Friends,
I have decided it’s time to make a few changes to the way I run TMD. Don’t worry, I am not going anywhere! I’m just going to start taking things at a little slower pace. If it helps, you are welcome to think of it as the New, ‘Geriatric’ TMD 🙂
MAJOR CHANGES ARE COMING
I am going to be making some major changes to the daily operations of TMD. For the most part, they should not affect you guys much. All you are likely to notice is that it takes me a day or two longer to ship your orders and that new products go back to being listed at the end of the month. Otherwise, you shouldn’t see much in the wau of a change. However, for those who are interested, I will probably post them in a JOE’S CORNER post. So, if you are interested, watch for that post here on the blog page as I will not be posting it on our FaceBook page.
M10/ACHILLES PRE-ORDERS
I managed to finish the M10/Achilles driver’s compartment molds. I poured them Thursday afternoon, and they should be on line by the end of the day today. I’ll get Dave to post pictures of the molds on our FaceBook page later. When I can post again, Sunday, I’ll show you the build-up. If all goes well, the pre-orders will start shipping Monday. I made molds to pour 5 kits at a time and, if I am diligent, I can cycle them 3 times a day for 15 kits a day. Please keep in mind that new kits always start out slow, so it will take time before I am shipping at a normal rate. Still, even with 15 kits a day, it will take until next week to fill all my pre-orders. So, be patient just a little longer.
SHIPPING DELAYS
Shipping is still very slow — even inside the U.S.. I have no control over this. I try to make sure all of you get an email from Stamps.com with shipping confirmation and tracking information. Please look for those emails. Check your SPAM filter and change your settings if necessary. It doesn’t do any good to keep asking me where your order is because I can’t tell you any more than that tracking number can, and it is starting to REALLY slow things down having to keep telling people this. I know it’s rude of me to say it this way, but this is the world in which we now live. My advice to all of you is to get used to slow mail. The way things were before COVID-19 is a thing of the past. I do not expect them to come back. In fact, I expect things to get worse. Let’s just hope I’m wrong. Until then, just plan for slow shipping, and realize it is not Joe causing the delay.
OUTSTANDING ORDERS
As I write this Thursday evening, I have 2 non-M10 orders in house, and I fully expect to ship them by tomorrow afternoon. Otherwise, everything else is waiting on the M10 driver’s sets.
NEW RELEASES
I will get back to making new products and releasing the rest of Karl’s new goodies next week. Stay tuned.
ON THE BENCH
Once I get back to the bench, I plan to finish the fighting compartment/turret set for the M10. After that, I will get back on the German armored cars. I am not leaving my wing man! In this case, that means I am going to stick to my plan for a change, and I will finish those armored cars.
KARL VAN SWEDEN
I have not spoken to Karl since last week, so I don’t know what he’s doing. However, I do know he has the new RFM M4A3 Sherman kits, so you can imagine what has his attention right now 😉
THE SHOP
The shop is a wreck again, so don’t ask.
THE OFFICE
Office? What’s an office?
THAT IS ALL
OK, that’s all I have for now. So, until next time, please stay safe and take care of your loved ones. If you can, try to build something (preferably something using TMD resin).
Joe