinosaurs Kickstarter is live!

[Retrosaurus]

Kia Ora everyone,

My name is Jacob; I am a collector and sculptor of retro-styled dinosaurs based in Auckland, New Zealand. I will soon be launching a Kickstarter campaign to launch a range of Retro Dinosaur figures, with the intention of releasing a new wave each year. Wave 1 includes a 1930s Tyrannosaurs Rex, a 1950s Iguanodon, and a 1970s Compsognathus Corallestris. These figures will be cast in semi-flexible plastic but will initially be hand-cast, so they will be released in batches with Kickstarter funding for the production of moulds and the first batch. They are not painted but are solid block colours like the Invicta figures of the 70s and 80s. The majority will be 1:35 scale, with anything too small to sensibly produce in 1:35 scale being made in 1:10 scale. The Kickstarter will be launched in a few weeks.

Updates will be posted on Instagram, @zealandiamodels.

Many thanks,
Jacob

[Over9K]

Keep us posted on that Kickstarter!

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

cool, i like the Invicta inspiration.

[Pliosaurking]

These look quite interesting!

[Fembrogon]

Color me intrigued! I love the concept for this. I look forward to seeing the updates!

[TheCambrianCrusader]

I've been dying for some retro dinos so color me interested 

[Over9K]

I've been dying for some retro dinos so color me interested 

Yeah, it's odd... for some reason, I am also feeling nostalgia for one color polymer, resin , or rubber dinosaurs, anything fossilized, really...

[Retrosaurus]

I've been dying for some retro dinos so color me interested 

Yeah, it's odd... for some reason, I am also feeling nostalgia for one color polymer, resin , or rubber dinosaurs, anything fossilized, really...

I've been feeling that way for a while, which is my main motivation for getting this project underway 

[Faelrin]

Okay I'm curious, why does the Compsognathus appear to have flippers for hands? I think I vaguely remember coming across something like that a while back.

The Iguanodon takes me back to the books I read in my childhood (despite growing up in the 90's). It's great to see a line done like this. I just hope I can contribute some. Cyberzoic is right around the corner and I've been planning on that for a long time.

If you are up for suggestions I'd love to see the wacky 1880's Stegosaurus get some due in model form, or the "Tetrapteryx", which basically predicted the four winged Microraptor long before it was discovered. Having these single colored like the old Invicta or Marx will hopefully mean they can blend in alongside them.

[BlueKrono]

Okay I'm curious, why does the Compsognathus appear to have flippers for hands? I think I vaguely remember coming across something like that a while back.

The Iguanodon takes me back to the books I read in my childhood (despite growing up in the 90's). It's great to see a line done like this. I just hope I can contribute some. Cyberzoic is right around the corner and I've been planning on that for a long time.

If you are up for suggestions I'd love to see the wacky 1880's Stegosaurus get some due in model form, or the "Tetrapteryx", which basically predicted the four winged Microraptor long before it was discovered. Having these single colored like the old Invicta or Marx will hopefully mean they can blend in alongside them.

https://svpow.com/2012/10/02/2000ads-bizarre-fin-handed-compsognathus/

[Faelrin]

@BlueKrono Thanks for sharing that. One of the weirder reconstructions out there. Almost gives me The Future is Wild vibes (or After Man which certainly served as inspiration for it). Definitely was a great idea for @Retrosaurus to give this one a go.

[BlueKrono]

@BlueKrono Thanks for sharing that. One of the weirder reconstructions out there. Almost gives me The Future is Wild vibes (or After Man which certainly served as inspiration for it). Definitely was a great idea for @Retrosaurus to give this one a go.

It's the only one I want.

@Retrosaurus Kia Ora Jacob! I'd love to see some marine reptiles in a future wave.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

I just recently decided I would like to add some "retro" models to my collection for comparison basis. Count me in!

[Retrosaurus]

Okay I'm curious, why does the Compsognathus appear to have flippers for hands? I think I vaguely remember coming across something like that a while back.

The Iguanodon takes me back to the books I read in my childhood (despite growing up in the 90's). It's great to see a line done like this. I just hope I can contribute some. Cyberzoic is right around the corner and I've been planning on that for a long time.

If you are up for suggestions I'd love to see the wacky 1880's Stegosaurus get some due in model form, or the "Tetrapteryx", which basically predicted the four winged Microraptor long before it was discovered. Having these single colored like the old Invicta or Marx will hopefully mean they can blend in alongside them.

One of the books I had when I was younger was The Ecology and Evolution of the Dinosaurs, which features a flippered Compsognathus. It always fascinated me despite being disproven, I think it was ultimately because of the scene which it was depicted in the book.

I've already got plans for future waves, but I want to be in this for the long haul so I'm definitely always open to suggestions. There's plenty of incredible old depictions to work from.

[Retrosaurus]

@BlueKrono I'm a massive marine fan, it was what I originally collected when I first got into it. They will absolutely be a part of a future wave - I've got a very classic 1920s Tylosaurus already sculpted 

[Retrosaurus]

Here's a better view of the designs:

[Libraraptor]

    

I. Am. In!

I have seen the Compsognathus "corallestris" in an old 70s book, so it was not inspired by the future is wild.

Anyway, what do I have to do to get those?!

[Retrosaurus]

@Libraraptor There will be a Kickstarter launching in a few weeks and they will be available for preorder on there. The reason the first wave is being done through Kickstarter is cover the initial equipment and materials costs, but if all goes well future orders will be able to be done outside of Kickstarter.

If you're on Instagram, that's where most of the updates will be but because of the interest on here I will continue to update on this page. The Instagram handle is @zealandiamodels 

[Fossilized-Rubber]

@Retrosaurus I'm not entirely sure what 1:35 scale converts to in centimeters or inches, but I'd recommend you have a less expensive tier which has smaller and/or hollow versions, just to scoop up a bit more money for funding. You might also look into getting your 3D prints printed closer to their destinations to save on postal/CO2 costs. NZ can be a bit of a pain to ship from.

I'm really hyped for these models, they're superb.

[Retrosaurus]

@Fossilized-Rubber The 1:35 scale T- Rex, which is the largest of the 3, is about 32cm in length. Because the international shipping from NZ works in increments, that size would cost the same to ship as something half its size. Though the prototypes are 3D printed, the final product will be solid cast in plastic as I'm trying to recapture the feel of the Invicta figures.

There will be smaller tiers, but they aren't planned to be figures. The pricing I have worked out, which will be announced alongside the tiers when the Kickstarter launches, I have tried to keep very reasonable for a hand-made production of this scale. I hope this helps