Golden Bear said:My experiences with Modelik models have been spotty. The Grumman Duck is basically unbuildable with totally inadequate drawings. The Ju86 was simple enough that the poor drawings did not make a difference. However, they do have some interesting models and I am not totally off them - Orlik, however, is on my personal "do NOT buy" list until they step things up.
Answer has stepped up their quality however and their newer models show some interesting isometrics that at first glance to be CAD generated like the Halinskis. On closer examination, they turn out to be hand done or perhaps hand done over CAD. I rather like it.
Carl, I thought that rather than hijack Chris's build thread I was starting to do, I'd start a new thread where we can discuss kit experiences, opinions, etc.
As a newbie I find the ocean of designs & manufacturers producing them to be really hard to navigate. Seems that for each kit there are several parameters that vary without logical form. It's easy to pass this off as 'deal with it' but it also seems that comments from those who have trod the ground could enlighten a lot of us.
For instance, you once said that Halinski kits might be complicated but everything fits and they're well documented. You suggested that there were worse places to start building card models. I just received some and I suddenly couldn't agree more. But it's interesting that depending on where you order a Halinski kit, you may or may not receive English instructions. I just got my kits from Hobby Factory and was pleasantly surprised that they send out English translations. That sort of info is, kinda sorta, important.
Another example is JSC. I just bought JSC kits from Hobby Factory and Lighthouse and I was surprised to find that their instructions are in English as well.
I guess what I'd like to know is whether there are any 'patterns' to any of this? I know that people have said that early Maly (prior to 1990) are not as nice as their more recent kits. I suspect that's true for most of these companies.
Any comments, no matter how small, might be useful to someone shopping.
Marek kits:
I love the Marek kits sold by DeWayne. Great designs, great art, wonderful pricing. Instructions are lacking, though, so some experience with modeling is required.
ModelArt:
Haven't built the kit I've bought but WOW...they are detailed and for many there are large series of build photos included with the download packages.
ThaiPaperworks:
Haven't built them but the recent designs by Nobi are very cleanly done and worthy of a good build.
Gremir:
...drool....waiting for my Super Corsair as we speak.
Cheers --- Larry