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Cursed kits...

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  • Member since
    November 2009
  • From: SW Virginia
Cursed kits...
Posted by Gamera on Thursday, March 9, 2017 11:52 AM

No I don't mean as in haunted but ever built a kit that just every friggin' teeny-tiny little thing seems to go wrong???

I started this Dragon M3 75mm GMC for Bish's halftrack GB a little less than a year ago. Since that time:

1). Missing parts, when I finish working on the model I put everything back in the box. Still something always seems to vanish. In this case it was the sighting parts for the 75mm gun. And it's a decently big part, I searched for it for weeks and never found it. 

2). Sprayed a primer coat of Tamiya. It orange peeled like crazy. I washed off a good bit of it but there was still some on the model. So I grabbed some rubbing alcohol to remove it. Turns out it was actually laquer thinner and and the toothbrush I was using caused it to eat big ruts in the surface of the model.... 

Set the blasted thing aside for months and then got back to it.

3). Went to cement the hull to the frame. It would not sit square, I ripped it off and reattached it multiple times, finally using clamps. It still would not fit correctly. I finally tore a few parts off the engine that you can't see unless you turn the model upside down and it fit. I still don't know what was knocking it out of alighnment, I didn't see anything on the engine that was sticking out in the way.

4). Went to fit the gun shield to the hull, it won't fit square. I have tried it multiple times and am not sure what is out of whack.

5). Attached the outer supports to the gun shield. The first one went on fine. The second on picking it up somehow caught on my finger (?) and broke in half with one part shooting off to never-never land. It's about the same size as a paper clip so I replace it with that. Then looking more closely it's a paper clip with the ridges cut into it. So I rip the blasted thing off and then go for another clip. And I can't find a single paper clip in the house- anywhere. I know I have dozens but I can't find one....

Box the blasted thing up and walk away...

 

If anyone actually read though all that my apologies but I really had to get it off my chest. Embarrassed

So I guess I'm asking has anyone else had a kit that fights you every step of the way? I don't mean a bad kit, this is up to Dragon's usual high standards but just one that every single friggin' ever-lovin' thing goes wrong? One that seems to want you to slam-dunk it in the trash and take up a new hobby of hard drinking??? Devil

"I dream in fire but work in clay." -Arthur Machen

 

  • Member since
    May 2015
Posted by Griffin25 on Thursday, March 9, 2017 11:58 AM

 CANT Z BIS by Supermodel. Very wonky. Kicked my butt but since my GF bought it for me I had to finish it. It was a chore. I was already a hard drinker so I just continued on Beer

 

 

Griffin

  • Member since
    August 2014
  • From: Willamette Valley, Oregon
Posted by goldhammer on Thursday, March 9, 2017 12:15 PM

I've had a couple explode against the wall that I haven't regretted sending to their doom.......and I haven't seen a body/paint tech yet that doesn't drink, mostly on the heavy side, so no additional harm.

Besides, a bottle of Jack or John is cheaper than a kit now a days.

  • Member since
    March 2007
  • From: Northeast WA State
Posted by armornut on Thursday, March 9, 2017 1:18 PM

Never met a kit I couldn't crush. One that rings through is the OLD Dragon release of the Scud B,  at the time married and in the Navy, no place to really set up, the kit seemed to develop a warp the more parts I added to it, when it came time to mount the contol cabins the darn frame seemed to expand crosswise and NOTHING fit. What started as a 250 piece kit ended up about 2500 pieces. Wife was beside herself, vacuum was still pulling parts up 6mo later, best 40.00 bucks I ever smashed.

No apologies required, been there, done that, have a lighter wallet to prove it.

we're modelers it's what we do

  • Member since
    January 2013
Posted by BlackSheepTwoOneFour on Thursday, March 9, 2017 1:27 PM

Only one came to mind - MPC 1969 Baraccuda kit. Even the one I built back in the late 70s, early 80s. Everything about the kit was wrong. Too many inaccuracies. Ended up in the trash. Never again will I buy that Baraccuda kit again.

  • Member since
    November 2009
  • From: SW Virginia
Posted by Gamera on Thursday, March 9, 2017 1:45 PM

Thanks guys, nice to know I'm not the only one in this boat. 

 

Funny, I've assembled plenty of limited run kits and horrid things from eastern Europe that didn't give me this many fits. I think it's because I went into those expecting lots of problems but here- the Dragon kits I've built to this point might have been a little tedious due to the sheer number of small parts but no issues like this one. 

I think I'm going to just slap it together square or not and then drape camo netting all over it. 

"I dream in fire but work in clay." -Arthur Machen

 

  • Member since
    December 2015
  • From: providence ,r.i.
Posted by templar1099 on Thursday, March 9, 2017 1:51 PM

Sounds like all of my builds.

"le plaisir delicieux et toujours nouveau d'une occupation inutile"

  • Member since
    September 2012
Posted by GMorrison on Thursday, March 9, 2017 2:03 PM

Too many.

Revell 1/48 A10.

Airfix 1/24 FW-190. Engine doesn't even fit in the cowl.

Got a Roden HE-111 that I've heard so many things bad about, don't even want to try.

 Modeling is an excuse to buy books.

 

  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England
Posted by Bish on Thursday, March 9, 2017 2:09 PM

I have never had a kit thats fougt me that hard. But i can certainly sympathise with number 1. Thats happens to me on nearly every build. Some where in this huge there is a huge pile of plastic that will one day morf itself into some monstrosity that no one at Dragon could ever dream of.

I am a Norfolk man and i glory in being so

 

On the bench: Airfix 1/72nd Harrier GR.3/Fujimi 1/72nd Ju 87D-3

  • Member since
    January 2011
Posted by jackball74 on Thursday, March 9, 2017 6:03 PM

The Glencoe Jupiter-C. Picked one up in the mid-'90s and found the body pieces were warped. Took it back and the dealer let me open kits until I could find one that was ok. I gave up after three and got my money back.

R.I.P. Orange Blossom Hobbies

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: clinton twp,mi
Posted by humper491 on Thursday, March 9, 2017 6:46 PM

 too funny! i'm glad too hear i'm not the only one who drinks and smashes kits :)

 

Humper Beam

  • Member since
    March 2016
Posted by ardvark002 on Thursday, March 9, 2017 7:55 PM
Yup! Czech Bell XP-77. Nightmare!
  • Member since
    November 2008
  • From: Far Northern CA
Posted by mrmike on Thursday, March 9, 2017 10:45 PM

With GMorrison, the Revell A-10 was a real bad experience, all the more because I was just getting into modelling AC and couldn't figure out why nothing I knew from cars and other subjects worked. Finally realized it wasn't just me.

Since then two stand out; the Academy Mig-29 Fulcrum which I keep in the Graveyard to remind me that it's OK to stop, and Zvezda's 1/72 Su-25 on the bench now. I am determined to finish the POS so that I can say I won, even though winning will not amount to a model I'll be proud to display.

What have I learned? Do not confuse the box art with the contents. Do diligent research into other people's experiences with a prospective build, and last, choose wisely.

Meter's running, gotta get back to the fun ones I'm building.

Mike

  • Member since
    November 2009
  • From: SW Virginia
Posted by Gamera on Friday, March 10, 2017 7:45 AM

Thanks again guys, I guess misery does love company. 

Bang Head

"I dream in fire but work in clay." -Arthur Machen

 

  • Member since
    July 2014
Posted by modelcrazy on Friday, March 10, 2017 8:45 AM
Yep. a Fujimi 1/25 BMW M3 E30. Terrible kit, nothing fit and for the money I spent the detail was horrible. Monogram, Revell and AMT produce car kit galaxies better than that Fujimi kit. I got it for my son-in-law for Christmas so I couldn't toss it, I had to finish. I was never so glad to call that one done.

Bish
Some where in this huge there is a huge pile of plastic that will one day morf itself into some monstrosity that no one at Dragon could ever dream of.

Steve

Building a kit from your stash is like cutting a head off a Hydra, two more take it's place.

 

 

http://www.spamodeler.com/forum/

  • Member since
    June 2014
  • From: New Braunfels , Texas
Posted by Tanker - Builder on Friday, March 10, 2017 9:47 AM

Hmmm;

   I guess you could say I expected it . I bought the Life - Like "Shrimp Boat" . Now a Lindberg kit for many years . Well , let me tell you .That was one of the first kits I never finished , using parts on other vessels and blowing up the hull and deck with firecrackers .

 I was amazed how satisfactory that episode was . haven't had too many I've wanted to destroy , but , some came close. T.B.

  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England
Posted by Bish on Friday, March 10, 2017 2:37 PM

modelcrazy
Yep. a Fujimi 1/25 BMW M3 E30. Terrible kit, nothing fit and for the money I spent the detail was horrible. Monogram, Revell and AMT produce car kit galaxies better than that Fujimi kit. I got it for my son-in-law for Christmas so I couldn't toss it, I had to finish. I was never so glad to call that one done.
 
Bish
Some where in this huge there is a huge pile of plastic that will one day morf itself into some monstrosity that no one at Dragon could ever dream of.

 

 

Thats the one.

I am a Norfolk man and i glory in being so

 

On the bench: Airfix 1/72nd Harrier GR.3/Fujimi 1/72nd Ju 87D-3

  • Member since
    July 2014
  • From: Franklin Wi
Posted by Bakster on Saturday, March 11, 2017 8:54 AM

Gamera, you have my condolences. May the kit rest in peace. My gosh, that is a bad experience.

  • Member since
    July 2005
  • From: Maine
Posted by PontiacRich on Saturday, March 11, 2017 9:23 AM

goldhammer

I've had a couple explode against the wall that I haven't regretted sending to their doom.......and I haven't seen a body/paint tech yet that doesn't drink, mostly on the heavy side, so no additional harm.

Besides, a bottle of Jack or John is cheaper than a kit now a days.

 

Wow...I thought I was the only one that has done that!  I assumed it was my underwhelming modeling skills Bang Head

Rich - "And when the Band you're in starts playing different tunes, I'll see you on the Dark Side of the Moon" - Pink Floyd

FREDDOM

  • Member since
    January 2007
Posted by the doog on Saturday, March 11, 2017 6:18 PM

Oh no...I have that GMC kit... Surprise

The current project I'm working on----all three of Johnny Rutherford's "orange" McLarens from '73, '74 and '76. Ugh, what a slog through endlessly tedious mistakes and problems. It's taken me no less than five not-cheap old AMT McLaren kits to get these three in shape. Six decal sets. Endless hours of correcting and re-painting.

The kit that each one is built from is notoriously inaccurate and primitive. All three, of course, had to get corrections and modifications, and some more than others because of year-by-year innovation and changes. So far it's been six months and counting. I can see the finish line though. God, I can't wait to open up a new tank.. Smile

  • Member since
    November 2009
  • From: SW Virginia
Posted by Gamera on Sunday, March 12, 2017 8:20 AM

Thanks again guys, the kit's back in the box and I'm working on some stuff now that fits great so maybe it absorbed all the bad luck??? At least for a time maybe???

Karl: It's not a bad kit at all. I don't know why I had all this bad luck with it. Personally I'd advise anyone who wants a WWII US halftrack to pick it up. That's just my frustration here, why does a kit that should be a simple straight-forward build turn into such a nightmare?!?! 

And good luck with the race cars, when I hadn't seen you around I just figured you were on tour again. 

"I dream in fire but work in clay." -Arthur Machen

 

  • Member since
    February 2017
Posted by Egilman on Sunday, March 12, 2017 10:12 AM

Lil' ol' Me?

That Monogram 1/48th F-14Aaaaa

Always seems to wind up in an unrecoverable flat spin.... 6 tries before I finally got one decent enough to sit on my shelf.... I know they make great frisbees... (and fire starters, and targets, I even thought about trying one as a clay pidgeon replacement)

That was my modeling unicorn....

Color me greyish white and tell me I'm flying....

For all those years I've been painting the wrong color....Whistling

ON THE SHELF:

Idea/Tamiya 1/35 M-48A3

Seminar 1/35 UH-1B/C

Peerless Max 1/35 M1A2 155mm Howitzer / Mirror Models 1/35 Diamond "T" 968 Truck

AFV Club "Long Tom" M-59 155mm Gun / Hobby Boss 1/35 M-4 HST

Tamiya "88" KwK 36/37 / 8 Ton Semi Track Sd.Kfz7

  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Fort Knox
Posted by Rob Gronovius on Sunday, March 12, 2017 11:36 AM

jackball74

The Glencoe Jupiter-C. Picked one up in the mid-'90s and found the body pieces were warped. Took it back and the dealer let me open kits until I could find one that was ok. I gave up after three and got my money back.

 

The Glencoe Jupiter C is the Hawk Jupiter C kit from the 1950s.
http://www.fantastic-plastic.com/HAWK%20JUPITER%20C%20PAGE.htm

My cursed kit is the Zvezda T-60. I got one in Germany when the Wall came down, at the time, it was a Soviet era curiousity to me. The kit was mismolded and terrible. I won another about ten years lated at a show raffle. That kit was just as bad. I can honestly say it is a model that is not worth the glue to attempt to assemble. It is a nostalgic piece of Cold War history to me with a warning that it is not for sale outside of the USSR.

  • Member since
    April 2016
  • From: Parsons Kansas
Posted by Hodakamax on Sunday, March 12, 2017 11:54 AM

This brings to mind being a kid and blowing up your not-so-favorite models with explosives on the fourth of July.

I have put a couple in the trash but retreived them before the truck came and finally finished them. Ah, modeling experiences, it's all supposed to be fun but the challenge thing is always present.  Indifferent

Max

  • Member since
    January 2007
Posted by the doog on Sunday, March 12, 2017 3:54 PM

Gamera

Thanks again guys, the kit's back in the box and I'm working on some stuff now that fits great so maybe it absorbed all the bad luck??? At least for a time maybe???

Karl: It's not a bad kit at all. I don't know why I had all this bad luck with it. Personally I'd advise anyone who wants a WWII US halftrack to pick it up. That's just my frustration here, why does a kit that should be a simple straight-forward build turn into such a nightmare?!?! 

And good luck with the race cars, when I hadn't seen you around I just figured you were on tour again. 

 

Good to know that it's a good kit. Sometimes those things just happen. :)

I'lll be back on the road sometime later this year. It's going to be a longer stretch, I believe. Gotta get my modeling in now. :) Hopefully, this project will wrap up soon, and with tolerable results. I'd hate to feel like I wasted six months of my modeling life!

  • Member since
    January 2009
  • From: hamburg michigan
Posted by fermis on Sunday, March 12, 2017 4:34 PM

I've had several nice kits that I snatched defeat, right out of the jaws of victory! Always my own doing...I think! Glue one piece knock off three...still don't understand how I ever finished...felt like I was doing nothing but going backwards!

While this one doesn't quite fit this scenario...as it was a crappy kit before I even cut the tape to open the box. I did have to finish it, for a review build. Had I paid money for it, I would have just stuck it in the stash and then given to my nephew when I got mad at him!

A couple .223 rounds...

What could be found after the whole 30 round clip!

 

Ahhhh...much better!!!

  • Member since
    April 2016
  • From: Parsons Kansas
Posted by Hodakamax on Sunday, March 12, 2017 4:44 PM

LOL! I'm laughing! There is some satisfaction in blowing things up, particularly things that need blowing up. Good Air Defense shot!

Max

Did the pilot eject?

  • Member since
    March 2016
Posted by ardvark002 on Sunday, March 12, 2017 9:13 PM
I did finish it
  • Member since
    March 2016
Posted by ardvark002 on Sunday, March 12, 2017 9:42 PM
Hi, Late reply. 1/24 Airfix BBD ,very early kit. The cowl didn't fit over the engine either. Ended up cutting the sides off the motor,so the prop was aligned . Lots of fit problems . Would like to do a newer kit, but a'm unsure. Aardvark Thanks for all your replys Aardvark
  • Member since
    July 2008
  • From: Vancouver, the "wet coast"
Posted by castelnuovo on Monday, March 13, 2017 2:15 AM

Good to know I am not the only one Smile. An old Land Rover model, don't remember who made it. Nothing seems to fit. The further I built the worse it was. Ol' Landi hit the wall, my wife 2 floors up had heard the sonic boom, no survivors and, boy o' boy, did it ever feel goooood Smile

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