EduardEDK82102 Plastic Model kit

This is a great kit, and deserves 5 Stars... no doubt. I gave it 4 because the Company that I bought it from, a vendor from Austria, did not pack it well and the box came smashed.Also, the same company cut the swastika decals from the kit. These were the small kill markings that the American pilots painted on their aircraft. Although I understand the sensitivity in todays' climate, they still should advise their customers that they will do this...Eduard model kits rock!

I am very disappointed in the engineering of this kit. I have the cockpit, sidewalls and instrument panel ready for assembly, but when I dry fit them, the halves of the fuselage do not come together and the instrument panel does not drop in the front after assembly of the fuselage.I am going to have to use lots of tape, clamps, work the instrument panel into the assembly instead of dropping it in after the fact....and I fully expect to have to use contour putty on pretty much the whole model to get it ready for the metallic finish (which broadcasts every underlying imperfection.)When I pay as much for this kit as I would for a similar Tamiya kit, I expect better than this.This is the first, and will be the last Eduard kit I build.Update: I was able to pull it off despite the poor engineering. I'm happy with the end result, but Eduard makes it much harder than it should be to put it together. Amazing details. Poor engineering.

Note, for those who rated this kit low, it says on the box that this kit is for advanced modelers. That said, this is probably Eduard's best yet. With a lot of careful dry fitting before gluing it can be assembled without any seam filler. The molding is that precise. Lots of small detail parts so pay close attention to the instructions. The surface detail is incredible. I'll be building more than one to enjoy the many options and markings.

Lots of this model cannot be assembled as shown. Many parts don't fit together well, if at all in some cases. Instructions did not provide clear order for assembly either. I took a chance on this item because of the various assembly and marking options, but none of that means anything if they cannot be assembled in the first place. I'm wondering if anybody at the manufacturer of the kit has even tried to do this themselves. I'm betting not. Not an item I would recommend at all.