Global Scale Modeller

As i'm new to modelling i was wondering who does the best detail kits or are they all basically the same, i bought myself a few kits..Tamiya 1/35 88mm Gun flak 36/37, Dragon Pz.Kpfw.iv Ausf.F2 (G) About 6 in all just Tamiya and Dragon not sure about the other model manufacturers, didn't realize there was so many companies and is there any i should avoid because i'm new to modelling...your thoughts please..Thanks

Anything Airfix pre 1995, most of Italeri and most definitely Zvezda (shudders)....

I'd not say there is any one manufacturer to avoid (but do not attempt an A-model until you are ready for a fight)

each manufacturer has good kits and each has bad. Lee said avoid Zvezda, I have never done any of their armour but their Bf109F is a good kit. Likewise, some of the new Revell kits are really nice for the price but some of their 'new' kits are just someone elses reboxed old tools.

If you do a little research on a kit before buying you can find which is a good/bad kit. to start with just ask on here.

I would agree with lee on the airfix. But unfortunately all the manufacturers have certain kits that cause problems. I have had terrible kits from trumpeter, tamiya, zvesda and dragon too. Reboxing of older kits by manufacturers causes issues as well. I would suggest research your larger purchases so you don't get burned. Having a smart phone in the shop to search for reviews has saved me from some really bad decisions.

That being said, I would say that if you do get a kit with problems (Airfix pre 1995, earlier Revell, Zvezda) it will give you the opportunity to practice your model making skills, e.g. filling, sanding, cleaning up flash and getting the best possible result from a bad kit.

The other thing to remember is that the older kits tend to be cheaper, so if you look at them with a open mind as practice kits that can be scrapped if neccesssary. Whichever way you go I'm sure that you will have fun mate.

I try to look for it on http://www.model-making.eu/ as they usually have sprue shots and instructions. gives you an idea about the detail level at least.

Thanks for the advice lads, Daishi12 i understand what you mean, but i'm afraid i would end up throwing it against the wall and jumping on it several times lol maybe later on if or when i get better. Do the research on each model before buying is a very good idea, i never did that, and i have a smart phone with a stupid person operating it. Will try and find reviews on youtube before i buy. Thanks again people yous are great help

junglelands wrote:Thanks for the advice lads, Daishi12 i understand what you mean, but i'm afraid i would end up throwing it against the wall and jumping on it several times lol maybe later on if or when i get better. Do the research on each model before buying is a very good idea, i never did that, and i have a smart phone with a stupid person operating it. Will try and find reviews on youtube before i buy. Thanks again people yous are great help

Is there one specific model you are thinking of right now?

I was looking at this model Marder III Ausf.M really want to do it, i have a couple of dragon models to keep me going for awhile. Seen that Marder by a few different manufacturers and just wasn't sure which one to buy, think i'll go for the Dragon one just to be on the safe side...Thanks mate

You could have a check on some of these. Click on the image if you want more details.

http://www.scalemates.com/search.php?se ... t=&period=

I dont like Heller models, but that's just me. (and old italeri kits are awful)

I don´t understand why everyone mentiones Zvezda, sure their older kits are crap (at least some of them) but have you seen their latest kits? Most of them are exquisit and also affordable. I want to mention first of all their BMW R12 motorbike and also their T-90 and Bf109 F-2.
I don´t think you can name the common manufacturers here as few of them produce bad kits whenever they release something new(tooled).
Companies like Bilek reboxed very old kits from Italeri, but even their most recent own developments look promising.
Sure, some of the short-run manufacturers like ACE, PM and what not can turn the model builder into a discouraged person, but you don´t pick these by accident i think.
So, in the end, it all comes more or less down to "which old kits i should avoid?", in this case i recommend to check kit and building reviews on the internet first and then buy the kit just to be sure.

I second what HamilkarBarkas said, all manafacturers have worse kits generally their older ones. No one manufacturer stands out as awful.
Zvezda's Pe-8 is beautiful and one of my favourite kits in terms of quality, Airfix's new stuff is good too so really its all a mixed bag.
Personally I don't mind building kits that aren't so good but the internet is full of reviews and sprue shots for you too check

Johni044 wrote:You could have a check on some of these. Click on the image if you want more details.

http://www.scalemates.com/search.php?se ... t=&period=

Brilliant site Johni that's the kind of site i could spend hours on just brilliant...Thanks everyone for the great advice i see the love of model building in all your replys yous are a very passionate bunch of people...Thanks to Hamilkar Barkas i'm a big fan of your work, your video for painting figures is just brilliant for beginners like me, I have watched most of your videos. I sound like woman out of Stephen King's film "Misery" lol...HobbyModeller that is one hell of a Portfolio, love your Revell 1/72 Panzer III i can't get close to that with 1/35 model nevermind a 1/72..Thanks again lads your advice is greatly appreciated yous have made modelling a lot easier for me and motivated me to do my model better...Big Thanks i know i can count on yous for help..

I started modeling (again) over Christmas break and have bought a fair number of kits since then. I think 7 dragon, 2 Tamiya and one old Italeri. The lesson I learned was old kits in general are dicey. The old imperial Dragon kits are equivalent the 90's Tamiya stuff. I do feel that any of the recent toolings of Dragon's since around 05 and since are fantastic.

Research the individual kit, simple. All manufacturers have good and bad kits, regardless of age.

The recent Revell stuff is pretty good, but generally you should read reviews. Some of their stuff is absolutely awesome while others are just awful.

Tamiya and Hasegawa on average are top quality but they also have a few hot garbage kits. Also look out for when they rebox an older kit and still charge a relatively higher price for it.

In my experience, the only manufacturer to stay away from is Minicraft. Nearly stroked out trying to put together their stuff.

The Japanese brands are fairly solid across the board - Aoshima, Bandai, Finemolds, Tamiya or Hasegawa. They focus a lot on the precision to make kits fit together nicely. Just be careful as the like to make a tiny alteration and try to sell it to you as a completely different kit. Just make sure that's the one you really want and don't impulse buy.

All model manufacturer's have had to improve the tooling of the kit,s they produce in the last five year,s, so any new kit,s are going to be good. Anything pre 1995 avoid. The thing that really get's my back up are companie's who re-issue rubbish old kit's in new box's and under the disguise of " upgraded mould's". I think it is unfair to label Zvezda new stuff as bad, build one of their T-90,s or Me 109's, you may need to think again. The main protaganist's of bad kit,s has to be Airfix , but when they were turning out kit,s in there million,s there wasn't that much competition so now they have had to improve and so have all the other companies,s. research and review a kit before you buy it is the best advice I can give, kit,s are far to pricey nowaday's to keep buying ' duffun's.