BlueNosers352nd Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 While waiting for a bunch of stuff to dry........pulled this kit out to tinker. Be forewarned that the engine portion if flat out awful! Didn't make it outta step 2 before putting it back in the box and reluctantly on the shelf rather than the trash bin. Two parts are mislabeled for sure. Glue locations you'd have a better shot throwing darts while blind folded and spinning around in circles. Maybe just have to build part of it, since most of it won't be seen anyway. And it's a weird plastic too. Wonder if Roden even tried to build the engine. Fuselage has no locating pins and surprisingly quite a bit of flash for a newer kit. Shame, as their 1/48 Junkers D.I was a wonderful kit. If you built this kit, you are a better man than me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B (Sc) Posted October 28, 2020 Share Posted October 28, 2020 It is a challenge, I'd agree. I made this a few years ago and it fought me every step of the way! Finished more out of duty, but I liked the end product. Reminded me of one I'd flown. My recollection is that the engine and especially the bearers needed quite a bit of work and care but were OK once the assembly errors were sorted. Best left with cowlings open. I also added a very fine length of fishing line between the undercarriage legs to stop them spreading with time; the weight of the kit and slimness of the legs meant that white metal legs wo0ld have been useful, No idea if anyone ever made any! John B 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueNosers352nd Posted October 28, 2020 Author Share Posted October 28, 2020 I'm heavily leaning towards building only enough of the engine to get the exhausts out the bottom. Not much is going to be seen anyway with the cowlings closed, at least for how I want to build it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverkite211 Posted October 28, 2020 Share Posted October 28, 2020 The Model USA O-1 has pretty much the same problem, the engine and exhausts are rather finicky and you end up with just barely enough of the prop shaft extending to attach the prop to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_W Posted October 28, 2020 Share Posted October 28, 2020 If it says Roden on the box, this is sadly all the warning we need (Gladiator on shelf of doom)... 3 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Masters Posted October 28, 2020 Share Posted October 28, 2020 25 minutes ago, John_W said: If it says Roden on the box, this is sadly all the warning we need I know...Such amazing attention to detail too. It's as if they have separate teams working on the kits who never communicate. Or indeed build models. Thank the gods Eduard came out with 1/72nd scale Fokker DVII kits. It saved the world. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueNosers352nd Posted October 28, 2020 Author Share Posted October 28, 2020 Shame, because their 1/48 Junkers D.I and it was a awesome kit, even having to deal with the multi-piece fuselage and corrugation. It's also a weird plastic, seems way softer and odd feeling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B (Sc) Posted November 4, 2020 Share Posted November 4, 2020 John Masters - "I know...Such amazing attention to detail too. It's as if they have separate teams working on the kits who never communicate. Or indeed build models" I wondered the same. Engine bearers etc which were beautifully delicate but all but useless in the kit for holding/positioning the engine. I had to do quite a lot of paring off excess material off parts and shaving things down to get a practicable fit. Challenging! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Dave S Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 On 28/10/2020 at 16:04, John_W said: If it says Roden on the box, this is sadly all the warning we need (Gladiator on shelf of doom)... Yep. Tried their Albatros W4 in the summer and it was only the second kit I have chucked. Wish I hadn't bought the Felixstowe... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Masters Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 29 minutes ago, Big Dave S said: the Felixstowe... I've seen one or two built--but no word from their builders. I think they've fallen into the Abyss... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Dave S Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 1 hour ago, John Masters said: I've seen one or two built--but no word from their builders. I think they've fallen into the Abyss... Ah, well. You live & learn. Am trying to shift it on Ebay, but no-one's biting. May end up building it when the small stash of jets is used up. It may even go well! No surprise that Roden has sunk, if that's the case. They had a great range of WW1 planes, but seem to have prioritised quantity over quality. Do you know if anyone does a 1/72 Sea Hurricane that's worth a try? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Masters Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 33 minutes ago, Big Dave S said: 1/72 Sea Hurricane No idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Dave S Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 59 minutes ago, John Masters said: No idea. No worries Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Thompson Posted November 20, 2020 Share Posted November 20, 2020 1. Roden has not sunk. 2. Look on dedicated WWI forums. Plenty of Felixstowes. Plenty of Albatrosses. A few of their WWI kits need extra care. Most are perfectly buildable so long as you treat them with care. 3. Their decals. can be a problem, agreed. But it really infuriates me when people harp on about Roden as if they were utter dross. They're not Tamiya or Hasegawa, but for (insert deity of choice) sake, good luck waiting for virtually everything they already produce from one of the more mainstream manufacturers, and don't hold your breath. Before Wingnut Wings came along, Roden more or less were the only source for 1/32nd WWI kits. Their kits in other scales were for the most part infinitely better than anything else available and much appreciated by the WW1 community. The only comparable company was Eduard, and their subjects dovetailed nicely until Eduard changed direction. Then along came WNW and Roden decided not to compete with them, hence their move into other areas where most of you lot are now treating them as if they have no right to exist. WNW are history, and Roden are sticking their toes back in to test the 1/32nd WW1 field with 3 new kits next year, and have said they're trying to address the decal problem. Perhaps if they succeed they'll then withdraw from other areas and stop offending you by offering kits of subjects you'd like, but really want someone else to produce. Paul. 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B (Sc) Posted November 20, 2020 Share Posted November 20, 2020 A fine, gentle rant Paul. I agree that it is unfair to pretend that Roden are Tamiya or Hasegawa -they'd be a lot more expensive if they were. They produce some challenging-to-build-well kits of types just not available elsewhere. I haven't done any of their WW1 stuff. The important thing is to recognise before starting that there will be oddities to overcome, but that the accuracy is usually in there. It just neds work to make it all fit correctly. Real old style modelling where things don't just fall into place perfectly ! 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Thompson Posted November 21, 2020 Share Posted November 21, 2020 FWIW, I think Roden falls down mostly when they add things like full engines. I've not tried any of their non WW1 kits except the Gladiator due to there not being enough time in the world to do everything (or that much dosh, either) but certainly in the Great War aircraft they've given the option of removable cowlings and full engines, there have been many fit problems. The cause is fairly obvious, and two-fold. Most importantly, their moulding technology isn't up to their ambition, which leads to many small, fiddly and hard to clean up parts without good enough or foolproof locations, or indeed clear enough construction diagrams. In multipart bearer assemblies this can lead to cumulative errors causing more major fit problems. Then there's the scale problem. Unlike Eduard, Roden produce their engines as close to scale as they can. Eduard shrink theirs to allow for plastic thickness. Stick a Mercedes D.III engine from both companies side by side and you'll see what I mean. Not a problem if you leave panels off altogether, but it can make partial panel installation difficult, and if you insist on including the engine along with all the cowlingsthen you'll have a torrid time test fitting, hacking bits off and repainting stuff, particularly on the Fokker D.VIIs in 1/48th. I think if the panels were scale thickness (requiring to be done in PE brass) then there's be no problems. Same goes for the Fokker cabane struts - people reported no end of trouble getting them in properly, and the problem isn't so much their length as that they go through cowling holes, and the panels catch and distort their angles .... in this case I found that chamfering the inside of the guilty holes was enough to solve it. Sorry for the above thread drift, but if you're not familiar with what used to be their major field of endeavor then maybe it helps explain some of the difficulties with the more modern stuff. Us WW1 modeller's brought up on Merlin kits and the like have different expectations so up until Wingnuts have tended to cut the likes of Roden more slack. If you recall when Eduard moved into the more mainstream field with their first 1/48th WW2 kits there was also something of a culture clash, particularly with their first Bf 109. Now they've improved their technology no end, while Roden hasn't, but then again they can draw on their experience being a major producer of aftermarket items in varied media. For whatever reason, Roden doesn't look to have invested much in improvements, but that could well be due to the structure of the company, and all sorts of blah blah blah that I could only speculate on, not being in the know. It would be nice if they improved overnight, or even over a couple of years, but if they don't then I'd rather they continue producing kits of subjects I can't otherwise expect than not. Afte all, no-one forces me to buy them if I don't want to. To the original poster, I understand your disillusionment, but lack of locating pins is normal for many companies like Roden who are producing kits better than limited run, but below the level of more mainstream manufacturers. If you expect it in advance then it doesn't have to be a problem. I remember the first kits where Eduard introduced locating pins, and they weren't positioned that accurately so you often got a better result by cutting them off. The flash to my mind is less forgiveable on a new kit. Why not drop them an email nudging them? If enough people do that, perhaps they'll take notice. Paul. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReccePhreak Posted January 24, 2021 Share Posted January 24, 2021 Roden must have scaled up their screwed up 1/48 Bird Dog engine to their 1/32 kit. After fighting with it for a few days, I gave up and put the parts back in the kit box, and the kit box on the Shelf Of Doom. Maybe I will return to it when I feel like beating y head against the wall, but that'll probably be in a number of years. Larry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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