When did Tamiya get good?

[Tim Marlow]

Regarding old kits I feel you can only compare them with those that were issued at the same time. Sure, the seventies Tamiya kits had issues, but every seventies kit had issues, and Tamiya were better than most.

Tamiya fit and finish is as good as anybody out there. This has always been a truism. They have always been as good or better than their contemporaries in any age. That is beyond dispute, but there is more to a kit than the plastic.

The instruction sheets are average, not great but not bad. Certainly not as good as the best, but much better than the worst. Allied to this, the painting instructions they contain are relatively poor. This holds for most manufacturers to be honest. The paint mixes can be confusing and the proper name for the paints are rarely, if ever, given. Most manufacturers are the same regarding painting, just picking the nearest shade from their paint range and not telling you what is really should be called. I suppose they can be therefore be classed as average when compared to their contemporaries.

The elephant in this room is the decals. Without exception, Tamiya decals are unremittingly awful. Compared to other kits, such as modern Airfix and Italeri they are absolutely terrible. In terms of decals, I would say Tamiya are close to, if not actually are, bottom of the main stream producers in this respect.

[BarryW]

Spot on Tim. Colour call outs and decals are the Tamiya weak spots. Personally though, I would rate Trumpeter/Hobby Boss decals even worse than Tamiya due to fragility.

[Tim Marlow]

Spot on Tim. Colour call outs and decals are the Tamiya weak spots. Personally though, I would rate Trumpeter/Hobby Boss decals even worse than Tamiya due to fragility.

Not built much Hobbyboss, but trumpeter I routinely replace with aftermarket, mostly because the colours are really weird. By far the worst aspect of Tamiya decals are their inconsistency. I have has some in aircraft kits that are like kids vinyl sticker and others in the bike and car kits I’ve made that are like paper, and do not to want to come off the backing sheet consistently. One set I had the main decal was mostly floating in the water apart from one area that simply wouldn’t come off the sheet…….
There must be a good market opportunity for making aftermarket decals that are suitable for Tamiya kits :tongue-out3:

[Ian M]

Do you guys think they should market their old kits into a 'classics' range similar to Airfix?

No No and No with a side of No. Its bad enough that Airfix keep pushing these Old kits on us insted of saying that was a great kit and sold well: lets make a new tool of it with better parts and detail.

[Tim Marlow]

No No and No with a side of No. Its bad enough that Airfix keep pushing these Old kits on us insted of saying that was a great kit and sold well: lets make a new tool of it with better parts and detail.

Plus one on that……if they haven’t paid for themselves by now they probably never will…….

[PaulTRose]

my twopennuth

i dont think that they have gone bad just they are not as prolific at bringing out new stuff like they used to and other companies are over taking them

the Ducati Panigale is a beaut of a kit and that didnt come out that long ago, yet the older bikes like the CB750 and Katana are still lovely to build and they are so old Noah built them as something to do whilst waiting for the water to go down

wouldnt want to see them do a 'classic' range ala Airfix.........even thier oldest armour kits still go together nice even if they are basic and considered out of date......and id rather spend 9 quid of a Panzer 2 or SAS jeep and know it will go together than anything Airfix punt out as a 'starter kit'

every manufacturer has its dodgy ones........Tamiya Porsche 959 comes to mind, i really struggled with that one and still didnt finish it without 'surgery'.........ive got a SHAR in the stash and definatly intend to have a crack at it simply cos its supposed to be a dog to do

when you think just how many manufacturers we had back in the 60s/70s and now we have simply hundreds with even more offering aftermarket stuff.......considering we are supposed to be a dying hobby it all seems to be going well

[David Lovell]

What makes a model bad ......how do you define bad...... by the same token what defines a good model.....if your one of the ones that like shake and bake thats great but it doesn't make all the rest bad kits I build more to do with a subject that flicks the switch and if thats all there is I (and others)dont mind putting in the extra ,doesn't seem to matter people will still complain and rubbish the best out there the same as they do from lesser manufacturers usually thoes that comment on every build but never show their own. Come on guys we all only put in what we want to get out personally I dont belive in good or bad in some way its a bad description they are what they are some are a little bit more challenging it doesn't make them bad. Dave

[BarryW]

What makes a model bad ......how do you define bad...... by the same token what defines a good model.....

A good point.

We all have our likes and dislikes and what constitutes a good kit, or bad kit will vary accordingly.

Personally I don’t want to fight a poor fitting kit and get satisfaction from well formed parts fitting perfectly together to create a complex shape.

I prefer to put my effort into painting and weathering not excessive cutting, filling and sanding.

Other factors go into whether a kit is good or bad, accuracy for instance. I am not totally fixated on accuracy ‘ if it looks like a xyzzy then it is a xyzzy’ is usually enough for me, but for some people that would be important. Don’t get me wrong, I want accuracy but I wont stress too much over it.

[David Lovell]

A good point.

We all have our likes and dislikes and what constitutes a good kit, or bad kit will vary accordingly.

Personally I don’t want to fight a poor fitting kit and get satisfaction from well formed parts fitting perfectly together to create a complex shape.

I prefer to put my effort into painting and weathering not excessive cutting, filling and sanding.

Other factors go into whether a kit is good or bad, accuracy for instance. I am not totally fixated on accuracy ‘ if it looks like a xyzzy then it is a xyzzy’ is usually enough for me, but for some people that would be important. Don’t get me wrong, I want accuracy but I wont stress too much over it.

Quite agree Barry as I said I've not a problem with shake and bake im sure the top manufacturers strive to be the best in all aspects but just because a kit needs a bit of work doesn't make it a bad kit the choice is down as you say to the individual to choose their own way ,still say there's no such thing as a bad kit ones that can make it hard work yes ,not as good as is much better. As for accuracy if thats what it says it is on the box then good enough for me seem just lately people have even got upset over the box art. Dave

[Dave Ward]

just lately people have even got upset over the box art.

I've found on my Facebook visits to spot new models, it's the playground for these people! Boxart & renders are examined minutely & criticised savagely - damning a model as totally inaccurate - even they haven't actually seen it, and often it doesn't even exist yet! Demands - why don't you do this in 1/32 instead of 1/35? ( ICM Tarhe )..................
Dave