Bismarck again

I've been looking for some PE parts since I got the model but wasn't able to find any store here in Finland that sells PE sets. So I decided to build without PE and think this as a learning build.

Today I found one shop that has Eduard's PE sets for Bismarck, not sure if they have any in stock but I'm about to find out. Problem now is that I have already started building the ship, so is it possible to use PE parts at this point or will it be a mess?!

Has anyone used Eduard's PE sets? Any comments?

Also, a little off-topic... Has anyone built Revell U-Boot Typ VII C "Wolf Pack" 1/72? What kind of kit is it?

Sorry for this messy post.

Thanks for your help!!

Is this 1/350 scale? I don't know what the Eduard detail set for the Bismarck is like, but I would recommend avoiding Eduard 1/350 photo-etched railings, certainly if you are a beginner to using PE parts.

The problem with Eduard railings is that they do not have a bottom rail, i.e they have individual stanchions. As the nickel-plated brass they are made from is rather thin and rather soft, this makes it incredibly hard to glue the railings in place without bending the stanchions, particularly as they are prone to bending when cutting the rails off the fret.

Eduard railings were the first photo-etched ship detail parts I bought, a couple of years ago, for a 1/350 Tirpitz; I got so frustrated with them that I never ended up completing that model, it will probably end up as a source of spare parts! It put me off using PE parts for some time - the next time I used them was on the Revell 1/350 SMS Emden I built recently. I used GMM's photo-etch set for this, which includes a set of railings with bottom rails rather than individual stanchions - I had no problem using these at all. WEM and Lion Roar railings are very similar. I think L'Arsenal use the individual-stanchion method, however.

Yea, it's 1/350 scale, forgot to mention

Well, the only reson I'm thinking of getting Eduard is that I haven't been able to find PE sets from any other manufacturer here in Finland. And ordering abroad gets a bit too difficult...

How about other parts from Eduard, are they as bad as the railings? I would really love to give my model some more detail, and also try out this PE stuff.

Appreciate your help!

  England is a member of the EU isn't it? I mean I'm probably wrong but don't all the countries in that area have a free trade agreement going? I mean I know the UK isn't technically part of Europe but didn't they sign on? Actually now that I think about it is Finland one of the holdouts?  Anyway, reason I say is White Ensign Models makes the absolute best detail sets for Bismarck bar none. For Tirpitz the Eduard set is the way to go but their Bismarck set doesn't hold a candle to WEM's.  Gold Medal makes a nice Bismarck set that is a little easier to use and nicely detailed but I don't know how international sales between Finland and the US work.

    I do know what Eppinger is saying about the Eduard rails though, I used those on the turret top rails on my Yamato, very nice and delicate looking but require extreme care and tiny amounts of glue at the attachment points.
 

Buying from WEM I would have to pay 17,5% VAT. So Bismarck set 39,12£+ AA-guns 11,08£, that makes 50,2£ (roughly 73€) + 17,5% VAT + shipping... 

Eduard Bismarck set + AA-guns total 49€, way better for my wallet. Though I'm not 100% sure about taxing when it comes to ordering from England but I recall hearing someone had major problems with the customs office and the "final" price went even higher... So that's why I'm not too keen on WEM

Thanks for the help though!

WEM ships their products worldwide without an additional shipping charge.   Knock that amount off your calculations

   There are a huge number of details in the WEM set that are not in the Eduard. It may cost a little more and make for a more complicated build, I just guess it depends on how detailed you want to go. For Bismarck I purchased all three detail sets from WEM for about 140 dollars US

 The base WEM Bismarck set was 75 dollars (approx) from squadron.

  In comparison the Eduard Tirpitz set is about the same price, reason being for Tirpitz Eduard went all out on the detail, including much that WEM includes in their Bismarck set. I'm a pretty firm believer in the old addage: you usually get what you pay for.

 

   Of course I'm pretty retarded with this stuff, for Tirpitz I bought not only the Eduard set, but the WEM set as well, The wem mostly just for those awesome bulkhead vents with the foldout louvers and the angled stair treads. 

You mean these three sets?

WEM 1/350 Bismarck/Tirpitz #PE 3529

WEM 1/350 Kriegsmarine Light AA Weapons #PE 3566

WEM 1/350 Bismarck Class Upper Superstructure Deck Plates#PE 3565?

I just sent email to WEM, we'll see what the final price will be...

  Yep, those are the ones. I posted a bunch of pictures here of my build using these sets, it's a few pages back in the ships section here if you want to get an idea of what they can do for you.

   Those sets will keep you busy for at least six months detailing your model. Pretty good value imo. 

WOW! Looks amazing Chuck0!

Guess I should order from WEM. I'm new to this whole PE thing, never tried it, never tried ships either though... just afraid I'll screw everything up, but I guess that's the only way to learn

Just bought Tamiya 1/35 Leopard 2A5 and about to order PE set from Eduard. I'll try this PE thing first with the Leopard since it seems a bit more easier... plus it was much cheaper than Bismarck so no worries if I screw it up  

And thanks alot guys!

  Brother if this is your first ship pe project don't start with bismarck. Start with a destroyer or something a little simpler. The wem bismarck set is gorgeous but also pretty involved, I'm not sure you're gonna want to dive in that deep.

Well thats what everyone else said But I've decided to try this one out, if it turns out to be way too difficult I'll put it aside and try something easier.

And about diving too deep, don't worry, I'm a qualified diver

 I hear ya, I'm the same way. Good luck with it.