Harry P.

And if you mess up a part, or lose a part, or mess up the paint job... just print another piece!

You're completely misunderstanding the concept. Kits will not be "mass produced." The kit companies will sell the software to the buyer, who then outputs the kit on his own home 3-D printer. No more producing, packaging, storing and shipping thousands of kits. No more large factories and huge injection-molding machines. Think of the cost savings involved when a traditional kit manufacturer goes digital only.

Costs will come down dramatically. My first VCR cost $850. By the time VCRs were being replaced by DVRs, you could buy a brand new VCR with more features than my first one had, for a hundred bucks. The day is not far off when every Walmart and Office Max will sell 3-D printers as commonly as they now sell "regular" printers, and model kits will be sold as downloadable software for the price of a "normal" kit... maybe even less.

I've seen some of the work you've posted. Very impressive.

Nice tip. Simple, effective, and cheap. What's not to like? And to make it even simpler and cheaper, you don't really need the sieve. Just put the coffee filter in the funnel!

Yep. If anyone would be the first to take the plunge, it would be them! I agree, not a surprise at all. Moebius seems to be "in tune" with the state of the art as far as the hobby is concerned.

I agree... that's a very nicely done model all the way around.

Agreed on both counts. Not my cup of tea by a long shot, but there's absolutely nothing wrong with your craftsmanship. Super clean and sharp, just like always. Nice!

I like it, but I really think you need to re-think your policy of leaving the chassis screws, chrome-plated headlights, etc. as is. I know you said you want to be faithful to the original kits, but in my opinion this model, while very beautifully done, could look that much better with more realistic headlights and those big screwheads on the chassis removed and the holes filled.

That's just the tip of the iceberg. Soon "mainstream injection-molded model companies" will be offering entire kits as downloadable software. And one day all model kits will be "manufactured" that way. The traditional injection-molded kit (at least as far as new releases) is living on borrowed time.

But at least they're aware of the fact that people are not liking this model. That's a good thing, whether they do anything about this kit or not. At least maybe they'll be more careful next time. Even if they do nothing at all, I still think it's important that they heard our complaints. Better that they hear from dissatisfied customers than to get no response at all. And the more people sign the petition, the more seriously they'll take it.

Actually I prefer Studestang...

That's good news! See? Make your feelings known to them, and they respond. Stay quiet and take the "we're modelers, we can fix it" attitude and all you're doing is giving your approval via your silence. Nice work with the petition, Jonathan.

Anyone commenting on this thread realize this post was made more than SIX YEARS AGO? Just sayin.'..

http://www.modelexpo-online.com/product.asp?ITEMNO=MS6004

Ok... after 30 pages (!!!), I think I'm going to put this one to bed. Not because anybody did anything wrong, but because A, we've dissected this topic about as thoroughly as can possibly be done, and B, I don't want to have to keep checking it to see if it's gone off the rails (again). And I'm sure Casey feels the same way. We've all had the chance to chime in and voice our opinions, pro and con, so it's not like I'm not letting everyone have their say. I think 30 pages of comments pretty much sums up all of our opinions on this topic. If you would like for Revell to hear your opinions on this kit, I suggest you contact them directly (see post 589). Now on to the next kit!

If enough of you guys voice your opinion directly to Revell, they will get the message. Posting comments on Facebook doesn't cut it, you're just another face in the crowd, just more background noise. You need to contact Revell directly... email, phone call, or even old-fashioned letter, and make your opinion known in a calm and rational manner. The more customers who are not happy with this kit they hear from, the better the chances that they'll try to do a better job next time. No guarantees, of course, but you have to make your feelings known to them, and you have to do it the right way.

Can't really comment without seeing the "before" picture... but the "after" does look good.

Very nice weathering on this, completely natural looking and believable.

Scratchbuilt? That is simply amazing. You, sir, have some talent!

Pretty much every night, all night...

Forty hours is pretty much a wild guess. I never keep track of the time spent on a model. I worked on this one a couple hours one day, a coupe hours the next day... really hard to say how much time I actually have in it. Forty hours might be too low an estimate.

I have no idea what color "cigarette yellow" is, but this Rustoleum paint is a very nice, soft, understated yellow. I'd describe it as "butter yellow."

How long did it take, is that what you're asking? I wasn't keeping track, but my best guess would be 40 hours or so. Having a dehydrator (finally!!!) really sped things up. Buying a dehydrator is probably the single best hobby-related purchase I've made in a long time. I strongly recommend getting one to anyone who doesn't have one. It really speeds up the building process.