Plastic Kit Question

[yellowhammer]

Hi Everybody. I'm starting a Heller kit of the Thonier Armor. I believe its in 1/125 scale. At this scale the details on blocks, dead eyes, etc. really become obvious. My questions is this; Do you use the plastic kit parts or do you replace them with aftermarket parts? Any recommendations are appreciated.
John

 

[AndyA]

Cap'n Yellowhammer:
It is common for careful modelers to replace fittings on plastic models, but it depends on the quality of the fittings in the kit. They sometimes have some weird features and are not to scale. I recommend that you take some photos of the Heller parts and post them along with some measurements to give a sense of scale. I'm sure that you will elicit some opinions. Fair winds!

 

[Jimsky]

Today, most plastic kits come with some plates of PE. Also, as you mentioned, and I agree with Andy, we have a large variety of aftermarket parts made specifically for a particular kit. Some of the aftermarket manufacturers combine their upscaled parts into boxed kits. It is proven that the most sophisticated plastic molds cannot come even close to some of the parts supplied in the kit. For example rails and railings, they always out of scale supplied in the kit, This is the perfect place to replace them with PE aftermarket parts. I am a big fan of aftermarket parts where appropriate. But be careful, sometimes the aftermarket parts cost more than the kit itself. You have been warned !!! LOL