Can You Get a Plastic Model with Furusato Tax Payment?　Why Micro Ace (Arii Seisakusho) is making plastic models of the steam locomotive in front of Shimbashi Station [Hobby Industry Inside No.69

Micro Ace may not ring a bell unless you are a modeling fan, but you may remember the company name Arii.　Yes, the current name of Arii, the model manufacturer that made a big hit in the 1980s with its plastic models of "The Super Dimension Fortress Macross," is Micro Ace.
In recent years, Micro Ace has been focusing on model trains, and they are now releasing a 1/50 scale plastic model of the steam locomotive displayed in front of JR Shimbashi Station as "Shimbashi Station C11 292. Why are they making a plastic model of the locomotive in front of Shimbashi Station now?　The key factors seem to be the location of MicroAce, Warabi City, Saitama Prefecture, and the timing of Arii Manufacturing's 60th anniversary.
We interviewed Mr. Toshiyuki Arii, Representative Director of MicroAce, and Mr. Yoshitaka Fukushima of the Planning Department.

MicroAce?　Not Arii?　I asked which is the company name!

─ ─ First of all, please tell us about the company name. The company building has both "Arii Seisakusho" and "MicroAce" written on it, doesn't it?

Arii: MicroAce is a wholly owned subsidiary of Arii Seisakusho. Originally, there was a model railroad manufacturer called "Shinano Micro. When Shinano Micro went bankrupt, we decided to take over and manufacture various items, but the name "Shinano Micro" was selling well, so we wanted to preserve the name somehow. So we removed the "Shinano" and read the initial "A" of "Alii" as "Ace" and decided on "Micro Ace".

Fukushima: We spun off and changed the company name in 2004. The new packages are now printed as "Micro Ace", but there are many products that still have the "Arii" logo printed on them. The reason for this is that they are very easy to get to. Perhaps because of its good reputation, many retailers and wholesalers call us "Arii", especially for plastic models, even after the company name change. Even within Arii, the division of railroad models such as N-gauge is called "Micro Ace".

I see. When I think of Arii in my generation, plastic models of "The Super Dimension Fortress Macross" that were developed from 1982 come to mind.

Arii: I was approached by Imai (Imai Kagaku) about the "Macross" plastic models. Imai went bankrupt, and we were rivals, so to speak. However, if the two companies developed the models jointly, the cost of advertising and other expenses could be cut in half. The "Macross" program was provided by Imai and Arii, and I think it was written in alternation every week. The "Macross" plastic models sold very well. It wasn't a hamper, because we were producing them 24 hours a day.

In the 80's, plastic models of anime other than "Macross" also sold very well. Nowadays, the birthrate is declining and children are more interested in games than plastic models. The only people buying plastic models are adults (laughs).

─ ─ Under the name Micro Ace, you are known for the "Owner's Club," a 1/32 scale plastic model of old Japanese cars, aren't you? It is a difficult series to assemble, but it is inexpensive, so it is easy to buy.

Fukushima: The molds are old, so it may be difficult to build, but the number of parts is small, and this series is suitable for modeling with relaxed shoulders. The modeling can look good even with just a little coloring and gloss, or it can be done by a veteran modeler with a lot of skill. The 1/32 Owner's Club is a plastic model that can be enjoyed in any way.

Arii: Older Japanese cars such as the Auto-Tricycle and Crown are not well documented, so it will be difficult to make new plastic models of them in the future. However, we have a lot of molds.

─ ─ The molds for the Owners Club are made by LS, but it is also a characteristic of Micro Ace, or rather Arii, to produce plastic models using old molds from other companies.

Arii: Our company was founded in Itabashi Ward, Tokyo in 1963 as an injection molding business, and for about 10 years we molded plastic models for Crown, Otaki, Nitto, Oriental Model, and others as a subcontractor, but eventually Oriental Model said, "We have no successor, Arii-san, Oriental Model said to me, "We have no successor, so you should become a manufacturer instead of just a subcontractor. I was worried that if I became a manufacturer, I would not be able to take on work from other companies, but I took over Oriental Model's molds and started my own business as a manufacturer. As we increased the number of molding machines from one to two or three, we outgrew our facilities and moved to Warabi City, Saitama Prefecture. In those days, plastic models sold very well.