ORIGINAL: noveldoc
Agreed. Hopefully they will send the missing parts and, if not, I can fake it to get plane in the air.
But my index of suspicion has gone way up.
And I am tight about only paying through PayPal. If Intro still screws up I will get my money back in 2 days. They have done that for me before.
I did get a very nice ARF out of Seagull models in Vietnam. Do not know if this is just luck or better quality control.
Sad we have none made in the US. The price difference for US labor is not as much as we think. We tend to automate these things so we get more done with less man hours. The cost of fuel for shipping is going way up and you may only be looking at a buck or less difference.
Let's say factory guys make 2 planes and hour with their dies and equipment. Cost for a US worker with pay, taxes and basic benes is $20 per hour, pay in China is less than a quarter. That comes out to a buck a plane more but that is before you factor in higher shipping and other things. But, then again, they'll just devalue their currency to win the bid.
Tom
Seagull Models makes some good stuff. With Seagull you might get a good ARF and another model can be bad. I had a Duel Ace that was really bad, but then I bought the Extra 260 .90 it was one of the best ARF aircraft I have ever built and flown. Goldberg is good, now owned by Great Planes. I've yet to own any Sig.
Hanger 9 and Great planes are a hit or miss as well. But Great Planes and Hanger 9 have excellent customer service. I heard ESM is fantastic in the quality department. I think I only read one bad review out of what... how many?
BUSA is very good if you build kits. The only bad thing about them is they can take forever getting to your orders. Arizona Models...LOL[sm=lol.gif]Stay away from them. Very bad customer service, and they don't like to answer phone orders and will only return your call, (If they return your call) 2 weeks after the fact- and sometimes they don't get to your order at all.
Flyboy models I'm to scared to deal with them. I think they are another name for CMP, plus you can't order spare parts. (That's a big warning sign for me) Kyosho is over priced for the quality. Black Horse and Global is a hit or miss. I personally don't like the quality and the prices are a little high.
These are my manufacture experiences with ARF aircraft.
BUSA is made in the United States, but they are only in the kit department. I agree that we have no ARF aircraft made in the United States, at least to my knowledge.
Pete