| The problem of warped parts is something that I have mentioned on numerous occasions to manufacturers,it can be avoided if proper production control is in place,but nine times out of ten it is not ! and the no-inspection procedure is used a lot in industry today on most consumer items to effectively reduce manufacturers time and costs.
So what is plastic model warp,and above all how can it be avoided at the source of manufacture ? well it is simpler than most will think but just requires a bit of care in the injection process,basically when parts are moulded they are ejected from the machines,the parts are still warm and get thrown about as they are rattled into large metal stillages away for processing into kits,the parts that are first into the stillage have the longest drop,then hot parts are constantly thrown on top of the others adding constantly to the weight build up on top,imagine a few hundredweight of plastic piled in one big heap as they settle and cool out ? well that is the scenerio,it is all about mass production,tooling is changed to make way for further batches of kits to be made,time is the essence with a sacrifice on quality.
I know this because I have seen the process working first hand,numerous machines are sometimes left working on their own whilst other jobs are attended to,so if you have warped parts do not hesitate in contacting the manufacturers for replacements,after all you paid good money for them,if they cannot be bothered with inspection then that is their own fault.
A certain German manufacturer has a very strange and annoying system and will not replace parts,you buy the kit and if something is wrong then you must take it back to the shop for replacement wholesale with your receipt,they would not get away with it in this country under the 'fit for the purpose' rules,what is even more annoying is some of the shops are not aware of this procedure ? and even pass the book to the manufacturer.
In many ways the shop is firstly responsible for customer satisfaction,if a item is warped then the shop should in effect replace the part via another kit,but this rarely happens and you end up sending for the parts with a big time delay before you can get building,tell little Johhny that sorry we cannot assemble his nice new Spitfire kit on Christmas day because either a part is missing or so badly warped that it will not fit together properly.
I have had this very thing happen,even vital missing parts in radio controlled car kits.
So whilst those manufacturers are to be applauded for replacement of parts quicky,there are many others out there that are not giving us the service we should be getting,so make it your business to complain bitterly,otherwise standards will drop even further.
__________________ 'And there I was oil on my goggles from a broken pipe,then I looked at the altimeter,all I could see was the makers name !' www.wonwinglo.scale-models.net/ |