2nd expensive Revell Germany Kit with an Injection mold defect main part

modelcrazy

I sent Dragon an email last year requesting to BUY and new decal sheet. I didn't even a form letter back. No responce at all, not even a go to he-- as my father used to say.

 

I sent Trumpeter a resquest for details two years ago and got nothing. Revell Germany said it will be 6 weeks for the decal replacement to come. It was 5 weeks and 5 days. I like that Revell gives a realistic time while Trumpter gave nothing and devlivered nothing. 

Well, he might be lucky.Soon I will be going to Germany to visit the in-laws.I will be visiting the Revell facilities .Hopefully I can get out tf there w/ a replacement parts/clear tree.

Hi Wilbur ;

 Now I get it .You know the only problem I have had with them so far is the Darned boxes .Why not a regular box , instead of the end opening pieces of crap they come in ?

   I cannot put up a kit when I walk away as easy that way .You know , I think RoG must think we all put them together in one sitting .

 The biggest problem with that type of box in you lose pieces easier . The malformed things you are dealing with can happen , but , it seems to be happening way to much lately .  T.B.

Again, second kit in a row from ROG with an unfixable major damaged part.  Hence the "Griping".

Don;

   You don't have to worry any more .The base mold goes way back to the original Space Shuttle Transport 747 with Shuttle . That , my friend was a while back don't you think ? My take on this is that  molds cost up to fifty , sixty thousand now .

   The same mold today probably is twice or thrice the amount .So , being a business , they shift it between divisions to amortize costs and license fees which are still required on any product bearing the Boeing name .

 Yeah , Hard to believe ain't it ? I don't worry though because a lot of buddies molds( Kit Parts )  wound up in my Vacu-Form for the future . Especially canopies for the big stuff .   T.B.

I sent Dragon an email last year requesting to BUY and new decal sheet. I didn't even a form letter back. No responce at all, not even a go to he-- as my father used to say.

Of course there is another alternative----not buying any more ROG, and miss out on some great kits.  But then again that leaves more available for those of us who know that since humans are running things, mistakes can happen and we put it aside till the parts get here.

Been there, done that, and have several t-shirts to mark the occasion.

Wilbur

I understand your frustration but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. 

Like stik said, 6 weeks is not bad specially coming from Europe. I bought some Flory Washes  from the U.K. and took about 5 weeks to get to my bench.

If you were dealing with Academy or Trumpeter you would have been SOL. 

Waiting 5 to 6 weeks for a replacement part, being sent by the company at no cost to you, from Europe to North America is not unreasonable. This is only a hobby, not a situation where people's lives are at risk. Sure, one slipped thru the cracks of quality control. It happens. Even from the Japanese model companies everybody fawns over. My Hasegawa P-47 had a warped lower wing part. I dealt with it and did not come here to gripe about the company. The time I did need a part from them, it took far longer than 6 weeks to arrive. Life goes on, lighten up a little.

One half of the fuselage in  my Revell Germany 1/32 Spitfire was injection mold defected at the cockpit and was unsuable and unfixable.  It took 5 full weeks to get a new part.

Saying they have great customer service, meaning I have to wait 6 weeks to get a replacement part is unacceptable to me as a businessman of 35 years. What I want is my money back. Period.  Which Scale Hobbyist would do if I hadn't started the kit.    Revell is cleary having injection mould issues or quality control issues. From now on I don't start any Revell Germany kit until every part has been inspected.  If there is a defect then I send  the kit back to the retailer for a refund.  No more waiting over a month on a new purchase that retails at over 100 dollars.

Now I wait 5-6 weeks to get a new canopy. It sucks, and will not happen to me again.

Silver

Get w/Revell (USA) on the web.They are your only choice.Ask them for a replacement.

 

His model is Revell of Germany. From previous experienec, if one contacts Revell USA they will say to contact ROG for the part (s).

Get w/Revell (USA) on the web.They are your only choice.Ask them for a replacement.

I know where your coming from wilbur , this is from my newly arrived heller victory 1/100 , the main stay part of the ship , hopefully heller come to the party

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I would not be upset specially being a ROG model. They are turning out some real beauties at VERY affordable prices like the new 1/32 Me262 and Spitfire. 

It's a very good idea to inspect a model upon arrival to determine that all is ok. These problems do happen now and then with any manufacture. Just be glad it wasn't Academy or Trumpeter since they have 0 customer service.

Well for me that is a bright side, at least we don't have a sales tax here.................yet

Hi,

Pretty much, though if I put it on a credit card or Paypal I have a record at the end of the year.

Pat

That stinks Pat! So you have to keep track of all your internet purchases?

Hi,

Sorry to hear about your problems with your kits.  On a side note though, for me in Virginia I've found that its not necessarily less expensive to buy off the internet than from my local hobby shop because a few years ago the state instituted a policy where they require you to pay the sales tax on your internet purchases at the end of the year, as part of your state tax return. 

Pat

This kit which is Revell DE 04507 is the postwar search and rescue marked PBY 999. Kit is $99 retail. I paid $75 at Scale Hobbyist (he is terrific) .  It's $99 at the LHS plus 6% tax.

Don, the kit is very finely molded, in fact the detail the rivets etc are stunning.  The damaged clear part almost looks like the machine ran out of clear styrene and the back corners are like cellophane tape, literally that thin and unusable.  Maybe this is human error in loading the aggregate or letting it run out on the injection machine.

In any case I'm starting a run out of Ferrari models this summer. The coordination for painting and assembly is very different than for military models.   It's really a different state of mind as you are painting almost daily.

I really didn't want to open that can of worms until this plane was done over the next month.  Now that can't happen.   If I start the complex Ferrari builds,  then  right in the middle of that mess the new canopy will arrive. 

fermis

 HOLY SMOKES!!!!

When did that become a $100 kit???

I bought my first example for $25.99 about 12 years ago....bought another as a "get well" gift for a friend (and fellow member here) about 5(ish) years ago, and that one was $32 and change. Both were retail at the LHS...and both had the crew figs too.

 

I'm so sorry to hear of such unfortunate circumstances.  My wish for you is to have this issues handled promptly and for you to continue your build.  

On another note relating to quality control, I'm building a Tamiya 1/32 Mosquito their current flag ship model.  This kit is amazing and superb!  Maybe you need to switch to kits like this.  IMHO, I can definately recommend Tamiya's 1/32 kits and of course all of their top quality engineered kits.

Another great kit company is Zoukei Mura, check them out.  Ultimately, have fun with what you're doing as this is a great hobby and I want to personally thank you for always supporting my builds my good friend!

Toshi

I'm in the middle of an RoG kit now, making their Iron Maiden 747 into a Dreamlifter.  No specific errors, per se, but the molding is really crappy.  I am sure this kit simply uses old molds with new decals, so I have no idea of how old the molds are.  But this is a common practice in the industry, including a new release using old molds from a former competitor.

It is nice, though, to get a kit made from new molds, using the latest molding technologies.  The molding in some new kits is so good, I see that technology making a real dent in the resin aftermarket business.  I would be interested to read an article in Fine Scale or elsewhere about how they do this newer technology.

modelcrazy

 

I sent an email requesting the status of the anchor and all I got back was an email with the heading in German that translated into “response to email” and something to the effect "were working on it, don't bother us anymore" in the body. About 2 weeks later it arrived. The Germans are to the point.

 

Yup, that is German culture. Speak the point. lol!

Your experience with Hasegawa was much more rapid than mine. Time wise, they took MANY months. But they did send me the whole sprue tree and not just the part I needed, so lots of stuff for my spares bin. So it all balances out.

fermis

 HOLY SMOKES!!!!

When did that become a $100 kit???

I bought my first example for $25.99 about 12 years ago....bought another as a "get well" gift for a friend (and fellow member here) about 5(ish) years ago, and that one was $32 and change. Both were retail at the LHS...and both had the crew figs too.

 

When Revell Germany issues a Revellogram kit, the price goes up markedly. I think I paid $25 or so for the Pro Modeler boxing of the PBY-5 when it was a new release. Even the last Revell USA issue of the kit was running no more than $40 or so when I saw it in shops here. 

Problems with parts are not unheard of, and the delivery time is not out of line for ROG....I just take it as it comes, and table it til the parts arrive.  It is what it is, if we like it or not. 

 HOLY SMOKES!!!!

When did that become a $100 kit???

I bought my first example for $25.99 about 12 years ago....bought another as a "get well" gift for a friend (and fellow member here) about 5(ish) years ago, and that one was $32 and change. Both were retail at the LHS...and both had the crew figs too.

5 weeks doesn’t sound as bad as you might think. I had an anchor from their 1/72 U-boat take a few months. For a Revell of Germany kit the request goes from RUS to ROG. The Germans do take their time, then it's sent out (I'm sure it's not the quickest mode) goes back overseas and then we have to wait for our own postal service. I wouldn't let it get to me until a few more weeks.

I sent an email requesting the status of the anchor and all I got back was an email with the heading in German that translated into “response to email” and something to the effect "were working on it, don't bother us anymore" in the body. About 2 weeks later it arrived. The Germans are to the point.

Hasegawa on the other hand had a canopy to me within a week. Their US contact is Tower Hobbies in Champagne Il. Good ole Tower Hobbies.