This is posted over at LSP. Ive read the hole thing. So i’ll let you be the judge.
http://www.largescaleplanes.com/reviews/Kits/WW2/dragon/p51/p51.htm
Interesting. He gives it a thumbs up, but the other guy threw it in the trash. Very strange… Thanks for a different take on things, Rob
It seems that the reviewer made most of the same points that the other, scathing, review did. This guy just said it in a nicer way.
I’d like to build a very nice 1/32 mustang. While I’ll agree that this kit is a little disappointing with the incorrect wheel well and rivet detail I’d probably still buy it. The wheel well would be easy to fix and I’m getting better at scratch building things. The really daunting task would be to tone down that rivet and line detail, something I don’t think I’m ready to tackle. Yet.
The biggest advantage this kit has over all the others is price. If I’m going to have to put forth a huge amount of effort to make the kit what it should be then I want to start with the best kit for the lowest price and this seems to be it. Like the guy said, if Tamiya comes out with a 1/32 Mustang it will probably be just about perfect. And also about $80-$100.
http://www.clubhyper.com/forums/plasticpixframe.htm
a guy bought the kit over on hyperscale and started building it.
He pretty much trashed it too, saying the fit is pretty bad.
hmm… well he swayed me back a little bit from the other guy who trashed his kit
In all honest truth Lsp gave a better review in my opinion i mean would you throw away a kit just because of rivet and panel line issues. I just think some people are to picky. Yes the kit has some issues but they are fixable.
More polite & PC, but still not a rave review. This kit is off my wish list.
Regards, Rick
Good point. The guy in the 1st review sounded like a spoiled brat who was very upset when he didnt get his way, and his temper tantrum was to throw the kit away. I had no idea the kit was so inexpensive, so good job Dragon for making a pretty accurate, decently detailed kit with LOTS of room for scratchbuilding!
could you prime the entire model, sand it, prime it, sand it and repeat until all of the extra unnecessary rivets are gone? they didn’t look too deep, and you can always clean out/ rescribe the panel lines and the deeper rivets.
yes ive heard some people talking about spraying it with mr.surfacer to fill in the rivits and softin the panel lines.
I tend not to take the opinions of the ones that rip kits apart. I wait for real reviews from an impartial view that is a reflection of the kit itself, not someone’s view of what they think a kit should be. They are looking for perfection. Sorry, even in this day and with the technology we have, it is impossible to recreate everything perfectly, make molds- where the problem really is- and have mass produced perfect replicas that are affordable. “Affordabe” being the key here. I think the kit is great from the shots I have seen, so it needs a bit of filler, so what. Have we become so perfection driven that we can not deal with a slight fit issue? Or accept a few very minor detail imperfections? It is by far the best kit for the scale, and a great price. I’d build one.
My setaments exactly. I try not to get involved in these things but knowing the guys over at lsp i figured they would at least shime some light on the subject.
And they did [:D] His conclusions were spot on. Although it may not be perfect, and none are- he quoted the Tamiya surviving the fire storm, and it was hacked a bit for the cockpit and radiator as I recall- it is still a very well detailed and fitting kit for the cost involved. At the end of it all, it’s up to the modeler to build as they see fit.
A prime example not too long ago was the release of the two 1/32 F-16’s. One was strived as being a nearly perfect kit-fit and detail. The other was grossly inaccurate, with fit and accuracy issues. I saw the two kits built- side-by-side at a contest recently. You couldn’t tell which was from what company. They were finished in different markings, but shape wise, NO one could tell till they looked at the entry form. That is how well they were designed. Those huge shape problems that the Academy kit supposedly has were non-existent when right beside the Tamiya one. And the modeler didn’t correct any of them!
To me the fact that the propellers are completely flat with no pitch or anything is completely unacceptable. The thing that is the kit’s saving grace is its price. Any more expensive and it would be a complete rip off for the apparent lack of detail that you get.
Plus, dragon made a lame press release attempting to justify the railroad spike holes and the trenches on the surface, saying that they were made deeper on purpose so the modeler would have control over how much he wants them to show through. Total BS.
Ok so we know there are issues the kit just came out and hopfuly Jrutman and others will have some aftermarket props and other stuff. This is how i feel if you want an acurate and perfict P-51 then buy a real 1:1 sacle bird. I dont hink any model manufacure has ever got a model perfict, its only a hobby.
Sounds like an OK kit to me.
The panel lines don’t look to bad, nothing a little Mr Surfacer can’t sort out.
To my eyes, it looks like it’s in a similar mold, excuse the pun, to Hasa’s latest releases in 1/32., good solid, inexpensive kits, with room for the AM boys as well as scratchbuilders.
Karl
Ok, I couldn’t stand it anymore so I called the LHS today. Yup, they gott’em. “I’m on my way!” I says.
I’m excited about the kit! The molding and detail is outstanding. ARe the lines over done? Yup. Are the rivets over done? Yup. But you know what? This is by far the best kit of this plane in this scale I’ve ever seen. And much cheaper than the Hasegawa kit. I have some easy fixes for the lines and rivets so no big deal there. The engine is detailed a hundred times better than the more expensive Hase kit and also comes with the engine mounts and formers! With a little research and a few added hoses it’s gonna look awsome. All movable control surfaces? Oh, yeah! I spent hours on my Hase kit to make that happen.
I certainly hope the people who like to trash kits will back off on this one. Or maybe we’ll have a situation like a few years ago with Trumps 1/32 Wildcat. After all, arent we all modelers? All we need is a decent place to start, right?
This kit is a thousand times better than the old Revell B-26 I just built and I was happy with that one. This Mustang kit is a perfect place to start and just screams for even more detail made from scratch or PE. I can’t wait to get started on it and if I wern’t already commited to three group builds I’d start it tonight.
This kit just isn’t as bad as some would have us believe. I’ll be looking forward to future releases of 1/32 from Dragon.
Right on hkshooter!! Right after my hockey game tomorrow I’m going to go get one too!! It’s gonna be awsome!!
If i had $20 more dollers id pick one up to.
That and the lousy fitting cockpit, if you mount it to one side of the fuselage there seems to be a very large and totaly unacceptable gap on the other side between the cockpit floor and the other side of the fuselage, and yeah their press release WAS total BS, well here’s hoping Hasegawa re-tools their P-51, before too long.