Academy Model Kits Poor Fitting Parts

Generally i have heard good things about Academy kits. Only built one so far myself, and that was fine. However, their decals seem to be a different matter.

The dimple you mention is somthing you will see on many kits, some brands more than others. Its a simple fix with a bit of filler.

before i spend another dime on model kits i going to check this forum for opinions on a specific kit

thanks for allowing me vent my frustration its good to know i am not alone

Cant beat Tamiya and Hasgawa.I also built 1 Trumpeter a/c which had no problems

i was cruder builder when i built it and had not had the joy of a tamiya kit yet. I also have the academy F-22 on shelf awating to be built I also purchased all the photo etched parts for this one as well

Academy is a hit and miss....Here are the kits I've built (or attempted to build):

Mig-29:  A bear to build.  The front end is about 6 pieces that don't fit well together.  Lots of filling and sanding and patience.  I started the kit, became frustrated, and nearly tossed it.  But, I toughed it out and got a great end result.  So much so that I apparently thought I could subject myself to the process again by buying Academy's Mig-29 UB kit.

F-117A:  Loved it....Went together smoothly and quickly.  But there seems to be too much angle between the vertical tails, which is a problem I also had with the Revell kit.

Su-27:  Also went together very well.  Except for the area where the front intake joins the rear intake, which is a problem on any jet that has this type of engine (F-14's in particular).

Mig-21:  I built mine so long ago, that I can't really comment.  My skills were a lot cruder then, but I do remember that the front fuselage doesn't mate well with the rear fuselage.  I have two more Academy Mig-21's, but haven't built them yet.

FB-111:  A real stinker.  I just couldn't get a decent mate between the fuselage halves.  I remember something ended up breaking while I was feverishly trying to sand the seam and I tossed the kit in the garbage can.  One of the few failures I've had.....

I've had great luck with Academy's World War II planes, but I've only built the F4U-1 Corsair and La-7 kits so far.  I also have Academy's F-22 in the stash, but I haven't heard any complaints about it really...

As for the F-15E, get the Revell kit.  It's cheaper and better quality!  Edited comment....I see you didn't like the Revell F-15E.  What didn't you like about it???

1 other thing I did not mention in the original post was the nose cone has a dimple in the the very tip of it. I thought I had gotten a defective part so I contacted MRC Academy plastics for a replacement. well after 8 or 9 unreturned phone calls i got them to sell me a replacement. I waited 3 weeks for the part to come and it had the exact same dimple in the tip of the nose. I know just fill the dimple with putty and move on. Not so simple the dimple was located right where the 2 halves of the nose cone come together and the other half did not have a dimple keeping in mind this was all at the very tip of the nose cone

SmartGambler

i was going to go with the Tamiya F-15 kit but they dont have the E model of the F-15 and the kit reviews for the Academy kit was good. Wish now i had went Tamiya and I probally wont trust anymore kit reviews I bought this kit to begin with to replace a revell F-15 kit I built before and was not pleased with the kit either.  

Try to look for built reviews. I don't trust sprue reviews. A well known reviewer painted the F16 kit as a nice recommended kit. I don't think so, I took the decals out of the box and the kit is in the dark humid dungeon of my garage.

i was going to go with the Tamiya F-15 kit but they dont have the E model of the F-15 and the kit reviews for the Academy kit was good. Wish now i had went Tamiya and I probally wont trust anymore kit reviews I bought this kit to begin with to replace a revell F-15 kit I built before and was not pleased with the kit either.  

I haven't built every Academy kit out there. But in the subjects that I'm interested in, Cold War and Modern Jets (some WWII also) my opinion about Academy is mixed. Their Viper F16 pictured below sucks in comparison with my 2 previous Italeri builds. And the Italeri has some fit issues especially fiddling with the rear wheel well components.

Their M1 1/35 Tank is almost half and inch shorter. Thanks goodness I found out before ripping the clear wrap off. I called the HS, sent my son with $5 extra and he brought me back a nice Tamiya M1-A2. The Mig-21 Fishbed  has a nice fit thought the dorsal fin (sorry for the term) is shaped wrongfully.. Their F-86F The Huff built very nicely and I chose it over the Hasegawa because it has nice details on the speed brakes. Another one will be on the works soon.

Like any brand, there is no such thing as the perfect kit, personally I try to be extra cautious with Academy.

Edited to add:

Their Mig 29's are also good, just need to add more details in the office.

I purchased the Tamiya F-15 and I can't say enough good things about it. If you get the Academy F-15 completed you might try the Tamiya version. I have built a few Academy kits and ran into the same problem. Good luck.

Wow, that is a bummer.  I hope it is just an isolated bad egg because I just bought two Academy kits to add to my stash.  The reviews I've read hadn't ripped on them for that but then I didn't look at the F-15 kit.