superfly Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 (edited) http://www.modelingmadness.com/spl/hk17.htm This states that HKM originally used the Aero Detail drawings...but this "team" provided correct drawings and "rescued" the CAD program. So what happened? There's no way they could miss the whole nose area.or the step in the radioroom..its even posted on the test shot pics. Even Guillermo Rojas-Bazan had input... http://www.craftsmanshipmuseum.com/Bazan.htm Can these people chime in...what went wrong?? Edited October 16, 2013 by superfly Showtime 100 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nigelr32 Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 (edited) I love some of the comments in that review regarding the accuracy of this kit OOB. With regard to the rivet detail, what a load of rubbish.. raised is raised, whether it be 1/72 or 1/12 scale!! Revell is used as a comparison for the accuracy of their models in 1/32, i.e. Ju88, He 111 and He 219. lets forget the 219 for a minute, the 88 and the 111 are very nice kits at about 20% of the cost of this one. If these "professionals" are being used to give us an accurate kit inside and out I suggest HK models look elsewhere for their professionals in future. lets face it, as has been mentioned so many times, there are inaccuracies with the kits interior that no-one will ever notice, but the massive errors on the nose are not excusable. the totally round profile, incorrectly shaped windscreen and side windows are in my opinion a total **** up by the manufacturers. Yes, it's a lovely model, and yes, it's all we have in 1/32, but I am getting fed up with finding inaccurate design/manufacture in every stage of my build!! If asked to rate this kit.. I would say " Try harder next time". It's a real shame, so many of us were looking forward to a 1/32 Fort, and so many of us have been let down!!. if you're happy to build a model that looks like the chosen subject, fine, but if you are asked to pay over £200 for said model, I think you should expect some quality?? I am more than happy to pick out the errors, and show you all how I correct them, but it's beginning to wear a little thin now. It's starting to feel like a 1980's Revell kit which would cost a few pounds to start with. Just my 2p. Edited October 16, 2013 by Nigelr32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nigelr32 Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 (edited) http://www.modelingmadness.com/spl/hk17.htm This states that HKM originally used the Aero Detail drawings...but this "team" provided correct drawings and "rescued" the CAD program. So what happened? There's no way they could miss the whole nose area.or the step in the radioroom..its even posted on the test shot pics. I hope they never "rescue" me if I'm drowning!! Please bear in mind, I have only looked at the fuselage internals so far.. who knows what will be wrong with the exterior? Actually, there's one point I can raise now.. the fuel filler flaps are not right on the kit. You need the Eduard set to sort them out. Just an observation.. I haven't noticed any threads here discussing the accuracy of Tamiya's Spitfire, Zero's, P-51 or Corsair?? Edited October 16, 2013 by Nigelr32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparzanza Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 30 pages .. ack! Why not just.. build it to the best of your ability and put it up for display, be it ceiling, table, shelf, floor, garage, trunk of a Volvo 245... and be happy with it. It's what I would have done had I gotten my hands on this kit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juggernut Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 Nigel, I feel exactly the same way you do and I haven't even broken the sprue bags open yet. Like I said in an earlier post, my confidence in this kit is waning, it has slipped FAR down on the build list and is about one and a half steps away from the "For Sale" pile. I can't comment on the Tamiya 1/32 Spitfire but the Tamiya 1/32 P-51 Mustang has some minor "issues" that are attributed more to a production block mixture than to anything else. If you want an earlier P-51D you'll need to do some minor work to get it correct but that work pales in comparison to what you're doing to the B-17. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juggernut Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 (edited) 30 pages .. ack! Why not just.. build it to the best of your ability and put it up for display, be it ceiling, table, shelf, floor, garage, trunk of a Volvo 245... and be happy with it. It's what I would have done had I gotten my hands on this kit. To each his own. Some of us have a very strong affection for this aircraft ( I think Nigel has developed an affection for the B-17 too ) and to say that we are somewhat disappointed in the product we've gotten for our money is an understatement. If I can get this analogy correct, it's like receiving a Revell of Germany 1/32 He219A-7 but paying the ZM He219A-0 price for it. The cost of the kit (for us) is far and above its perceived value since we've discovered all these discrepancies. The omissions, shape errors, spurious details and whatnot don't warrant the price paid for the kit and several of us won't be buying another unless they (meaning HK Models) steps up to the plate, does their due diligence/research and delivers a far better product for the B-17F. Honestly, I feel like I've been duped by investing in this model. I can't in good conscience build it with these glaring errors as every time I'd look at it, my focus would immediately be drawn to the warts (i.e. shape errors, etc.). Since I mainly build for myself, I would find it hard to get past those issues. Nigel is a far better modeler than I and his skill at tackling these errors is much more than I could ever hope for. Sometimes, you just have to say WTF! In a kit this expensive, we shouldn't have to be thinking how to correct the major shape errors that are inherent in the kit. I read the linked article from MM above and had a great laugh at all the BS therein. Edited October 16, 2013 by TimC Showtime 100 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nigelr32 Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 To each his own. Those of us who have a very strong affection for this aircraft ( I think Nigel has developed an affection for the B-17 too ) and to say that we are somewhat disappointed in the product we've gotten for our money is an understatement. If I can get this analogy correct, it's like receiving a Revell of Germany 1/32 He219A-7 but paying the ZM He219A-0 price for it. The cost of the kit (for us) is far and above its perceived value since we've discovered all these discrepancies. The omissions, shape errors, spurious details and whatnot don't warrant the price paid for the kit and several of us won't be buying another unless they (meaning HK Models) steps up to the plate, does their due diligence/research and delivers a far better product for the B-17F. Honestly, I feel like I've been duped by investing in this model. I can't in good conscience build it with these glaring errors as every time I'd look at it, my focus would immediately be drawn to the warts (i.e. shape errors, etc.). Since I mainly build for myself, I would find it hard to get past those issues. Nigel is a far better modeler than I and his skill at tackling these errors is much more than I could ever hope for. Sometimes, you just have to say WTF! In a kit this expensive, we shouldn't have to be thinking how to correct the major shape errors that are inherent in the kit. I read the linked article from MM above and had a great laugh at all the BS therein. Well Tim, I think you just gave this kit the most honest review out there?? Having said that, I will persevere and build it "right" as far as I can. Derek B 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juggernut Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 Thanks Nigel, I calls em like I sees em. ( an American baseball umpire saying from a long time ago) I'm working on my A6M2N these past few days and it's getting nearer to completion every day. I actually am looking forward to completing this kit after it has been in the "stalled" pile for a time longer than I can remember or care to admit to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superfly Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 I've seen the CAD drawings for the F.......guess what......the nose area ROUND. Showtime 100 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juggernut Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 Not buying it.... They can keep my copy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juggernut Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 (edited) Well, I decided to sell my copy on the traders board and included Eli's decal sheet with it. I'm done with this kit or any other inaccurate offerings of one of the most iconic aircraft in history. Nigel, this kit is all you now buddy. I'll comment on the issues you find but I'm not buying any more 1/32 B-17 kits unless its made by a company that cares about their product reputation. I'm sure they'll sell quite a few B-17F's but not to me. EDIT: Decided not to sell the kit. Hopefully my attitude will improve and I'll just build it for what it is....a damn big airplane. Edited October 17, 2013 by TimC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superfly Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 I've decided to build this as is...at a later date...I'm saving my energy for Pocher's 1/8 Lamborghini Aventador due this October. Tim you can always do a crash/wrecked B-17....or underwater dio...where the inaccuracies won't be so noticable..if done right...it could be spectacular.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Propwash Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 Yes, the HK B-17 has turned into a profound disappointment, make no mistake about it. I've just about lost all my enthusiasm for building it. As for the F, unless HK does a major redesign before releasing it, I'll be taking a pass. Going to save my money and put it in the HPH Catalina instead. Now there's a kit to end all kits! Jerry Peterson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silver Dollar Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 Looks like I'm going to be one of the lucky ones if that's the right thing to say. I build for myself and the only ones that are going to see the final product in the flesh is my wife, my sister in law and me. I used to correct every mistake I saw and add all the stuff that wasn't in the kit. I would scratch build the parts that I didn't like and toss the originals away. The result of my efforts led to the worst case of burnout and insanity I could experience. It made me quit building models for about a year. I promised myself I wouldn't do that to myself again. My philosophy now is if the model looks enough like the subject I'm building and the average viewer wouldn't know the difference then it's got to be o.k. by me. I wouldn't dare put this thing into a contest and that's also the reason I'm not doing a WIP thread. I love the B-17 but I love my sanity more. Your build thread will be just like the Paul Koo CDs for building Pocher models which are way more expensive and way more frustrating than this kit. Showtime 100 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_Kevin Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 My thinking is pretty much in sync with yours mate. I can acknowledge that the HK B-17 has issues, but I'm not that bothered by them. I don't have the kit so it's a moot point, but if I did I'd just build it OOB and move on. Tim's and Nige's points-of-view are perfectly valid, and Nige is doing a great job of outlining and correcting the flaws he finds. I do think though that we need to tone down the vehemence with which this kit is being derided though. Kev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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