Oh dear. Going less than an hour on my Rye Field Models early Tiger 1 and I’ve hit a snag.
Kit has a multi piece barrel. The narrower end, muzzle end, has a warp like a dogs back leg. Bad mold? Maybe. Bad fit? Maybe. Whatever way I look at it I can’t sand or straighten it. I could heat it but that will change the circumference, maybe!
So 2 questions.
Is this a known problem with this kit/model?
Replacements? I’ve tracked down a ‘Aber 35L-178’ for this kit. But It will cost me almost $50 to get it. Ouch. Not funny for an already expensive kit.
Anyone suggest an alternative?
bruce
Show us a photo of the problem…? I’m not saying that anyone can help, but out of curiosity at least.
Misshapen parts can sometimes be straightened out with very gentle heat (like a hairdryer temperature) and some clamping or weights.
$50 - I’d guess you can buy complete Tiger kits for much less than that.
On a quick look, BNA has a similar barrel for 14 euros:
And Modellbau Koenig also:
Not sure how much shipping is, but being so large shops you will surely find something more to add and share costs.
Thanks guys. The issue is now resolved. Well sort of!!
The front section of the barrel had to slide into the rear section of the barrel. There’s a guide for which way up and it can only fit in one way. When I rolled either part along my work space they rolled perfectly. But when I put the two parts together the front section pointed downwards and it wouldn’t roll at all. It was a tight fit so I carefully sand a bit off the front section so that was a looser fit. That worked and showed that the hole in the rear section wasn’t straight in. ie it had a small angle on it. It’s a side molded piece. So some miss alignment at time of making?
So I sanded down the section that slid into the hole to a point where it was straight. It meant it was a loose fit. So I glued it in and clamped it straight. So after much head scratching I got it all together.
I would just like to caution anyone who builds RFM Early Tiger 1. Kit #5003. That they need to be aware of this issue. Maybe I’m the only one. It’s just put me off that the first step in this kit and I hit an issue.
bruce
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Is this one of the first kits they did?
Looks like this was the second full kit they offered, but was effectively an update of, and shared parts with, their first.
BGT - glad you got it sorted without having to spend any money 
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The kit number is 5003. But if you go looking for reviews you get a lot of confusing information. It seems RFM made the most of the molds and issued several kits that are very similar.
I purchased the 5003 for two reasons. I wanted a Tiger 1. And the folks I buy from had kit #5003 on sale. So simple as that.
I’m convinced it was a side mold issue. Parts on their own were ok. But putting them together caused the barrel to be ‘bent’.
bruce