ugliest or worst fitting kit you ever built

[junkman1153]

my niumber one for ugly kits is .....the chrysler atlantic just a plain ugly car.

[Agent G]

At the risk of being burned at the stake, the Caterham Seven.

I have one, but cannot convince myself to build that hideous beast.

G

[davyou5]

The worst fitting kit that I have ever built is the Ferrari Testarossa, to this day Revell/Monogram still has warpages on that kit.

[sjordan2]

The Renwal/Revell 1/12 Ferrari 275 GTB has to be one of the worst kits from any perspective that a major kit company issued. It's like a Palmer kit on steroids.

But I have to say, I think the Chrysler Atlantic still looks killer, and it's a decent kit.

Edited October 13, 2010 by sjordan2

[impcon]

Hmm.. I don't think that too many of the old Revell kits were blessed with not being warped. I still have a '54 Chevy two door sedan that I tried to build stock. I put a ton of hours into that pig only to find when I was ready to do the final assembly that it looked like a donk with small wheels. It sat ridiculously high and there chassis was warped - that kit is total, absolute, pure, 110% unadulterated junk! I had so many hours into it including scratch building an exterior visor and fender skirts and opening the trunk that I just could not bring myself to do what I felt like doing - set it on the floor and then jump on it with both feet. I still have that piece of junk stowed away somewhere where I will seldom if ever lay eyes on it. It sure looked pretty too in a medium metallic brown with a beige roof. I stay away if possible from the old Revell kits and if I do buy one, I now test fit everything! I failed to do a mockup on that Chevy - I would have never believed that a company coupld produce something that bad. I like the car - but not the product.

[junkman1153]

The Renwal/Revell 1/12 Ferrari 275 GTB has to be one of the worst kits from any perspective that a major kit company issued. It's like a Palmer kit on steroids.

But I have to say, I think the Chrysler Atlantic still looks killer, and it's a decent kit.

i agree the model kit is a nice kit but i still think it is an ugly car. thank god we all have our own idea of ugly or there would be alot of lonely people

[7000in5th]

Reputed to be a Doyusha kit of a 1976 Corvette. I never tried to find one.

[charlzrocks]

worst fitting?? STINGAREE and OLDS AEROTECH

as far as ugly goes ...beauty is in the eye etc......

[Jantrix]

The worst kit I've ever opened was the AMT 66 Mustang Coupe. The whole darn thing was just awful. I had to replace everything aside from body/hood/interior bucket/bumpers/grill.

[wisdonm]

Any of the Revell VW Beetles are flash monsters.

[Harold]

The Lindberg (nee Pyro) '48 Continental. It's funny that they'd name the company Pyro, because I'm sure that was the fate of most of these nightmares.

[Eshaver]

Aside from Harold , not too many folks here actually built old I M C kits I bet .Industriomotive Corperation was actually a company that started doing some interior parts for G M and Chrysler . i'm also told that they also did Butter dishes at one time too. Regardless, Mr. budd Anderson was somehow tapped for a deal tobring about wanted , uh er , desired kits of subjects then popular in 1963 , one being the Lil Red Wagon Dodge A-100 Pick-Up.

Now I M C also did both the Ford Gt prototype and then , the G T 40. Anyone who couls assemble either kit and actually have the gall to want to display such a monstrosity might have wished to commit suicide first . The doorgaps in the tops of the doors alone was a good 1/16th of an inch . The mis-shapped rear was enough to make Mr. Obsessive throw in the towel ! Uh Bill, the Cougar was buildable when compared to a Ford G T .

Ed Shaver

[Scale-Master]

I have to agree with the R/M Testarossa and the Renwal 275 as being poor fitting, in fact I was just discussing the TR’s fit the other day even though I built it when it was new, it was that frustrating.

But I think I’ll stay away from complaining about Super 7’s… All of mine fit quite well. (But for the record, I never said they were good looking…)

[Chuck Most]

I've got a pretty lenient tolerance toward styling, so it really has to be a truly horrific design for me to call it 'ugly'. Plenty of ill-proportined kits, though, and many of those fit into the 'worst fitting' category as well- for example...

Revell '56 Ford F-100-

Not only is it fiddly and ill fitting, it barely resembles a '56 Effie at all. The fenders and cab are blob-like compared to the 1:1. Want a good looking model of a '56 F-100? Cut a wraparound windshield into an AMT '53 and rob the appropriate '56 bits from a Revell kit to fill in the blanks.

IMC/Testors/Union '46 Ford Coupe and Convertible-

Suffers from much the same ailments as the Revell Effie, with a much more stress-inducing multipiece body.

Pyro/Lindberg '48 Lincoln-

I won't get into why, we've been down this road before...

MPC/AMT/Ertl '69 Mustang Sports Roof-

1:25, you say? Then why does a built '66 kit dwarf it? It at least looks decent built up (or it can in the right hands, anyway), but the scale discrepancy makes it look odd nevertheless.

And a few others that are poor-fitting (at least in my experience), but end up as nice models after all that misery and cursing include...

Revell '29 Model A Pickup/'30 Tudor Sedan

IMC/Testors Little Red Wagon and Dodge L-700

Ertl/AMT International Paystar 5000 (mixer is worse, dump truck slightly less of a pain)

[Jon Cole]

Well, if you think of "ugly" as in overall detail & quality, I would say this Hudson Hornet. It was slush-cast from an old Banthrico promo, I believe. I think it was cast by the name of Sam Miller. I think parts of the body are over 1/4" thick. What you see is what it came with, plus a slab for a chassis.

[Jordan White]

Reputed to be a Doyusha kit of a 1976 Corvette. I never tried to find one.

Wow, that's horrible!

[niteowl7710]

Almost any kit that was part of the Revell "Hot Rod Magazine" set of issues...and yes Mr. 57 Chevy, I'm looking directly at you.

With fiddly ill-hinged, poorly fitting doors and trunk it is possibly the worst thing (personally) that Revell has ever offered. I threw one out as a kid, tried another one 10 years ago in my 20's and while I finished it, I pitched it too eventually cause it was so dang catty-whompus. I have just accepted that there are better fitting, better quality 57 Chevys out there and will never touch that kit again. The entire experience has turned me off to any kit that has "real working doors", or attempting the feat of making my own on a kit that doesn't.

For the record this is a complaint about that kit, I don't think '57 Chevys in general are ugly.

[Longbox55]

Call me crazy (wouldn't be the first time), but I actually like the old tool Revell Tri-5s. The only one I ever truly had issues with was the '56, seems that all of the '56s suffered from bowed out bodies. But I never really had any issues with the '55s or '57s.

[Chuck Most]

Almost any kit that was part of the Revell "Hot Rod Magazine" set of issues...and yes Mr. 57 Chevy, I'm looking directly at you.

Certainly true (the '56 Effie was part of that lineup, too, but as you say they weren't all junk!

The Attempt I was in that line, and so was this beauty...

[Rob Hall]

Call me crazy (wouldn't be the first time), but I actually like the old tool Revell Tri-5s. The only one I ever truly had issues with was the '56, seems that all of the '56s suffered from bowed out bodies. But I never really had any issues with the '55s or '57s.

I'm lucky I didn't give up on the hobby after building the old tool Revell '56 Chevy 'Bad Dream' kit.

It was my first glue kit, Oct 1978. Age 8. Scary complex for a kid that was used to Lindberg and Revell 1:32nd snap kits!

[my name is nobody]

The worst one ever HAS to be the AMT 1969 Chevelle SS396.

it is just a turd. nothing fits right, the tail lights are impossible.

I really like the looks of a '68/'69 Chevelle. I just wish someone would make

a decent kit of one.

[kitbash1]

I'd have to put these three kits up for concideration.

1)MPC McLaren Mk8d. The reissue kit in orange plastic is the most ill fitting kit I've ever built.

2)Any FDS 1/43rd F1 kit in the green boxes. Castings and small parts are garbage and poorly cast.The decals and the rubber tires are the only good things about the kit.

3)The heller JS-11 & RE30 in 1/12th scale. I've got both and when I take these kits out to look them over, I hear an evil laugh and something telling me to put them back.

I've seen the JS-11 done ( a lot of scratch building went into it )& the guy who finished it is a better man then I.

[Zoom Zoom]

If it's ugly to my eyes, it's not getting built

For adventures in "this thing was a royal pain in the keister to build", I present the following (all built to appear like they were "problem free"...they were anything but):

Revell Ferrari 612. Many think these 4 seat Ferraris are fugly. I did at first, now I like them. It's dependant on the color and wheels; I customized a pair of these to suit my personal taste since the box stock appearance doesn't work for me. This thing almost guarantees a throw against a wall trying to get the stupid chassis installed with any semblance of precision; the gray one was built years ago when it was relatively new; knowing the problem areas firsthand didn't make the white one (which is almost stock, I swapped wheels/tires and redesigned the fascia inspired by the 599 GTO), any easier when I built it earlier this year.

Rosso Ferrari 512 TR. Everything in the kit looks like "typical Tamiya" in detail and design. Too bad nothing fit together on the chassis without major effort. Appearances are deceiving...expecting an easy build, it drove me up a wall getting it done. Loved the final appearance, gave it to a friend who moved away:

Fujimi's new Ferrari 458 Italia. Ghastly kit to build (for a kit tooled in 2010); very "20 years ago" simplified design & engineering, major sink marks, ridiculous price, nowhere near as good as their F430 effort. "Fun to build" is non-existent with this one...looks okay w/some massaging, but I have no doubt the Revell kit will blow it away.

Revell's vintage Porsche 914. Windshield frame needed significant re-engineering. Decklid fit is atrocious without major work. Kit wheels/tires/ride height are comically bad. Chassis/interior fit with copious Dremel work; I complain(ed) a lot but considering the source, I take pride in the final result:

[Harry P.]

Worst fitting kit? Try a Pocher sometime.

[Longbox55]

The 56 is the 1973 reissue, & it's body is indeed bowed out! :

I have one of that same issue sitting under the bench awaiting it's turn, it's bowed out, too! I also have my share of the Model As, 3 of the '29 pickup (Hot rod issue, getting chopped, the Rat rod, and the Goodguys) the Sedan (getting a Roth-esque makover), and the Woodie.