{"title":"Metal Earth","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eFlat sheets of steel that become a Spitfire, a TARDIS or a tarantula, with no glue anywhere in the process.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMetal Earth kits arrive as one or two flat sheets of laser-cut stainless steel. You punch the parts out, fold them, and twist the tabs through their slots until the thing stands up. No adhesive, no solder, no paint, no filler. Bring tweezers and a pair of needle-nose pliers and you have everything you need.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe standard range starts around fifteen dollars and takes an hour or so. The ICONX premium series uses larger sheets and considerably more parts, and is closer to an evening's work. Both finish in bare steel on a small display stand unless the kit is a coloured edition.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAge 14 and up, on the grounds that the parts are small and the edges are sharp rather than anything else.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"metal-earth-apollo-lunar-module","title":"Metal Earth: Apollo Lunar Module","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe ugliest thing humans ever flew, and the only one that mattered that much.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Lunar Module was built to work in a vacuum and nowhere else, which is why it looks like a spider assembled from kitchen foil and spare panels. No aerodynamics, no paint it did not need, no concession to appearance whatsoever. Twelve people rode one down to the surface and back, and its engine had exactly one chance to start. Every awkward angle on this model is on the real thing for a reason.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMetal Earth kits are two flat sheets of laser-cut stainless steel. You punch out the parts, fold them, and twist the tabs through their slots to hold everything together. No glue, no solder, no paint, no filler. A pair of tweezers and needle-nose pliers is the difference between a pleasant evening and a fight, so bring both. The finished model is bare steel and sits on a small stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who has watched the descent footage more than once and still finds the last sixty seconds tense.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772466307224,"sku":null,"price":19.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/FCMM-ALMMetalEarth-ApolloLunarModule_front.png?v=1788239735"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-b-17-flying-fortress","title":"Metal Earth: B-17 Flying Fortress","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eNamed by a journalist, not the manufacturer, and the name stuck harder than the aircraft did.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe B-17 earned its reputation less for what it could do than for what it could absorb. Crews came home in aircraft missing engines, tail sections and large parts of the fuselage, which is how a heavy bomber ends up remembered with something close to affection. Boeing built nearly thirteen thousand of them. The shape, all glasshouse nose and gun positions, is instantly readable from any angle.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe kit is laser-cut stainless steel, punched out of flat sheets and assembled by folding parts and twisting tabs through slots. No glue, no solder, no paint. The four engine nacelles and the tail assembly are where the patience goes, and tweezers are not optional. It finishes in bare steel on a stand, which suits an aircraft that spent its career unpainted on the underside anyway.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e The person in your life who has opinions about which bomber was actually better and would like to share them.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772466372760,"sku":null,"price":19.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/502489_g20.jpg?v=1788327492"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-boeing-ah-64-apache","title":"Metal Earth: Boeing AH-64 Apache","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA helicopter that looks like it was designed by someone in a genuinely bad mood.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Apache has been in service since 1986 and still looks modern, largely because nothing about it was styled. The stepped tandem cockpit, the sensor turret hanging off the nose, the stub wings loaded with hardpoints: every line on it exists to do a job. It is one of the few aircraft where a bare metal model loses nothing, because the real thing is matte green and equally unlovely.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTwo sheets of laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue and no paint. Rotor blades and the tail boom are fiddly at this scale, and the sensor turret is the part most likely to end up on the floor, so work over a tray. Tweezers and needle-nose pliers strongly recommended. Finished model sits on a display stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who finds the phrase \u003cem\u003etail rotor authority\u003c\/em\u003e more interesting than it has any right to be.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772466471064,"sku":null,"price":19.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/s-l1200_b3f65dfb-e32b-463c-b993-b6a54facef60.jpg?v=1788327344"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-black-hawk","title":"Metal Earth: Black Hawk","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe workhorse that everyone can name, which is unusual for a workhorse.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe UH-60 replaced the Huey and has been carrying people and equipment around since 1979, in more variants than anyone outside the programme can keep track of. It is squat, wide and deliberately survivable, designed so the airframe absorbs a hard landing rather than the people inside it. Familiar enough from thirty years of news footage that the silhouette needs no caption.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLaser-cut stainless steel in flat sheets, assembled by folding parts and twisting tabs through slots. No glue, no solder, no paint. The main rotor head and the wheel struts are the delicate parts; everything else goes together at a reasonable pace. Bring tweezers. Finished in bare steel on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e The former serviceman who says he does not want anything for his birthday.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772466634904,"sku":null,"price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/57.png?v=1788324492"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-ch-47-chinook","title":"Metal Earth: CH-47 Chinook","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTwo rotors, no tail rotor, and a first flight in 1961 that it has never really needed to improve on.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Chinook solved the tail rotor problem by not having one: two counter-rotating main rotors cancel each other out, which frees the entire fuselage for load and gives the thing its unmistakable banana profile. It has been in continuous production for over sixty years, which almost nothing else in aviation can claim, and it is still the aircraft you call when something large and awkward has to be somewhere else.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTwo sheets of laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint required. The twin rotor pylons make this a more interesting build than a conventional helicopter, and the six blades take a while. Tweezers and needle-nose pliers recommended throughout. Finishes in bare steel on a display stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who has stood under one and felt it in their chest before they heard it.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772466831512,"sku":null,"price":19.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/images_169a9691-d885-45c9-a723-5aab6375782a.jpg?v=1788327981"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-consolidated-pby-catalina","title":"Metal Earth: Consolidated PBY Catalina","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA flying boat with a genuine claim to having changed the course of a war by simply looking at something.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Catalina was slow, ungainly and enormously long-legged, which made it perfect for patrol work nobody else wanted. A PBY found the Bismarck. Another found the Japanese fleet before Midway. The RAAF flew them out of Australia on mining and rescue missions that ran to twenty hours. The parasol wing sitting on its pylon above the hull is one of the most distinctive shapes in aviation.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is one of the larger Metal Earth kits, which shows in both the sheet count and the price. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. The wing pylon and the retractable float mechanism are the parts that will slow you down, and the long fuselage needs care to keep straight. Tweezers essential. Finishes on a stand in bare steel.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone whose interest in aviation extends past fighters and into the aircraft that actually did the work.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772466897048,"sku":null,"price":39.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/Array_25e92df5-577d-4033-bd8c-650e9417e1f0.jpg?v=1788324344"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-f-22-raptor","title":"Metal Earth: F-22 Raptor","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAn aircraft so expensive the production run was cut short, which is a very modern kind of legend.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Raptor entered service in 2005 and only 195 were ever built, because each one cost roughly the same as a small hospital. It can supercruise, it is very hard to see on radar, and it has never been exported to anybody, which has only added to the mythology. The flat angular surfaces that make it stealthy also make it read beautifully as a bare metal model.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOne of the smaller, cheaper kits in the range and a sensible place to start if nobody in the house has built one before. Laser-cut stainless steel, punch out, fold, twist the tabs. No glue, no paint. The twin tails and the intake geometry are the only genuinely awkward bits. Tweezers recommended. Finishes on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e A first Metal Earth, or the teenager who has drawn this aircraft in the back of every exercise book.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772467028120,"sku":null,"price":14.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/s-l400.jpg?v=1788323945"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-f-35-lightning-ii","title":"Metal Earth: F-35 Lightning II","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe most argued-about aircraft of the century, now available in a form that cannot answer back.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe F-35 is flown by the RAAF out of Williamtown and Tindal, which makes it one of the few current fighters Australians actually see overhead. It exists in three variants, one of which lands vertically, and the programme has generated more column inches than any aircraft since Concorde. Whatever you think of the procurement, the airframe itself is a compact, purposeful shape that models well.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAn entry-level kit at the smaller end of the range. Laser-cut stainless steel in flat sheets, assembled by folding and twisting tabs through slots. No glue, no solder, no paint. Around an hour if you are unhurried and have tweezers to hand. Finishes in bare steel on a small stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who lives under the Williamtown circuit and has learned to pause the conversation.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772467191960,"sku":null,"price":14.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/57.jpg?v=1788323818"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-huey-uh-1","title":"Metal Earth: Huey UH-1","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eYou can hear this one from a photograph.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe UH-1 is the most recognisable helicopter ever built, and most of that is the sound: the two-blade rotor produces a slapping beat that turns up in every piece of footage from the period and has never quite left the culture. Over sixteen thousand were made. Australia flew them in Vietnam and kept them in service for decades afterwards. The shape is simple, boxy and completely without pretension.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOne of the cheapest and quickest kits in the range, which makes it a good first one. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. The skids and the rotor mast want a gentle hand and a pair of tweezers, and the rest goes together in under an hour. Bare steel finish on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who has just made the noise while reading this.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772467323032,"sku":null,"price":14.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/Array_fb21939d-9758-492d-8785-f7f1a16452c7.jpg?v=1788323679"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-sopwith-camel","title":"Metal Earth: Sopwith Camel","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAn aeroplane that killed more of its own pilots in training than the enemy managed in combat.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Camel shot down more aircraft than any other Allied fighter of the First World War and was, by every account, vicious to fly. All the mass was packed into the front seven feet, and the rotary engine's torque meant it turned right far faster than it turned left, which killed novices and made experts lethal. It is also the aeroplane a beagle flies on top of a kennel, which has done more for its fame than the combat record.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBiplanes are the most satisfying subject in this range because the struts and rigging give the finished model real structure. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. The two wings and their interplane struts are genuinely fiddly and want tweezers, patience and good light. Finishes in bare steel on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who wants a build that fights back a bit.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772481380504,"sku":null,"price":29.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/1126534145.jpg?v=1788323460"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-supermarine-spitfire-coloured","title":"Metal Earth: Supermarine Spitfire (Coloured)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe elliptical wing was an aerodynamic decision. That it happens to be beautiful was luck.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eReginald Mitchell chose the ellipse because it let him fit the guns and undercarriage into the thinnest possible wing, and the result is the only fighter of the era that people who have no interest in aircraft can still identify at a glance. Over twenty thousand were built across twenty-four marks. It stayed in front-line service from 1938 to the end of the war, which almost no other design managed.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is the coloured version, so the sheets are printed rather than bare steel, and it finishes in camouflage with roundels rather than the usual silver. That makes it the better choice if it is going on a shelf in a room rather than a desk. Same assembly as the rest: laser-cut steel, fold, twist the tabs, no glue. Tweezers recommended.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e The grandfather who will tell you he saw one once, and then tell you again.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | Coloured finish | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772481544344,"sku":null,"price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/MetalEarthSupermarineSpitfireFullColourModelKit_3.jpg?v=1788323341"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-mustang-p-51d-sweet-arlene","title":"Metal Earth: Mustang P-51D Sweet Arlene","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAn American airframe that only became great once somebody put a British engine in it.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe early Mustang was a disappointment above fifteen thousand feet. Swapping the Allison for a Rolls-Royce Merlin turned it into the aircraft that could escort bombers all the way to Berlin and back, which changed the air war more than any single design decision of the period. The D model with its bubble canopy is the definitive one, and Sweet Arlene is one of the nose-art schemes that came with it.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLaser-cut stainless steel, punched from flat sheets and held together by folding tabs through slots. No glue, no solder, no paint. The four-blade propeller and the laminar-flow wing need care, and the canopy is a single delicate curve that rewards taking your time. Tweezers and pliers recommended. Bare steel finish on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who has stood at an airshow waiting specifically for the Merlin to start.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772481708184,"sku":null,"price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/502501_g20.jpg?v=1788323003"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-tiger-tank","title":"Metal Earth: Tiger Tank","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTerrifying, over-engineered, and forever breaking down somewhere inconvenient.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOnly about thirteen hundred Tiger Is were ever built, which is nothing, and yet it dominates the popular memory of armoured warfare entirely out of proportion to its numbers. The reason is the gun and the frontal armour, and the fact that Allied crews reported every German tank they saw as a Tiger. It was also mechanically fragile, appallingly expensive and drank fuel at a rate that helped lose the war it was built to win.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTanks make good Metal Earth subjects because the flat armour plates suit sheet steel perfectly. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. The interleaved road wheels are the signature feature and the reason this takes longer than it looks. Tweezers essential. Finishes in bare steel on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e The person whose interest in history is specifically and unapologetically the machinery.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772481839256,"sku":null,"price":19.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/71VpZx2y-vL._AC_UF894_1000_QL80.jpg?v=1788317170"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-m1-abrams-tank","title":"Metal Earth: M1 Abrams Tank","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePowered by a gas turbine, which means it sounds less like a tank and more like a departing aircraft.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Abrams has been the American main battle tank since 1980 and Australia has run them since 2007. The turbine engine is the oddity: smooth, very quiet on the move compared with a diesel, and monstrously thirsty. The angular turret is shaped the way it is because of what is inside the armour, which remains classified, so every model of it is a model of the outside only.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFlat armour surfaces make for a clean, quick build by the standards of this range. Laser-cut stainless steel, fold the parts, twist the tabs, no glue and no paint. The track runs and the turret basket are the parts that want attention. Tweezers recommended. Bare steel finish on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who has ever tried to explain to somebody why a jet engine in a tank is a reasonable idea.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772481937560,"sku":null,"price":19.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/61Qj0yewcVL._AC_SL1500.jpg?v=1788317089"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-mars-rover","title":"Metal Earth: Mars Rover","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eBuilt for a ninety day mission. Some of them are still going years later, which is either excellent engineering or excellent luck.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe rovers are the most quietly impressive machines humans have made: nuclear or solar powered, driving themselves across terrain nobody has surveyed, with a twenty-minute round trip on every instruction from home. The rocker-bogie suspension keeps all six wheels on the ground over obstacles the size of the rover itself, which is why the whole thing looks like a folding table having a difficult time.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThat suspension is also what makes it a good model. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue, no paint. The six wheels and the articulated arms are the fiddly part and the reason to have tweezers within reach. The mast and camera head go on last. Finishes in bare steel on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who was mildly upset when Opportunity sent its last message.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772482068632,"sku":null,"price":19.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/s-l1200.jpg?v=1788316870"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-sydney-opera-house","title":"Metal Earth: Sydney Opera House","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eFourteen years late, fifteen times over budget, and worth every cent of it.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eJorn Utzon won the competition in 1957 with a drawing nobody knew how to build, and it took most of a decade to work out that the shells could all be cut from the surface of a single sphere. He left the country before it opened and never came back to see it. It is now the thing Australia puts on the front of everything, which is a reasonable outcome for a building that was once a national embarrassment.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eArchitecture kits are a different sort of build from the vehicles: fewer moving parts, more repeated curved sections that all have to line up. The shells are the whole job here, and getting them to sit right is genuinely satisfying. Laser-cut stainless steel, no glue or paint, tweezers recommended. Finishes in bare steel on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e A gift going overseas, where it will explain itself without a card.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772482199704,"sku":null,"price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/metal-earth-opera-house.jpg?v=1788328094"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-w-class-tram","title":"Metal Earth: W Class Tram","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMelbourne's, and now everybody else's, whether Melbourne likes it or not.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe W class went into service in 1923 and some of them are still running on the City Circle, which makes them among the oldest trams in daily use anywhere in the world. Timber bodies, drop-centre entrances, and a shape that has become shorthand for the whole city. Retired W class cars have ended up as cafes, as art installations, and in one case parked outside a museum in Seattle.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA pleasingly odd subject for a metal kit, and one of the few in the range that is unmistakably Australian. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. The long flat sides and the roof detail assemble easily; the bogies and the trolley pole are the parts that want tweezers. Bare steel on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who has left Melbourne and become sentimental about it from a distance.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772482298008,"sku":null,"price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/71nVeUvsYKL._AC_UF894_1000_QL80.jpg?v=1788316505"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-black-pearl","title":"Metal Earth: Black Pearl","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThree masts, full rigging, and a great deal of very small steel.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA galleon under full sail is one of the hardest things to render convincingly in any material, and sheet steel turns out to suit it unexpectedly well: the sails come out as thin curved panels and the rigging as fine cut lines rather than thread. Whether you read it as the ship from the films or simply as a galleon is up to you. The hull profile and the stern castle do most of the work either way.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBe honest with yourself about the masts before you start. Three of them, each with yards and standing rigging, all of which must line up or the whole thing looks drunk. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. Tweezers and needle-nose pliers are not optional here. Finishes in bare steel on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Someone who wants a build that takes an evening rather than half an hour.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772482396312,"sku":null,"price":19.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/714Up8BkG4L._AC_UF894_1000_QL80.jpg?v=1788316172"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-delorean","title":"Metal Earth: DeLorean","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA commercial disaster of a car that became immortal by being cast in a film.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe DMC-12 was underpowered, badly built and made in Northern Ireland by a company that collapsed within two years. About nine thousand were produced. Then a film crew needed something that could plausibly be mistaken for a spacecraft by a 1955 farmer, and the brushed stainless steel body and gullwing doors did the rest. It is now one of the most recognisable cars ever made, on the strength of about two hours of screen time.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe one Metal Earth subject where the bare steel finish is not a compromise but the correct colour, because the real car was unpainted stainless. Laser-cut sheets, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. The doors, the louvred rear deck and the wheels are where the time goes. Tweezers recommended.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who has worked out how fast 88 miles an hour is in kilometres and been slightly disappointed.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772496027800,"sku":null,"price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/FCMM-DLMetalEarth-DeLorean_front.jpg?v=1788315933"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-doctor-who-tardis","title":"Metal Earth: Doctor Who TARDIS","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA police box, because in 1963 the budget did not stretch to anything else.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe chameleon circuit breaking was a production constraint dressed up as a plot point, and it turned out to be the best accident in the show's history. Real police boxes vanished from British streets decades ago; this one outlived all of them and is now more recognisable than the thing it was copying. Sixty years of a prop that was only ever meant to be temporary.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA rewarding build because it is essentially architecture: four panelled sides, a roof, a lamp, and everything has to be square or it looks wrong immediately. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. The window frames and the door detail are finer than they look on the box. Tweezers recommended. Finishes in bare steel on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e The person who has strong views about which Doctor was best and will not be talked out of them.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772496191640,"sku":null,"price":39.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/FCMM-DW-TMetalEarth-DoctorWho-Tardis_front.png?v=1788315856"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-star-wars-millennium-falcon","title":"Metal Earth: Star Wars Millennium Falcon","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe most famous silhouette in science fiction, and it is basically a disc with a bite taken out.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Falcon was redesigned late and in a hurry after the original long, thin design looked too much like a ship in another series, and the replacement was reportedly inspired by a hamburger with an olive beside it. Whatever the origin, the asymmetry is the trick: the offset cockpit tube stops it reading as a flying saucer and gives the whole thing a sense of direction.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAll that surface detail is what makes this a good sheet-steel subject, because the etched panelling on the upper and lower hulls comes out crisp in a way paint never manages. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. The mandibles and the cockpit tube need care to align. Tweezers recommended. Bare steel finish on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who has ever defended the Kessel Run line at length and in earnest.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772496322712,"sku":null,"price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/FCMM-SW-MFMetalEarth-StarWars-MillenniumFalcon_front.png?v=1788315765"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-star-wars-r2-d2","title":"Metal Earth: Star Wars R2-D2","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA character with no face and no dialogue who still gets more sympathy than most of the cast.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eR2 is a cylinder, a dome and three legs, and somehow carries an entire performance on servo noises and a rotating head. The design has barely changed since 1977 because there was nothing to fix. It is also, structurally, one of the simplest shapes in the whole Star Wars catalogue, which is exactly why building one out of curved steel panels is more interesting than it sounds.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRolling a flat sheet into a clean cylinder without kinking it is the entire challenge of this kit, and it is a genuinely satisfying thing to get right. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. The dome and the leg detail follow easily once the body is true. Tweezers recommended.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who maintains, correctly, that he is the actual protagonist.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772496421016,"sku":null,"price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/032309012507_Metal_Earth_R2_D2-scaled.jpg?v=1788315623"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-star-wars-x-wing-starfighter","title":"Metal Earth: Star Wars X-Wing Starfighter","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA fighter designed by people who had spent a lot of time watching footage of Spitfires.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe X-wing works because it borrows from aircraft that actually existed. A single pilot, a bubble canopy, a long nose and wings that split into an X for attack: it reads as a fighter rather than a spacecraft, which is the whole reason the trench run felt like a dogfight instead of a physics problem. The design has survived five decades and several sequel trilogies without needing a redesign.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe split wings are the reason to build this one. Getting all four to sit at matching angles takes patience and is immediately obvious when it goes wrong. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. Tweezers and needle-nose pliers recommended. Finishes in bare steel on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who still says the noise when the S-foils lock into attack position.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772496584856,"sku":null,"price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/STR95.jpg?v=1788315429"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-dragonfly","title":"Metal Earth: Dragonfly","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAn insect that has been flying essentially unchanged for three hundred million years, on the reasonable grounds that it got it right first time.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDragonflies can move each of their four wings independently, hover, fly backwards, and catch prey in the air with a success rate above ninety per cent, which makes them among the most effective predators alive. Carboniferous ancestors had wingspans of seventy centimetres. Everything about them is engineering, which is why the veined wing structure translates so well into laser-cut steel.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOne of the cheapest kits in the range and one of the prettiest results, because the wing tracery is exactly the sort of fine cut that sheet steel does better than plastic. Tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. The wings are delicate and want tweezers rather than fingers. Finishes in bare steel on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e A desk that needs something on it that is not a stress ball.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772496683160,"sku":null,"price":14.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/FCMM-DFMetalEarth-Dragonfly_front.png?v=1788315292"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-scorpion","title":"Metal Earth: Scorpion","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eOlder than trees, glows under ultraviolet light, and nobody knows why.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eScorpions have been around for about 435 million years, which puts them ahead of forests, dinosaurs and very nearly everything else still walking. The fluorescence is the genuinely odd part: their cuticle glows blue-green under UV and there is still no agreed explanation for it. Segmented body, articulated tail, pincers out front, all of which is essentially armour plate, and armour plate is what sheet steel does best.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA small, quick kit with a satisfying amount of detail for the money. The segmented tail is the signature feature and assembles as a series of linked sections, so it comes out with a real curve rather than a moulded approximation. Laser-cut stainless steel, no glue or paint. Tweezers recommended.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who has ever looked at something venomous and thought, primarily, that it was well designed.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772496879768,"sku":null,"price":14.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/FCMM-SMetalEarth-Scorpion_front.png?v=1788315168"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-tarantula","title":"Metal Earth: Tarantula","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eEight legs, each of which has to be bent to the same angle, which is the entire test.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTarantulas are large, slow, mostly harmless to humans and considerably more anxious about the encounter than you are. They moult by climbing out of their old skin entirely, leaving behind something that looks exactly like a dead spider and causes a great deal of unnecessary alarm. Some species live thirty years. As a subject for a model they are all articulation, which is the interesting part.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe eight legs are the build. Each one is a separate multi-segment piece that has to be folded and posed, and if you rush them the finished spider stands like it has had a difficult night. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. Tweezers essential. Bare steel finish on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Leaving somewhere it will be discovered by someone who does not like spiders.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772496945304,"sku":null,"price":14.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/FCMM-TMetalEarth-Tarantula_front.png?v=1788314852"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-steampunk-butterfly","title":"Metal Earth: Steampunk Butterfly","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA butterfly, if butterflies had been invented in Birmingham in 1885.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe steampunk line takes ordinary subjects and rebuilds them out of gears, rivets and brass fittings that serve no mechanical purpose whatsoever, which is the entire point of the genre. Here it is a butterfly: recognisable wing shape, but the veins have become linkages and the body has become a boiler. It is the one range in the Metal Earth catalogue where the bare steel finish is not a substitute for colour but the actual intended look.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe wings carry a lot of fine cut detail and are the reason to buy this one. They are also thin and easy to crease, so work slowly and hold them by the edges. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. Tweezers essential. Finishes on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone whose taste runs to cogs on things that would not have cogs.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772497043608,"sku":null,"price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/FCMM-SBMetalEarth-SteampunkButterfly_front.png?v=1788314781"},{"product_id":"iconx-apollo-11-astronaut","title":"ICONX: Apollo 11 Astronaut","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe suit was a pressure vessel, a life support system and a spacecraft in its own right, and it was sewn largely by hand.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe A7L was built by a company that had spent the previous decades making brassieres, because what NASA needed was people who understood soft goods under pressure rather than aerospace engineers. Twenty-one layers. Hand-stitched to a tolerance of about one sixty-fourth of an inch. Twelve men walked in one, and the suits are now degrading in storage faster than anyone can conserve them.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eICONX is the premium line: larger sheets, more parts and a noticeably longer build than the standard Metal Earth kits, typically an evening rather than an hour. Same principle throughout, laser-cut stainless steel with tab-and-slot assembly and no glue, but the tolerances are tighter and the backpack and helmet assemblies want a steady hand. 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The brief was reportedly a cross between a Lamborghini and a Humvee, and the result threw out sixty years of sleek fins in favour of something that reads as military hardware.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAll flat angled plate, which is exactly what sheet steel is good at, and one of the better looking ICONX builds in bare metal. The premium line means larger sheets and a longer session than a standard kit. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. The suspension and the enormous rear wheels are the fiddly part. Tweezers essential.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who maintains the trilogy peaked with the second one, and is right.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eICONX premium series | Laser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772510281880,"sku":null,"price":79.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/s-l1200.png?v=1788314271"},{"product_id":"iconx-blue-dragon","title":"ICONX: Blue Dragon","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe one where every single scale is a separate cut, and you will notice.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDragons are the reason laser-cut steel exists as a hobby material. Scales, membranous wings, a spined tail and a lot of compound curves are miserable to mould and beautiful to etch, and the ICONX treatment gives this one the surface detail the standard kits cannot fit on a smaller sheet. It comes in blue rather than bare metal, which is unusual for the range and suits the subject.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is one of the more involved builds here. The wing membranes have to be curved rather than folded, the tail is a long run of linked segments, and the neck sets the pose for the whole model so it is worth thinking about before you commit. Laser-cut steel, tab-and-slot, no glue or paint. Tweezers and needle-nose pliers essential.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Someone who wants a project rather than an activity.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eICONX premium series | Laser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772510347416,"sku":null,"price":49.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/FCICX-BDICONX-BlueDragon_front.png?v=1788314015"},{"product_id":"iconx-ecto-1-ghostbusters","title":"ICONX: Ecto-1 Ghostbusters","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA 1959 Cadillac ambulance with a great deal of unexplained equipment bolted to the roof.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Ecto-1 is a Cadillac Miller-Meteor, a combination hearse and ambulance conversion of which only a few hundred were ever built. The film's version was bought as a wreck, painted white, and loaded with a roof rack of props that nobody has ever satisfactorily identified. The result is one of the very few film cars that is instantly recognisable from the roof down rather than the grille up.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe roof gear is the whole reason to build this one, and it is where most of the parts are. ICONX means bigger sheets and a longer build than the standard range, closer to an evening than an hour. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. Tweezers and pliers essential for the finer roof detail.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone who can still do the siren noise on request.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eICONX premium series | Laser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772510445720,"sku":null,"price":79.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/iconx-ghostbusters.png?v=1788328241"},{"product_id":"iconx-terminator-t-800","title":"ICONX: Terminator T-800","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA chrome skeleton is the obvious subject for a kit made entirely of bare polished steel, and somebody finally noticed.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStan Winston's endoskeleton was built as a full-size puppet and a stop-motion armature because in 1984 there was no other way to do it, and the physical construction is why it still holds up. Every joint on it looks like it was machined for a reason. Of all the licensed subjects in this range, this is the one where the material and the design were made for each other.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eICONX means larger sheets and considerably more parts than a standard kit. The ribcage and the hands carry the detail, and the leg articulation determines the pose, so decide how it is standing before you start folding. Laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. Tweezers and needle-nose pliers essential throughout.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e A shelf that needs something faintly menacing on it.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eICONX premium series | Laser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772510609560,"sku":null,"price":79.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/MetalEarth-TheTerminatorT-800Endoskeleton_ICONX_700x_392f632e-db8c-406b-8ff4-765ff1843ac0.jpg?v=1788239463"},{"product_id":"iconx-kawasaki-ninja","title":"ICONX: Kawasaki Ninja","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMotorcycles are almost entirely frame and engine, which is exactly the wrong thing to build out of flat sheets, and exactly why it is worth doing.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Ninja name has been on Kawasaki sports bikes since 1984 and has covered everything from learner machines to the supercharged H2. What they share is the look: minimal bodywork, everything mechanical left visible, and a riding position that assumes you are not going far in comfort. There is nowhere on a sports bike to hide a construction shortcut, which makes it an honest test of a kit.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eExpect to spend time on the frame, the forks and the spoke detail. The wheels alone are more work than an entire small Metal Earth kit. ICONX premium sheets, laser-cut stainless steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. Tweezers and needle-nose pliers essential. Bare steel finish on a stand.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e The rider in the family who has run out of things to polish.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eICONX premium series | Laser-cut steel | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772510773400,"sku":null,"price":54.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/FCICX-KNICONX-KawasakiNinja_front.png?v=1788239240"},{"product_id":"iconx-black-pearl-black-version","title":"ICONX: Black Pearl (Black Version)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe same ship as the standard kit, in the only colour the name actually permits.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe bare steel version of this galleon is handsome but silver, which is a slightly awkward outcome for a vessel whose entire identity is being black. This is the ICONX treatment: larger sheets, more parts, finer detail, and a black finish that finally matches the subject. Three masts under full sail, a stern castle carrying most of the decoration, and rigging rendered as fine cut steel rather than thread.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBe realistic about the time. The three masts each carry yards and standing rigging that all has to line up, and a galleon that leans is a galleon you will keep looking at. Laser-cut steel, tab-and-slot assembly, no glue or paint. Tweezers and needle-nose pliers essential. One of the more demanding builds in the range and one of the best finished results.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Somebody who has already built a small kit and asked what the difficult ones are like.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eICONX premium series | Laser-cut steel | Black finish | No glue required | Age 14+\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49772510838936,"sku":null,"price":49.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/Screenshot2026-08-31at9.38.48pm.png?v=1788176343"},{"product_id":"metal-earth-tool-kit","title":"Metal Earth: Tool Kit","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe three tools every Metal Earth instruction sheet quietly assumes you already own.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMetal Earth kits arrive as flat etched steel sheets, and about ten minutes into the first one most people reach the same conclusion: fingernails are not the tool for this job. The tabs are a couple of millimetres wide and they need to be bent, twisted and pulled tight. This is the official three-piece set for doing exactly that.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eClipper\u003c\/strong\u003e — cuts pieces cleanly off the steel sheet, so you stop bending each part back and forth until it fatigues free.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFlat nose pliers\u003c\/strong\u003e — hold parts securely and pull tabs tight when you twist a connection closed.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNeedle nose pliers\u003c\/strong\u003e — same job, plus bending and twisting in the places the flat nose simply will not reach.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt is the difference between a model that looks assembled and one that looks finished. Works with every kit in the \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/metal-earth\"\u003eMetal Earth range\u003c\/a\u003e, from the small single-sheet builds to the Premium series.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePerfect for:\u003c\/strong\u003e Anyone halfway through their first kit who has just realised what they have got themselves into.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e3 pieces | Age 14+ | Item MMT001\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Metal Earth","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49808547414168,"sku":null,"price":29.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0772\/8381\/9672\/files\/0004964_tool-kit_1200.png?v=1788482382"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.cartellgames.com.au\/collections\/metal-earth.oembed","provider":"Cartell Games","version":"1.0","type":"link"}