Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Are Wargamers Spoiled?

So to take a break from the table-top, I decided to build a model that's been sitting on my shelf for a couple of years.

I have been wanting to build this model for a while since its based on the pirate ship from Disney's "The Pirates of the Carribean" original theme-park ride.  So I opened the box, read the instructions, and formulated a game plan.  Just like us wargamers do with our models. 

I assembled the deck first and painted it so I wouldn't have to worry about when it was fully assembled.  Just as we do with many of the table-top vehicles, its easier to paint them in stages in order to get all of the detail and those hard to reach spaces.  Thats when the fun ended.

I attempted to build the hull, but with enough play to insert the deck.  Unfortunately, some parts of the hull need to go on after the deck is in place to keep the hull together.  After about an hour of trying to come with a strategy, the only way to build it was to build it.  I assembled the entire ship just as the instructions showed and figured I would have to paint it when it was completely assembled.  There was no other way.

Now on to the gripes.  The hull did not fit snuggly as I thought.  There was a huge gap at the rear of the hull where it meets the back.  I thought maybe the hull was warped.  But when you try to push the pieces to match, the gap just spreads to the upper part which made it even worse.  Thank you green stuff for coming to the rescue.

The molding was horrible.  Many of the parts had a lot of flash.  On some pieces, I'm not sure if they are flash or mismolded because they are so thick.  I had to use a hobby knife and files to get them to the right size.

I've assembled a lot (and I mean a lot) of World War II airplanes, cars, and model railroad models and always something comes up (pieces that don't mate right, flash problems, and even the occassional missing sprue).  I have assembled many GW vehicles in both plastic and metal and have never had a difficult time putting them together.  Everything fit together with precision.

So, as wargamers are we just spoiled with the models we play with?  What problems have you run into with other companies models?

1 comment:

  1. I've actually built 3 of the exact model you posted for my son to use as ghost arcs for his Pirate Necron fleet. Rubber bands help a lot. Also, Most (read ALL) GW models are way easier to assemble than your average Tomoyo kit. I have about 10 WW2 and later tanks (couple flac guns, sturmpanzer, bulldog or 3) that all have more parts than the entire space marine range. Every wheel cog and spoke has to be exact and many can take days to properly assemble.

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