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The best thing about these models (which are usually ordered directly from China via online auction websites) is the unusual subject matter, generally of ships not available in plastic or traditional resin. I only build in 1/350 scale, and some of these kits have been easy and fun, especially the orange resin ones from GlobalToy (or other sellers; it's hard to tell which company makes which model or whether those names are just distributors). Examples are the IJn heavy cruiser Furutaka and the USS Marblehead, both of which come with full hulls in one piece. Larger models with two-part hulls include the Italian battleship Andrea Doria and the USS Colorado. The blue-gray resin kits from SSModel can come with two, four or even six hull sections, and these can be awkward to glue together without the need for extensive puttying and sanding. Some of the earlier kits (e.g., the French battleship Bretagne and the 1927 USS Wyoming) came with two-part (upper and lower) poured resin hulls, with significant alignment problems. Expect oversize planking on the main decks, though this is less of an issue with the orange resin kits. The major issue with these kits is usually the complete lack of a parts list or assembly instructions; some will come with a single page of small xeroxed images. All of these kits seem to base their design on imagery from video games such as War Thunder and World of Warships, so accuracy can be an issue. For example, the Globaltoy (pink resin) USS Colorado (1944) had its eight 5-in. .25 cal AA guns shielded, but the guns supplied in the kit are unshielded (just like they would be for the USS Arizona and Oklahoma). The USS Marblehead kit appears to show the vessel as she appeared at the start of WWII in the Pacific, though with extra and taller masts as would have been used on this ship back in the 1920s. The Marblehead, as with most Omaha-class light cruisers, had its lower rear 6-in. casemate guns removed and their positions plated over flush with the hull prior to the war, and to achieve this look with the kit (for a 1941 or early 1942 fit) one must use putty and Evergreen sheet plastic to cover where the casemate had been. In every case the wise builder must consult printed or online images of the ships to ascertain where many of the kits' parts are to be placed; many small parts may be offered in excess of the number needed but precise placement (e.g., cable reels, chocks and bitts) can be difficult to achieve. Lastly, some kits are not quite engineered properly, so that parts that should fit precisely in place cannot do so. Examples are the WWI era battleships SMS Helgoland and IJN Settsu, both of which have two twin gun turrets in wing positions (out of a total of six). There is no way to achieve full rotational capability of these wing turrets because the center superstructure section, no matter how it is placed between the pairs, just will not allow it.
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Hello All, I have been away from the hobby for a few years and now I see that 3D printed resin ships are a thing. Have any of you built any of these ships in 1/350 or 1/200 scale. How do they compare to older resin models and plastic. What glues and paints work best with them. Thanks for anything you can share.
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