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Italeri 1/48 H-21C Warped Canopy


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G'day people,

 

I was playing around with the main assemblies of this kit to determine if there would be any fit issues. Well I found one and boy, it's a biggie!

 

It appears that my canopy part is badly warped. The lower section bulges outwards too much with the result that it is too wide for the fuselage and the part is too shallow vertically to allow the top of the canopy to to reach the upper fuselage.

 

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002(19).JPG?width=1920&height=1080&fit=b


001(19).JPG?width=1920&height=1080&fit=b

 

007(16).JPG?width=1920&height=1080&fit=b


005(15).JPG?width=1920&height=1080&fit=b


004(19).JPG?width=1920&height=1080&fit=b

 

This throws out the  whole windscreen angle as well.

 

It is like it has been squashed while the plastic was still cooling or something. I have sent off an e-mail to Italeri's customer help, hopefully I will get a reply soon.

 

In the meantime, if you have this kit, it may pay to check your parts, hopefully I am the only unlucky one!

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

Edited by Pappy121
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  • 2 weeks later...

You might try the hot water, form and cold water immersion option to bring it back into alignment. But I don't think it would make the issue of too short to be solved.

Jager

 

Edited by jager
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On 8/9/2020 at 12:43 AM, jager said:

You might try the hot water, form and cold water immersion option to bring it back into alignment. But I don't think it would make the issue of too short to be solved.

Jager

 

 

G'day Jager,

 

I think that it would be a very risky option and even if re-shaping worked I suspect that it will leave flow lines or stress marks in the material. Ordinarily this would be hidden by paint but not so in a clear part. I also find that the hot water method works quite well with resin but plastic tends to be , well more 'plastic' and develops a memory even after plunging into cold water.

 

In any case I don't intend to make any effort to correct the part, instead  I expect the manufacturer/wholesaler/distributor  supply me with a correctly formed part as that is what I paid for, hopefully I am the only person with this problem but I wanted to let people know in case anyone else who has the same kit has the same issue

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

Edited by Pappy121
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G'day Gator,

 

I immediately contacted Italeri's customer service dept. and received a reply (automated) within 24hrs, however nothing since.

 

My address and contact details were included and no spares have been forthcoming however, COVIFD19 may be a factor here, but still no reply about a spare part being sent or even an acknowledgement that there was an issue.

 

I have also contacted the retailer who is also chasing a spare canopy for me, this may be the better option

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Thanks for this post; it has made me check my kit. Mine is the same. I am worried it's a design problem, rather than a moulding problem. The part can be bent to fit most of the way round, but not everywhere.

 

I've submitted a request for a replacement part via their website. I'm not optimistic, but we shall see...

 

Jon

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14 hours ago, jonbryon said:

Thanks for this post; it has made me check my kit. Mine is the same. I am worried it's a design problem, rather than a moulding problem. The part can be bent to fit most of the way round, but not everywhere.

 

I've submitted a request for a replacement part via their website. I'm not optimistic, but we shall see...

 

Jon

G'day Jon,

 

I am sorry to hear that but that was the point of my post. Hopefully the problem is limited to just a small number of kits. I have not heard back beyond the automated reply, I hope you have a better result

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

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I've had this response:

 

Dear Sir,

 

thank you for your e-mail.

 

We kindly ask you to send us a picture so that our technical department can better check.

 

Best regards,

 

Italeri Staff

 

I've emailed back with some photos. Mine is not quite as bad as Pappy's. I've looked through a couple of articles on finished models and they all state the fit of the canopy was good. The photos in those articles would seem to bear that out.

 

I'll let you know if I get a response.

 

Jon

 

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G'day Jon,

 

I only got the automated  response and nothing since despite some follow up e-mails.

Not impressed so far

 

The rest of the kit is okay and looks good on the sprue however once you start dry fitting bits together  it is not so great. My test fitting of the engine bay and aft fuselage bulkhead parts shows that the parts are underside. If you attach them to one fuselage half (as suggested in the instructions) they will not touch the other fuselage half as they are not wide enough. The cockpit is very simplified and it is a very visible area. Even if my canopy was not badly warped, the canopy framing is extremely wide in some parts when compared to pictures of the real thing, and none of the reviews or build ups I have read seem to pick up on that point.

 

it seems incredible to say, but I think that their 1/72 scale offering is a better kit overall. It may not have the same level of engine details but it is adequate for the scale. In 1/48, a lot more is visible and doing the research for colours it is obvious that a lot more wiring and internal structure can to be added to make it realistic if you want to,

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

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  • 2 weeks later...

Email received from Italeri:

 

Dear Sir,

 

herewith we inform you that we have checked.

 

As our first aim is our customer satisfaction, we can send you the part D1 of item 2733 free of charges but we kindly ask you to pay 5 euros for the transport charges.

 

Here following you will find the instructions to pay:

 

The spare part(s) is (are) available, see below the instructions to pay on our site:

 

- search the article 99995 in the field “search item”

- click on the image

- select the quantity and click on “add to cart”

- select “proceed to checkout” to complete your purchase or click on "continue shopping" to add another spare part to the cart

- fill in your details and shipping address

- click on "Proceed to checkout"

-  select the payment method: "PAYPAL, credit card or bank transfer"

- click on “Buy Now”

- click on "Confirm order"

 

We hope it will be all clear.

 

Best regards,

 

At no point did doing the above process require me to specify the part I wanted. I've paid my 5 Euro and will see what happens...

 

I am unimpressed at having to pay for a defective part to be replaced, and not especially optimistic that the replacement part (if I ever get it) will be better than what's in the kit. We shall see.

 

Jon

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  • 3 weeks later...

I received my replacement canopy/windscreen part this morning. It fits *much* better to the fuselage than the part that was in the kit. I'm annoyed it's taken this much effort and £5 to make up for Italeri's poor QC, but at least I have something that's buildable now.

 

Cheers

 

Jon

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  • 4 weeks later...

G'day people,

 

So 3 months on and still no replacement part. I have e-mailed Italeri's customer service (surely this is an oxymoron) again:

 

"Message: Hello, I have been waiting for replacement part for my 1/48 H-21 for over three months. I cannot complete my kit because the kit canopy was warped beyond use. I first contacted your customer service department the 30 July 20. I was asked to provide pictures of the warped part which I have done. I have received an e-mail stating that the replacement part would be replaced as soon as possible but I do not think three months is as soon as possible. I also note that a similar think happened to another modeller (in the USA) with the same kit part and he has already received a replacement part, so I do not understand why I am still waiting for my replacement part"

 

and again received a very quick reply:

 

"Thank you for your message. We have taken care of your request. You will receive an answer within 10 days, except holiday time"

 

I am not holding my breath

 

Pappy

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  • 5 months later...

G'day people,Well after nine months of waiting, several e-mails and little to no response (apart from automated replies) I am happy to say that my replacement canopy finally arrived and it is flawless.

 

Very happy 🙂

 

Pappy

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