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[Donny]

3 minutes ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

But wait...there's more...

    

I'll have to go change my shirt, mate, I'm drooling. 😁

[Jim B]

This is kind of an open-ended question, as you've probably seen.  Ask 40 different people and get 40 different answers.  I guess it really boils down to the person's approach to modeling.  For me, I build to relax & enjoy my time at the bench, so I prefer kits the fit well.  Minor fit issues I can understand & deal with (minor flash, mold lines, etc.), but I do not want to have to fight to get a kit to fit.  This to me is frustrating & not enjoyable.  AMT, MPC, and in some cases, Revell kits generally fit into this category, mostly due to the age of the molds.  Tamiya kits fit well, although they can be a little fiddly at times.  Many of the Revell kits fit well, and the Italeri kits I've built have fit ok.  The one Moebius kit I built fit well, although the instructions were difficult to interpret. I cannot speak to Fujimi, Hasagawa, NuNu, or SalvinosJR as I have not built any of their kits yet.  Don't get me wrong.  I have seen some fantastic builds from AMT & MPC kits, and I have built several of their kits; however, for the frustration they usually bring, I don't think they are worth the $40-45 (maybe $25).

[1930fordpickup]

 As Ace as already ask or even PM someone. When a kit is made has a lot to do with the quality and look. There is an on line sourse that has decent info but not always 100 % accurate. Scalemates check there also. 

[Dragline]

I was a Monogram Zombie as a kid. Revell next, then AMT/MPC.

These days it's whatever blows my skirt up. 

[sidcharles]

Revell as a pat, one word, answer.

but there are satellite companies already mentioned which have a fairly short list but they are exquisite kits. i think the current lingo is "artisanal" - at least that's what the local bakery calls their $10 a loaf bread.

the lady who makes it doesn't shave her legs, but that's another thread unto itself.

[Can-Con]

23 minutes ago, sidcharles said:

Revell as a pat, one word, answer.

 

Never built a car kit Revell tooled up in the late '70s early '80s have ya? 😁

EVERY model company has good and bad kits. 

[sidcharles]

15 minutes ago, Can-Con said:

Never built a car kit Revell tooled up in the late '70s early '80s have ya? 😁

EVERY model company has good and bad kits. 

you transport me back and i'll build that puppy; let's go.

Revell kits were way to hard for me as a kid. my list of failures include the original Mickey Thompson  Challenger 

 

and the 1956 Ford pickup

oh, wait; you mentioned '70s & '80s. nope sorry; those were model train decades.

 

[Can-Con]

11 minutes ago, sidcharles said:

you transport me back and i'll build that puppy; let's go.

Revell kits were way to hard for me as a kid. my list of failures include the original Mickey Thompson  Challenger 

 

and the 1956 Ford pickup

oh, wait; you mentioned '70s & '80s. nope sorry; those were model train decades.

 

Here's the instructions from the Revell Mustang LL kit. Originally from the late '70s. BTW, the first 15 illustrations could be directly from their Chevy Monza and/or Pontiac Sunbird with no alterations as they were exactly the same parts except for the wheel outers.

[sidcharles]

you read instructions?

i thought they were simply suggested sequences.

 

[Can-Con]

19 hours ago, sidcharles said:

you read instructions?

i thought they were simply suggested sequences.

 

I have to. I'm not very creative and don't have much for skills so I need every advantage I can get. 😉😁

[sidcharles]

3 hours ago, Can-Con said:

. . . I'm not very creative and don't have much for skills so I need every advantage I can get. . . .

it all starts with a good breakfast.  groat cakes with some 30 weight does it for me.

[sfhess]

3 minutes ago, sidcharles said:

it all starts with a good breakfast.  groat cakes with some 30 weight does it for me.

Defoliating a victory garden....

[stavanzer]

16 hours ago, sidcharles said:

groat cakes

Urmmm, Just No!

Oatmeal, Yes, but Groat Cakes just sounds too much like Goat Cakes, and I'm done eating goats....

[sfhess]

3 hours ago, stavanzer said:

Urmmm, Just No!

Oatmeal, Yes, but Groat Cakes just sounds too much like Goat Cakes, and I'm done eating goats....

If you get it, you get it...

Just the Tirebiter family having breakfast.

[meechum68]

For me I buy based on subject.  I have AMT/ERTL/MPC/Tamiya/Hasegawa/Moebius/Salvinos... Each have their pluses and their minuses. But in the end I am a builder/modeler, some are easier to assemble than others, but at the end of the day, it is subject.  

 

[oldcarfan]

Between Revell/Monogram and AMT it's the kits not the maker. Their releases over the decades vary wildly in quality. Hoewever for sentimental reasons, I prefer MPC's 70s and 80s annual kits and Monogram's 80s new issues. I pretty much have all the kits of either brand I'll ever need, so now if I buy new kits it tends to be a Japanese kit or some oddity that catches my eye.

[Bugatti Fan]

Realistically, many still look at those old kits through rose tinted spectacles. 

Nostalgia, only one of the kind kitted by one manufacturer, soft spot for a maker etc. Call it what you will.  All come into play here.

The reality is that kit quality has moved on dramatically since the 'old days' when AMT, MPC, IMC, Jo Han and the disaster that was Palmer kits were the common place manufacturers. 

Tamiya, Fujimi, Hasegawa, latest Revell  and newer manufacturers like Moebus, Nu Nu, Belkits  are now the standard quality wise as far as I can see, not to mention the short run specialists like Le Mans Miniatures, MFH and the like.

Each to their own though with regard to what one likes to build. Older kits that challenge or state of the art kits that almost fall together!

[Brudda]

I love them all, but as a kid I bought amt because of the instructions. They labeled each part to what it was. And as a kid I learned from that. At 11 years old I did not know what a coil was or an alternator for that matter. But AMT labeled the parts so I learned a lot about cars from building the models. Did the other companies do that? I’m going from memory of a very long time ago so I may be totally wrong. Plus I thought amt had better models at that time . But this is from memory and that may be wrong also. 

[peteski]

Donny,

this thread seems to be asking very similar question you asked in

Bottom line is to select the model you want (not based on brand name, but on the subject), then ask opinions about the kit, like its quality, how easy it is to assemble, how accurate it is, etc.  Many subjects are are only covered by only single manufacturer anyway.

[Donny]

2 hours ago, Brudda said:

I love them all, but as a kid I bought amt because of the instructions. They labeled each part to what it was. And as a kid I learned from that. At 11 years old I did not know what a coil was or an alternator for that matter. But AMT labeled the parts so I learned a lot about cars from building the models. Did the other companies do that? I’m going from memory of a very long time ago so I may be totally wrong. Plus I thought amt had better models at that time . But this is from memory and that may be wrong also. 

Going back to around 1960/65 when I was first building models, AMT pretty much had the market I think and IMO were the best, Revell didn't have a particularly big range, well not at my hobby shop - Hearns Hobbies. (I purchased a kit from them recently, renewing the relationship, nice bit of nostalgia there). So I didn't have much to compare with AMT was it, the kit of choice. 

Don