Seriously how hard can it be to make Rhino doors that fit the hinges aren't even in the right place.

So far from Forge world I have bought:

2 x warhound titan
1 x thunderhawk
3 x rhino doors
1 x venerable dreadnaught

and other bits and none of them fit even though you pay through the nose for them. Anyone else experienced this?

When I saw the thread title I was ready to come in here and post "resin is really hard to work with and deforms easily in storage" but then I saw that it was about RHINO DOORS?

Aren't those just single pieces of resin? I can see something with multiple parts not fitting well because each piece can deform just a little bit, making a major issue, but doors? Yeesh.

Seriously dude 3 sets of doors that when matched up to either the gap or standard rhino doors don't even look similar. I know resin is hard to work with but not that hard!!!

Duh, it's FW. I'm speaking from bitter experience myself.

FW Rhino and LR doors never fit...they either used bad quality resin or pulled them out of the molds too early....

If you think the rhinos doors are bad try these kits on , if you want a Migraine

Thunderhawk... Mold way over used, getting worn out, main hull usually bent and twisted ( the part is very thick and over 12" so hard to heat and bend back in to shape, also the chapter doors need a lot of work to fit.

LR MkIIb... all the resin parts are like 7/10's the correct size, making green stuff and plasti card almost necessary for assembly

Couldn't agree more, if you drop £375 on a T-hawk then you expect it to fit if its hard to work with or not. I doubt very much its hard to work with for forgeworld, given the time they have been running you think they would improve. The doors in my experience are so out of line that i just cut off the hinges and plasticarded them back on. Now this of course is based on the old stuff, as my mate just said the newer tau stuff was almost flawless. So who knows.

I have a feeling a lot of the warpage is due to them just taking stuff out of the molds too early. Probably due to higher demand and they feel like they have to rush.

I was seriously considering getting a reaver titan.. thing just looks amazing.. but I'm just too hesitant to spend almost $900 on something I know will be warped and miscast, even if I'm lucky and it's minimal. While i'm sure I'd be able to fix whatever is wrong with some greenstuff and a little bending, I really don't feel I should have to if I'm spending that much.

I've had good luck with rhino & chimera doors though. My nurgle dreadnought came out good but the Hydra cannons I got were all bent, like so bad it was just silly. One of the barrels was practically a right angle. I had to run it under hot water for a while to soften it, then bend it back a little.. did that for about 5 nights till I got everything straight. I didn't want to bother email them to complain about it, since I knew I'd never get a response...

Ed_Bodger wrote:...and other bits and none of them fit even though you pay through the nose for them. Anyone else experienced this?

Yup me too, they suck, exact same problem. I had to rebuild entire plates from plastic in the right size and just use the detail pieces I cut off and sanded.

I had similar problems on Thunderhawk Ailerons, on Valkyrie Doors, on Chaos and Imperial Rhino Doors and several other kits too.

Amatures.

Same issues here.

I just got my order which had two Rhino extra armour kits, a Land Raider extra armour kit and Ultramarine Land Raider doors. The quality of these kits is abysmal. The Rhino kits and Land Raider doors aren't even usable.

It's sadly pathetic and aggravating that it I spent money on pure gak!


Automatically Appended Next Post:
I forgot to mention that one of the armour plates in the Land Raider kit was obviously snapped, glued back together and tossed into the bag anyway.

TobyDog wrote: heat and bend back in to shape

Necros wrote:run it under hot water for a while to soften it, then bend it back

Augustus - aren't you going to tell TobyDog and Necros that's impossible since

augustus wrote:Resin is a chemical cure, once a piece is fabricated deformed and cures it doesn't matter how warm it gets afterward, it is hard and shaped and cured, it's never going to be strait, flat or right angled again. Furthermore resin is not as flexible as injection molded plastic, it is brittle, if you flex it instead of bending when it reaches the critical point it breaks. It doesn't have the ductile property of plastic at all, which is why suggesting to heat and bend it it ridiculous.

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oni wrote:I forgot to mention that one of the armour plates in the Land Raider kit was obviously snapped, glued back together and tossed into the bag anyway.

That is absolutely unacceptable. Can you post a pic of that?

You can't post this today! I was strongly considering throwing some money into a growing local pot for a Forge World order that we're trying to get free shipping on!

FWIW, I've had lots of Forge World bits and models. Never had anything that needed more than a bit of cleaning and warming/bending.

Aduro wrote:You can't post this today! I was strongly considering throwing some money into a growing local pot for a Forge World order that we're trying to get free shipping on!

ditto! I was planning on getting the Iron Warrior dred as well as a bunch of DKOK troopers to use as lost and damned, now I'm paranoid!

Scott-S6 wrote:FWIW, I've had lots of Forge World bits and models. Never had anything that needed more than a bit of cleaning and warming/bending.

This.

However, it's worth noting that alot of the Rhino/Land Raider Doors, Armor Kits, and the like are older than sin. They should be updated sooner or later, but...

Until then it's very hit or miss. And if things don't fit, then call Forge World up and explain the situation. They'll usually send out replacement parts for bad fits.

Scott-S6 wrote:FWIW, I've had lots of Forge World bits and models. Never had anything that needed more than a bit of cleaning and warming/bending.

+1

I bought their Great Unclean One and had remove more 1-2 cm from the sword to get it to line up properly. Quite a pain, but considering I have purchased dozens of their models and only had the one problem, they have a pretty good track record with me.

I haven't really had any issue with most of the items I've received. A few things to bend here or there but that's it.

Anything wrong, like a few forgotten pieces, was solved with an email to FW and new parts shipped out and received with a week or 2.

I won a real old baneblade in a raffle from FW (it had 2 main cannons- one in the place of the demolisher cannon, the HB on the front wasn't twin linked, and the sponson HBs are 3 bolters per side) and it is/was fantastic. I was instructed to wash all the parts, so I did, and everything turned out great. I love raffles

Scott-S6 wrote:

oni wrote:I forgot to mention that one of the armour plates in the Land Raider kit was obviously snapped, glued back together and tossed into the bag anyway.

That is absolutely unacceptable. Can you post a pic of that?

That's not "glued back together", Oni. It's an issue that crops up every so often where the mold doesn't fill properly.

I’m new, you can tell that by the number of posts but this hit a nerve and for the longest time I thought it was me, my bad luck and my “newness” but I have had some issues with FW stuff as well.
I heard for the longest time FW this FW that and in my gaming circle everyone brags that they have a FW bit up upgrade or entire piece like it’s an elite right of passage so forgive me once again for my “newness” but I took this as part of requirement to have some FW stuff in your gaming collection.
Everything looks so cool and having a larger FW piece you (at least in my opinion) become a “true coinsure” of gaming….
So…. I watch Epay like a hawk and score a Piranha TX42 conversion, still a little less if I had it shipped from the UK but expensive never the less.
It arrives and I’m like a little kid and tear into it straight away….what to my dismay… it doesn’t fit right, it’s twisted and has some rather deep dimples that will require substantial bodywork n my part t make right.
I inquire within my gaming group if this has been noted before and to my surprise it’ acceptable and they share the hot water trick with me… so for all the money I spent on the kit I now have to spend considerable time to make it right…
Still, FW is the epitome of gaming…. So I buy more…. And more and more.
I bought two Crisis battle suits and both required hours of greenstuff to make them right and at $40 each?
Then there was the Tech drones that were out of round? No saving those…. Used the bottom part and the actual drone tops from bits I had… so there’s a few more hours scratch building something I paid good money for.
So now… I have a lot of FW kits in my collection but reflect back on what was actually invested… wow….
To date I have:
2 Barracuda’s (both needing minor work so far)
2 Tigersharks (lot of effort getting these respectable)
3 XV84 Battle suites (still WIP with no end in sight)
1 TX42 Piranha upgrade (finally in primer)
2 DX-4 Tech drones (lets not go there)
2 Remora’s (reluctant to open box)
2 Tetra’s (still in box with Remora’s)
1 Cadian upgrade w/ respirators kit (Tau auxiliary , so I knew work would be involved)
4 Heavy drones (few hours cleaning these up)
1 Tau sensor tower…. (ok so it leans a little to the left)
3 Air Caste pilots….. (the white flag went up on these)

and let’s not forget my Black Templar bits…

I like the fact that someone called Bodger is complaining about ill fitting doors!

This is not a new thing or sadly, a rare thing.

A guy in my gaming club bought the Land Raider extra armour (or whatever it is. Large pieces of badly cast slab armour that does not fit together) along with some extra doors and hatches.

Each piece was not only warped but not properly cured, even after 2 weeks in transit (it was still sweating - which is also a sign of bad mixing of the resin).

He had no idea how to fix it - so he asked me if I could help. It was the matter of minutes to straighten up the pieces - and around 30 minutes in my toaster oven (it's only ever used for drying stuff out.) to dry it out as well.

Next issue was that the extra doors he also got didn't fit the slots in the armour. That's ok, neither did the original plastic doors. The original plastic doors were too big for it.

Has he sworn off FW after this?

Nope. Like an iSheep, he keeps going back to get his arse slapped again and again.

Chibi Bodge-Battle wrote:I like the fact that someone called Bodger is complaining about ill fitting doors!

Like

I'm toying with the idea of a FW night lords dreadnought in the new year simply because it doesn't work out that much more expensive then the ugly as hell GW chaos dread. Now i know people have problems with FW kits but is there any thing i should look out for with the dreadnought kits ?

Forge World's quality control... scatch that... Forge World don't have quality control. Forge World pumps out product at such a rate that breeds an environment where mistakes that would be considered miscast and thrown away/melted down at other companies are considered "good enough" and shipped out anyway. You can't fault them for their success, but they are victims of it, with fully 50% of their product coming out miscast (from slight warpage to completely unsalvageable pieces). What I've found is that the newer kits are less likely to have problems (my Macharius and Chaos Dreads were all fine - old Baneblades and Manticores... horrific). As a comparison point, all the Micro-Art Studios, Antenociti's Workshop and Scibor stuff I've ordered has come through without issue (aside from the usual flash and mould lines). Forge World are just bad at making models - great at designing them - but bad at making them.

In the end you just have to be careful, and either learn to live with the odd bit of warpage, or learn how to bend things back.

Listrel wrote:I'm toying with the idea of a FW night lords dreadnought in the new year simply because it doesn't work out that much more expensive then the ugly as hell GW chaos dread. Now i know people have problems with FW kits but is there any thing i should look out for with the dreadnought kits ?

I've got both Death Guard Dreads (the more recent of which has a lot of fiddly find detail bits) and a World Eater Dread. I had no problem with these kits, and I suspect that it is because they are newer and less complex than their old stuff.

Scott-S6 wrote:FWIW, I've had lots of Forge World bits and models. Never had anything that needed more than a bit of cleaning and warming/bending.

Then you're lucky, and I've got a Stormblade that thinks you're wrong.

I spent last night assembling the Plaguehulk as well as the Khorne Daemon prince. There was slight warpage on some things, but nothing that wasnt fixable with some heat and a wee bit of greenstuff.

I think its worth mentioning that the top of th plaguehulk is about a couple of mm smaller than the bottom of the defiler it sits on. Also something that I was able to handle, but the front right claw/arm was a pain, since there was a massive gap between the top & bottom due to the size difference. Fiexable, but weird nontheless.

The Khorne Herald went together like a charm though. And what a sweet bastard he is.

Concerning Rhino/ LR doors. A guy at my local store spent days filling things to get everything to line up right etc. Its also worth saying that the extra armour doesnt work well with the hurricane bolter system you can purchase as an upgrade.

It's also worth mention that most of the Rhino and Land Raider doors, as well as all the extra/spaced/etc. armour have been on the website for a long time - long as I can remember anyway - so that factors into my 'newer kits are less prone to problems' theory.

I've ordered exactly one set of those old doors (the Chimera back hatch with the Aquila on it), and, yep, it was bent.

My Grey Knight Land Rider doors fit just fine.

H.B.M.C. wrote:

Listrel wrote:I'm toying with the idea of a FW night lords dreadnought in the new year simply because it doesn't work out that much more expensive then the ugly as hell GW chaos dread. Now i know people have problems with FW kits but is there any thing i should look out for with the dreadnought kits ?

I've got both Death Guard Dreads (the more recent of which has a lot of fiddly find detail bits) and a World Eater Dread. I had no problem with these kits, and I suspect that it is because they are newer and less complex than their old stuff.

In that case I think I'll go ahead with the dread but the rhino an land raider doors I was also considering will be skipped at least for now.

Just got this email from Forge World regarding my complaint about the quality...

"It appears that we are having some problems with molds for the Rhino armour sets which has resulted in them being removed from our range until the matter has been dealt with. Regrettably some sets were sent out before we could do this. The re-working of the molds and master models may take some time..."

Is that the first time they done something like that?

How recent of a development is this with Forgeworld?

It's been several years since I've placed a FW order but I've received about half dozen Iron Warriors Rhino doors and chaos extra armor bits, Land Raider doors, an Iron Warriors dread and a Vindicator conversion kit, (should give you an idea how long ago it's been...) and they all fit wonderfully. The only issue I had was that on one set of rhino doors the mold didn't fill entirely and the top edge (With the hazard striping) was a bit wavy.

chromedog wrote:Each piece was not only warped but not properly cured, even after 2 weeks in transit (it was still sweating - which is also a sign of bad mixing of the resin).

My Tomb Stalker's body is slightly tacky, even though I ordered it about a month ago.

I have bought 3 FW Drop pods and 2 were fine the third was a bit warped and I attempted to heat it in luke warm water and slightly bend it back. There must have been a flaw in the resin because when it cold and set, it shattered (Well either that or my wife smashed it and wouldn't admit to hating my hobby )... I think as consumers we are a practical bunch who enjoy the hobby so that 50% of the time we will live with minor flaws and paint, file or fill the problem away. This pragmatic attitude is not really in keeping with most of society where if there are flaws in a consumer item we will demand a replacement or compensation. It would be nice if FW had a little more QA, maybe its time GW took them in house or maybe FW subsumed a smaller specialist Plastics manufacturer!

Rhino spaced armor for me is a colossal fail. I needed to build whole new doors out of plasticard because none of the rhino doors would fit into the forgeworld pieces.

*grumble*

Look I'm not new to the FW rodeo.
I have made a ton of purchases from them with no issues at all.
I expect and know that they are advance level kits that some times require advance techniques during the assemblage.

I posted picts on my blog about the Thunderhawk build. I normally don't use really hot water, but have a directed High heat gun to fix the warping issues.

This is a list of my most recent kits and any issues from FW

Reaver, none other than the hip/waist pnumatics being left out, new ones sent out in 3 days to the USA! Very little sanding was need the cast was as near perfect as could be

3 Vultures, no issues, very good casting, no warping

18 assorted XV-8X tau suits and the commander suit, no issues.

6 Tau Remora's no issues

1 hydra Flak emplacement, barrels on turret minor warpage
crashed Valk , big flash gates, but no real issues

1 Tau Tigershark AX-o11 , cast was decent, required a lot of sanding and dremil work due to HUGE flash gates, the Rail guns were warped

LR MK2b, basically it's a Hybrid kit and all the resin parts are 7/10th the correct size.

Mix chapter LR rhino doors , either too small or reversed way to big.

LR spaced armor, required major work to fit together correctly , then major work on the LR to attach correctly, had to do with parts being either too small or too big.

Thunderhawk, I built this after building the Reaver, so I was expecting the same level of difficulty , but I was way wrong. Some parts were all still sticky ( like the resin was not mixed correctly, some were faintly cast/ mist cast, some like the main hull were bent like a banana and twisted, even the wings has issues. Due tot he size of some of the parts , it was very hard to correct the issues due to how thick they were. From what I've heard from other Thawk owners many have experienced the same thing.

3 Dread drop pods, mixed The first one I got was a fairly easy build the next two were very difficult to build due to casting issues.

The main thing I've nowtised is that , generally the older the original kit is, the worse the cast will be, High use stuff especially. The newer stuff that has stated being cast in the Shanghai factory and sent back to England I've had very little issues with ( most of the newer Elysians and Vultures are examples).

I've never had an issue with FW models, some of the Epic stuff need quite a bit of clean up but that was it.

Anyone receiving miscast/warped stuff only needs to complain about it and they will sort it. Simples.

They are complelled by UK consumer law to do this (not that they have to be forced to, they will just send stuff out no questions asked). This applies to all goods bought from the UK so even if you are abroad you shouldn't have any problems getting the issue resolved.

mwnciboo wrote:or maybe FW subsumed a smaller specialist Plastics manufacturer!

They're currently having some item made in Shanghai at a big resin casting factory. Everything I've had from there has been spot-on!

I hope this isn't too obvious a thing to say, but anything that is not perfect, at that price, should be sent back and a refund given. No questions asked.

The thunderhawk costs £395 and is a model a foot and a half long. Think of what other product manufacturers can produce at a fraction of the price. GW/FWs argument is based on the quality of the product. They need to live up to that argument.

Consumer rights would be on your side. I can't see anything on the website that states that the models may be poorly cast and require reshaping. Their returns policy is clear.

GW/FW are a business. If you accept poorly cast models, they will keep sending them out. So start returning them.



Automatically Appended Next Post:
More info here:

http://www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/after_you_buy/know-your-rights/SGAknowyourrights/

Oh, and FW's returns policy (within seven days) doesn't overrule this, though it's obviously worth bearing in mind.

Could any of this be due to the shift in production from the UK to China?

As I stated every thing that I've gotten that came from the new Shanghai facility was top notch and almost as good as Regular Plastic models.

The last Item I got that I know came from England was the a Reaver and it was spot on...I think it was #297 of the casting run ( bought very early 2009), the Thunderhawk was bought in Sept of 2009 and was cast #797

I've wanted to get some Warhounds , but have been worried over how old the molds are.

They've been messing stuff since long before China got involved, but I doubt anything made over there will be any better...

theHandofGork wrote:Could any of this be due to the shift in production from the UK to China?

Nah.

It's mostly just the old molds are getting older, and rather than being retired+replaced years ago...they kept using them until the last second.

It results in some bad casts every now and again, but the beancounters upstairs likely find the cost of doing replacements more appealing than retooling the molds.

LR MK2b, basically it's a Hybrid kit and all the resin parts are 7/10th the correct size.

I'll third this... I was very disappointed and have had mixed results from FW purchases. Mostly, my experiences have been good, but the worst two problems I've had is the LR MK2b and a Dread Drop Pod that is assembled, but was poorly cast and doesn't exactly square up.

TobyDog wrote:As I stated every thing that I've gotten that came from the new Shanghai facility was top notch and almost as good as Regular Plastic models.

The last Item I got that I know came from England was the a Reaver and it was spot on...I think it was #297 of the casting run ( bought very early 2009), the Thunderhawk was bought in Sept of 2009 and was cast #797

I've wanted to get some Warhounds , but have been worried over how old the molds are.

If that's your worry, you can always get the "Mars" pattern Warhound, as it's much newer than the Lucius patterns.

My lucius pattern warhound fit together perfectly, I honestly had no issues with it.

theHandofGork wrote:Could any of this be due to the shift in production from the UK to China?

The improvements lately seem to be due to that shift!

micahaphone wrote:I won a real old baneblade in a raffle from FW (it had 2 main cannons- one in the place of the demolisher cannon, the HB on the front wasn't twin linked, and the sponson HBs are 3 bolters per side) and it is/was fantastic. I was instructed to wash all the parts, so I did, and everything turned out great. I love raffles

That's an Armorcast Baneblade, NOT a FW model.

The final straw for me….
“0k, I have an issue now..... major pissed off too.... 90% done with my IG Human Aux only to find out (my wife noticed right off) that the FW upgrade heads are actually smaller...This is from the Cadian upgrade pack with respirators… and if my wife noticed... this is yet another disappointment… and the final straw with me and FW.
Are the Pig Iron heads closer to the actual size GW heads?
I need something….so I can finish these which was my “goal” for today before sitting down and pigging out on Turkey….. so bummed.
If anyone wants these heads PM me, you can have them…they suck !!!”
I posted this in the painting section….
Everything and I mean everything I have purchased from FW is garbage….
I thought at least they would get the size of the heads right…. FAIL !!!!

Well I guess I'll just stay away from FW forever then

I was planning on getting some black legion and word bearers doors, and a couple other things too..

doctorludo wrote:I hope this isn't too obvious a thing to say, but anything that is not perfect, at that price, should be sent back and a refund given. No questions asked.

The thunderhawk costs £395 and is a model a foot and a half long. Think of what other product manufacturers can produce at a fraction of the price. GW/FWs argument is based on the quality of the product. They need to live up to that argument.

Consumer rights would be on your side. I can't see anything on the website that states that the models may be poorly cast and require reshaping. Their returns policy is clear.

GW/FW are a business. If you accept poorly cast models, they will keep sending them out. So start returning them.

That is the absolute truth. You're paying premium prices for Forge World's services and products, and I have no idea why anyone wouldn't insist upon a correctly manufactured product or a refund upon receipt of many of these defects. I've heard that Forge World customer service can be difficult to contact, but that's no excuse either, simply tell your credit card company or bank. You ordered something, you didn't receive it as promised, you have no obligation to pay for that service. As long as any corporation can get away with said practices, what incentive do they have to change? They care about money, bottom line, and so long as they can save money by being negligent and having it being accepted then they're going to do it.

0h well for FW.... there was a Manta in my future....

Scott-S6 wrote:

mwnciboo wrote:or maybe FW subsumed a smaller specialist Plastics manufacturer!

They're currently having some item made in Shanghai at a big resin casting factory. Everything I've had from there has been spot-on!

I had a squad of Elysians that were most likely from Shanghai, I made a thread about it back then, unable to comprehend the excellent quality of the casts. The FLGS staff was impressed as well and they went together like a dream. Too bad things don't last forever.

I haven't had problems with it not fitting, mine just have holes in them

For the prices they charge, I don't understand why they DON'T pressure-cast.

It removes issues such as:
Air bubbles (cavities and internal voids also).
Improper curing.

Costs bugger-all to implement (and at the prices they charge, it WILL make its cost back inside the first 5 purchases after install).

Has anyone else noticed that alot of their scenery has gone out of stock recantly? I noticed it the other day and asked in my local store and was told they have stopped making any more and are just clearing remaining stock.

I'm pretty pissed at FW for my Thunderhawk. The front hatch was significantly ill proportioned to the front of the chassis. None of the air flaps fit, the wings wouldn't hold primer, despite proper washing, most of the weapons and interior pieces were warped. I feel like it was just too much work for the price tag.

Id complain about it. Ive never had a major problem with Forgeworld stuff, mind you im used to working with resin as i do alot of millitary models. I dont mind filling in air bubbles and straightening parts and doing a bit of filling butyour Thunderhawk sounds a joke. Is there any chance of seing some photos of the problem?

Nah. I managed to pawn it off on a buddy who really wanted one. I really wanted to get rid of the damn thing, so I sold if off for about 50% of what I payed for it.

I bought an armageddon medusa from them recently, I paid 80 USD for it.

It was a nightmare to build, nothing fit together, the pieces spent a looong time under the hot water.

I would be interested to know if anyone had bought an alpha pattern russ, specifically the dkok vanquisher model. Any opinions on the quality would be appreciated. Really want to get one as the command tank of my company. I imagine there may be a bit of barrel warp with such a long barrel.

Other than that i fancy a few hydra flak tanks, anther model that i expect to have barrel warp. Why does it seem that all the forgeword i want has really long barrels?

I was thinking about the IF Rhino doors and some dreadnought weapon arms, I'm glad I waited and didn't just impulse buy them. I'll just buy the tank kit from GW and use those.

Trickstick wrote:I would be interested to know if anyone had bought an alpha pattern russ, specifically the dkok vanquisher model. Any opinions on the quality would be appreciated. Really want to get one as the command tank of my company. I imagine there may be a bit of barrel warp with such a long barrel.

I haven't got the Vanquisher (my Vanquishers were just the turrets), but I do have one of these. The hull is quite simple, works well with the (old) Russ kit. Not sure how well it would gel with the new Russ kit, but either way there aren't many pieces to the Alpha hull, so it shouldn't be too hard to make it work.

Trickstick wrote:Other than that i fancy a few hydra flak tanks, anther model that i expect to have barrel warp. Why does it seem that all the forgeword i want has really long barrels?

Friend of mine ordered two Hydras. Be prepared for some crazy wacky bendy barrels. Also be warned that the Hydra kit has the same construction as the Manticore kit (same turret and hull place, just different weapons). This means that it will hardly fit across the old Chimera kit (I've got no idea bout the new one). They're not well designed, and, again, they're an ancient kit, so expect a lot of problems with them. My 3 Manticores were very difficult to get together, so the Hydras are likely to be the same (just with bendy barrels!).

dalsiandon wrote:I was thinking about the IF Rhino doors and some dreadnought weapon arms, I'm glad I waited and didn't just impulse buy them. I'll just buy the tank kit from GW and use those.

There's nothing wrong with Dread arms. The Autocannon arms might be a bit bent, but I've got most of their standard Dread arms and I've had no problems with them.

H.B.M.C. wrote:I haven't got the Vanquisher (my Vanquishers were just the turrets), but I do have one of these. The hull is quite simple, works well with the (old) Russ kit. Not sure how well it would gel with the new Russ kit, but either way there aren't many pieces to the Alpha hull, so it shouldn't be too hard to make it work.

I believe that the alpha pattern uses the bottom plate of a russ andthen adds on the tracks. If that is the case it should be fine as i just compared the bottom plates of the old and new style and they seem interchangable. The track sections will be easy to modify if they are different.

Which vanquisher turrets did you go for? I liked the stygies but the dkok one has the single stubber i want and comes with all the extra ventilators and the alpha hull for a reasonable (for FW) price.

I got three of the Stygies VIII's and one Gryphonne IV kit (with him sitting on top). Each Stygies turret is the Command tank in a Squadron of Russes, with the Gryphonne being the Company Commander.

I knew there was a reason I'd made my last few FW purchases in person, at GW HQ

dalsiandon wrote:I was thinking about the IF Rhino doors and some dreadnought weapon arms, I'm glad I waited and didn't just impulse buy them. I'll just buy the tank kit from GW and use those.

Bought virtually every type of dreadnaught arm and they are one of the few things I have no problems with although they do ft better to the GW dread than the FW dread.

Trickstick wrote:I would be interested to know if anyone had bought an alpha pattern russ, specifically the dkok vanquisher model. Any opinions on the quality would be appreciated. Really want to get one as the command tank of my company. I imagine there may be a bit of barrel warp with such a long barrel.

Other than that i fancy a few hydra flak tanks, anther model that i expect to have barrel warp. Why does it seem that all the forgeword i want has really long barrels?

I have four Alpha hulls wearing Ryza pattern turrets.

The turrets were fine, just needed cleaning up.

The top and front panels of the alpha kit needed warming and straightening but nothing too difficult. Fitting the little filler piece that goes underneath the rear is tricky but it does fit.

Commander Endova wrote:Nah. I managed to pawn it off on a buddy who really wanted one. I really wanted to get rid of the damn thing, so I sold if off for about 50% of what I payed for it.

Pretty much sums up the all-resin abortion that was the FW Valkyrie (several years before the plastic kit was a sparkle in the eye of a dreaming GW marketing manager).

Every part was warped - except the canopy strutwork. That was just shattered due to the absence of any kind of void fill in the box. Several baggies of loose parts ALL with plenty of space to move around inside the box.

Got the pieces straightened up (I've been playing with resin for 23 years, and had 17-18 of them prior to this kit so I knew what to do).
REBUILT the strutwork (well, fabricated it from strip plasticard).
Got it assembled and primered.

Sold it to a mate for $80 (Cost me around $150) just to be rid of it.

Not really aiming to jump on the bandwagon per se but...

I have the forgeworld valk... partially assembled. Purchased it for a mate as a gift with the intent of building and painting it. So far, not working out that way. I'm kind of daunted by the prospect of building it.

Land Raider reinforced armour, the middle section was too small. It had shrunk somehow, so needed to replace those. Plastic doors, resin doors and even the gun mounts didn't fit, which was a bit of a pain...

Sometime in March I ordered Spaced armour for another Land raider I have, cleaned the bits, test fitted them, they seemed perfect. Only got around to building it the other day and bam... I have a duplicate rear armour piece for one side, but missing the other side. I think I have two left armour plates but no right one. Last time I emailed them with issues I got no reply, so guess it's down to calling them... From Australia.

Almost all the other kits I've purchased though, beyond a little warpage in barrels and the like, have been fine. Most of the kits I get from them now though tends to be the recent stuff though, so lends credence to the recent stuff being in better nick theory.

chromedog wrote:Pretty much sums up the all-resin abortion that was the FW Valkyrie (several years before the plastic kit was a sparkle in the eye of a dreaming GW marketing manager).

This is basically the reason why I don't own any resin:

1. Valks.
2. Vultures.
3. Trygons.
4. Warhounds.
5. Thunderhawks.
6. Thunderbolt.

Because as soon as there's a hint of a glimpse of a whisper of a rumour that one of those might be coming in plastic, I swear off buying it. I didn't for the Baneblade, figuring the rumoured plastic one was still years away, and bought my Maximilian Wiseman's Baneblade and a Stormblade, and I regret doing so. Not so much for the Baneblade, but that blasted bloody Stormblade. A year later the plastic Baneblade comes out and a few months later the plastic/resin hybrid Stormblade.

The mere mention of a possible plastic Valk stopped me from buying any. I won that one.
The idea of a plastic Trygon came by, so I avoided buying the resin version. I won that one too.
I knew that a plastic Valk would bring with it a plastic/resin hybrid Vulture. I was right there.
I decided against getting the resin/plastic hybrid Shadowsword. Right again.

Now we've got rumours of a 'flyer' expansion, so I'm not buying any Thunderbolts, and there's the long standing logical conclusions that there will eventually be a plastic Warhound and Thunderhawk, so I'm not getting either of those. I can be very patient, and learnt my lesson with my resin vehicles.

There was no rumour of the valk coming out in plastic at the time I purchased my Valk. It was resin or DIY.

I now own three plastic valkyries. Piece of piss to assemble and they required bugger all work. Cheaper, too (especially when one is not foolish enough to buy it from GWOZ retail).

I have an Armorcast Phantom and baneblade. The FW BB wasn't different enough to warrant replacing it. FW don't as yet HAVE a phantom for sale. Haven't used either of them in over 12 years though. Phantom is a beotch and a half to transport.

The AC phantom had none of the issues I've had with FW stuff. Perhaps it's because the guys at AC (at the time) knew how to cast stuff properly?

Hearing things like this actually make me glad that I'm forced to wait to get Forge World due to money. I don't have sizable enough forces yet to justify getting anything big or fancy, and the only two armies I have at the moment are Orks and Grey Knights, so there's a good deal of limitation on what I'd actually use.

That being said, I did get the Grey Knights/Inquisition Land Raider doors, and they seem to be ok to me. I also ordered the Inquisition/Grey Knights Brass Etchings, and wound up getting a set of Imperial Aquilas that somehow got put in the wrong bag. Gave them a call and they sent a new one out, no cost. Even let me keep the ones they'd sent by mistake, so if they do that for the small stuff, I'd imagine that they'd do more of the same for a warped Thunderhawk or Warhound. Makes me curious if that's true or not.

I recently got the Inquisitorial TL-Psycannon Turrets, but sadly they come with just the guns and the targeter. You still have to have a spare Razorback turret of your own to build them.

I was not happy.

It's shame I fell in love with Elysians, otherwise I wouldn't be buying from them. But alas..

Wow, really? That sucks. I always though that it included the turret mount with the Psycannons.

And a question, since I'm curious - most of the problems with FW that I've seen people complain about are warped panels on large vehicles and such, but aside from Rhich's complaints about the Cadian respirator heads, has anyone had any problems with standard sized infantry from FW? I've been tempted to get Hector Rex as a painting piece at some point in the future, money providing.

It's stories like these that makes me think I'm a lucky man. As a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and former Quality Department Supervisor, these stories hit close to home and are quite alarming.

I've ordered a few things from FW and had no issue. Granted, these are all newer models. Perhaps their older molds need replacing. In any event, it sounds like they need to improve Quality Control and have their employees take more pride and ownership in their work.

Stuff I've ordered: Black Templar Venerable Dreadnought, Dreadnought Plasma Cannon, Dreadnought Assault Cannon, 3x Mark III Powered Armor Marines.

I'm sure that doesn't hold a candle to some of your purchases, though.

OK. I've been working w/ FW resin for some time (and other kits). From 28mm stuff up to a Reaver titan.

Necron Pylon: A
Necron Tomb Stalker: A
Ork Killbusta tank: A
Daemon Prince of Khorne: A-(some broken bits...but very small stuff)
Rhino Doors/LR doors: A- (a little smaller then actual but no issue/not noticable once painted)
Reaver Titan: A-/B+ (1 piece required fitting and adjustments)

Thunderhawk (D): Truly a huge disappointment. Large, thick pieces were very warped. If this had been one of my first pieces of FW resin, I would have never gone back. Regardless. I was able to get it together in an acceptable manner but it sucked. Really.

Ed_Bodger wrote:Seriously how hard can it be to make Rhino doors that fit the hinges aren't even in the right place.

So far from Forge world I have bought:

2 x warhound titan
1 x thunderhawk
3 x rhino doors
1 x venerable dreadnaught

and other bits and none of them fit even though you pay through the nose for them. Anyone else experienced this?

Assuming you didn't order 2 Warhounds, 1 Thunderhawk, the rhino doors and dread all in one order, my question is what ever made you keep going back and ordering more stuff when you kept receiving gakked up kits?

Im literally astounded if FW does not use pressure casting for the resin kits.. For the amount of money they charge, they should be using pressure casting. That is pretty much the only reason I can see why they charge so much...

Saying that, I am glad the few complaints I ever have to deal with are mostly with delay of shipping (do to demand) and not miscast.

H.B.M.C. wrote:
This is basically the reason why I don't own any resin:

1. Valks.
2. Vultures.
3. Trygons.
4. Warhounds.
5. Thunderhawks.
6. Thunderbolt.

Because as soon as there's a hint of a glimpse of a whisper of a rumour that one of those might be coming in plastic, I swear off buying it. I didn't for the Baneblade, figuring the rumoured plastic one was still years away, and bought my Maximilian Wiseman's Baneblade and a Stormblade, and I regret doing so. Not so much for the Baneblade, but that blasted bloody Stormblade. A year later the plastic Baneblade comes out and a few months later the plastic/resin hybrid Stormblade.

For most of these I'd agree, but the FW Trygon looks infinitely better(at least to me) than the plastic. The plastic's itty bitty top most scythes puts me off after I had the chance to compare it to my FW version(bought a little after originally released), so much so that I'll forever be willing to spend the extra to buy more FW versions instead of the plastic.

Maybe we could organize a forgeworld boycott. The quality of the pieces is terrible, customer service is slow, and the prices are obscene. We could get together with other forums and just stop buying from them.

What do you think about an organized boycott?

DiscoVader wrote:Wow, really? That sucks. I always though that it included the turret mount with the Psycannons.

As did I. As I said, I was not pleased, especially as R-Back turrets aren't exactly cheap online. I managed to get 3, but still need a 4th one.

DiscoVader wrote:And a question, since I'm curious - most of the problems with FW that I've seen people complain about are warped panels on large vehicles and such, but aside from Rhich's complaints about the Cadian respirator heads, has anyone had any problems with standard sized infantry from FW? I've been tempted to get Hector Rex as a painting piece at some point in the future, money providing.

It depends on which of their infantry models you're ordering really.

I've got a stack of the Respirator heads and really they're fine. I've converted up a few metal Kasrkin doing headswaps with the Respirator heads (you're wondering “Why? Don't Kasrkin already have those heads?" to which the answer is yes they do, but the only Kasrkin you can actually convert into anything is the Sergeant, and he's not wearing a helmet, so I needed the swap), and they look fine overall, not too small. I have a few of the Cadian Veterans with the shotguns and they were disappointing because their waists are not the same size as the plastic legs they’re meant to go on. Forge World make great 28mm Guard models (their Death Korps models are to scale with Marines, unlike Cadians/Catachans that are too big), but unfortunately when they made the Cadian conversion kits they forgot that the models they’re meant to go with are 28mm heroic and therefore exaggerated. This means the Veteran Shotgunner bodies are too small (by a little bit). Very annoying. The full resin models, like the Cadian General, look pretty normal.

I’ve got a few Death Korp models (crew that came with my Macharius’) and they are good models. Friend of mine got a Death Korp HQ section (by accident... it just showed up in the box, he didn’t order it) and they are fantastic.

I’ve got Solomon Lok, Hector Rex, the Technical Servitor and the Tech-Priest and while I haven’t built them yet (the Tech-Priest will be a nightmare to build with all those spindly arms) from looking at the pieces they all look like good models that should work well. Rex’s henchmen are all one piece as well, and are as good as any of the 1-piece Henchmen/Servants that Scibor makes (minus the press-mould detail on big flat areas).

The Tech Priest's servo arms are annoying, but once on, I've yet to have a problem with them. The only time I've had them break was during the move from California to Colorado. Just make sure not to grab them or grab him in places that they get in the way when picking him up.

My only real problem with the model is that his base(at least on mine) is ~22-23mm and not actually the full 25mm of GW's bases due to shrinking while curing.

Platuan4th wrote:For most of these I'd agree, but the FW Trygon looks infinitely better(at least to me) than the plastic. The plastic's itty bitty top most scythes puts me off after I had the chance to compare it to my FW version(bought a little after originally released), so much so that I'll forever be willing to spend the extra to buy more FW versions instead of the plastic.

This is one of those effort vs reward things. Are there elements of the resin Trygon that are better? For sure. You mention the claws/talons, and yes, that’s one thing about the resin one that is superior. But then again I looked at the photos that FW used to have for the Trygon and part of that kit was a million billion little resin claws that run up its body (I might be exaggerating on the number a little bit). The plastic version has the same thing, but the difference is they’re plastic, and therefore a million billion times easier to put together.

I hate working with resin, and after my experiences with the Stormblade, the Manticores, Armageddon Basilisk and even the relatively easy Macharius, I consider plastic > resin when it comes to kits that are the same. If there’s a plastic version, I’ll take the plastic version, even if it is slightly inferior to the original*.


*The one exception to this is the GW ‘Blastscape’ that came out when Planetstrike was released. People should remember it. They were the horrifically bad vacu-formed pieces of horse gak that they advertised by showing off the painted resin masters. Given the option of resin vs the vacu-formed gak, I’d’ve taken the resin.

H.B.M.C. wrote:

This is one of those effort vs reward things. Are there elements of the resin Trygon that are better? For sure. You mention the claws/talons, and yes, that’s one thing about the resin one that is superior. But then again I looked at the photos that FW used to have for the Trygon and part of that kit was a million billion little resin claws that run up its body (I might be exaggerating on the number a little bit). The plastic version has the same thing, but the difference is they’re plastic, and therefore a million billion times easier to put together.

Ugh, you aren't kidding. Those things were a bastard to clear off their sprue without losing. I was ticked when my Trygon took a head dive down a flight of stairs(thanks to a box that wasn't secured properly on the bottom) and several of them snapped and vanished(but none of the big stuff came off).

And that's why I prefer plastic.

It's the reason I haven't bought the Khornate Daemon Prince (+Herald) despite how much I love that model - all the spikes and even the teeth on his shoulder pads are separate pieces. Feth that.

Holy crap, that seems like so much more work than it needs to be. I saw one of those painted down at the Showcase Comics in Bryn Mawr, but I didn't realize how many fiddly pieces there were on it. Damn.

Also, thanks for the info on the Hector Rex/etc. Good to know that they seem to be good models. Interesting to know that the retinue is made up of single-piece models, but I guess it makes sense if you think about it.

I much prefer the FW trygon to the plastic and I am happy they still produce it. However, I haven't had any of these problems. Then again, I have had minor bending issues on pieces I totally understand bending and its mostly tyranid stuff. We will see if I get this tomb Stalker for christmas though. I think I'll pick up a some pairs of tweezers for it.

I've honestly never had a problem with their single mini models like death corps or titan crew on foot. Anything bigger than that i've seen issues

I recently helped put together a friends thunderhawk for him. I ended up needing to boil:

Upper hull
wings
lower hull (twice, once to allow the wings to fit. the second so it would match with the upper hull)

Now i understand that this stuff warps over time when left in storage like they do but christ almighty you'd think they could keep one hull piece straight. It was literally twisted like a helix.

HBMC i agree on the efford vs reward. My only complaint, and maybe others have seen this, is that the Effort vs Reward is very skewed when working identical items.

First warhound i got was a breeze, next warhound needed 80% of the pistons re-shaped, multiple area's that needed puttied around the carapace to remove the creases..
A better example: I got two grey knight dreads, same model, one needed 5x the work of the other. In essence there is no consistency in their casting process. Is this going to keep me from buying FW? Not a chance. why? because its all we have, until someone can bring out models that look as good with less issues and a cheaper price, we as hobbyists will work around their faults.

Mewiththeface wrote:I much prefer the FW trygon to the plastic and I am happy they still produce it.

They do? I haven't seen it on the website for some time.

augustus5 wrote:

Ed_Bodger wrote:Seriously how hard can it be to make Rhino doors that fit the hinges aren't even in the right place.

So far from Forge world I have bought:

2 x warhound titan
1 x thunderhawk
3 x rhino doors
1 x venerable dreadnaught

and other bits and none of them fit even though you pay through the nose for them. Anyone else experienced this?

Assuming you didn't order 2 Warhounds, 1 Thunderhawk, the rhino doors and dread all in one order, my question is what ever made you keep going back and ordering more stuff when you kept receiving gakked up kits?

No the Warhounds and the Tunderhawk were one order the rest were a separate order over a year later.

I recently got the SW Venerable Dread. Being a new mold, I was quite pleased. No major warpage, no airbubbles that needed a huge amount of filling, though there was a great deal more flash/excess resin in hard to get areas that I found acceptable. I'm pleased with the end result, though it does not, in the slightest, make up for the atrocity that my Thunderhawk was.

My Elysian infantry, though possessed of many other (mostly design) problems, had no issues with casting, which I suppose is good. The Vulture I ordered was completely messed up in the cockpit, one side of the exterior looking as though it had undergone tectonic shift. (As in, all the details were there, but part of the thing had just... collapsed in upon itself, though the piece was solid.)

Despite all these setbacks, I'm going to try again. For my upcoming Salamanders army, I want to get the appropriate Terminator shoulder pads and Land Raider doors. Does anyone have experience with these?

Resin is a nightmare to work with, I know because I worked with it for fourteen years!(and it smells). Anyway the problem seems to lie with various processes done in resin. Firstly it shrinks in the mould, moulds need to be slightly overfilled to at least retain the shape or object cast. Also the casting will always be slightly smaller than the master, I used to make complex resin models as a job and they NEVER NEVER fit together! Took a lot of drilling, sanding and using resin to join gaps. We used to use car body filler to combat this.
Also the catalyst heats up the resin as it cures. If you use too much it dries too fast and warps or even cracks. Way too much and it goes on fire. I should know: I set fire to the work's wheelie bin using this method...
Unless it is a one piece casting, resin does not provide good joins by a long stretch. Lastly, I've never found water and detergent to work very well as a resin model cleaner. There are dozens of types of resin available and you should check before you try this but we used Acetone. This effectively took away the shine leaving a perfect surface for painting straight on to. Again CHECK that Acetone won't dissolve the particular resin that you have.

H.B.M.C. wrote:I recently got the Inquisitorial TL-Psycannon Turrets, but sadly they come with just the guns and the targeter. You still have to have a spare Razorback turret of your own to build them.

I was not happy.

To be fair, it does say that it's a conversion kit for a razorback. Implying that it needs razorback parts.

If it included the whole turret then it'd be a conversion kit for a rhino - no razorback parts would be required.

Slipstream wrote:Resin is a nightmare to work with, I know because I worked with it for fourteen years!(and it smells). Anyway the problem seems to lie with various processes done in resin. Firstly it shrinks in the mould, moulds need to be slightly overfilled to at least retain the shape or object cast. Also the casting will always be slightly smaller than the master, I used to make complex resin models as a job and they NEVER NEVER fit together! Took a lot of drilling, sanding and using resin to join gaps. We used to use car body filler to combat this.
Also the catalyst heats up the resin as it cures. If you use too much it dries too fast and warps or even cracks. Way too much and it goes on fire. I should know: I set fire to the work's wheelie bin using this method...
Unless it is a one piece casting, resin does not provide good joins by a long stretch. Lastly, I've never found water and detergent to work very well as a resin model cleaner. There are dozens of types of resin available and you should check before you try this but we used Acetone. This effectively took away the shine leaving a perfect surface for painting straight on to. Again CHECK that Acetone won't dissolve the particular resin that you have.

Im glad someones said this. I wanted to say something like this but didnt. People also seem to forget that GW sells thousands of models, Forgeworld may sell a few hundred of the popular stuff. There are huge differences in the way resin is worked compared to injection moulded plastic.

Saying that there are some companies out there now injection moulding resin but again the costs involved in that are huge. These people are using injection moulded resin and the quality is superb, things like the seat belts are seperated from the seats and theres no flash in the gaps:
http://www.neomega-resin.com/cockpit.htm

Although I agree with this thread, the older kits I've had from FW have had very grainy resin and bent peices, it annoys me that so few people call to complain to FW.

If the kit needs anything more doing to it than FWs cleaning tutortial explains then you are entitled to a free replacement (at least in the UK), and the only way that FW are going to learn to do things right is if enough people ring up to complain.
Lots of complaints and/or replacements will alert managerial staff to poor quality control, especially if big kits like Thunderhawks are being sent out as replacements!

DiscoVader wrote:Holy crap, that seems like so much more work than it needs to be. I saw one of those painted down at the Showcase Comics in Bryn Mawr, but I didn't realize how many fiddly pieces there were on it. Damn.

Also, thanks for the info on the Hector Rex/etc. Good to know that they seem to be good models. Interesting to know that the retinue is made up of single-piece models, but I guess it makes sense if you think about it.

while i honestly didn't pay much attention to the retinue since i got rex as a grey knight grand master stand in, i did have a few problems with the model that i got. the psychic hood was broken off half way up, the sword was completely bent (and very thin to begin with) and his cloak was thin enough in a few parts to have some moth eaten holes in it that have to be patched up. in the end, those problems were fixed in assembly but problems with the casting to begin with. as a side note, the detail on the fig is quite incredible and i was astounded at how much it has in person (the internet pics don't do it justice). that's the reason he's still on the side of my painting bench duelling with abaddon... i don't want to screw him up!

ollieholmes wrote:
Saying that there are some companies out there now injection moulding resin but again the costs involved in that are huge. These people are using injection moulded resin and the quality is superb, things like the seat belts are seperated from the seats and theres no flash in the gaps:
http://www.neomega-resin.com/cockpit.htm

I don't recall anyone stating anything about INJECTION moulding of resin.

Pressure casting is different. It is still the same kind of casting as normal resin casting. Two- (or more) part mould, liquid resin mix. No steel trap dies, no injection of anything into anything else.

With resin casting, as it is generally an exothermic isopolymer, heat is a by product (and gas bubbles). With room temp and 1 atmo pressure, these bubbles don't have time to leave the mix before the surface sets, trapping them inside.

Pressure casting involves pouring the cast as normal, except it is placed into a pressure vessel (commonly a paint spraying pot that will hold around 5 gallons or so of paint) that is hooked up to a compressor for the curing time. Pressure is altered (50psi is common) for the demoulding time (normal time). This pressure forces the bubbles to leave the solution via the vent holes and results in cleaner casts.

You can even do clear bubble free castings with this method. You can't without it.

Im pretty sure it wasnt pressure moulding, any resin caster i know worth their salt uses one.

Clear resin is wonderfull, ive got some lovely clear aircraft canopies made using it and they are amasing.

The fact remains that regardless how difficult resin is to work with FW should look at their quality control. For the price you pay for their products the percentage of deficient pieces is unacceptable. If you sold products with this many defects direct to industry you would go bust in a year, it just illustrates how reluctant people are to complain especially here in the UK.

Scott-S6 wrote:

H.B.M.C. wrote:I recently got the Inquisitorial TL-Psycannon Turrets, but sadly they come with just the guns and the targeter. You still have to have a spare Razorback turret of your own to build them.

I was not happy.

To be fair, it does say that it's a conversion kit for a razorback. Implying that it needs razorback parts.

If it included the whole turret then it'd be a conversion kit for a rhino - no razorback parts would be required.

I thought this was the case, but hadn't had chance to go check for myself.

Well I'll agree with Ed_Bodger here..
I don't care if resin is hard to work with, I dont care about different ways of casting it, i dont care if the mold is old etc etc.. They are not giving me their products for free, I am paying for them (and I am paying quite a bit more than I pay for the rest of my models from GW)
I want good quality

You can complain about it, I know I did, but you won't get a honest reply, or one at all regarding the product quality. Which is kinda sad when you compare FW's stuff to GW's top notch stuff.

soooo....I was thinking about picking up a couple of Tauros assault vehicles and a Tauros Venator, but after reading this I'm not so sure. Anyone have any experience with these vehicles?

they're relatively new sculpts so you'll have less problems on average as the molds aren't worn out yet. that doesn't mean you won't have problems, just that you should have less on average.

I'll throw my story in here. I eagery awaited my Hydra kit and Imperial command dugout for two weeks, and lo and behold it was on my front porch ("success" I thought!). Then I open the box and look at the Hydra turret fixings. Bent barrels, very soft details, minor flashing, vein like lines all over the pieces and a horribly warped baseplate. The Dug-out looks pretty good, like it's made of superior materials and cast out of a much nicer mold. The Hydra looks like steamy gak.

And of course one of the barrels was broken.

Personally i think FW designs are way better looking than GW's i guess more realistic?

I was crushed when i was told if i cant even fix minor issue like warped resin i shouldnt even bother with FW.

LunaHound wrote:
Personally i think FW designs are way better looking than GW's i guess more realistic?

I was crushed when i was told if i cant even fix minor issue like warped resin i shouldnt even bother with FW.

It can be fixed, with lots of patience and the right tools. Right now, I am running these parts under scalding water, and they are slowly getting back into shape with just hand pressure. It will probably take several days to get the barrels straight, but I still have the issue of the snapped one. I am trying to bend it into shape so when it does need to be reapplied, all I'll need is super glue.

If you're having such a problem with the barrels Stormrider, send them an email/phone call. They'll gladly replace it, at no cost, and send it out UPS Express.

Since they upgraded/swapped their site, response times have gone from "maybe this year" to "under 5 hours, depending on if you send it during their working hours or not".

But yeah. The Hydra kit has some issues, simply because the mold is almost as old as some of the posters on here.

Stormrider wrote:

LunaHound wrote:
Personally i think FW designs are way better looking than GW's i guess more realistic?

I was crushed when i was told if i cant even fix minor issue like warped resin i shouldnt even bother with FW.

It can be fixed, with lots of patience and the right tools. Right now, I am running these parts under scalding water, and they are slowly getting back into shape with just hand pressure. It will probably take several days to get the barrels straight, but I still have the issue of the snapped one. I am trying to bend it into shape so when it does need to be reapplied, all I'll need is super glue.

I havnt tried the soaking method so far i used hair dryer. Is it me does the resin feel abit waxy after its heated?

Not only that, but it's four long thin pieces of resin that are meant to be completely straight. Is it any wonder that that kit, above most of the others, is going to have the most issues, especially with FW's track record?

H.B.M.C. wrote:Not only that, but it's four long thin pieces of resin that are meant to be completely straight. Is it any wonder that that kit, above most of the others, is going to have the most issues, especially with FW's track record?

Indeed, regrettably I should have done some sleuthing on here before I impulse bought a Hydra. Serves me right as I am sure GW will make a plastic kit soon enough anyway.




Automatically Appended Next Post:

Kanluwen wrote:If you're having such a problem with the barrels Stormrider, send them an email/phone call. They'll gladly replace it, at no cost, and send it out UPS Express.

Since they upgraded/swapped their site, response times have gone from "maybe this year" to "under 5 hours, depending on if you send it during their working hours or not".

But yeah. The Hydra kit has some issues, simply because the mold is almost as old as some of the posters on here.

If it becomes a major pain (which it certainly could), I'll do that. I am hoping I can do some surgery.

With the state of your barrels, I'd consider getting replacements first. What happened to yours sounds 10 times worse than the Hydras my friend ordered. Get new ones.

Plus, they won't ask for the parts to be sent back to them(unless we're talking about a Titan or something huge like that). So you can just save the current one for later on, or have it wrecked to have a spiked Hydra as a scenery piece.

Well, after some more careful heating and bending I think it's respectable, but you can bet I will be getting some free replacement cannons!

godswildcard wrote:soooo....I was thinking about picking up a couple of Tauros assault vehicles and a Tauros Venator, but after reading this I'm not so sure. Anyone have any experience with these vehicles?

I have two of both. One of each is in great shape, the other a mess. It's like I got one of the first and one of the last casts, which is over a year old by the look of it, but I got both kits at the time of release. All in all good kits, just be sure that those chassis aren't too warped.

Just my two cents...

Over the years, I've had predominantly GREAT experiences with FW - I've got figures, 3 dreads, various other little bits (LR conversion kits etc...), the Thunderbolt and Lightning fighter kits, and a Reaver Titan. (No. 881...it's my Xmas pressie, but I opened it up, inventoried and checked the parts for dmage / completeness.)

The only thing I've ever had trouble with was the Lightning fighter - there was some shocking mis-moulding that I had to fix / putty.

Everything else has been very good- the Reaver in particular is one of the cleanest, beautifully moulded sculpts I've ever seen from any company. (Watch out for a blog after Xmas...)

I've read the Net horror stories, but thankfully have been spared the dramas...(touch wood!)

Padre^.

none of them fit even though you pay through the nose for them

-THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

none of them fit is funny, paying through the nose for them is just filthy!