I think the reason for no firm ship date is because SMC doesn't know for sure when they will come in. He has to rely on a factory in China to get it right and ship. There have been a few times where they are ready to ship a batch and found an issue setting the date back.

If you look at so many rc companies that are putting a new ESC or car on the market and it gets delayed, everyone's panties get tied up in a bunch so I wouldn't give a firm date either.
Kinda damned if you do and damned if you don't.

You can always pick up a reedy race pack for 2x the price and get it right now, or if you are not in a rush you can buy SMC's race pack with same or better quality and performance.