Bill Cross reviews Orange Hobby's Photo Etch set for Dragon''s Pz. IV.



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Thanks!

I was waiting to see someone take a look at their kits because I was interested in seeing what qualtiy of PE this new company would sell. Thanks for the review, I now know that their sets are just as good as they look.

A complete PE set in a single package, with clear instructions in color? What are these guys thinking? Haven't they heard that modelers hate that kind of stuff? Really, those instructions are so nice even I might be able to understand them. Nice review for a nice set. Thanks, Bill.

Thanks, Sebastian and Russ. Voyager could take a page from this and begin to offer complete sets instead of parceling them out over several ones. Especially since many vendors don't stock all the other misc. parts like antennas and cleaning rods.

Uh-oh, depending on price and availability, Orange Hobby may give my favorite Griffon sets a run for their money (or my money as the case may be)

Brass wise, Bill, what's 'lacking' in quality? Harder to bend, breaks more easily, etc? Do the frets come in different thicknesses? And how do the tool clasps look to assemble, excessively difficult or pretty easy?

Thanks for the review, I always like to see new companies coming out with the modeler in mind.

I was not able to get price information on the set. I have seen OH products a variety of places, including eBay.


You know, James, I hate it when reviewers make sweeping remarks and don't specify, so I'm glad you asked:

The brass is thinner than Griffon model and is on a par with Voyager or Aber. The thickness of Griffon sets also varies, depending on the job of the brass. Their superb FlaK 36 set, for example, has very thick brass for the gun shield. Thin brass is easier to bend, but sometimes too easy, and can get distorted. Breakage is also a problem, especially if you misread directions and bend something the wrong way.

The tool brackets look pretty standard, and will bedevil most humans without magnifiers and very small fingers.

The nice thing about this set is that Dragon is now releasing a new IV-H and this set is perfect for it. In fact, now that I have the PE, I intend to purchase the kit, which otherwise I might not have. Sick, isn't it?

I really like that each item is clearly identified on the frets themselves -that seems to be an innovative feature. Nice review, Bill!

Thanks, Ted, for making this possible. Do you know the price for the set or where it's being sold?

thanks for the review! PE kits like that are greats - and they are sure to raise ( I hope) some thoughts on improvement in other manufacturers. I mean, having a PE kit like that, that has all the bells a whistles (rods, metal wire and what-not) are far better to the ones that just gives you a PE sheet. Plus, it'll be hard competition in terms of value for money: why should one buy a PE kit from company X where he gets just the sheets, while others give absolutely all that is necessary?

I want the DML 6300 Ausf H for either christmas or my birthday shortly after.

You just sold me this PE Set.

I've never seen a more comprehensive detailing set in different media like this. This should sell like crazy !! It's a one-stop shop. Anyone got a solid retail lead for the UK ?

I see comments that this kit seems geared for the DML kit. I just recieved the Tamiya kit (early H). Will this work? I haven't had many adventures in aftermarket etch parts and don't know kit specifics. Has anyone seen pricing info?

Since October Voyager has a range of Jumbo packs:

Jumbo packs

They are surprisingly cheap as well. At JBModel, the early JagdPanther G1 Jumbo pack is 22 euro, while the single etched set is € 22,95. That's a bargain as the Jumbo set even includes the complete barrel.

I was looking at the voyager jumbo pack for the my Tamiya version. It includes the complete gun assembly. Price at Lucky Model was $37.00 US. I haven't found a price on this etch set yet.

Thank you for pointing that out, Herbert. It seems Voyager is feeling some pressure now and doing what Eduard has been in aircraft for some time with their "Big Ed" combo packs.