Metal Earth

[Capt. Eric]

My brother was impressed and I have left it with him. I don't think it would travel well.

I built most of mine while away from home. Managed to get them all home with minimal damages, but it takes a little effort. I would take some soft foam, or a piece of cardboard if the item has a flat bottom, and use string to hold it down to the board or foam. Pass the string between high points or through the structure if possible. Tie the strings, or even just tape on the cardboard, under the bottom of the foam or board. Then put the foam or board full of models into a box (board cut to fit). Then secure the board using tape and perhaps using corner supports over the board to keep it down. For larger boxes I added a tube or angle in the middle of the box to prevent crushing. Constructing this can be a satisfying little project in itself. The good news is that in the end the box is still very light, so postage is quite cheap. Mailed dozens of models from the other side of the world (I mean that quite literally) over a few years and never had to throw any away once I got home. Couple of small pieces might have needed repair, but still display-able.

 

[NTP2]

Now one of the later kits, the Blue Angels F/A-18 Super Hornet (Premium Series).
As usual the squared intakes turning into round exhaust are a pain. The stand is interesting, it is actually square tubes that slide into the tailpipes so the model can be easily removed. Two large sheets, but since the parts were large, it went together rather rapidly.

View attachment 631590

Then the bottom, side and top views.

View attachment 631591View attachment 631592View attachment 631593

I did that one! I did have to make use of super glue so it wouldn’t fall apart…

 

[neil_w]

Finally finished this one. Probably the favorite one I've done so far, despite the 3 or 4 mistakes I made (one near-catastrophe towards the end that I could only save with some E6000). The way the LEM goes together is really fantastic. Definitely challenging.



I do have two wishes for the instructions:
1) Put the sheet reference (that shows where all the pieces are) on a *separate sheet of paper*. Please.
2) Many details in the instructions could stand to be larger. I know that I need to use the magnifier for the assembly, but I wish I didn't need to put the *instructions* under the magnifier to understand some of the steps. In addition to their being generally small, the arrows in the instructions are about 1 pixel wide and not very high contrast.

Next up: Razor Crest.

 

[Tyeeking]

Finally finished this one. Probably the favorite one I've done so far, despite the 3 or 4 mistakes I made (one near-catastrophe towards the end that I could only save with some E6000). The way the LEM goes together is really fantastic. Definitely challenging.

View attachment 637023

I do have two wishes for the instructions:
1) Put the sheet reference (that shows where all the pieces are) on a *separate sheet of paper*. Please.
2) Many details in the instructions could stand to be larger. I know that I need to use the magnifier for the assembly, but I wish I didn't need to put the *instructions* under the magnifier to understand some of the steps. In addition to their being generally small, the arrows in the instructions are about 1 pixel wide and not very high contrast.

Next up: Razor Crest.

That one is in my build pile. First I have to finish the battleship Missouri.

Agree about your observations on the instructions. Frustrating when it says to “connect the tabs highlighted in red first” but the print is so small that I can’t tell which ones are highlighted in red.

Premium Series kits are my favorite.

 

[Capt. Eric]

That one is in my build pile. First I have to finish the battleship Missouri.

Agree about your observations on the instructions. Frustrating when it says to “connect the tabs highlighted in red first” but the print is so small that I can’t tell which ones are highlighted in red.

Premium Series kits are my favorite.

I usually wear a pair of magnifying glasses, which are a big help in fitting pieces together, and also to read the finer details in the instructions. It's a big help.

Sucks to get old!

 

[Cape Byron]

Anyone have any experience with this brand?



https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/3261107...gO6COLeSii&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/3261119...gO6COLeSii&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

 

[Azamiryou]

I was gifted one of these last month, a P-47 Thunderbolt, and built it. I learned a few things.

1) These kits are way more challenging than I expected. I'd always thought of them as quick little projects, not like "real" model building. Boy was I wrong!

2) Corollary to #1, it was also way more fun to build than I expected.

3) If I'm going to build more of these, I'll need to get better tools. Tweezers don't actually work that well, contrary to what it says on the package.

It's tempting to get into these — they're really fun — but I need yet another hobby like I need a hole in my head.

 

[Saluki]

If all you used was tweezers to build this kit my hat is off to you for a good job,
I have been building these kits for around six years and find them fun and challenging at the same time.
They are my wintertime hobby.
Now that you have built one you're hooked.
Enjoy.

 

[goose_in_co]

Anyone have any experience with this brand?



https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/3261107...gO6COLeSii&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/3261119...gO6COLeSii&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPYView attachment 650892

Looks interesting, like a combination 3d printed and etched brass kit. It also states that it is not painted.
I liked the Metal Earth and the like because they did not need paint, which is a bonus for me.

You might want to look in to Aerobase models.

 

[neil_w]

I was gifted one of these last month, a P-47 Thunderbolt, and built it. I learned a few things.

1) These kits are way more challenging than I expected. I'd always thought of them as quick little projects, not like "real" model building. Boy was I wrong!

2) Corollary to #1, it was also way more fun to build than I expected.

3) If I'm going to build more of these, I'll need to get better tools. Tweezers don't actually work that well, contrary to what it says on the package.

It's tempting to get into these — they're really fun — but I need yet another hobby like I need a hole in my head.

Yes, they require some real time and effort. And the older you get, the harder they are.

Jewelry pliers, flush cutters, some type of mandrels, and a good magnifier are non-negotiable if you want to keep your sanity.

One very nice thing about them is they’re fairly inexpensive and don’t consume much space. Very good bang for the buck.

 

[Azamiryou]

If all you used was tweezers to build this kit my hat is off to you for a good job

Well, tweezers... and some CA to lock things down when I couldn't get them tight enough with the tweezers.

I have some tiny pliers somewhere, but I couldn't find them.

I also used nippers for separating parts, my optivisor as needed*, some skewers for folding over tabs in hard to reach places, and assorted household objects as formers for some of the curves.

*I'm nearsighted, which helps a lot, but I'm also old, so my nearsightedness no longer suffices completely.

 

[goose_in_co]

After a short hiatus from Metal Earth Models, my build pile was getting too big with the birthday and Christmas presents, so I built the Air Force One 747 kit. I love the paint job on this airplane, so this was a natural choice. But Boy! is this thing a pain in the neck! The four engines are tiny, and require a conic shape in front of the cylinder, with another cone on the back. Out of the four, I think I got one pretty nice. The rest of the kit wasn't too bad to put together, except for putting the last two halves of the plane together. I ended up using some CYA glue to get some of the pieces to not wiggle, and to glue the stand to the plane since it would not sit without falling off. Definately not my best work, but it looks nice from 10 feet!

 

[dpower]

My son & I built the Jawa Sand Crawler (him) Slave One / Boba Fett's Starfighter (me) and during my end of year time off. Both 2.75 sheet models, only rated as "Challenging" (3rd of 4 levels). They don't look too hard from the front, but there are lots of tiny details on the back.

I might have used a drop or two of CA on the Slave One, I always seem to put one piece on backwards, and those tabs don't like being bent over twice.

 

[goose_in_co]

I might have used a drop or two of CA on the Slave One, I always seem to put one piece on backwards, and those tabs don't like being bent over twice.

Bend once, good. Bend Twice, iffy. Bend third time, breaks. CYA to the rescue!

And while the paint and epoxy are drying, I finished up the A-10 Warthog. This kit cane with three small plastic rods, that are white in the first picture, so you can bend the gun and missiles around them. While they were nice, I still prefer the smooth ends of my drill bits for that. The weird looking blue star thing is a printed tool that I got off etsy. He has/had several items that come in handy when forming balls, cones, or cylinders.
The A-10 was much easier and went together easily, probably because the pieces were much larger than Air Force One.