P/E for 1/350 Mini Hobby Models Bismarck

well joe,i have the same kit.i order the complete p.e.from toms model works and should work fine.

I don't think Trumpeter has produced a 1/350 Bismarck, and certainly, the Mini Hobby Bismarck came out a long time before Trumpeter existed as a company (Mini Hobby started cranking out this one in the late 1980's or early 1990's, I think).  Others may correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that the Mini Hobby Bismarck (like a lot of their other 1/350 kits) are in fact repops/copies of the Tamiya kits.....

digger: thx, I will check into it

searat: I was just curious since the instructuctions look exactly like Trumpeter ones

LeopardMan wrote:

searat: I was just curious since the instructuctions look exactly like Trumpeter ones

Trumpeter, Banner, and MiniHobby Models are all part of the larger Wasan Moulding Company.  MiniHobby Models among them has the reputation of pirating (i.e. copying) the works of others.  

The instruction writers may be the same group across the multiple arms of the company

Just learned something new.

LeopardMan wrote:

For $10 and an 21st century 109 I got my hands on the above mentioned Bismarck. It appears to me that this is a rebox of a Trumpeter Kit, at least the instructions look a lot like Trumpeter ones. I know usually the P/E sets are for a particular model from particular Manufacturer. Anyway, I was wondering which P/E set could I usue for this kit? Is there something like a generic set that could be used for any model or do I need to find a P/E sets specific to this model, if there is one that is.

A little while back, Trumpeter marketed a number of 1:350 kits, including the Bismarck, with motor and metal drive gears. The Trumpeter ship kits were never officially marketed in the US, only in the far east and Canada. When they bring over the Bismarck kit to US under the Minihobby brand, they took out the motor, but left the gears inside. They did not re-write the instruction which still shows the motor. The kit is just like the original Tamiya Model #78001 Bismarck which had the drive gears, but no motor.

Almost any PE made for the Tamiya Bismarck (Tom's Modelworks, White Ensign Models) will work with the MiniHobby/Trumpeter kit. But all the PE kit refers to Tamiya parts numbers. It is a smart move to get the Tamiya 78001 or 78013 manual.

However the MiniHobby/Trumpeter is not that good in quality (accuracy and molding). That's why you use to be able to get it for $20 at Hobby Lobby. If you are willing to invest in a PE set and the time/effort involved, why not get the Tamiya Bismarck model or the Revell instead?

The minihobby is a good kit for beginner to practice on, but not worth the PE investment, IMHO. Just my 2 cents.

 

 

I purchased couple minihobby 350 BBs when i came back to the hobby couple years ago.

They are "practice hulls" now... the detail is so coarse compared to new offerings, putting PE on it will be throwing good money after bad. I would honestly save the PE money and invest in another (better) kit. 

 Hey keilau ----- You gotta promise not to laugh ! I finished a LINDBERG version of the TIRPITZ and I used every set of german p.e. I bought from TOMS . (I buy a lot of generics , cause I don,t know what I might build next!! ). Well , my friend , my TRUMPETER model of the NORTH CAROLINA and LINDBERGS ,TIRPITZ get more comments than ANY of my , tamiya , hasegawa , revell or other stuff !!!! I do the lesser kits because if they get noticed , it proves what I,ve been saying all along . If you want to get better and stay competitive (if that,s your bag ) then build silk purses out of what so many think ,are sows ears . If you can do this consistantly then you are a force to be reckoned with ,if you choose to compete . If you don,t compete , well then you just are a darned good model builder!!!!!   TANKERBUILDER

tankerbuilder wrote:

Hey keilau ----- You gotta promise not to laugh ! I finished a LINDBERG version of the TIRPITZ and I used every set of german p.e. I bought from TOMS . TANKERBUILDER

No, I am not laughing. My hat off to you. I admire and respect those who can get the most out of the models they built, premium or low cost. I have neither the skill nor the time, so I stick with the easy to build kits for my own pleasure.  (The recently released Dragon Smart Kit series of destroyers (Buchanan, Gearing) are a joy to have.) 

What do you think of the recent Revell 1:350 scale Bismarck and Tirpitz? They sound like wonderful kits for the very reasonable price.

Not knowing LeopardMan well, I probably should not have apply my low standard to him.

keilau wrote:

What do you think of the recent Revell 1:350 scale Bismarck and Tirpitz? They sound like wonderful kits for the very reasonable price.

 

The new Revell Bismarck is an excellent kit, light years ahead of the old Tamiya one (which is still a pretty decent kit). It includes loads of surface detail on the deck, superstructure bulkheads, etc. which you'd need several expensive PE sets to add to the Tamiya kit, and the smaller parts and fittings are all very finely moulded (the Arado seaplane even has a clear cockpit canopy with some basic interior detail). The deck is also a single-piece moulding.

I'm sure there are still some accuracy issues, and some areas lacking in detail (and the plastic rails, though better than the old Heller 1/400 ones, still aren't much good compared to PE) but overall it's a huge improvement over the old kit especially considering its very reasonable price.

Haven't seen in the box of the Tirpitz kit but since it shares many parts with the Bismarck it'll presumably be of the same high quality. In fact the Bismarck kit actually includes quite a few unused extra parts, such as AA guns, presumably intended for the Tirpitz (they might come in handy for detailing or converting the new 1/350 Prinz Eugen and Graf Spee out later this year)