Kit makers

[Waspie]

As you all know by now I'm a returnee to the hobby.
Are there any manufacturers of kits I should avoid. I don't want to buy one and find I have bought a bad lot. At my experience level I need easy not too challenging!!

 

[KarlW]

As you all know by now I'm a returnee to the hobby.
Are there any manufacturers of kits I should avoid. I don't want to buy one and find I have bought a bad lot. At my experience level I need easy not too challenging!!

All manufacturers have dogs and all can do great kits.
Check Scalemates, see if the kit has been sold by other manufacturers, check reviews.

 

[wasdale32]

There aren't so much "good manufacturers" and "bad manufacturers" as "good kits" and "bad kits" - even the makers of the most accurate and detailed kits on the market occasionally produce some really poor output. Obviously the quality control of larger companies like Tamiya, Meng, AFV Club etc are better than some of their competitors. Many "early" moulds aren't up to the standard of more recent ones in terms of fit and crispness so I'd look at newer product. The biggest variation seems to be in the quality of instructions.

One thing to consider is what your budget is like - maybe you'd prefer to build a few cheaper models before investing in a more complex ( read expensive ) kit.

You don't say what genre you prefer to build (armour/aircraft/ships/cars etc) so specific recommendations are difficult - but as Karl says - check out Scalemates and a few online reviews of the kits you're interested in.

 

[The Smythe Meister]

All manufacturers have dogs and all can do great kits.
Check Scalemates, see if the kit has been sold by other manufacturers, check reviews.

Karl's said it all really...
... There is no definitive.. depends on what you want from a kit,and what you're prepared to spend

 

[outrunner]

Once you decide what type of model you fancy building taking a look through the forum at old build threads will give a good idea of what the kit is like to build.

Andy.

 

[Waspie]

One thing to consider is what your budget is like - maybe you'd prefer to build a few cheaper models before investing in a more complex ( read expensive ) kit.

That was one of the main reasons I ask. I have a Rye Fields Challenger2 TES waiting to be built, but methinks it may be a bit ambitious for a second build. I was looking at something less complex, probably looking at aircraft/helicopters as that's a big part of my past.AFV's are a possibility, quite like the BV205/Viking style. Always thought them quite unique, rubber tracks that do some incredible things.
So something easy I can practice assembly and airbrushing.
Modelling has moved on since last I dabbled as a young teenager!!

 

[KarlW]

That was one of the main reasons I ask. I have a Rye Fields Challenger2 TES waiting to be built, but methinks it may be a bit ambitious for a second build. I was looking at something less complex, probably looking at aircraft/helicopters as that's a big part of my past.AFV's are a possibility, quite like the BV205/Viking style. Always thought them quite unique, rubber tracks that do some incredible things.
So something easy I can practice assembly and airbrushing.
Modelling has moved on since last I dabbled as a young teenager!!

Any Tamiya 1/48 aircraft around the £20 mark, Mk.V Spit, P-51s, Wildcat and so on. (But not their Shar.) Easy to assemble. Decals can suck though.

 

[David Lovell]

There's no such thing as a bad kit ,just some are better than others ,but as you say something to start with go tamiya pretty much all genre are shake and bake. I hate it when people talk about bad kits its not bad just not as good as some ,as you progress you'll find you only get out what your prepared to put in. If people don't want to put the time in thats fine stick with the shake and bake but don't call something bad just because you can't be bothered to go the extra needed.

 

[BarryW]

I agree with much of what’s been said. All companies have their poor kits so there are no guarantees that you can depend on the manufacturer’s reputation.

I am best qualified to comment on the quality of aircraft produced in 1/32 scale than anything else.

I rate as the very best producers in 1/32, Tamiya and Zoukei Mura based on engineering, fit, presentation and sheer enjoyment. I have not built the Kotare Spitfire, their first model, yet as I am holding out for a late version, but looking at reviews they could well join the ‘crème de la creme’.

Other very good 1/32 producers are:
HKM (getting better and better with every release).
ICM (great value for money and interesting subjects)
Trumpeter and Hobbyboss, be wary and check reviews, when good they can be very good indeed but they often have accuracy issues.

Those I am less impressed with are:
Revell - these have done some decent kits, their AR196 and new Hurricane are excellent but they can be a bit ‘shoddy’ needing a lot of cleanup and still have a long way to go to be up to many others.
Italari - similar to Revell in quality but there are some signs these are getting their act together with the Tornado and I am looking forward to their Folgore.

Some to stay away from:
Kitty Hawk - these have gone bust now but these kits can still be found. Appalling, their Bronco was the worse aircraft kit I ever attempted. Really don’t bother.
Special Hobby - these are short run kits, only get these when you have a lot of experience and if you don’t mind a lot of sanding and fettling, better these than Kitty Hawk though!

All my comments above are regarding their 1/32 aircraft kits only. The comments may not apply to other scales and subjects.

I really would suggest that you decide what subjects and scale you want to build and Google for kits in that scale and to also read reviews of those kits.

 

[Waspie]

I agree with much of what’s been said. All companies have their poor kits so there are no guarantees that you can depend on the manufacturer’s reputation.

I am best qualified to comment on the quality of aircraft produced in 1/32 scale than anything else.

I rate as the very best producers in 1/32, Tamiya and Zoukei Mura based on engineering, fit, presentation and sheer enjoyment. I have not built the Kotare Spitfire, their first model, yet as I am holding out for a late version, but looking at reviews they could well join the ‘crème de la creme’.

Other very good 1/32 producers are:
HKM (getting better and better with every release).
ICM (great value for money and interesting subjects)
Trumpeter and Hobbyboss, be wary and check reviews, when good they can be very good indeed but they often have accuracy issues.

Those I am less impressed with are:
Revell - these have done some decent kits, their AR196 and new Hurricane are excellent but they can be a bit ‘shoddy’ needing a lot of cleanup and still have a long way to go to be up to many others.
Italari - similar to Revell in quality but there are some signs these are getting their act together with the Tornado and I am looking forward to their Folgore.

Some to stay away from:
Kitty Hawk - these have gone bust now but these kits can still be found. Appalling, their Bronco was the worse aircraft kit I ever attempted. Really don’t bother.
Special Hobby - these are short run kits, only get these when you have a lot of experience and if you don’t mind a lot of sanding and fettling, better these than Kitty Hawk though!

All my comments above are regarding their 1/32 aircraft kits only. The comments may not apply to other scales and subjects.

I really would suggest that you decide what subjects and scale you want to build and Google for kits in that scale and to also read reviews of those kits.

Excellent. Just the sort of pointers I needed. When you mention the Bronco are you talking about the Rockwell OV10? Now that is one that is on my wish to build list. First saw them at a heavy repair facility in the Philippines and was impressed with their ruggedness.

 

[BarryW]

Excellent. Just the sort of pointers I needed. When you mention the Bronco are you talking about the Rockwell OV10? Now that is one that is on my wish to build list. First saw them at a heavy repair facility in the Philippines and was impressed with their ruggedness.

Yes, that’s right. The KW OV10 got just about everything wrong with it that could be wrong, instructions, fit, engineering, decals, production standards, it had nothing good about it, just the excellent subject matter. I did a build thread on here on mine, which got cut short when I decided to bin it.

I believe that ICM has produced a 1/48 Bronco recently and that should be worth a look. Found it.

1/48 OV-10 Bronco US Attack Aircraft ICM 48300 | Scale Model Shop

1/48 OV-10 Bronco US Attack Aircraft ICM 48300 Scale Model Shop, UK supplier of plastics Model kits and accessories, fast UK delivery

www.scalemodelshop.co.uk

 

[Waspie]

Yes, that’s right. The KW OV10 got just about everything wrong with it that could be wrong, instructions, fit, engineering, decals, production standards, it had nothing good about it, just the excellent subject matter. I did a build thread on here on mine, which got cut short when I decided to bin it.

I believe that ICM has produced a 1/48 Bronco recently and that should be worth a look. Found it.

1/48 OV-10 Bronco US Attack Aircraft ICM 48300 | Scale Model Shop

1/48 OV-10 Bronco US Attack Aircraft ICM 48300 Scale Model Shop, UK supplier of plastics Model kits and accessories, fast UK delivery

www.scalemodelshop.co.uk

I have that open on another tab right now. Just deciding which version. The naval side of say the navy version but the one's I saw were USMC variants. (Albeit they were all shot up having flown in from Viet Nam for repair). Very robust by the look of the damage on some.

 

[adt70hk]

Not sure if you do 1/72....but AVOID PM Models..... Some work out ok in the end with some work..... But others......

 

[AlanG]

I was going to keep out of this thread but i have to point out/cannot bite my tongue anymore, that i disagree with the above comment regarding Revell being 'shoddy'. Are they a cheaper kit to buy? Yes (No need for a bank balance of a small country to buy one). Are they less detailed than so called 'uber kits'? Yes. Do they need some clean up? Yes. But nothing too bad. Are they totally over-engineered like ZM kit? No not in the slightest.

Best thing to do is like was suggested a few posts back. Look at Scalemates for the kits you like and see if they have reviews for them. Then make a choice. Because opinions are like buttholes. Everyone has one. Some just spout more .... than others though.

 

[Waspie]

I was going to keep out of this thread but i have to point out/cannot bite my tongue anymore, that i disagree with the above comment regarding Revell being 'shoddy'. Are they a cheaper kit to buy? Yes (No need for a bank balance of a small country to buy one). Are they less detailed than so called 'uber kits'? Yes. Do they need some clean up? Yes. But nothing too bad. Are they totally over-engineered like ZM kit? No not in the slightest.

Best thing to do is like was suggested a few posts back. Look at Scalemates for the kits you like and see if they have reviews for them. Then make a choice. Because opinions are like buttholes. Everyone has one. Some just spout more .... than others though.

Thanks Alan. Know what mean about opinions!!

 

[BarryW]

I was going to keep out of this thread but i have to point out/cannot bite my tongue anymore, that i disagree with the above comment regarding Revell being 'shoddy'. Are they a cheaper kit to buy? Yes (No need for a bank balance of a small country to buy one). Are they less detailed than so called 'uber kits'? Yes. Do they need some clean up? Yes. But nothing too bad. Are they totally over-engineered like ZM kit? No not in the slightest.

Best thing to do is like was suggested a few posts back. Look at Scalemates for the kits you like and see if they have reviews for them. Then make a choice. Because opinions are like buttholes. Everyone has one. Some just spout more .... than others though.

LOL Alan. We can certainly agree to disagree over Revell. I did say they have some great kits but I absolutely stand by what I said about how they can be shoddy, look at their 1/32 Spitfire II for instance. They do not take the level of care with production, design and presentation that most other companies take.

Zoukie Mura over engineered! well let’s have a lot more of that kind of ‘over engineering’ bring it on.

As for price, indeed Revell are cheap and perhaps what I don’t like comes as a result of trying to bring kits in at such a low price. Price is one thing, value is another and value is subjective to all of us.

 

[AlanG]

Zoukie Mura over engineered! well let’s have a lot more of that kind of ‘over engineering’ bring it on.

As for price, indeed Revell are cheap and perhaps what I don’t like comes as a result of trying to bring kits in at such a low price. Price is one thing, value is another and value is subjective to all of us.

In my butthole opinion ZM kits are a pointless waste of time, money and resources. Why build so much into a kit that is going to be buttoned up never to be seen again and have the joys of paying a small fortune to do that. But it's our own money so i suppose we can all pay whatever we want to justify paying for our hobby.

As for you not liking Revell because they 'dare' to do things on the cheap. Well that cheapness has allowed my kids to buy their own kits and thus bring 'new blood' into this fine hobby. So the cheap price that allowed my children to buy their kits produced massive value to them and myself as a parent when they built them. But as you point out. It's all subjective.

Sorry to Doug for detracting from the OP. I'll now butt out of this thread

 

[flyjoe180]

Hi Doug, lots of information and opinions already provided I see.

I would add that the best 'reviews' are actual build threads. Build threads on sites like this forum provide honest opinions and can help you discover issues and solutions which may or may not influence your decision to buy a certain kit. It's easy and quick to search for builds of certain kits.

Be wary of videos in particular where the kit has probably been provided by a channel sponsor. Match the build thread with a Scalemates (or similar site) kit review. You'd be surprised how often kit reviewers bang on about no disadvantages or issues, when they haven't even built the thing. An average builder will find the kit's weak points without a doubt.

That's often how I make my kit decisions. All the best, looking forward to seeing your builds.

 

[David Lovell]

Sorry Doug, its all down down to subject matter and how far you want to go ,if the subject you want to build is only supported by lets say one manufacturer and is classed as a bad kit you'll just have to put in the extra if its what you want on the shelf.
You will find most shake and bake subjects are all the same (boring stuff)from loads of manufacturers. Things haven't changed that much if your just getting back into the hobby read instructions set out your work area remove parts as instructed and glue together just get on with it ,loads of modern products that make it easy now not that following instructions and glueing parts together has ever been hard ,dry fit dry fit ,or try twice glue once sorry pal but its a learning curve that has to be ridden.
As some of the lads have said better looking for builds on here its warts and all ,only looked at scale mates once load of up there own butt rivet counters its only their opinion of whats good or bad i still can't get my head around why people think they have that rite to condemn anything that's not shake and bake you will at the end of the day only get out what YOUR prepared to put in. As my father would have said just get on with it son it won't hurt/kill you.

 

[Waspie]

Sorry Doug, its all down down to subject matter and how far you want to go ,if the subject you want to build is only supported by lets say one manufacturer and is classed as a bad kit you'll just have to put in the extra if its what you want on the shelf.
You will find most shake and bake subjects are all the same (boring stuff)from loads of manufacturers. Things haven't changed that much if your just getting back into the hobby read instructions set out your work area remove parts as instructed and glue together just get on with it ,loads of modern products that make it easy now not that following instructions and glueing parts together has ever been hard ,dry fit dry fit ,or try twice glue once sorry pal but its a learning curve that has to be ridden.
As some of the lads have said better looking for builds on here its warts and all ,only looked at scale mates once load of up there own butt rivet counters its only their opinion of whats good or bad i still can't get my head around why people think they have that rite to condemn anything that's not shake and bake you will at the end of the day only get out what YOUR prepared to put in. As my father would have said just get on with it son it won't hurt/kill you.

I think there have been massive changes. For a start more manufacturers available than there were in the 60's & 70's!. It may be me but the plastic appears thinner. Glues have moved on, the thick polystyrene glue of yore has been replaced by thinner cements and applied by brush.