whats the quality of revell and monogram?

I have a pro modeler of the ta154a moskito and from what I have seen of it,it is good.I also know from putting together those big 48scale kits of Monogram that they were of good quaity and I enjoyed putting them together.But now revell has taken over the old mongram kits that you asked about will be scraped from the revell kits(no insides)So if you can get your hands on the older monogram kits,do so and enjoy putting them together.Digger
p.s.the old monogram kits will have the monogram incon on them.

I built 3 Monogram twins (B-25, A-26 and C-47) for a museum display. That the kits were promised and paid for was the only reason they saw the light of day. Very poor fit at every seam.

Are they still in business?? Here I thought Tamiya and Trumpeter took over!! Oh well...soon....very soon!!!

The reality of it is that while one day years ago, Revell and Monogram were the standard by which all others were judged. Today the Best are generally considered to be:
Tamiya
Hasewaga
and Trumpeter
Generally, (but not always) in that order.

I built the 1/72 B-36 Peacemaker years ago in Monogram boxing, I understand the more recent Revell Germany rebox has it pretty much unchanged.

I'd say it needs work because straight from the box is not an option with it. It does have a piece of plastic designed to be a supporting structure for the hefty wings, but its nowhere near strong enough for the job. If I had it to do again, I'd use that piece as a template and make a duplicate of it out of some sort of hardwood to do the job. The wings fell off of mine after a year or so due to their own weight.

It also has raised panel lines, and thats a lot of rescribing if you don't like em raised.

The parts junctions are also huge, the fuselage is split vertically in two halves and requires several superglueing sessions and a lot of tape or rubber bands to get the job done right. getting the wings together is equally time consiming and troublesome.

If I had the chance to do a B-36 again, I'd probably be just as happy with the Hobbycraft/Academy 1/144 scale one.

From what I've seen these days, some of the best stuff that comes in Revell packaging is the stuff produced by Revell Germany on their own or the ProModeler series stuff.

if you are looking for kits to practice your skill on and not spend the big money revell/monogram are it. they have fit probs, no interior detail, and raised panel lines. where i live walmart is the only game in town.(for now) they sell revell/monogram. i am now putting together three revell/monogram kits, f4f, me109, and a p-40 (revell is it in 1/48 until the trumpeter kit is available). each has fit probs, raised panel lines, and no interior detail. the f4f only has the pilot, the p-40 had a pilot and the instument panel. with both putty was the tool of choice. the me109 had a cockpit but i chose to put pe in it also. the detail in the pit was not very good. my eldest son has the p-47 from revell and it seems to have good detail for the pit. the fit is still in question. the f4f i will have to either go aftermarket or try scratchbuilding the landing gear because the supplied is horrible.

just my experience with revell/monogram.

joe

Alot of their aircraft are older tools and a bit long in the tooth, but most of their auto kits are quite nice.
Lee

Am building Revell's Apachi attack helicopter right now. Fit is so-so, instructions poor! Built the Revell/Germany S-100 attack boat 1/72 and that was wonderful. After Tamiya, anything else can be a let-down. Always loved the early Monogram Nay stuff.

I'm building the Revell (ex Monogram) B-25. I built this kit 22 yrs ago and I tell you, the new one is worth no more than $12. Twice as much flash, soft plastic, and it seems they shrunk the narcells to 3/4 scale of the wing. You will need the economy tube of Spot Glaze for this kit.

This is the thrird Revell (ex Monogram) kit I built this year. IMHO, they better not go up in price. The craftmanship is about half of what it use to be. But they are still great for a fast build and if you don't want to mortgage the house.


Scott

Revell was the benchmark for quality when I was young but times have changed. Although I still like Revell-Germany-not the best but pretty good.

The best Revell has to offer these days are the 1:72 tanks.. Other than that I wouldn't touch 'em with a bargepole. The really, really good kits probably aren't their own, just reboxes. I know their 1:48 F4 Phantom is actually the Hasegawa one. That one is worth handing over some sheckles..

Monogram has to me a better quaity on there kits then Revell.The fittigs were better along with detail and flash was rare.Revell on the other hand is production at any cost,this is what sadden me when Revell bought out Monogram.Monogram would manufacture the planes in 48 scale that others would not un till now.Digger

Looks like I'll be one of the few who will stick up for Monogram and Revell. I've built many of their kits and have never had any problem that couldn't be overcome with basic modeling skills. I agree with most of what everyone above had to say about Tamiya, Hasegawa and others being up there in quality but there is absolutely nothing wrong with a Monogram nor Revell kit. Yes there's the "issue" of raised panel lines but it's only a problem if you, the builder. don't like it. If it's not a major stumbling block for you then there is no problem. So it's all a matter of perspective really. I've also built the B-36. I finished it about a month ago. Yes it is a big plane which makes for a big model. With big models you're going to have long seams. That's all there is to it. If you want a small model with small seams then build a small model. But if you're going to build a 1/72 scale B-36 then you're going to have to use techniques which are appropriate for such a situation. I built my first B-36 when I was 10 years old. I had it for 12 years and the wings never came off.

It can easily be said that Revel and Monogram have given us kits that no other manufacturer has given us and vice versa. I still haven't seen a 1/48 B-17, B-26, B-25, C-47, B-24, P-61 nor B-58 offered by Tamiya, Hasegawa nor Trumpeter. I think it would be neat if they came out with one but until then I will continue to buy these great Monogram and Revell kits over and over again with a smile on my face.

Every manufacturer has its fit and detail problems. It just seems to me that Monogram and Revell are being unfairly dumped on. The Pro-Modeler F-84 has more accurate shapes and dimensions that the Tamiya kit. I'm sure the Tamiya version is an absolute dream to build but I went with the Pro-Modeler because I wanted a more accurate final product.

Just my two cents.

Eric

Well, I'm not really "dumping" on them, just relating my particular experience with one of their big bomber kits.

Revell Monogram do have certain things going in their favour, one of those things is that from standpoints of affordability, popular subject matter and sheer longevity as a brand in the hobby; they are very accesible to many modelers from beginner all the way to master.

I remember when, if you wanted a 1/48 F-14 Tomcat, the Monogram kit was it, no one else made one at the time it was new. I remember when they released it in full colour VF-111 "Sundowners" markings. Man, did that thing stand out on my shelf! I've heard people dumping on that kit, and yes it's easy to do with Hasegawa and Tamiya Tomcats prowling the hobby shop shelves with their sharp recessed panel lines and framing quality box artwork and price tags easily double the Monogram kit's cost; but I have many happy memories of that Tomcat from Monogram.

The Memory that really sticks out is the cockpit. It was unbelievably detailed for a kit at the time, gorgeous relief detail on the consoles, beautiful multi piece ejection seats...

My very first kit was a Monogram SnapFast 1/72 F-4 Phantom that I built when I was seven years old (I hit 32 this coming August) I "flew" many missions in the living room with that Phantom and exucuted manuevers with it that would probably make a pilot of a real Phantom air sick :-) Well, I brought her in for one too many hard landings when I was 10, but that was O.K. I'd built my first model and had a blast with it beyond the building of it.

I can't fairly dump on them, but I concede that if you've got the money, you can do better. If you don't. it's good to know they're there so you can still have access to the hobby.

everything is relative to the person and the situation. i am working on a difficult fitting p-40b, and a moderatly difficult f4f build. both are revell and niether has any interior detail. i am also working on a mess. 109g which has a decent fit and decent interior detail. my past experience with revell has been less than ideal. however my two boys are building revell kits, one a p-47 the other a f-15, both have decent interior detail and look like they are going together pretty well. if given a choice on mfg's i would not choose revell kits. my feeling is that if i wanted to scratchbuild the parts i needed i would have bought a vacuform kit. again everything is relative you shop where you shop for your reasons, you buy what you buy for your reasons. i do feel the revell kits will serve the purpose intended, to work on my building skills and improvising techniques. i am learning with every kit, this is the reason i have bought these kits.

joe

Oh man that P-40 was a pain! I still have memories of that! LOL! It was one of the few models I ever got frustrated with (or should I say I didn't have the patience nor the tallent to work on it successfully?) and I actually threw it away in frustration. I agree that they have put out some less than stellar kits but by and large they do have some good ones out there. It sounds like we've lived parallel lives. I remember my snap-tite F-4 AND I loved my VF-111 Sundowners Tomcat! The cockpit and pilot had great detail!

I was just thinking of something as I was reading all the responses. Isn't it funny that we can use these kits which do need a little more filler and sanding than most to hone our skills? We then acquire these great modeling skills and what do we do? Plunk down the extra money to but a Tamiya kits which needs no filler and extra work? LOL! See what I'm mean? Why do we do it to ourselves? Why do we get the not so great kits and then "graduate" to the trouble-free kits? Shouldn't we be doing it the other way around? I just thought it was interesting.

Take care,

Eric

now that you mention it, it is kind of backwards isnt it. i want to work on my skills so that i can build better kits. hadnt thought of it like that before.

joe

Maybe it's our way of rewarding ourselves after putting up with the Monogram P-40s of the world. Ha-ha-ha!

true true

joe

All the old big Monogram kits got raised panel lines and don't fit as well as the newer Asian kits. Overall the Monogram kits have good accuracy.

How could the P-40 kit get the best of you? Did you try to scratch build an interior and landing gear well for it?

not sure if the question was for me but i took the easy way out and bought an interior resin kit. the gear well will have to do. this solved one problem and i may be able to live with the other.

joe

How did the P-40 kit get the best of me? Easy! I tried to match wits with it and I lost! LOL! I think for me it was just a combination of a lot of things. My kit suffered from bad warps, the pilot was attrocious, wing-to-fuse joint was something to cry over...yes I know all these are easily correctable but at the time I just didn't feel like dealing with it. I really like the sound of that aftermarket cockpit! I love working on cockpits (unlike when I was a kid and couldn't stand them!) and if I had known at the time that there was an aftermarket kit then maybe I would have kept it. I must have been in one of those moods where I just didn't feel like dealing with it. Funny. There have been other kits with worse issues that I stuck with and finished. You learn something new with each of life's experiences I guess.

Best wishes,

Eric

I built quite a few of the monogram modern planes such as the old f-14s and such. I didn't find them the best. The one thing I really don't like is the fact that they have raised panel lines. That will be a huge problem when it comes to rebuilding these models, as I'm planing to do. They were all learning models for me, so I guess maybe that's not the best way to judge, but I had fun with them. They are definitely not perfect, not nearly so, but the price of the kits is not bad. They'll definitely require more work than tamiya. I don't know anything about hasegawa, as I've never built anything from them.

DO NOT BY REVELL's SKILL LEVEL 2 KITS. I'm warning you, I tried the 1/48 P-40 and F-15 and the wing halves or the fuselage halves dont even fit to together.
BUY AT OWN RISK shound be printed on the box

Nice to see that Airfix isn't getting dumped on for once! Most of the problems we have with these kits is age related. The age of the kit, I mean. Modelling technology has come on in leaps & bounds, some of those Monogram kits are 30 years old, as are a lot of Airfix kits. the Tamiya ones may only be 5 years old or less. I built the Monogram Mosquito recently, designed in 1965. Whoever worked out the scale sizes must have been on drugs, bits of it varied between 1/45th & 1/55th. Compared with the Airfix Mossie, designed in 1985, it was hopeless.
But I persevered, scratchbuilt & filled & it was a great challenge, the end result was worth it. Compared to the Tamiya kit, they're probably both hopeless, but I don't like Tamiya prices, so I struggle on, but I enjoy that more than a shake n bake kit!
As for why do we buy them, develop our skills, then go onto easy kits. Remember your first few cars? were you forever fixing them? I was, nowadays I can afford a decent car, & if it goes wrong it goes off to get fixed. So the answer is probably, Money!
Pete

I haven't built any Monogram kits in a long while, at least 15 years, however I have built a number of Revell Germany kits recently, and have been very impressed with the quality.

I am also working on a couple of Dragon kits, one reboxed by Revell, the other by Italeri, and both have required a large amount of corrective work, to get things like fusalage to wing joints to look right.

For the money, I have no issues with Revell, as their 1/72 190 retails at £4.00, while the Hasegawa version costs £7.50, with Tamiya coming in at £10.00.! The irony is the Revell kit is newer, and IMHO better!

If there weren't kits with construction issues out there we would never develop any skills other than glueing and painting!

Karl

QUOTE: Originally posted by KJ200 I If there weren't kits with construction issues out there we would never develop any skills other than glueing and painting! Karl

point well taken.

joe

Revell Germany is among the best.. Monogram was a leader and still is the best "Bang for the buck" Most of the younger modelers who responded poorly to this question want "Shake the Box" models that take no imagination or added challenge to build. They like many of my peers are spoiled by overpriced & overrefined models.. I have much more appreciation for the Older kits at shows and they do affect my judgement when I Judge at shows... Hasagawa has been over rated and overpriced.. Their 1/72 P51 B is a prime example...Monogram's 40 year old 1/72 P 51B is a much better kit...Go figure.. I wonder how many of todays builders would stay in the hobby with only Frog, Monogram Revell, Airfix and Heller kits to build??? Or a real treat like Aurora, and Hawk kits....

you make a good point butchy. again everything is relative, if i had started out with only those kits that had terrific fit and awesome detail i would think revell/monogram and the like were garbage in a box. the overall of a revell/monogram kit is very subject specific. my oldest boy has just glued the halves together on his revell p-47 and it looks good without filler. my youngest boy put the revell f-15 together and the kit seems to have fit probs (though not as many as the p-40). both actually look good and will make good first a/c builds for them. my revell 109g has a good look and required very little filler.

joe