Old kits vs. New kits? I

[frank mccune]

     Are the new kits much better to build than old kits.  I have a supply of the older “die crunched” kits, Green Box Nobler, Jetco Dolphin Magician etc. that are pristine but I will never build.  What would I gain by electing to build a more modern kit that is laser cut? Do the newer kits self align and jig themselves into straight wings and fuselages?

     The newer kits are quite expensive but if they are superior to the old kits in ease of construction etc, they may well be worth the additional cost.

      I have bee advised to sell all of my old kits and purchase a Mo Best and a Tudor II and live happily ever after.

     
     Suggestions,comments,

     Frank McCune

[GERALD WIMMER]

Hello I tend to copy my old kits rather then build them now. Modern kits are generally easy to build when lazer cut and if the balsa is light, make life easier. What I like about old kits is they are like time capsules , the neat old plans , alloy cowls , wooden wheels, old dried up glue bottles/tubes and interesting instructions and hopefully amusing illustrations that make them fun. Bit like old lapped steel baffle engines , interesting but not always the best choice today unless you want the nostalgia  element or period correct feel.

Regards Gerald

[Bob Heywood]

If you are talking about new vs. original kits of a legacy design, a fresh kit with contest grade balsa will most likely result in a better finished product. There is such a range of "quality" in the older kits that the answer isn't a simple yes or no. We built the legacy kits because we didn't know any better and did just fine. The other thing, fancy laser cut kits don't build themselves. You still have to do the right things to keep them straight and true.

On the other hand, if you are talking about legacy designs vs. modern designs the answer may well be different.

[Dave_Trible]

In some cases a hybrid of the two works out best.  Sometimes the lightest softest wood isn’t the best choice for certain things like profile fuselages,  wing ribs and sheeting.  Some things like shaped leading and trailing edges are hard to copy and might be too soft in your copy to function well.  In some cases certain designs were done to work best with the available wood.  I’ve built several old kits,  Skylark, Dolphin, etc. by thoughtfully replacing the worst of the original wood parts with better wood but staying with original parts where it seemed a good choice for that job.
Now some of the new(er) kit remakes are really nice thoughout and are better choices if you don't have an old kit.  However if you already have the oldie just build it with the above changes.  The kits are cool to have but are of no real monetary value and will end up in a landfill one day so just build 'em!, or pass them on to someone who will.  I follow eBay quite a bit and the value of much of our stuff is on the decline-not the upswing.  The market for such things isn't growing and there is quite a bit of product coming out as old model estates are being sold off.

Dave

[john e. holliday]

Okay, a legacy kit like the S-1 Ringmaster.  I built one backn when I was getting into this madness.  Di-crunch cutting of parts in which some times you still had to grab a razor blade.  Didn't know about Ex-Acto knives until a set was given me for Christmas.  No full size plans as they wanted to sell kits back then.  Recentlly I purchased the RSM Original Ringmaster kit to try.   All laser cut, full size plans and a few changes from the original S-1 like leading and trailing edge construction.  Found the same with Brodak kits.  Both kits there were some laser spots needing a touch with the Ex-Acto knife.   Laser cut kits are great if you are in a hurry.  Don't forget we now have CA glues of varying consistencies.  Back then it cement in a tube when done right was double gluing of some areas and also waiting for glue to dry/cure.  Epoxy didn't happen for me until the mid 60's.  Even today I take a kit and clone it using white glue, some CA plus some epoxy.

Don't remember how I did it but I built a Sterling Gaurdian for carrier in less than a week.  It was the one I chase the timers away from the deck at El Dorado KS that year.  Picked up kit Monday AM as soon as Charley open his door and flew the following Sunday at the contest.  Didn't have J-Roberts system.  Throttle control by spring loaded third line.  What did I know back then.