I've recently got back into modeling this year, I purchased a few Dragon kits.

One thing I've noticed is that the "fit" quality of the parts ranges from perfect to really poor.

I have come to the conclusion that no one at the Dragon plant ever puts one of their kits together to see if all the parts fit together as intended.

Has anyone else noticed this?

Dragons newer kits are all fair to good fitwise the biggest issue is poor instructions, there older kits can be hit or miss with regards to fit.

It really depends on how recent the model is. Yes, Dragon's earlier models have some issues. This is a problem with most kits, even the venerable Tamiya ones. Just think of them as a learning experience. I enjoy a good Italeri kit, just for the modifications to make the pieces fit correctly. This helps me out on future builds.

Build a few kits by RPM, Marquette, or Mirage and you'll never complain about Dragon's stuff again.

Exactly!! If you think they are troublesome today, get some kits that were common 20 years ago and give them a shot! Anyway, thats where modelling skills come into account. If kits wre perfect we would be assemblers and anybody could do it!

the kits that i have built so far;

Tamiya
good instructions
quality fit of parts

Acadamy
good instructions
quality fit of parts

Dragon
instructions are hit or miss
fit of parts ranges from perfect to "you gotta be kidding"

i came from building and designing remote controled airplanes, when i built from a kit i expected the parts to fit correctly, the plane to fly as advertised or i felt i was cheated.

when i felt creative i designed my own and i made every part.

i know what you guys are saying about being assemblers and that other kit manufacturers are as bad or worse, but, what these kits from dragon tell me are;

the manufacturer ethier did not check the fit of the parts or try to build the kit from the instructions before marketing their kit, which to me tells me that they don't care if they are making a quality product and that their consumers will buy anything they produce.

i guess that i will have to live with this if dragon is my only choice.

is there any kit manufacturer (other than tamiya and acadamy) that makes kits of quality?

Each manufacturer has their "bad" kits. Most of them are older ones that the companies put out in their early days, but even some of the newer ones have their problems. The best way to avoid the worst of them is to do a little research before buying one. There are plenty of sites on the net offering reviews and build logs that you can access to see if a particular kit might be one you want to stay away from.

Like Matt and Frank, I enjoy the challenge of a kit that's not quite "right". In most cases, the ones that have proved to be the biggest headaches are generally the ones I'm the most proud of when they're finished. Of course, I'm not one to grab the calipers or count rivets. If a kit has some flaws in accuracy I just fix what I can without going overboard and model on.

I did an old Dragon kit last winter from back in the 90's the box said copyrite of 1995. The tracks in this kit drove me to tears messed with them for 4 days gave up and got me a pair of Fruils. I have noticed a great improvement in Dragon kits from then and now this is just my spin on this subject. ACESES5

I've only been modeling armor for a little more then two years, but military aircraft for more then 40 years (on and off). I've built 5 DML kits so far, and the fit from one kit to the next has been pretty good, and generally consistent. Unfortunately, so has the less then stellar instructions which can led you down the wrong path quite easily.

Joel

ive done multiple dragon kits. overall, i like their quality. out of the many dragon kits i have completed, i have run accross one that was absolutely horrible with the instructions and parts fitting properly. other than that, the rest were perfectly fine.

You didn't say what subjects you are building, but those who have dealt with Dragon/Cyberhobby stuff will tell you that their German WWII stuff is often much better than their Sherman kits. Also, they tend to make new kits by playing "mix & match" with old sprues from related kits in their back-catalogue. As a result, a "new" kit may have some parts that are state of the art CAD-generated tooling, and others that are 10 or more years old from an earlier era of tool-making. With care most of the fit issues can be ironed out, and the accuracy of their kits is often way better than Tamiya - it's just a pity that "quality control" is not their strong suit!

By comparison, Tamiya tend to over-simplify their kits to ensure easy building. And Academy have been known to make accuracy errors in some kits - it pays to look at online reviews before buying. All of the manufacturers go through a learning process regarding kit design and QC procedures - Tamiya just has the edge because they've been doing it for half a century!

If you want real fit-quality coupled with accuracy in 1:35, try a Tasca Sherman! Sadly this comes with an appropriately hefty price tag...

Tom

Tom,
I took that very path, and just purchased the Tasca Sherman M32B1 RCV for the up coming Sherman Only campaign. I've heard so much about the quality, accuracy, and excellence of their instructions, that I had to suck it up, tell the wife that I'm ordering a Tasca kit.

Joel

Hi Joel,

I'd say you won't regret it, but the M32 is a very complicated beast compared to a normal gun tank! (I've got one myself, and all those tiny cable clamps look insane...) At least the main bits will fit like a glove.

Tom

Czech kits are for those with a strong will. Give one a try then open up a Dragon kit and compare.

Tom,
Tell me about it. I looked at the parts and instructions when the kit arrived. It's got to be the most complicated, most detailed kit I've tackled yet. Looking forward to the build, but at the same time I'm not looking forward to it, if you know what I mean.

Right now I'm building a M26 Pershing, with extra detailing and enhancing, so I'm trying to stay focused on it.

Joel