Bent metal parts on Model Airways kit!!

François

François

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Hello fellow plane lovers!! I just received a Model Airways Fokker Eindecker 1/16 kit and while unpacking the various items, I came accross many (if not all) bent metal parts. Is that to be expected or did I get a bad product? I contacted Micro Mark. l bought the kit from them but did not get any reply yet. What would be the best way to straighten the parts, if at all possible!20220708_112027~2.jpg20220708_142633.jpg20220708_142622.jpg20220708_142642.jpg20220708_142723.jpg20220708_142732.jpg20220708_142945.jpg20220708_142955.jpg20220708_143003.jpg
 
That is pretty normal for white metal parts. Just bend them back into the shape they are supposed to have.
 
If you have some problems that are definitely broken, then you would have to contact Model Expo - well, actually, I just remembered that on Model Expo's website, they have a form that you fill out online to request broken parts. But, I am not sure if your situation would qualify since the part(s) can be reformed the way they should.
Now, on second thought, this really is not good in my opinion as M.E. should be careful - as I am thinking that these parts are not coming out of the mold like that. Or, are they having to pry the part(s) out of the mold - I am not sure. But, this does not speak well of quality control at all in my opinion. They can and should do much better than that.
I bought the Sopwith Camel when it was on sale about a month ago and I have not gone through any parts - I just set the kit aside - now, I guess I need to go through mine to see what horrors await me.
Also, another thing is terrible - why in the heck do they have to fold plans? The box was just like 1 inch too short. the proper way is to ROLL the plans up in a tube. They either need to make their box a little larger or plans a little smaller. Also, the Camel, the wooden parts were way too loose in the box. Again, Packing problems.
So I do understand your frustrations.
 
Donnie said:
If you have some problems that are definitely broken, then you would have to contact Model Expo - well, actually, I just remembered that on Model Expo's website, they have a form that you fill out online to request broken parts. But, I am not sure if your situation would qualify since the part(s) can be reformed the way they should.
Now, on second thought, this really is not good in my opinion as M.E. should be careful - as I am thinking that these parts are not coming out of the mold like that. Or, are they having to pry the part(s) out of the mold - I am not sure. But, this does not speak well of quality control at all in my opinion. They can and should do much better than that.
I bought the Sopwith Camel when it was on sale about a month ago and I have not gone through any parts - I just set the kit aside - now, I guess I need to go through mine to see what horrors await me.
Also, another thing is terrible - why in the heck do they have to fold plans? The box was just like 1 inch too short. the proper way is to ROLL the plans up in a tube. They either need to make their box a little larger or plans a little smaller. Also, the Camel, the wooden parts were way too loose in the box. Again, Packing problems.
So I do understand your frustrations.
Click to expand...
+1 on rolled plans
 
I'd try straightening them, but I'd contact Model Expo for ones that are unsalvageable. In my experience, they have always been very good at replacing parts. It is a shame they showed up that way, though.
 
I had the very same problem of deformed landing structs on my Model Airways Albatross DVa, except the deformity occurred years after the kit was assembled. My best guess is the shear weight of the model sitting on its wheels slowly deformed the very soft metal. Model Expo was very kind to replace the struts. All I have to do now is deconstruct the model wheel assembly and rebuild it again. That'll take some work. Of course, I don't want to repair the model again sometime down the road so I am thinking of scratch building the struts out of wood using the replacement parts as a guide. My point is, if you can make any load bearing metal with something stronger, do it. The soft metal may fail in time.
 
Thank you for the replies.
It turned out to be quite easy to reshape all the parts. And if you look at the first series of pictures I posted, some were very bent. It was a bit scary at first, white metal tends to crickel a bit when working it but I think Model expo metal parts are of a good quality, nothing broke!! They do specify in the instruction book that it's normal to have a certain deformation due to shipping. Just the weight of the parts themselve can be enough to deform them. Once completed, I'll make some sort of stand for display that wiil carry the weight. I did contact Model expo via the broken/missing/lost part form on the Web site because I'm missing 2 parts. They are suppose to send them free of charge. As for the plans, the folding did not bother me, the folds wher not crisp so the sheets lay flat. I've starter a building log in the Historical trailways, guns and airplane cestion. I'll be adding some new pictures soon.
 
I've never seen bent parts ony any kits I have built or suppilers, bu then again have not bought any model expo. IMHO, I would not accept such low quality control. That's the worst I've ever seen.
 
Thank you Paul for the comments. Now, since I've fixed every part that was deformed, It's a bit late to go back. This is the first Model Expo kit I make so I don't have any reference point. I did have a lot of problems with the white metal parts on a AL boat kit. They broke just by looking at them, but in their defence, the kit was 38 years old. So I was more than happy when I saw that all the metal parts from ME could be easaly reshaped. I will email Model expo with a few pics of the received deformed parts and see what they have to say. You never know, maybe they will send me a new kit... but I won't hold my breath!
 
On my Camel build (log available), I bent some metal parts back in shape, and some I scraped and replaced with scratch built pieces.
It’s a shame they decided to use such a heavy and weak metal (Britannia metal). I would have preferred resin parts that are lighter and can be cast with more detail, especially at this scale. Then they could be painted to look metal. A lot of the metal parts look better painted anyway.
The worst is the horror stories of the landing gear bending over time due to weight! Obviously the soft metal can’t even handle its own induced weight (think motor!). That’s an absolute fail by the manufacturer to use a part to support the model that can’t handle the weight. Engineering 101 in my opinion. I resorted to adding wood to the landing struts on my Camel. In addition I drilled a hole and added a metal tube to mount the wheel to. So because I was forewarned by another builder, I made sure to strengthen the entire landing gear assembly. It’s that or display it hanging, however that comes with risk as well. I think I would rather my gear bent, than have the entire assembly come crashing to the ground! ;)
In conclusion, they really should upgrade the kit. I think they only sell due to the detail, and the fact that word has not got out just how bad the metal castings are. In the end it just creates a lot of extra work. As modelers, we overcome!
 
Dean, you are correct to say that resin parts would have more details, especially with 3d print. But, for me, the heavy weight of these models is very appealing. I don't think I could enjoy the build as much if it was plastic.
 
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