Now that I have had time to examine the models kits and even start assembly, I can give Rubicon Models some feedback if they want.
For everyone else, well, overall I'm very happy with these Rubicon Models. There are so many good things to say I will not even bother. Instead, I will only focus on aspects of the kits I dislike the most. That doesn't mean I'm going to be very picky and comment about every little thing. I will only point out what actually surprised me the most. However, now that I put it that way, there is only two things that stand out the most that surprised me. This is in regards to the track detail on some of the model kits and the wheels on the Jeep. I was actually surprised by this.
Tank Tracks:
The M4A3/M4A3E8 kit is a strange one. The front part of the tracks have pretty good detail, but the rear part is very much plain. Now I would expect this for the bottom, but the detail for the visible part of the front and back should be the same. The tracks for the Tiger I is also a bit plain. Especially compared to the Warlord Tiger I kit. Some modellers would just say "Just add mud and dirt and you can't see the difference". However, tracks were not always covered in lots of muck and dirt. There are many actual combat photographs showing the details of the tacks very nicely because they are not all covered in obstructing mud, grass, and dirt. Anyway, I was just surprised by the lack of details on some of the visible parts of the tracks.
Jeep Wheels:
The Rubicon Jeep kits are nice. I like the kits... but I'm a bit disappointed in the wheels (parts B09, B10, B18, B19, and B08). The wheels themselves look nice, but the tire sidewall is high giving the tire a balloon look. What seemed to have happened was that the wheel rim was not done correctly. A good example of what the wheel should have looked like is clearly shown on the box art for the Commonwealth Willys MB kit (Product Code: 280050). Because of the tan colored wheel rims, you clearly can see how the wheels should have looked. The actual wheels for the model suffers in that the rim is not done correctly thereby giving the tire itself a larger than normal sidewall. Except for the the excessive sidewalls of the tires, the Rubicon Jeep is a fantastic kit.
Nitpicking:
Not focusing on instructional errors, there are a few other little aspects that came up. As an example, for the SdKfz 250 kit (Product Code: 280032), when step 10 is reached, parts B43 and A44 need to be fitted correctly BEFORE proceeding further. The parts need some finessing to fit correctly. Once those pieces are affixed correctly, then attach A21 and A16 to the hull. However, to help with track alignment, trim about 1mm to 1.5mm off the pin that parts B43 and A44 slip onto. This will help to position the tracks parallel. Otherwise, your tracks might suffer from "toe-out" at the front. Once A21 and A16 are straight and parallel, attach parts B39, B40, B41, and B42 to the track assembly.
Rubicon Models:
I like these kits and I hope to see more from this company in the future.
