sky

So anyway, I finally got around to taking a few pictures of the way my wing sprues are warped. Please excuse the quality as they have been taken with my previous (4-6y old) phone.
First two photos are from the plain box, third is from the busty box (with the Richthofen bust in it). The light source is directly above the center point of the box where there is a code of sorts printed in the lid of the box. Please focus on the the shadows cast by the wings. In the first photo the topmost wing (actual middle wing) is only slightly warped - the right side in the picture is slightly further off the bottom than the left, left side seems pretty damn straight to me. The wing in the middle (actual top wing) is ok in the middle section, but arcs downward on both wingtips, slightly more on the left. Bottom wing (actual bottom wing, too) is also slightly out of shape according to the shadows but there it's also the actual frame of the sprue arcing as you can see by its shadow in the bottom left and right corners of that sprue. That is what I referred to in an earlier post when I said that the entire sprue as such seems warped. And it's only on the wing sprues in both kits.
Turning the sprue around for the second photo shows again the actual middle wing is only slightly out of shape on the left (same side as before due to the 180° change in orientation), the actual top wing clearly shows the dip in the center or really the wingtips rising off the bottom and also the actual bottom wing(s) show that the left side is a bit warped on one side.
The third photo shows more of the same on the sprue from my second kit.
 
On looking at the sprues a bit more I feel like the warp, at least in part, might have been caused by those globs of plastic that you see attached to the wings in various places (ejector thingies or whatever). They seem to have a certain height, that feels just a tad higher than the attachment points of the wings to the sprues. So if the sprue is flat on an even surface, those globs will push the wing up at those spots. You can probably see that best in the third shot. But again.. not that difficult to fix and, on the upside, I can report that I don't have issues with broken or split pieces.
 

 

 

 
If image size is too big let me know and I'll see what I can do.

So anyway, I finally got around to taking a few pictures of the way my wing sprues are warped. Please excuse the quality as they have been taken with my previous (4-6y old) phone.
First two photos are from the plain box, third is from the busty box (with the Richthofen bust in it). The light source is directly above the center point of the box where there is a code of sorts printed in the lid of the box. Please focus on the the shadows cast by the wings. In the first photo the topmost wing (actual middle wing) is only slightly warped - the right side in the picture is slightly further off the bottom than the left, left side seems pretty damn straight to me. The wing in the middle (actual top wing) is ok in the middle section, but arcs downward on both wingtips, slightly more on the left. Bottom wing (actual bottom wing, too) is also slightly out of shape according to the shadows but there it's also the actual frame of the sprue arcing as you can see by its shadow in the bottom left and right corners of that sprue. That is what I referred to in an earlier post when I said that the entire sprue as such seems warped. And it's only on the wing sprues in both kits.
Turning the sprue around for the second photo shows again the actual middle wing is only slightly out of shape on the left (same side as before due to the 180° change in orientation), the actual top wing clearly shows the dip in the center or really the wingtips rising off the bottom and also the actual bottom wing(s) show that the left side is a bit warped on one side.
The third photo shows more of the same on the sprue from my second kit.
 
On looking at the sprues a bit more I feel like the warp, at least in part, might have been caused by those globs of plastic that you see attached to the wings in various places (ejector thingies or whatever). They seem to have a certain height, that feels just a tad higher than the attachment points of the wings to the sprues. So if the sprue is flat on an even surface, those globs will push the wing up at those spots. You can probably see that best in the third shot. But again.. not that difficult to fix and, on the upside, I can report that I don't have issues with broken or split pieces.
 

 

 

 
If image size is too big let me know and I'll see what I can do.

Unpainted build here.  
 
https://www.themodellingnews.com/2020/09/review-ptii-mengs-132nd-scale-fokker-dr.html
 
The top wing hasn’t been mentioned, but in some photos it does look bent upwards.

Yup, it is visible in that unpainted build - thanks for the link. Just look at the last pic of step 15 and check the line on the cutting mat vs the edges of the wing. It's visible on both forward and backward edges. Again, if you look closely at the fully built up pictures, you'll notice in almost every shot, especially the head on one(s) that the upper wing is showing a visible dip, not so the other wings.
 
I have recently reopened both my kits and checked the wing sprues, they are bent in both boxes. I may need to take a picture of either on a flat surface as I am fairly certain, all 3 wings are bent on mine. Not a deal breaker for me though
 
/edit
Duh, apparently I'm to dense this morning to properly quote. I was referring to Dave's post above.

Yup, it is visible in that unpainted build - thanks for the link. Just look at the last pic of step 15 and check the line on the cutting mat vs the edges of the wing. It's visible on both forward and backward edges. Again, if you look closely at the fully built up pictures, you'll notice in almost every shot, especially the head on one(s) that the upper wing is showing a visible dip, not so the other wings.
 
I have recently reopened both my kits and checked the wing sprues, they are bent in both boxes. I may need to take a picture of either on a flat surface as I am fairly certain, all 3 wings are bent on mine. Not a deal breaker for me though
 
/edit
Duh, apparently I'm to dense this morning to properly quote. I was referring to Dave's post above.

It absolutely is. I know, completely way out here, but the 917 is THE racing car for me. Judging by the # of large scale kits and books on the matter. Plus I've taken the half day drive to the Porsche factory museum twice just to see the 917s exhibited there.
 
That aside, I somehow seem to have missed the pictures thread here. Blimey.
My kits are shipping from hobbyeasy as well. And can I just say that I placed two separate orders because international shipping was still an issue at the time of the order, I now got two tracking mails both stating the same tracking number, so duh. According to hobbyeasy the shipping date was postponed by a week or two. It was said to be early August, but got pushed back to mid - late August.
So add to that it'll probably be stuck in customs for a while as well (both in HK and here in L'Europe)... wake me in a month.

Surprisingly enough, my two versions shipping from HK on the 18th arrived today in a single box with no hassle via customs, where they were "held" yesterday..
On opening the package and unboxing the kits I was surprised that both versions (bust and no bust) share the exact same box / box art, the only outwardly recognizable difference is a ~10cm wide red papper ribbon going around the box stating "special limited edition" on the QS-002s version - and yes, the two part bust of the Rittmeister within the box.
 
That aside looking at the sprues I completely concur with everything petrov27 wrote. To my eyes the detail is perfect. There is a lot more detail here that is not available in the Roden kits (DR.1 / F.1) - and I have several of those to compare with. For example the rivet detail on the cowling or the rib tape detail. Oh and the bulkhead! Now considering what I paid for these two kits (including shipping from the other end of the world via tracked airmail), I absolutely cannot complain:
The regular kit (incl. shipping) came in at 42€, the special edition was 56€ (again, including shipping). In theory I could have probably saved a tenner on shipping if I had chosen to do both in one order (as they shipped it that way anyway). Just for comparison: the last Roden F.1 I sourced locally on Fleabay maybe 2-3 months ago set me back 32€ and I believe the Roden DR.1s I've got ranged somewhere between 30 and 35€ a piece. And seeing the difference in detail for almost exactly the same price - who am I to complain? Just look at what you would need to fix on the Roden kit (cowling, bulkhead, ...). And then compare the price to the last regular WNW kits I bought just prior to the meltdown and the ensuing price explosion. The following kits I got for between 85€-120€ each (Sopwith Camel F.1 Le Rhone, Sopwith Triplane Raymond Collishaw, Fokker D.VIIb Göhring). 
 
So considering the amount of detail you get for somewhere between 1/2 or 1/3 of the price of a typical WNW kit, I'd say these Meng kits are extremely good value for money and even if they weren't 100% correct I'd still be satisfied with that purchase. Funny sidenote - sourcing those two Meng kits locally would cost me probably 1.5-2x what I ended up paying, yay global economy.
 
All of that aside, what I do see and what is a, to me anyway, minor annoyance is the curvature of the wings from the center towards the wingtips. Actually, it seems that the entire sprue is curved like that - for whatever reason. The other sprues seem to be perfectly flat, only the wing one is "warped". Maybe due to the production process (maybe leave it a tad longer to cool down before ejecting it?).
 
The instructions / manual.. leafing through it, I cannot really complain. It comes in 4 languages (Chinese, English, Japanese, Russian). The instructions seem ok (I only casually flipped through the leaflet and have not compared them to the instructions from my WNW kits), but I'd say just on the instruction side of things, they are manageable. The leaflet is full colour as opposed to what you get in a Roden kit. What they lack, compared to the WNW offerings, is some of the extra info WNW always packed into their leaflets, extra photos, bit of history, etc. 
I didn't check whether the colour call-outs are on point or off.
 
What I do like is that they have 4 versions with 4 views each (top, bottom, left, right) and that they have extra parts to be able to make either a DR.1 or an F.1 - That's two kits from Roden. Now it would be interesting to see if one could kitbash the extra parts with a Roden kit, say "upgrade" the cowling or whatever... I'll probably be escorted from here soonish for making such statements, but whatever ;).
 
Aftermarket additions that I can see:
- Brass PE / guns
- Aviattic simulated linen cloth decals (here's waiting for them to finish all versions of the Richthofen's DR.1 / F.1s before going in for the kill.. umm.. purchase I meant)
- (maybe) Aviattic PE for the bulkhead
But again as Petrov27 said, those would be things you would also add to the Roden kit.
 
So quick verdict for me (just my opinion) 10/10 would buy again (and likely will further down the road, but for now I've got a grand total of 5 DR.1s and 1 F.1, that should last me for a bit). If you're uncertain whether to get this or not - if the price point is close to Roden, have a look at the Meng. And I am in no way, shape or form affiliated with Meng, Roden or any other company.
 
 
/edit
On the warped wing issue. I'd say the wing tips are 2-3mm higher than the center. However, I think this should be easily fixable. I would probably try something like this: Submerge the parts (cut free from the sprue) in a bath of hot(ish) water and weigh them down with something heavy across the entire length of the wing, leave for a bit and see if that works. I'm not a big fan of the hot air treatment (maybe because I suck at it), but if you're skilled with that it should be a doddle.

Surprisingly enough, my two versions shipping from HK on the 18th arrived today in a single box with no hassle via customs, where they were "held" yesterday..
On opening the package and unboxing the kits I was surprised that both versions (bust and no bust) share the exact same box / box art, the only outwardly recognizable difference is a ~10cm wide red papper ribbon going around the box stating "special limited edition" on the QS-002s version - and yes, the two part bust of the Rittmeister within the box.
 
That aside looking at the sprues I completely concur with everything petrov27 wrote. To my eyes the detail is perfect. There is a lot more detail here that is not available in the Roden kits (DR.1 / F.1) - and I have several of those to compare with. For example the rivet detail on the cowling or the rib tape detail. Oh and the bulkhead! Now considering what I paid for these two kits (including shipping from the other end of the world via tracked airmail), I absolutely cannot complain:
The regular kit (incl. shipping) came in at 42€, the special edition was 56€ (again, including shipping). In theory I could have probably saved a tenner on shipping if I had chosen to do both in one order (as they shipped it that way anyway). Just for comparison: the last Roden F.1 I sourced locally on Fleabay maybe 2-3 months ago set me back 32€ and I believe the Roden DR.1s I've got ranged somewhere between 30 and 35€ a piece. And seeing the difference in detail for almost exactly the same price - who am I to complain? Just look at what you would need to fix on the Roden kit (cowling, bulkhead, ...). And then compare the price to the last regular WNW kits I bought just prior to the meltdown and the ensuing price explosion. The following kits I got for between 85€-120€ each (Sopwith Camel F.1 Le Rhone, Sopwith Triplane Raymond Collishaw, Fokker D.VIIb Göhring). 
 
So considering the amount of detail you get for somewhere between 1/2 or 1/3 of the price of a typical WNW kit, I'd say these Meng kits are extremely good value for money and even if they weren't 100% correct I'd still be satisfied with that purchase. Funny sidenote - sourcing those two Meng kits locally would cost me probably 1.5-2x what I ended up paying, yay global economy.
 
All of that aside, what I do see and what is a, to me anyway, minor annoyance is the curvature of the wings from the center towards the wingtips. Actually, it seems that the entire sprue is curved like that - for whatever reason. The other sprues seem to be perfectly flat, only the wing one is "warped". Maybe due to the production process (maybe leave it a tad longer to cool down before ejecting it?).
 
The instructions / manual.. leafing through it, I cannot really complain. It comes in 4 languages (Chinese, English, Japanese, Russian). The instructions seem ok (I only casually flipped through the leaflet and have not compared them to the instructions from my WNW kits), but I'd say just on the instruction side of things, they are manageable. The leaflet is full colour as opposed to what you get in a Roden kit. What they lack, compared to the WNW offerings, is some of the extra info WNW always packed into their leaflets, extra photos, bit of history, etc. 
I didn't check whether the colour call-outs are on point or off.
 
What I do like is that they have 4 versions with 4 views each (top, bottom, left, right) and that they have extra parts to be able to make either a DR.1 or an F.1 - That's two kits from Roden. Now it would be interesting to see if one could kitbash the extra parts with a Roden kit, say "upgrade" the cowling or whatever... I'll probably be escorted from here soonish for making such statements, but whatever ;).
 
Aftermarket additions that I can see:
- Brass PE / guns
- Aviattic simulated linen cloth decals (here's waiting for them to finish all versions of the Richthofen's DR.1 / F.1s before going in for the kill.. umm.. purchase I meant)
- (maybe) Aviattic PE for the bulkhead
But again as Petrov27 said, those would be things you would also add to the Roden kit.
 
So quick verdict for me (just my opinion) 10/10 would buy again (and likely will further down the road, but for now I've got a grand total of 5 DR.1s and 1 F.1, that should last me for a bit). If you're uncertain whether to get this or not - if the price point is close to Roden, have a look at the Meng. And I am in no way, shape or form affiliated with Meng, Roden or any other company.
 
 
/edit
On the warped wing issue. I'd say the wing tips are 2-3mm higher than the center. However, I think this should be easily fixable. I would probably try something like this: Submerge the parts (cut free from the sprue) in a bath of hot(ish) water and weigh them down with something heavy across the entire length of the wing, leave for a bit and see if that works. I'm not a big fan of the hot air treatment (maybe because I suck at it), but if you're skilled with that it should be a doddle.

Surprisingly enough, my two versions shipping from HK on the 18th arrived today in a single box with no hassle via customs, where they were "held" yesterday..
On opening the package and unboxing the kits I was surprised that both versions (bust and no bust) share the exact same box / box art, the only outwardly recognizable difference is a ~10cm wide red papper ribbon going around the box stating "special limited edition" on the QS-002s version - and yes, the two part bust of the Rittmeister within the box.
 
That aside looking at the sprues I completely concur with everything petrov27 wrote. To my eyes the detail is perfect. There is a lot more detail here that is not available in the Roden kits (DR.1 / F.1) - and I have several of those to compare with. For example the rivet detail on the cowling or the rib tape detail. Oh and the bulkhead! Now considering what I paid for these two kits (including shipping from the other end of the world via tracked airmail), I absolutely cannot complain:
The regular kit (incl. shipping) came in at 42€, the special edition was 56€ (again, including shipping). In theory I could have probably saved a tenner on shipping if I had chosen to do both in one order (as they shipped it that way anyway). Just for comparison: the last Roden F.1 I sourced locally on Fleabay maybe 2-3 months ago set me back 32€ and I believe the Roden DR.1s I've got ranged somewhere between 30 and 35€ a piece. And seeing the difference in detail for almost exactly the same price - who am I to complain? Just look at what you would need to fix on the Roden kit (cowling, bulkhead, ...). And then compare the price to the last regular WNW kits I bought just prior to the meltdown and the ensuing price explosion. The following kits I got for between 85€-120€ each (Sopwith Camel F.1 Le Rhone, Sopwith Triplane Raymond Collishaw, Fokker D.VIIb Göhring). 
 
So considering the amount of detail you get for somewhere between 1/2 or 1/3 of the price of a typical WNW kit, I'd say these Meng kits are extremely good value for money and even if they weren't 100% correct I'd still be satisfied with that purchase. Funny sidenote - sourcing those two Meng kits locally would cost me probably 1.5-2x what I ended up paying, yay global economy.
 
All of that aside, what I do see and what is a, to me anyway, minor annoyance is the curvature of the wings from the center towards the wingtips. Actually, it seems that the entire sprue is curved like that - for whatever reason. The other sprues seem to be perfectly flat, only the wing one is "warped". Maybe due to the production process (maybe leave it a tad longer to cool down before ejecting it?).
 
The instructions / manual.. leafing through it, I cannot really complain. It comes in 4 languages (Chinese, English, Japanese, Russian). The instructions seem ok (I only casually flipped through the leaflet and have not compared them to the instructions from my WNW kits), but I'd say just on the instruction side of things, they are manageable. The leaflet is full colour as opposed to what you get in a Roden kit. What they lack, compared to the WNW offerings, is some of the extra info WNW always packed into their leaflets, extra photos, bit of history, etc. 
I didn't check whether the colour call-outs are on point or off.
 
What I do like is that they have 4 versions with 4 views each (top, bottom, left, right) and that they have extra parts to be able to make either a DR.1 or an F.1 - That's two kits from Roden. Now it would be interesting to see if one could kitbash the extra parts with a Roden kit, say "upgrade" the cowling or whatever... I'll probably be escorted from here soonish for making such statements, but whatever ;).
 
Aftermarket additions that I can see:
- Brass PE / guns
- Aviattic simulated linen cloth decals (here's waiting for them to finish all versions of the Richthofen's DR.1 / F.1s before going in for the kill.. umm.. purchase I meant)
- (maybe) Aviattic PE for the bulkhead
But again as Petrov27 said, those would be things you would also add to the Roden kit.
 
So quick verdict for me (just my opinion) 10/10 would buy again (and likely will further down the road, but for now I've got a grand total of 5 DR.1s and 1 F.1, that should last me for a bit). If you're uncertain whether to get this or not - if the price point is close to Roden, have a look at the Meng. And I am in no way, shape or form affiliated with Meng, Roden or any other company.
 
 
/edit
On the warped wing issue. I'd say the wing tips are 2-3mm higher than the center. However, I think this should be easily fixable. I would probably try something like this: Submerge the parts (cut free from the sprue) in a bath of hot(ish) water and weigh them down with something heavy across the entire length of the wing, leave for a bit and see if that works. I'm not a big fan of the hot air treatment (maybe because I suck at it), but if you're skilled with that it should be a doddle.

Surprisingly enough, my two versions shipping from HK on the 18th arrived today in a single box with no hassle via customs, where they were "held" yesterday..
On opening the package and unboxing the kits I was surprised that both versions (bust and no bust) share the exact same box / box art, the only outwardly recognizable difference is a ~10cm wide red papper ribbon going around the box stating "special limited edition" on the QS-002s version - and yes, the two part bust of the Rittmeister within the box.
 
That aside looking at the sprues I completely concur with everything petrov27 wrote. To my eyes the detail is perfect. There is a lot more detail here that is not available in the Roden kits (DR.1 / F.1) - and I have several of those to compare with. For example the rivet detail on the cowling or the rib tape detail. Oh and the bulkhead! Now considering what I paid for these two kits (including shipping from the other end of the world via tracked airmail), I absolutely cannot complain:
The regular kit (incl. shipping) came in at 42€, the special edition was 56€ (again, including shipping). In theory I could have probably saved a tenner on shipping if I had chosen to do both in one order (as they shipped it that way anyway). Just for comparison: the last Roden F.1 I sourced locally on Fleabay maybe 2-3 months ago set me back 32€ and I believe the Roden DR.1s I've got ranged somewhere between 30 and 35€ a piece. And seeing the difference in detail for almost exactly the same price - who am I to complain? Just look at what you would need to fix on the Roden kit (cowling, bulkhead, ...). And then compare the price to the last regular WNW kits I bought just prior to the meltdown and the ensuing price explosion. The following kits I got for between 85€-120€ each (Sopwith Camel F.1 Le Rhone, Sopwith Triplane Raymond Collishaw, Fokker D.VIIb Göhring). 
 
So considering the amount of detail you get for somewhere between 1/2 or 1/3 of the price of a typical WNW kit, I'd say these Meng kits are extremely good value for money and even if they weren't 100% correct I'd still be satisfied with that purchase. Funny sidenote - sourcing those two Meng kits locally would cost me probably 1.5-2x what I ended up paying, yay global economy.
 
All of that aside, what I do see and what is a, to me anyway, minor annoyance is the curvature of the wings from the center towards the wingtips. Actually, it seems that the entire sprue is curved like that - for whatever reason. The other sprues seem to be perfectly flat, only the wing one is "warped". Maybe due to the production process (maybe leave it a tad longer to cool down before ejecting it?).
 
The instructions / manual.. leafing through it, I cannot really complain. It comes in 4 languages (Chinese, English, Japanese, Russian). The instructions seem ok (I only casually flipped through the leaflet and have not compared them to the instructions from my WNW kits), but I'd say just on the instruction side of things, they are manageable. The leaflet is full colour as opposed to what you get in a Roden kit. What they lack, compared to the WNW offerings, is some of the extra info WNW always packed into their leaflets, extra photos, bit of history, etc. 
I didn't check whether the colour call-outs are on point or off.
 
What I do like is that they have 4 versions with 4 views each (top, bottom, left, right) and that they have extra parts to be able to make either a DR.1 or an F.1 - That's two kits from Roden. Now it would be interesting to see if one could kitbash the extra parts with a Roden kit, say "upgrade" the cowling or whatever... I'll probably be escorted from here soonish for making such statements, but whatever ;).
 
Aftermarket additions that I can see:
- Brass PE / guns
- Aviattic simulated linen cloth decals (here's waiting for them to finish all versions of the Richthofen's DR.1 / F.1s before going in for the kill.. umm.. purchase I meant)
- (maybe) Aviattic PE for the bulkhead
But again as Petrov27 said, those would be things you would also add to the Roden kit.
 
So quick verdict for me (just my opinion) 10/10 would buy again (and likely will further down the road, but for now I've got a grand total of 5 DR.1s and 1 F.1, that should last me for a bit). If you're uncertain whether to get this or not - if the price point is close to Roden, have a look at the Meng. And I am in no way, shape or form affiliated with Meng, Roden or any other company.
 
 
/edit
On the warped wing issue. I'd say the wing tips are 2-3mm higher than the center. However, I think this should be easily fixable. I would probably try something like this: Submerge the parts (cut free from the sprue) in a bath of hot(ish) water and weigh them down with something heavy across the entire length of the wing, leave for a bit and see if that works. I'm not a big fan of the hot air treatment (maybe because I suck at it), but if you're skilled with that it should be a doddle.

Surprisingly enough, my two versions shipping from HK on the 18th arrived today in a single box with no hassle via customs, where they were "held" yesterday..
On opening the package and unboxing the kits I was surprised that both versions (bust and no bust) share the exact same box / box art, the only outwardly recognizable difference is a ~10cm wide red papper ribbon going around the box stating "special limited edition" on the QS-002s version - and yes, the two part bust of the Rittmeister within the box.
 
That aside looking at the sprues I completely concur with everything petrov27 wrote. To my eyes the detail is perfect. There is a lot more detail here that is not available in the Roden kits (DR.1 / F.1) - and I have several of those to compare with. For example the rivet detail on the cowling or the rib tape detail. Oh and the bulkhead! Now considering what I paid for these two kits (including shipping from the other end of the world via tracked airmail), I absolutely cannot complain:
The regular kit (incl. shipping) came in at 42€, the special edition was 56€ (again, including shipping). In theory I could have probably saved a tenner on shipping if I had chosen to do both in one order (as they shipped it that way anyway). Just for comparison: the last Roden F.1 I sourced locally on Fleabay maybe 2-3 months ago set me back 32€ and I believe the Roden DR.1s I've got ranged somewhere between 30 and 35€ a piece. And seeing the difference in detail for almost exactly the same price - who am I to complain? Just look at what you would need to fix on the Roden kit (cowling, bulkhead, ...). And then compare the price to the last regular WNW kits I bought just prior to the meltdown and the ensuing price explosion. The following kits I got for between 85€-120€ each (Sopwith Camel F.1 Le Rhone, Sopwith Triplane Raymond Collishaw, Fokker D.VIIb Göhring). 
 
So considering the amount of detail you get for somewhere between 1/2 or 1/3 of the price of a typical WNW kit, I'd say these Meng kits are extremely good value for money and even if they weren't 100% correct I'd still be satisfied with that purchase. Funny sidenote - sourcing those two Meng kits locally would cost me probably 1.5-2x what I ended up paying, yay global economy.
 
All of that aside, what I do see and what is a, to me anyway, minor annoyance is the curvature of the wings from the center towards the wingtips. Actually, it seems that the entire sprue is curved like that - for whatever reason. The other sprues seem to be perfectly flat, only the wing one is "warped". Maybe due to the production process (maybe leave it a tad longer to cool down before ejecting it?).
 
The instructions / manual.. leafing through it, I cannot really complain. It comes in 4 languages (Chinese, English, Japanese, Russian). The instructions seem ok (I only casually flipped through the leaflet and have not compared them to the instructions from my WNW kits), but I'd say just on the instruction side of things, they are manageable. The leaflet is full colour as opposed to what you get in a Roden kit. What they lack, compared to the WNW offerings, is some of the extra info WNW always packed into their leaflets, extra photos, bit of history, etc. 
I didn't check whether the colour call-outs are on point or off.
 
What I do like is that they have 4 versions with 4 views each (top, bottom, left, right) and that they have extra parts to be able to make either a DR.1 or an F.1 - That's two kits from Roden. Now it would be interesting to see if one could kitbash the extra parts with a Roden kit, say "upgrade" the cowling or whatever... I'll probably be escorted from here soonish for making such statements, but whatever ;).
 
Aftermarket additions that I can see:
- Brass PE / guns
- Aviattic simulated linen cloth decals (here's waiting for them to finish all versions of the Richthofen's DR.1 / F.1s before going in for the kill.. umm.. purchase I meant)
- (maybe) Aviattic PE for the bulkhead
But again as Petrov27 said, those would be things you would also add to the Roden kit.
 
So quick verdict for me (just my opinion) 10/10 would buy again (and likely will further down the road, but for now I've got a grand total of 5 DR.1s and 1 F.1, that should last me for a bit). If you're uncertain whether to get this or not - if the price point is close to Roden, have a look at the Meng. And I am in no way, shape or form affiliated with Meng, Roden or any other company.
 
 
/edit
On the warped wing issue. I'd say the wing tips are 2-3mm higher than the center. However, I think this should be easily fixable. I would probably try something like this: Submerge the parts (cut free from the sprue) in a bath of hot(ish) water and weigh them down with something heavy across the entire length of the wing, leave for a bit and see if that works. I'm not a big fan of the hot air treatment (maybe because I suck at it), but if you're skilled with that it should be a doddle.

Surprisingly enough, my two versions shipping from HK on the 18th arrived today in a single box with no hassle via customs, where they were "held" yesterday..
On opening the package and unboxing the kits I was surprised that both versions (bust and no bust) share the exact same box / box art, the only outwardly recognizable difference is a ~10cm wide red papper ribbon going around the box stating "special limited edition" on the QS-002s version - and yes, the two part bust of the Rittmeister within the box.
 
That aside looking at the sprues I completely concur with everything petrov27 wrote. To my eyes the detail is perfect. There is a lot more detail here that is not available in the Roden kits (DR.1 / F.1) - and I have several of those to compare with. For example the rivet detail on the cowling or the rib tape detail. Oh and the bulkhead! Now considering what I paid for these two kits (including shipping from the other end of the world via tracked airmail), I absolutely cannot complain:
The regular kit (incl. shipping) came in at 42€, the special edition was 56€ (again, including shipping). In theory I could have probably saved a tenner on shipping if I had chosen to do both in one order (as they shipped it that way anyway). Just for comparison: the last Roden F.1 I sourced locally on Fleabay maybe 2-3 months ago set me back 32€ and I believe the Roden DR.1s I've got ranged somewhere between 30 and 35€ a piece. And seeing the difference in detail for almost exactly the same price - who am I to complain? Just look at what you would need to fix on the Roden kit (cowling, bulkhead, ...). And then compare the price to the last regular WNW kits I bought just prior to the meltdown and the ensuing price explosion. The following kits I got for between 85€-120€ each (Sopwith Camel F.1 Le Rhone, Sopwith Triplane Raymond Collishaw, Fokker D.VIIb Göhring). 
 
So considering the amount of detail you get for somewhere between 1/2 or 1/3 of the price of a typical WNW kit, I'd say these Meng kits are extremely good value for money and even if they weren't 100% correct I'd still be satisfied with that purchase. Funny sidenote - sourcing those two Meng kits locally would cost me probably 1.5-2x what I ended up paying, yay global economy.
 
All of that aside, what I do see and what is a, to me anyway, minor annoyance is the curvature of the wings from the center towards the wingtips. Actually, it seems that the entire sprue is curved like that - for whatever reason. The other sprues seem to be perfectly flat, only the wing one is "warped". Maybe due to the production process (maybe leave it a tad longer to cool down before ejecting it?).
 
The instructions / manual.. leafing through it, I cannot really complain. It comes in 4 languages (Chinese, English, Japanese, Russian). The instructions seem ok (I only casually flipped through the leaflet and have not compared them to the instructions from my WNW kits), but I'd say just on the instruction side of things, they are manageable. The leaflet is full colour as opposed to what you get in a Roden kit. What they lack, compared to the WNW offerings, is some of the extra info WNW always packed into their leaflets, extra photos, bit of history, etc. 
I didn't check whether the colour call-outs are on point or off.
 
What I do like is that they have 4 versions with 4 views each (top, bottom, left, right) and that they have extra parts to be able to make either a DR.1 or an F.1 - That's two kits from Roden. Now it would be interesting to see if one could kitbash the extra parts with a Roden kit, say "upgrade" the cowling or whatever... I'll probably be escorted from here soonish for making such statements, but whatever ;).
 
Aftermarket additions that I can see:
- Brass PE / guns
- Aviattic simulated linen cloth decals (here's waiting for them to finish all versions of the Richthofen's DR.1 / F.1s before going in for the kill.. umm.. purchase I meant)
- (maybe) Aviattic PE for the bulkhead
But again as Petrov27 said, those would be things you would also add to the Roden kit.
 
So quick verdict for me (just my opinion) 10/10 would buy again (and likely will further down the road, but for now I've got a grand total of 5 DR.1s and 1 F.1, that should last me for a bit). If you're uncertain whether to get this or not - if the price point is close to Roden, have a look at the Meng. And I am in no way, shape or form affiliated with Meng, Roden or any other company.
 
 
/edit
On the warped wing issue. I'd say the wing tips are 2-3mm higher than the center. However, I think this should be easily fixable. I would probably try something like this: Submerge the parts (cut free from the sprue) in a bath of hot(ish) water and weigh them down with something heavy across the entire length of the wing, leave for a bit and see if that works. I'm not a big fan of the hot air treatment (maybe because I suck at it), but if you're skilled with that it should be a doddle.

Surprisingly enough, my two versions shipping from HK on the 18th arrived today in a single box with no hassle via customs, where they were "held" yesterday..
On opening the package and unboxing the kits I was surprised that both versions (bust and no bust) share the exact same box / box art, the only outwardly recognizable difference is a ~10cm wide red papper ribbon going around the box stating "special limited edition" on the QS-002s version - and yes, the two part bust of the Rittmeister within the box.
 
That aside looking at the sprues I completely concur with everything petrov27 wrote. To my eyes the detail is perfect. There is a lot more detail here that is not available in the Roden kits (DR.1 / F.1) - and I have several of those to compare with. For example the rivet detail on the cowling or the rib tape detail. Oh and the bulkhead! Now considering what I paid for these two kits (including shipping from the other end of the world via tracked airmail), I absolutely cannot complain:
The regular kit (incl. shipping) came in at 42€, the special edition was 56€ (again, including shipping). In theory I could have probably saved a tenner on shipping if I had chosen to do both in one order (as they shipped it that way anyway). Just for comparison: the last Roden F.1 I sourced locally on Fleabay maybe 2-3 months ago set me back 32€ and I believe the Roden DR.1s I've got ranged somewhere between 30 and 35€ a piece. And seeing the difference in detail for almost exactly the same price - who am I to complain? Just look at what you would need to fix on the Roden kit (cowling, bulkhead, ...). And then compare the price to the last regular WNW kits I bought just prior to the meltdown and the ensuing price explosion. The following kits I got for between 85€-120€ each (Sopwith Camel F.1 Le Rhone, Sopwith Triplane Raymond Collishaw, Fokker D.VIIb Göhring). 
 
So considering the amount of detail you get for somewhere between 1/2 or 1/3 of the price of a typical WNW kit, I'd say these Meng kits are extremely good value for money and even if they weren't 100% correct I'd still be satisfied with that purchase. Funny sidenote - sourcing those two Meng kits locally would cost me probably 1.5-2x what I ended up paying, yay global economy.
 
All of that aside, what I do see and what is a, to me anyway, minor annoyance is the curvature of the wings from the center towards the wingtips. Actually, it seems that the entire sprue is curved like that - for whatever reason. The other sprues seem to be perfectly flat, only the wing one is "warped". Maybe due to the production process (maybe leave it a tad longer to cool down before ejecting it?).
 
The instructions / manual.. leafing through it, I cannot really complain. It comes in 4 languages (Chinese, English, Japanese, Russian). The instructions seem ok (I only casually flipped through the leaflet and have not compared them to the instructions from my WNW kits), but I'd say just on the instruction side of things, they are manageable. The leaflet is full colour as opposed to what you get in a Roden kit. What they lack, compared to the WNW offerings, is some of the extra info WNW always packed into their leaflets, extra photos, bit of history, etc. 
I didn't check whether the colour call-outs are on point or off.
 
What I do like is that they have 4 versions with 4 views each (top, bottom, left, right) and that they have extra parts to be able to make either a DR.1 or an F.1 - That's two kits from Roden. Now it would be interesting to see if one could kitbash the extra parts with a Roden kit, say "upgrade" the cowling or whatever... I'll probably be escorted from here soonish for making such statements, but whatever ;).
 
Aftermarket additions that I can see:
- Brass PE / guns
- Aviattic simulated linen cloth decals (here's waiting for them to finish all versions of the Richthofen's DR.1 / F.1s before going in for the kill.. umm.. purchase I meant)
- (maybe) Aviattic PE for the bulkhead
But again as Petrov27 said, those would be things you would also add to the Roden kit.
 
So quick verdict for me (just my opinion) 10/10 would buy again (and likely will further down the road, but for now I've got a grand total of 5 DR.1s and 1 F.1, that should last me for a bit). If you're uncertain whether to get this or not - if the price point is close to Roden, have a look at the Meng. And I am in no way, shape or form affiliated with Meng, Roden or any other company.
 
 
/edit
On the warped wing issue. I'd say the wing tips are 2-3mm higher than the center. However, I think this should be easily fixable. I would probably try something like this: Submerge the parts (cut free from the sprue) in a bath of hot(ish) water and weigh them down with something heavy across the entire length of the wing, leave for a bit and see if that works. I'm not a big fan of the hot air treatment (maybe because I suck at it), but if you're skilled with that it should be a doddle.

Surprisingly enough, my two versions shipping from HK on the 18th arrived today in a single box with no hassle via customs, where they were "held" yesterday..
On opening the package and unboxing the kits I was surprised that both versions (bust and no bust) share the exact same box / box art, the only outwardly recognizable difference is a ~10cm wide red papper ribbon going around the box stating "special limited edition" on the QS-002s version - and yes, the two part bust of the Rittmeister within the box.
 
That aside looking at the sprues I completely concur with everything petrov27 wrote. To my eyes the detail is perfect. There is a lot more detail here that is not available in the Roden kits (DR.1 / F.1) - and I have several of those to compare with. For example the rivet detail on the cowling or the rib tape detail. Oh and the bulkhead! Now considering what I paid for these two kits (including shipping from the other end of the world via tracked airmail), I absolutely cannot complain:
The regular kit (incl. shipping) came in at 42€, the special edition was 56€ (again, including shipping). In theory I could have probably saved a tenner on shipping if I had chosen to do both in one order (as they shipped it that way anyway). Just for comparison: the last Roden F.1 I sourced locally on Fleabay maybe 2-3 months ago set me back 32€ and I believe the Roden DR.1s I've got ranged somewhere between 30 and 35€ a piece. And seeing the difference in detail for almost exactly the same price - who am I to complain? Just look at what you would need to fix on the Roden kit (cowling, bulkhead, ...). And then compare the price to the last regular WNW kits I bought just prior to the meltdown and the ensuing price explosion. The following kits I got for between 85€-120€ each (Sopwith Camel F.1 Le Rhone, Sopwith Triplane Raymond Collishaw, Fokker D.VIIb Göhring). 
 
So considering the amount of detail you get for somewhere between 1/2 or 1/3 of the price of a typical WNW kit, I'd say these Meng kits are extremely good value for money and even if they weren't 100% correct I'd still be satisfied with that purchase. Funny sidenote - sourcing those two Meng kits locally would cost me probably 1.5-2x what I ended up paying, yay global economy.
 
All of that aside, what I do see and what is a, to me anyway, minor annoyance is the curvature of the wings from the center towards the wingtips. Actually, it seems that the entire sprue is curved like that - for whatever reason. The other sprues seem to be perfectly flat, only the wing one is "warped". Maybe due to the production process (maybe leave it a tad longer to cool down before ejecting it?).
 
The instructions / manual.. leafing through it, I cannot really complain. It comes in 4 languages (Chinese, English, Japanese, Russian). The instructions seem ok (I only casually flipped through the leaflet and have not compared them to the instructions from my WNW kits), but I'd say just on the instruction side of things, they are manageable. The leaflet is full colour as opposed to what you get in a Roden kit. What they lack, compared to the WNW offerings, is some of the extra info WNW always packed into their leaflets, extra photos, bit of history, etc. 
I didn't check whether the colour call-outs are on point or off.
 
What I do like is that they have 4 versions with 4 views each (top, bottom, left, right) and that they have extra parts to be able to make either a DR.1 or an F.1 - That's two kits from Roden. Now it would be interesting to see if one could kitbash the extra parts with a Roden kit, say "upgrade" the cowling or whatever... I'll probably be escorted from here soonish for making such statements, but whatever ;).
 
Aftermarket additions that I can see:
- Brass PE / guns
- Aviattic simulated linen cloth decals (here's waiting for them to finish all versions of the Richthofen's DR.1 / F.1s before going in for the kill.. umm.. purchase I meant)
- (maybe) Aviattic PE for the bulkhead
But again as Petrov27 said, those would be things you would also add to the Roden kit.
 
So quick verdict for me (just my opinion) 10/10 would buy again (and likely will further down the road, but for now I've got a grand total of 5 DR.1s and 1 F.1, that should last me for a bit). If you're uncertain whether to get this or not - if the price point is close to Roden, have a look at the Meng. And I am in no way, shape or form affiliated with Meng, Roden or any other company.
 
 
/edit
On the warped wing issue. I'd say the wing tips are 2-3mm higher than the center. However, I think this should be easily fixable. I would probably try something like this: Submerge the parts (cut free from the sprue) in a bath of hot(ish) water and weigh them down with something heavy across the entire length of the wing, leave for a bit and see if that works. I'm not a big fan of the hot air treatment (maybe because I suck at it), but if you're skilled with that it should be a doddle.

Surprisingly enough, my two versions shipping from HK on the 18th arrived today in a single box with no hassle via customs, where they were "held" yesterday..
On opening the package and unboxing the kits I was surprised that both versions (bust and no bust) share the exact same box / box art, the only outwardly recognizable difference is a ~10cm wide red papper ribbon going around the box stating "special limited edition" on the QS-002s version - and yes, the two part bust of the Rittmeister within the box.
 
That aside looking at the sprues I completely concur with everything petrov27 wrote. To my eyes the detail is perfect. There is a lot more detail here that is not available in the Roden kits (DR.1 / F.1) - and I have several of those to compare with. For example the rivet detail on the cowling or the rib tape detail. Oh and the bulkhead! Now considering what I paid for these two kits (including shipping from the other end of the world via tracked airmail), I absolutely cannot complain:
The regular kit (incl. shipping) came in at 42€, the special edition was 56€ (again, including shipping). In theory I could have probably saved a tenner on shipping if I had chosen to do both in one order (as they shipped it that way anyway). Just for comparison: the last Roden F.1 I sourced locally on Fleabay maybe 2-3 months ago set me back 32€ and I believe the Roden DR.1s I've got ranged somewhere between 30 and 35€ a piece. And seeing the difference in detail for almost exactly the same price - who am I to complain? Just look at what you would need to fix on the Roden kit (cowling, bulkhead, ...). And then compare the price to the last regular WNW kits I bought just prior to the meltdown and the ensuing price explosion. The following kits I got for between 85€-120€ each (Sopwith Camel F.1 Le Rhone, Sopwith Triplane Raymond Collishaw, Fokker D.VIIb Göhring). 
 
So considering the amount of detail you get for somewhere between 1/2 or 1/3 of the price of a typical WNW kit, I'd say these Meng kits are extremely good value for money and even if they weren't 100% correct I'd still be satisfied with that purchase. Funny sidenote - sourcing those two Meng kits locally would cost me probably 1.5-2x what I ended up paying, yay global economy.
 
All of that aside, what I do see and what is a, to me anyway, minor annoyance is the curvature of the wings from the center towards the wingtips. Actually, it seems that the entire sprue is curved like that - for whatever reason. The other sprues seem to be perfectly flat, only the wing one is "warped". Maybe due to the production process (maybe leave it a tad longer to cool down before ejecting it?).
 
The instructions / manual.. leafing through it, I cannot really complain. It comes in 4 languages (Chinese, English, Japanese, Russian). The instructions seem ok (I only casually flipped through the leaflet and have not compared them to the instructions from my WNW kits), but I'd say just on the instruction side of things, they are manageable. The leaflet is full colour as opposed to what you get in a Roden kit. What they lack, compared to the WNW offerings, is some of the extra info WNW always packed into their leaflets, extra photos, bit of history, etc. 
I didn't check whether the colour call-outs are on point or off.
 
What I do like is that they have 4 versions with 4 views each (top, bottom, left, right) and that they have extra parts to be able to make either a DR.1 or an F.1 - That's two kits from Roden. Now it would be interesting to see if one could kitbash the extra parts with a Roden kit, say "upgrade" the cowling or whatever... I'll probably be escorted from here soonish for making such statements, but whatever ;).
 
Aftermarket additions that I can see:
- Brass PE / guns
- Aviattic simulated linen cloth decals (here's waiting for them to finish all versions of the Richthofen's DR.1 / F.1s before going in for the kill.. umm.. purchase I meant)
- (maybe) Aviattic PE for the bulkhead
But again as Petrov27 said, those would be things you would also add to the Roden kit.
 
So quick verdict for me (just my opinion) 10/10 would buy again (and likely will further down the road, but for now I've got a grand total of 5 DR.1s and 1 F.1, that should last me for a bit). If you're uncertain whether to get this or not - if the price point is close to Roden, have a look at the Meng. And I am in no way, shape or form affiliated with Meng, Roden or any other company.
 
 
/edit
On the warped wing issue. I'd say the wing tips are 2-3mm higher than the center. However, I think this should be easily fixable. I would probably try something like this: Submerge the parts (cut free from the sprue) in a bath of hot(ish) water and weigh them down with something heavy across the entire length of the wing, leave for a bit and see if that works. I'm not a big fan of the hot air treatment (maybe because I suck at it), but if you're skilled with that it should be a doddle.

Surprisingly enough, my two versions shipping from HK on the 18th arrived today in a single box with no hassle via customs, where they were "held" yesterday..
On opening the package and unboxing the kits I was surprised that both versions (bust and no bust) share the exact same box / box art, the only outwardly recognizable difference is a ~10cm wide red papper ribbon going around the box stating "special limited edition" on the QS-002s version - and yes, the two part bust of the Rittmeister within the box.
 
That aside looking at the sprues I completely concur with everything petrov27 wrote. To my eyes the detail is perfect. There is a lot more detail here that is not available in the Roden kits (DR.1 / F.1) - and I have several of those to compare with. For example the rivet detail on the cowling or the rib tape detail. Oh and the bulkhead! Now considering what I paid for these two kits (including shipping from the other end of the world via tracked airmail), I absolutely cannot complain:
The regular kit (incl. shipping) came in at 42€, the special edition was 56€ (again, including shipping). In theory I could have probably saved a tenner on shipping if I had chosen to do both in one order (as they shipped it that way anyway). Just for comparison: the last Roden F.1 I sourced locally on Fleabay maybe 2-3 months ago set me back 32€ and I believe the Roden DR.1s I've got ranged somewhere between 30 and 35€ a piece. And seeing the difference in detail for almost exactly the same price - who am I to complain? Just look at what you would need to fix on the Roden kit (cowling, bulkhead, ...). And then compare the price to the last regular WNW kits I bought just prior to the meltdown and the ensuing price explosion. The following kits I got for between 85€-120€ each (Sopwith Camel F.1 Le Rhone, Sopwith Triplane Raymond Collishaw, Fokker D.VIIb Göhring). 
 
So considering the amount of detail you get for somewhere between 1/2 or 1/3 of the price of a typical WNW kit, I'd say these Meng kits are extremely good value for money and even if they weren't 100% correct I'd still be satisfied with that purchase. Funny sidenote - sourcing those two Meng kits locally would cost me probably 1.5-2x what I ended up paying, yay global economy.
 
All of that aside, what I do see and what is a, to me anyway, minor annoyance is the curvature of the wings from the center towards the wingtips. Actually, it seems that the entire sprue is curved like that - for whatever reason. The other sprues seem to be perfectly flat, only the wing one is "warped". Maybe due to the production process (maybe leave it a tad longer to cool down before ejecting it?).
 
The instructions / manual.. leafing through it, I cannot really complain. It comes in 4 languages (Chinese, English, Japanese, Russian). The instructions seem ok (I only casually flipped through the leaflet and have not compared them to the instructions from my WNW kits), but I'd say just on the instruction side of things, they are manageable. The leaflet is full colour as opposed to what you get in a Roden kit. What they lack, compared to the WNW offerings, is some of the extra info WNW always packed into their leaflets, extra photos, bit of history, etc. 
I didn't check whether the colour call-outs are on point or off.
 
What I do like is that they have 4 versions with 4 views each (top, bottom, left, right) and that they have extra parts to be able to make either a DR.1 or an F.1 - That's two kits from Roden. Now it would be interesting to see if one could kitbash the extra parts with a Roden kit, say "upgrade" the cowling or whatever... I'll probably be escorted from here soonish for making such statements, but whatever ;).
 
Aftermarket additions that I can see:
- Brass PE / guns
- Aviattic simulated linen cloth decals (here's waiting for them to finish all versions of the Richthofen's DR.1 / F.1s before going in for the kill.. umm.. purchase I meant)
- (maybe) Aviattic PE for the bulkhead
But again as Petrov27 said, those would be things you would also add to the Roden kit.
 
So quick verdict for me (just my opinion) 10/10 would buy again (and likely will further down the road, but for now I've got a grand total of 5 DR.1s and 1 F.1, that should last me for a bit). If you're uncertain whether to get this or not - if the price point is close to Roden, have a look at the Meng. And I am in no way, shape or form affiliated with Meng, Roden or any other company.
 
 
/edit
On the warped wing issue. I'd say the wing tips are 2-3mm higher than the center. However, I think this should be easily fixable. I would probably try something like this: Submerge the parts (cut free from the sprue) in a bath of hot(ish) water and weigh them down with something heavy across the entire length of the wing, leave for a bit and see if that works. I'm not a big fan of the hot air treatment (maybe because I suck at it), but if you're skilled with that it should be a doddle.

Yeah that review comes off as surprisingly negative. I have started work on the kit and so far the detail and parts cleanup seems quite similar to the two WNW DVII I have built. There are  mould lines to cleanup and a little flash as noted on one set of the ailerons, but what I see here seems pretty minor (hardly "1970s level flash.")
 
I have always been a fan of the Roden Dr.I and have several, but I am very impressed with the small details in the MENG that IMHO elevate it above the Roden DrI. In particular:
the fuselage top decking/middle wing with tiny Fokker-style fasteners, blast plates for the Spandau guns, spent-shell ejection chute detail, correct dual filler caps the fuselage under decking from the firewall back covering the lower wing spar - again nice fastener detail, hinged access hatch etc. Interior bits - seat with subtle fabric/leather detail, rear bulkhead/frame again with subtle fabric detail, stitching and leather panel where the seatbelts pass through, complete (to my eye anyway) instruments, even the metal cables for the machine gun firing mechanism and the ammunition box has nice detail as well top wing undersurface detail for the small rectangular access hatches for the control wire system the cowling(s) are very fine with nice rivet detail, detailed firewall with some details I had never noticed before I like that the kit gives extra parts to do the F.I, the Dr.I all in one box - its not a huge thing, but different ailerons, wheels, cowling and tail surfaces still is a fair amount of parts.  I have only test fit the major interior parts into the fuselage and such but it looks like fit is good. There are large "lugs" that lock the internal bits into the correct spots that seem like it will facilitate ease of assembly. Time will tell but it feels good how the different bits "fall" together As far as aftermarket, I only see using Master brass spandau set and probably decals/masks, but on my previous WNW builds I have used the same so it is hard to really dump on MENG on those points...
 
 

It absolutely is. I know, completely way out here, but the 917 is THE racing car for me. Judging by the # of large scale kits and books on the matter. Plus I've taken the half day drive to the Porsche factory museum twice just to see the 917s exhibited there.
 
That aside, I somehow seem to have missed the pictures thread here. Blimey.
My kits are shipping from hobbyeasy as well. And can I just say that I placed two separate orders because international shipping was still an issue at the time of the order, I now got two tracking mails both stating the same tracking number, so duh. According to hobbyeasy the shipping date was postponed by a week or two. It was said to be early August, but got pushed back to mid - late August.
So add to that it'll probably be stuck in customs for a while as well (both in HK and here in L'Europe)... wake me in a month.

Yeah.  There is a big photo thread here.  I think most everyone who ordered the kit in the US from Sprue Brothers probably has it by now.  I got mine on Wednesday.
 

One I ordered from Lucky Model is on the way, but the one I ordered from HobbyEasy still hasn’t shipped.
 

Ok, we know what the sprues look like overall and in some cases, I think we have some detail shots.  This is primarily for those who may be interested and those who have not yet acquired the kit. I have taken photos of all the plastic sprues in the kit and selected detail shots of most of the plastic parts on those sprues.  I am not that knowledgeable about the  WWI/Dr.I/F.1 so I'll let the photos speak for themselves and you all can discuss the finer points of what you see in these photos.  Without further adoo......
 
Wing details:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Above: Middle wing underside...rib stitching is not concave as I remember seeing in the Roden kit.
 

 

 
Fuselage
 

 

 

 
Note the ejector pin marks in the above image...I don't think these will present a problem.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Props
 

 

 
Dr. I horizontal tail
 

 
Dr. I rudder
 

 
Dr. I wheels
 

 

 
I think the following images are for the F.I (sprue F)
 

 

 

 

 

 
I think this is a Dr. I sprue (below)
 

 

 

 

 

 
Engines
 

 

 

 

 

 
Last but not least, the clear parts
 

 

Well well well, it would seem as if I need to get me some unobtanium eh lithium, dammit, litho plate to play with.
As I have said before the results are amazing (as usual...), the way they are done is not exactly rocket science with a bit of planning ahead (and mostly household tools). Just look at the boss for the punch and die action: haphazardly glued bits of styrene on a flat surface, that kind of looks like my desk while building. It's just that I don't use that to create shapes in litho over it (yet! - see above, lack of litho...) :P. However, for me it just happens, whereas Peter does plan ahead - as is apparent by the printed out templates, that either have already been turned into PE sheets or will likely be some time soon. So again thank you, Peter, for showing us how it's done.
 
Looking over the build process I need to keep reminding myself that for a lot of parts it is not some super duper magic stuff happening, but simply adding relatively simple shapes and things on top of others to make complex shapes (which btw is very similar in 3D modelling). See that radiator - 3D printed body with added PE. Ok, I was honestly disappointed that the internal radiator structure was not made from individual PE sheets but is just a structured blind stuck on the front. The next one must be! (Ok, so who am I kidding here? ;)). Or the layered sidewalls - "simple" really if you know how to use software to draw things, but the effect is amazing.
 
Back to the sidelines, watching, hopefully learning

Hi Peter,
 
once again, I'm sitting here with a smile on my face marvelling at the details and the work you put in. Plus every time I check in, I get to learn something in the way you do things or how they are made on the real birds.
 
As said before, I'm from the 1/12 car crowd (...) but have bitten the bullet recently and got me some WNW 1/32 WW1 planes (Sopwith Camel F.1 "Le Rhone", Sopwith Triplane Raymond Collishaw and a BMW engined Fokker D.VII F Hermann Göring) - to drop the outcast flag  - and my intention was to simulate cloth and real materials before paint for those. However, I am not sure what cloth would match that 1/32 scale. The Solartex texture you have used seems to work perfect for 1/18 but at almost half that scale? I doubt that would be suitable. And it's impressive to see, that the plumber's tape you have used even shows the texture of the Solartex underneath, brilliant!
Now without having had Solartex in hand, does it compare to stockings in terms of tightness of the weave / coarseness of the fabric? "Asking for a friend" ;). Actually no, I'm asking as that is my current plan (as far as plans go anyway) for the moment to replicate the cloth fuselage and all. And that is hoping that the texture won't be drowned out in paint - luckily one of the models came with an extra half of the fuselage for testing...
So if you were to digress and go for say 1/32 what material would you use to achieve a similar cloth effect there? 
 
That aside, I've just come to realize my last comment here was three years ago - in your Spitfire thread :).
 
Cheers,
Roman

Fokker Dr.I photos are still up.on the website......they're just hidden/not indexed.
 
http://www.wingnutwings.com/ww/productdetail?productid=3203&cat=1
 
http://www.wingnutwings.com/ww/productdetail?productid=3205&cat=1
 

Well,
what can I say, having recently received a Roden F.1 and a DR.1 (with two more waiting to be delivered, because unavailable at time of purchase), I'm pleased that we will see what was to be the WNW DR.1 soonish. Who it is manufacturing it / selling it? To be honest, I couldn't care less. Ignorance is bliss and all that. The Roden kits I have seem to be easy enough to build, plus they are relatively cheap. So having a better option available at a reasonable pricing point is a bonus. So will I get one? Hell yeah, at least 1. Why? I'm trying to build a set with all the birds of the Rittmeister, so that's a number of tripes (and other birds)..
What would be nice is if the guys and gals who used to work for WNW continue to do the great work they did, but maybe do so under the (new) mantle of Meng or whoever else the other 2 alleged companies were, so that they keep getting paid and we keep getting the beautiful models we have gotten over the past years.
 
On the "limited edition" boxing. At first glance I thought this was a joke, box all in red, Chinese manufacturer with Chinese writing on it, some dude in a military outfit. What is this? Comrade Mao has taken over zee Richthofen production? Gave me a good chuckle. On looking closer I realized it is suppoed to be MvR - still had to chuckle though. Not sure if I need the bust, but being a sucker for limited editions (when well made).. oh well. <insert money gun gif>.
 

howdy folks, hope you are all keeping safe and well
 
thanks also for all the kind comments - very much appreciated
 
 
Hi Craig I just use CA - much quicker and does the job really well
 
 
Oliver, I am speechless you should say that as the reverse is the case - I see what you do in styrene and it just beggars belief. I hsve a loooong way to go before I could come anywhere near close
 
 
Hi there - litho plate is like thin sheet aluminium - a bit like the skin on a coke can. it is very different from foil in that it is stiff and rigid as it is so much thicker. Foil would pickup underlying scribed detail for example, whereas litho is a rigid surface in itself. I did a couple of tutorials (skinning & skinning compound curves) on using it here on LSP. I use it as it fully replicates an aircraft surface, taking rivets and 'oil canning' where subtle fluctuations can be seen in the surface and skin panels - plus there is nothing that looks like natural metal quite like it...
 
 
 
 
Hi Roman, welcome back! I think Solartex is at the limits of scale at 1/18, the weave is already getting too coarse, so by the time you get down to 1/32 I don't think it would work.. it is also very difficult to apply and is heat activated with a household clothes iron which works on some of the stuff I do, but could be very problematic on kit parts..
 
possibly another option is the tissue used on RC models - there are some very fine weaves and I remember using it with some success on some 1/32 Beaufighter tail surfaces many moons ago - I applied it with a wash of diluted PVA glue - perhaps try that?
 
I have run into a few issues on my Fw190 build so while I wait for the Hobbyboss kit and clarifying some stuff with Arthur Bentley, I am looking to finish Lopes Hope and get the drop tanks, aerials and canopy parts fitted
 
hopefully get an RFI thing up fairly soon once complete too
 
TTFN
Peter