What we modelers hate on models

Molded in tow cables.

individual linked tracks,soft detail and fragmenting decals........J.S

Lack of seat harnesses molded in aircraft kits 1/48 and larger.
Pilot figures that are molded with the seat.
mold release pin marks on clear parts.

mispreresentation &
missing parts......

Vinyl Tracks - particularly stiff ones - give me indi tracks every day
Brittle Plastic
Soft Details

Missing, incorrect, or generic detail. For example, if a detail should be visible at the scale of the kit then I expect it to be there. If panel lines are supposed to be recessed then I don't expect to see raised ones. If I look at kits of different variants of the same plane, I expect to see differences in more than just the decals and not just the same pieces used in both models.

HEY,
bad fit(but it is inevitable), bad engine compartment detail, flash, ejector pin marks, good looking spare parts with no place to put them. Great way to build up your spares box but id rather have it on the model.

Randy

Gross mistakes in overall shapes or proportions.
The details I can fix, but I don't have the skills (or the ambition) to try correct huge problems in those two areas.

All the above plus missing or inaccurate decals and poor instructions.

-poorly thought out instructions
-tamiya recommending colors that only they manufacture and that arent even close to the needed color
-ill fitting parts

and also, i think in this modern age, manufactures should include links/lists of places that they researched to be able to make a mold of the kit. later.

poor fit and not detailed instructions

If anything, poor fit, and ESPECIALLY moulded in details. Just makes the thing look like a toy.

QUOTE: Originally posted by zokissima If anything, poor fit, and ESPECIALLY moulded in details. Just makes the thing look like a toy.

like on Bombers where they have hoses and panals molded onto the fusalauge halves and its hard to paint.

Ejector pin marks on the outside of the fuselage and wings.
Lots of flash on thin details.
On ships, molded in deck details, real pain to paint and look good.
Dust.

Fragmenting or non-sticking decals, especially when they are of a type you don't have in your spares box (and
it seems like they always are ) are definitely my most hated "feature".

If the decals are from a 30-year-old Airfix or Frog kit, well, that's just one of the things you have to put up
with if you build old, second-hand kits like I do - however, there are a number of newer kits, including some produced in the last few years, which STILL have this sort of problem.
The worst offender seems to be Roden (who mostly produce 1/72 WW1 aircraft). Roden's kits are very finely-moulded and
detailed, and they make a huge range of interesting aircraft types - however the decals are very prone to breaking up, to
say the least! I recently build their Felixstowe flying boat and the decals for that (thankfully I tested one of the alternative-scheme decals first) disintegrated into small fragments the moment I tried to slide them off. After several
coats of spray-on varnish, they went on OK - but this sort of thing is unacceptable for a modern kit, released in the last few years and costing over £20 new.

Ejector pin marks and flashing. Somethimes it feels as though I spend more time cleaning up than building! Just a thought, do they really need that many ejector pins?

I agree with all of the above, plus the comments raised on my post regarding poor quailty kits.
Here is a pic of the figures supplied with a "new" Revell 1/32 Apache(the date stamped on the kit is 1989). This was taken after i had removed some flash and mould lines, then applied filler. Lots of sanding is still required.

This is typical of this kit and even if I don`t use the pilots, there are 4 ejector marks on the textured seats that will be impossible to remove without losing the detail.
I think the guy with his hand to his face shows the contempt that model companies treat us with.

I don't know if it Revell kits, but the worst I've been building to date is the 69 VW bug. Just a mess.

I don't think there is more to say. Did somebody mention that sometimes models are too expensive?

Dwight, are you referring to Tamiya?

About the only thing that I dislike is when a manufacturer produces a kit that sacrifices accuracy and detail in order to make it easy to build, then charges top-dollar for it. I rather enjoy working on the separate parts to acheive a good fit, and the challenge of removing parting lines & pin marks. If the company does all of this for me, I find the build boring & disappointing. This is not to say, however, that I enjoy the other extreme. Building a silk purse from a sow's ear is something I'll leave to those that want (or need) to impress others.

Inconsistency in a manufacturer. I hate it when we get discussions in the forums about a given manufacturer, and some people will say their kit was fine, and others will say that their's was terrible. If they can do it right most of the time, they should be able to do right all of the time. When a company puts out garbage, the word spreads pretty quickly, and I know to avoid it. The problem comes when I'm in a shop weighing in conflicting opinions from people.
Oh, and misleading and/or confusing instructions. My

raised panel lines

QUOTE: Originally posted by tigerman Dwight, are you referring to Tamiya?

Well actually...I am!

badly molded sprue set that got past the QC inspector and onto the retail shelf, then onto me.

Molded-on handrails on ships. Just leave 'em off, for cryin' out loud! That's what photo-etch is for!

And poor instructions that aren't worth the paper they're printed on.
Paul

Hmmm lets see how bout the manufacturer stamping info on the exposed surfaces? Or pieces that could be molded as 1 piece (unless extra detail would benefit of course).

Absolute worst thing I hate to have happen is to buy a kit from a known manufacturer that I've had great experiences with previously and going off namebrand recognition, get a re-issued or "new" kit that has old parts of sub-standard quality thrown in.

I think my biggest peeve is the cost of new kits. There is a certain manufacturer of Far East location that has a really nasty habit of introducing "new" kits every 8 to 12 months which are the same basic kit as the "old" kit but with new box art, new decals (which are usually so thick as to be useless) and a new instruction page reflecting the "changes" and the price of the kit goes up 3 to 5 dollars with each issuance. And when they introduce a truly new kit to their line, the price is usually in the absurd range. (40 bucks suggested retail for a 1/72 WW II medium bomber??? - I don't think so)

And don't tell me that the latest model is the absolutely "perfect" model. The "perfect" model shouldn't need a PE set. But one of the LHS that I frequent had the PE set on the shelves before the model showed up. And I would be willing to bet the kit has the same crappy decals that all that manufacturers kits have. Plus the cost of paint and glue. So now we have $40 for the model, $20 for the PE set, $10 for the decals and say $10 for the paint and glue. Ok, I now have $80 in a 1/72 airplane kit that isn't started and the knowledge that I could have gotten the same airplane from a different manufacturer and with a little work had about the same model when finished. And had 30 to 40 dollars that I could have spent on something else. I sometimes think that some modelers are like a lot of the people who buy 4 wheel drive SUVs. You know the ones I'm talking about, pay 5 to 6 figures for the vehicle and it never leaves the asphalt street. But it's the "in" thing to do to impress other people who can't afford one. (Don't get me wrong, I absolutely lust after a Hummvee - not one of the civilian models, but a military surplus version - I drove them for a long time in the Guard and know what they are capable of. And it ain't running on asphalt and concrete)

Sorry about ranting but had to get it off my chest.