1/8th scale Aston Martin DB5
CJ007Goldeneye
LondonPosts: 587MI6 Agent
Time for me to discuss and spread my feelings on this regardless if this has already been covered or not. Alas a moan.
This is/was not as easy to build as they first said infact its probably hard. There have been many problems along the way such as incomplete unclear diagrams, even parts missing. Besides the many months wait for parts and issues. Theres no way of opening the bonnet easily, rear bullet shield no button to release it, no lever to rotate the number plates which is dissapointing, no instructions for attaching the exhausts or what screws to use. Screws that came with the parts should of been listed to what ones they were rather than having to compare it to that chart. Wiring to easily damaged/cut oh and when you assemble the whole thing the main PCB board just burns out. And the main body work doesn't even line up with the chassis!
Who else has had equally headache problems with this?
This is/was not as easy to build as they first said infact its probably hard. There have been many problems along the way such as incomplete unclear diagrams, even parts missing. Besides the many months wait for parts and issues. Theres no way of opening the bonnet easily, rear bullet shield no button to release it, no lever to rotate the number plates which is dissapointing, no instructions for attaching the exhausts or what screws to use. Screws that came with the parts should of been listed to what ones they were rather than having to compare it to that chart. Wiring to easily damaged/cut oh and when you assemble the whole thing the main PCB board just burns out. And the main body work doesn't even line up with the chassis!
Who else has had equally headache problems with this?
Comments
The other thing was packaging - I ended up with three steering wheels, one was broken beyond repair. Those were sent in nothing more than plastic bags, no moulded trays or cardboard reinforcement etc.
I guess I was just (relatively) lucky!
After completing the build I made a few observations myself;
Cons;
- Machine guns and the sidelights are a bit too flimsy. The fine fishing wire thread/spring idea is a bit hit and miss and the external hinges are just poor. Sure it's a tricky thing to achieve, but wouldn't it have been nice if this screen seen major feature had been done a little more accurately? The machine gun barrels should also be black, not chromed. This detail has no real reason to be wrong.
- Numberplate rotation should have been on a switch of some sort. Having to push it round is fine for a 1:36 corgi, but there is plenty of space in a 1:8 model to fit a mechanism for the plates.
- Side strakes are an iconic feature of any Aston Martin. The strakes on this model should have been holes in the metalwork backed off with either a black cavity or a mesh to add some realism to it. Having just a recess seems a little lazy, having it all silver just makes matters worse.
- Wing mirrors just look too big. I've not bothered measuring them up, but they just look to big. Can anyone confirm this?
- The aerial's ball end just came off in my hand. I'm seeing the doctor later next week about it.
- The door hinges feel a little unsubstantial. The doors feel a bit wobbly on my model, I'm not sure if this is down to me or not.
- The roof cutout looks too large for me. Again I've not measured to check but it just doesn't look quite right. The panel doesn't fit either, the contours aren't right and it would have been nice if the lip it sits on had a rubber seal so it didn't rattle into place.
- The bonnet is accurate but I've no idea what that bit of sprung steel is for.
- The interior is nice, but too chunky. The detailing could and should have been more refined for a model of this size. The 1:12 Kyosho Vanquish has more clean and crisp dashboard details than this. Other details just seem confusing. There's a weapons tray under the drivers seat but everything is in black so when you open it unless you have a torch to hand you can't see the toys.
- The rear bullet proof screen was ok, but again it's done in a 'well it kinda looked like that, it'll do' way. There should be better detailing on it and I'm not too sure about the press to release system. I guess it was the simplest way of doing it.
- Colours of the panels are a bit hit and miss. I'm lucky as the front and rear sections aren't a bad colour match but the doors are slightly darker. It's very subtle but in the wrong light it stands out like bollocks on a squirrel.
Pro's;
- The overal look and shape of the car is pretty good, and there's nice touches like the details of the tyres. The badges are nice as well, better than transfers at this scale.
- The details are nice and it's good to see all the famous features are there and not just the screen seen ones.
- The engine details are cute, not 100% accurate but cute non the less. I'd prefer it if the full details were there and not just the ones on show. Hollow exhaust manifolds for instance are a bit pants but hey at least it's all there.
- The horn. Honk honk. I just can't help giving it a toot.
As for the instructions.... well they ain't great are they? They weren't very clear, the videos online were just infuriatingly seemingly simple and some bits were just missing entirely. For instance, where was the wires for the headlights supposed to go?? Which brings me on to the electronics. The PCB seems a bit hit n miss with some people claiming to have melt-down or some form of malfunction. I was lucky and it seems to work ok, but it's hard to tell when so many wires had broken off their switches. I've yet to get the headlights to work and the tracking screen does nothing. Can I be bothered to strip the car to bits to try finding the fault? No.
Conclusion;
I think when you boil it down you have to step back and take in what you've got here. It's way to easy to go both barrels on it and pick out all the faults. Sure enough people will find fault with anything before even contemplating the good things.
The electronics are dire, the instructions seemingly hopeless and the fitting of parts can be a bit tight here n there. The dash could and should be better detailed and it's confusing that these details have been skimped on where elsewhere like the tyres, attention seems to have been closer paid.
All the bad bits aside, it's a large scale model with working (ok, working-ish) features and it's a great centrepiece or talking point. The ignition keys and flippy topped gearstick are cute and let's face it, it's pretty rare you get a model like this for £600.
Which brings me to my final point; some people have talked about the cost and value of this model. Well the bottom line is this - you would not and could not build, buy or commission a model like this for £600. To have someone make this would easily be five figures. The materials to build you own would be into several hundred including the specialist services you'd need.
Do I think it's a crap model? No. Would I sell it? No way. Will I modify mine to fix the issues? Probably not. Do I like the model? It's one of my favourite pieces and I'm very grateful and lucky to have it. It's not all bad and the issues that are there can be fixed. There's some people on other forums doing just that, but I prefer to leave mine as it is, besides I don't have any spare time right now to even think about it. I do plan however on making a series of add ons to enhance the model, but that's for another time.
Hope this is helpful to everyone,
MG -{
Vive le droit à la libre expression! Je suis Charlie!
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What are these other forums Geff?
P.s As mentioned in my first post i am in need of another PCB board as mine blew. I have many spare parts that i will gladly exchange if your missing any, or of course buy it the old fashioned way.