Quality of kits

Hi all, I'm not a professional modeller by any means, but I attempted the Airfix

1:24 Spitfire and found it to be generally ill fitting - especially Fuselage to wings and the landing gear. I was very careful when assembling the model, all pieces were cleared of sprue and flash before assembly. When I was a tad younger, Airfix were the best! Nowadays upon reading these posts I see names like Trumpeteer an Revell. Are these the best, most accurate kits to buy? Am I wrong in saying airfix have slipped over the years?
Reply to
Ian Symonds
Loading thread data ...

I guess not as their 1/24 Spitfire came out in, what, 1975 or so? Guys?

It's possible that the mold has gotten a bit long in the tooth.

Tom

Reply to
Maiesm72

That 1/24 Spitfire has been around for awhile. I bought one in Singapore 20 years ago (still unbuilt) and it looks pretty rough. I don't think 'newer' repops are going to be any cleaner.

With one or two new releases every few years, I think it's fair to say that Airfix ain't what it used to be. Then again, what it used to be was one of four or five major producers. What they do that's new compares well with other manufacturers. A number of the older kits, like the old 1/48 Mosquito, are still worth building. But I can't think of any I've built recently where the fit was great.

Somebody must be buying those re-releases, though. The two model shops nearby still stock Airfix plastic almost exclusively.

Scott G. Welch

Reply to
OSWELCH

The kits on the shelves from long time manufacturers range from new to about 40 years old. The newer ones are generally vastly better as the market demands it, the ones pulled from ancient and worn tooling are usually worse than they were when new. It comes down to the individual kit, not manufacturer. Check www.hyperscale. com,

formatting link
formatting link
formatting link
for reviews and build articles to see what to avoid.

Tom

Reply to
Tom Hiett

Thanks guys, I fee better knowing that. Nice links too. So from what I can gather Revell and Hasegawa make large scale aircraft - particularly Spitfires.

formatting link
site had some lovely models, but no reviews of any Spitfire kits. Can anyone recommend and kits?

Reply to
Ian Symonds

I type in the manufacturer, scale and kit into Google and see what comes up. Some of the other sites I mentioned have several hundred reviews and build articles that usually give great advice. You can also get onto these website's forums and search for past discussions or post your own questions.

The job of tracking down info on kits gets complicated. A Revell kit may not really be a Revell kit. A new tool may have been made for a popular older subject. For example:

Sometimes one company makes arrangements to reissue an older kit from another manufacturer. There was an old Revell 1/32 Spitfire from the sixties but their recent issues have been a repop of a more recent Hasegawa kit. Revell and Hasegawa seem to do a lot of deals with each other. The old Spit was great for its time and some nice ones have been built from it but the new one is much better. Even it is a mixed bag- it has a newer wing with recessed panel lines but an older fuselage...

Some recent Hasegawa kits had a different variation planned from the start that was issued under the Revell name at about the same time. The recent ME 109G was one, the AR 234 (two engined for Hasegawa, four engined for Revell) another. Seems to be some cooperation between Protar and Revell AG too.

The old 1/32 Revell F4 Phantom was quite ill fitting and dreadful, but their more recent 1/32 F4 is a new tool and quite nice, usually at a fraction of the price of Tamiya's.

Trumpeter has recentlt come onthe market and has had an aggressive release scedule for large scale kits and seem to be getting better all of the time. Many are also released shortly thereafter under Hobbycraft name. Most builders held off until they saw a reveiw as early quality varied but they seem to have upped their game in the past year and will probably keep getting better.

Some kits are issued under many names over the years. Some like the Heller Porsche 917 and Ferrari 512S have made it out under five different manufacturers names.

Tom

Reply to
Tom Hiett

PolyTech Forum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.