I’m going to have to scrap the Avenger I was trying to build. I was doing the Atlantic scheme. The kit was Italeri, a brand up until now I have not had a problem with. In fact I was very impressed with the Puma armored car by them. The intructions were the worst by far I have seen and were essentially useless. There were fit issues from the beginning but I managed to overcome them until the canopy. it doesn’t come even close to fitting. That with the other flaws has me ready to scrap it. I have two more, one by Hobby Boss and the other is Accurate Miniatures. Any insights as to which is the easier build? I need a few of them right now.
I cant help you there but I also have had disappointments with Italeri. Maybe it was my fault but I bought a set that was tank traps and infantry obstacles, showed a bunch of barbed wire setups on the box, nothing for barbed wire, just the wood rigging.
The worst kit I encounter is from old Airfix series.
And it is the reason why Airfix loses their dominance to Japan and China kit maker …
Strange… I thought the Italeri 1/48th offering was a rebox of the AM kit… ??
As did I[:^)]
As for the above comment about Airfix kits:
Yes, Airfix had some real dogs in the range (their Boulton Paul Defiant is particularly nasty) but they also had quite a few diamonds in the rough too.
Their 1/72 Fokker F-27 which was recently rereleased was originally issued in the late 1950s or early 1960s. In spite of it’s age, it’s still a much more accurate rendition of the aircraft than the later kit made by Esci.
Oddly enough, Airfix’s 1950’s vintage Beaufighter Mk.X is still the most readily available 1/72 scale kit of this historically significant aircraft. Calling it a dog (as it is by today’s standards) would be polite.
Hasegawa has an excellent rendition which unfortunately sees the light of day infrequently and Revell’s (ex Matchbox) re-release is an oddball Mx.X version with the radar nose and fin fillet.
There are some Airfix kits which are unlikely to be re-made by other manufacturers (eg. Sunderland, Stirling to name a few) and are the only available kits of their type in 1/72 .
Oh, Man!! The worst kit…ever?
Probably ANYTHING from Mach 2…ARGH!!!
I have, in my stash, the 1/72nd Mach 2 DC-4…and all I can say is…what a massive, mutant pile of rubbish it is.
And that’s not entirely being fair to rubbish…
The clear parts, the landing gear, the engines, the tires…oh, jeez, the tires…and don’t get me started on the props!!!
Regrettably, it’s a contract build…so it HAS to be done…my brain hurts.
If you mean Italeri’s 1:48 TBM/TBF avenger i would strongly disagree as it is indeed the reboxed Accurate Miniatures kit (using the same instructions but without the text).
Many regard this as the finest Avenger outthere altough i do agree that the instructions made building the kit challenging at times.
Crappiest models i have built would be the 1:48 Dragon FW190A8 or their 1:72 P38J…
Just my humble contribution
Richard
Worst kits I have ever encountered were the Merlin range. Most parts had more flash on them than part, with poor mold alignment and horrible fit. Building the kits involved more making new parts than using kit parts.
Maybe there was some warpage, the wings were a little off and the fuselage took some filling but… I will look at what you guys are saying. I heard AM was the best Avenger. If so I think I’ll be going Hobby Boss.
Absolutely! That AM now being boxed by Italeri is without doubt the finest Avenger I’ve built. Have seen it win at many a contest too. Now you want to build a DOG try building something from KiTECH. I picked up a few at a going out of business saw at a local chain toy store (KayBee I think it was). That kit is crap.
I’ve seen the Hobby Boss kit, but never owned one. The A.M. kit is very good, and may be their best kit
gary
The Italeri avenger IS the Accurate Miniatures reboxed, only missing the depth charges. [I have both]
this is the Italeri one here: 
one of the nicest kits I have built, [http://onetofortyeight.com/post.cfm/avenger]
the worst would have to be :
- Hobbycraft AR234
-Miniart P-38
both of those wound up in the bin.
Being that the Italeri kit is nothing more than a rebox of the Accurate kit, I would suggest the real culprit is the instructions. The kits from Accurate that I have built so far ( Sturmovik and Mustang) both require that the instructions be read as well as looked at. They have little bits of information that the builder needs in order to make the kit work/build right. If Italeri left out all those bits of advice in favor of their multi language format, they did a big disservice to the buyer/builder.
i have never really come across a bad kit as my purchases are based on research for the best models i have had model faliures but they were largely due to human error!
yes! that is true - the italeri instructions are copies of the AM instructions… and I agree - yes the AM instructions need to be read as some of the steps are not illustrated. Also - there is an update to the avenger instructions on the AM site that needs to be read.
I don’t know what happened. The canopy did not even come close to fitting. The AM kits I have built were very nice so I am saddened at the particular kit I purchased. Eventually I’ll give the AM a try but for that plane i will try the HB first. I pulled out the old Revell P-47D and started it yesterday. So foar and knoock on wood, no issues at all.
The worst kit I have ever seen is the 1/48 Czech Model Me 263 A-1
I don’t build a lot of aircraft but have only heard good things about Accurate Miniatures.
Maybe your avenger was warped or something heavy on top of the box bent some pieces.
Anyway, worst kit I have built was the Italeri/Esci 1/48 G.91 Gina. I grew tired of using putty for seams, holes, sink marks… But it had great decals and nice rocket launchers.
Oh, and one time I used 1/72 missiles from a weapons kit by Stream and let’s just say that trimming and filling vynil is a pain in the neck. Especially when it’s hard to tell flash from the actual part [:@]