Damaged Models

[Sludge]

I've ordered from retailers, bought from fellow collectors, and have bought a lot on e-bay, and I have never received a damaged model! Am I just fortunate, or is this the norm?

Sludge

[waffle]

The statistical amount of models that actually arrived damaged (beyond a loose stabilizer or gear that popped out of place) is extremely low. To put it in perspective I usually ship back about 20 models out of 3-4000 shipped each quarter. It does happen, but it's few and far between unlike what some apologists like to say on other forums.

[fleetlordatvar]

Out of 700+ models (wow really?) in the 1/400 that i purchased i had several.

1. Collector - A Disney Sea 747; i knew about when i first bought my first large batch of 1/400, but i didn't realize what zinc rot really was at the time.
2. Collector - Cebu DC-9 city of Davao who T tail came off badly chipping off a small piece of metal
3. Retailer - A double pack FedEx old colors; when i picked up the 747 from the cradle the body came apart from the wings e.g. not enough glue
4. Retailer - DHC horizon right wing was separated from the fuselage e.g. not enough glue
5. Retailer - About 3/36 Bae-146s had their T tails broken off
6. Ebay - Dragon Wings ANA All Nippon body came apart from the wings

In 330+ 1/200 models several more were damaged.

1. Retailer - Herpa Nordavia AN-24 had a broken propeller, but didn't catch it until it was too late to return for exchange.
2. Retailer - Armavia Sukhoi Super Jet SSJ-100 had a broken off front landing gear during shipment; end of box lost integrity & got crushed.
3. A resin An 224 who's wing broke in shipment, but not the 2nd model of the same.
4. Collector - InflightLE Luxair ERJ-145 had broken front landing gear in shipment
5. Retailer - broken off T tail & paint damage to surrounding area & one of the two wings; JC Wings Canadian North DHC-8
6. Collector - Broken front gear on Qantas 747sp
7. Ebay - broken off antennas on bottom of orange Branniff 747sp that i knew about
8. Ebay retailer - Paint chip @ nose of Air Florida 727, but don't know if shipment or not inspected by retailer
9. Ebay retailer - broken off T tail of Air Florida DC- 9, but don't know if shipment or not inspected by retailer
10. Ebay - front gear broken off a Singapore tropical in shipment

This is all i can think of for now. So based on what's been posted so far, looks like I've had some bad luck.

[DiecastAirplane]

Like Waffle we have models that occasionally deliver to collectors with loose parts or damage. It's important to contact the seller for help correcting problems with models that are not received in good shape.

[Phrog74]

I only have 80 models, but I have received a few that have had loose wings or tails. Nothing a little carefully placed super glue can't fix. Unfortunately, I'm sure that even though most quality retailers take the time to package their shipments well, not all delivery personnel take as much care when handling them. I'm sure it's bound to happen from time to time. If you haven't had even one model with some kind of damage from shipping or what not, I would consider yourself extremely fortunate!

[Sludge]

When I bought my first two planes, from a hobby shop, I was very impressed with the cradle type packaging. This is a factor in the fact that these somewhat fragile items can be shipped safely, IMO.

Sludge

[fleetlordatvar]

I found an old post where i found these minor issues from another collector which is more typical of the loose part;

1. Inflight200 McDonnell Douglas Aircraft Company DC-10-30 1:200 - IF103009--right horizontal stabilizer fell off; not enough glue.
2. Inflight200 PSA L-1011-1 1:200 - IF1011004--Left wing, engine & engine pylon unattached.
3. Gemini Jets Allegiant Air MD-83 1:200 - G2AAY134-- Right wings unattached/ minor paint damage near the wing joint, but not noticeable when attached

[eugenevh]

To some extend I am dreading what I will find when I have enough space one day to unpack my models. Space wise, there is no way I can take them out to display them currently, so in their boxes they live. The 1:200 I take out when I receive them and do a casual inspection (not in-depth to check for tiny scratches etc). I have found two problems on Inflight 200 747SP's (retailer) - one gear door was missing and one wingtip "vortex generator" was loose, but fortunately still in the box. Another B767 1:400 Air Zimbabwe fell apart when I took it out of the cradle. E-bay. But it wasn't worth the effort to make a huge fuss. Just put that person on my DON'T BUY list and move on.

My 1:400 models I haven't unpacked at all. So those will be a 'shock' one day :-(

I am optimistic that the problems would be few and hopefully nothing a bit of glue cannot fix.

That said, I can feel empathy for some buyers who bought models and when unpacking find them falling apart. Although the models don't cost a fortune, it does come out of most small time collector's hard earned money.

Most retailers seems willing to help out in such cases, but I saw on another forum one retailer in particular which sided with the manufacturer to an extreme extent, which was way over the top.

[fleetlordatvar]

I had an update to ask for the obvious, ask for insurance that the retailer might offer.

[Santos]

The major risk is not to get a damaged model but the mail lost the package.

[FireAngelZero]

I've received two Geminijets in the mail damaged, When I bought my 1:400 Mexicana 767-300ER came with a broken main landing gear, my second jet was a 1:400 US Airways A319 Arizona livery that came with a broken gear as well in the mail. I went to a local retailer, bought a 3 dollar bottle of Loc-Tite Super glue and you can't even tell the jets are broken. It's all at the flip of the coin.

[eugenevh]

Unfortunately my Air Seychelles and Air Mauritius Aeroclassics A330's arrived in pieces. I will try to fix them some day, it doesn't appear as if there are any damage to the paintwork, but at 1:400, most people will not notice even if there is a small chip. Most non-collectors just see a bunch of planes and can't even tell the difference between a B737 and a B747 in any case. I enjoy models of all makes regardless of some minor mistakes.

[asapienza]

Of the 88 models I received in the last two years, just two of them had problems. First, a Pan Am 707 in 1/400 in a tin box. When I opened the box, the poor model was broken in many parts. A turbine was off, the front landing gear was off, the vertical stabilizer was off and a wingtip was broken. Fortunately, all the pieces were inside the box so I was able to reconstruct it. Recently, I bought a TWA 767 of Geminijets and it came with a broken front landing gear, but repairable. The other 86 models came in pristine conditions.

[JAL1628]

I've had a handful arrive damaged, mostly from eBay, but a couple from retailers. All of them with the exception of one (1) were easily repaired on my workbench. The lone exception was missing several wheels, but the retailer provided me with spares.