I think it is luck of the draw. My LHS recently got 4 or 5 RV-4s in stock. My buddies and I bought all of them. Of the four, I had the only solid one. The wood was straight, the flaps and ailerons lined up, the covering was good, everything fit together and it was well built. Not so with the other ones. They had all sorts of problems. Theirs looked like they were thrown together in a Vietnamese sweat shop. Only a couple of them acually flew theirs. Quality control is definatly an issue, but if you don't mind doing a little surgury, I'm sure any of them could be formed into a good airplane.

Oh, also plan on fiberglassing the cowls. They are paper thin.