Metal EarthStar Wars X-Wing Fighter 3D Metal Model Kit Fascinations

The media could not be loaded. SO COOL!!! I enjoy putting these together and have done about twenty of them, I am far from an expert and my first three ended up a wad of twisted metal, rage and profanity with a one star rating. There is a special way to assemble because these are not typical models.TIPS AND TRICKS:Don’t waste your time with the special tool sets or needle nose pliers (they didn’t work for me). I recommend getting tweezers with different tips. There are many times where you will be holding a piece with one set of tweezers and twisting/bending/inserting tabs with another and many times you have to reach tabs inside a small piece you have already made. Attempting to assemble this all by hand became impossible for me. Tweezer were needed.Buy some really small, fine point wire cutters. The package says just pop out the pieces for assembly but when they are very small they do not “pop out”. They bend and just make a mess, so snip the points where they are connected and now they will easily pop out.Get yourself some nails of various sizes to help transform flat metal pieces into cylinder shapes. I use different sized nails, cables, pens and markers of all different sizes to round some parts of these models. Whatever you use just make sure you can slide the model part off one end. Trying to round using tweezers is possible but doesn’t look as professional.Don’t get mad if you break some pieces, just keep a small bottle of quick drying, clear super glue. I’ve broken many tabs and pieces. It just happens sometimes, if you fold pieces to many times it will break, read the instructions wrong and have to undo folding and bending they can break. Use small amounts of super glue and apply with a needle and you can hardly notice you used it once it has dried.Some of the instructions are a bit unclear so look at the pictures closely and even the pictures of the next few steps. The directions are not very specific and won’t tell you exactly which way a part is meant to be bent, or engraved side in or out. Putting together a 3D model from 2D parts and directions can be confusing. Green triangle means twist tab and blue circle means to bend tab down.If you get lost using their included flow chart, just know that the parts go on in numerical order.You can see from my video that these are far from perfect but being able to complete them is a satisfying feeling. The rotating display is by Facinations and is solar powered. It works well indoors and works fine with just the lights in the room but do not work well in shady areas but it does take a battery if you want. Take your time, take breaks, have fun!

These Metal Earth models are fun to assemble. This one looks particularly good. If you've done others, you have a pretty good idea what is entailed. A couple of comments specific to this one:- There are a few parts that are easily damaged during removal from the metal sheets. In particular the frame around the cockpit and the little R2 unit that sits behind it. I highly recommend getting a set of flush cutting micro-shears to snip the parts out rather than flexing them out. I recommend these: Xuron 170-II Micro-Shear Flush Cutter.- There are quite a few cylinders to roll. I found it best to roll these around something of the desired diameter. I used a set of drill bits.- I also found small pliers come in handy. These worked well for me: Beadalon Slim Chain Nose Pliers for Jewelry Making and Beadalon Slim Bent Chain Nose Pliers for Jewelry Making

Not easy for assembly but worth it the time expended

Not that I'm complaining about a bit of work but MAN are these fiddly. Small metal tabs hold together each piece as you bend and shift them into place. Didn't bend your tabs enough, pieces come loose. Put too much pressure on something already built, pieces come loose. This is especially annoying when you can't reach the piece you need to fix it anymore because you're half way through the project already. Definitely takes precision, patience and persistence.That being said once you've got a complete piece these are beautiful. The light shines off the metal and they're just the right size for a desk decoration. I always impress my co workers the more of these metal earth pieces I collect.This one specifically -- of course the x-wing is classic. This piece is expertly conceptualized and even includes a little pilot in the cockpit and an r2 unit in the back. The only gripe I have is the laser coils are just flat pieces of metal, probably too hard to bend more metal that thinly but it reduces the impact of them a bit.Great for any hobbyist but wouldn't recommend for someone looking for something easy or casual to build, certainly wouldn't recommend for children, they'd have no idea what to do with it and probably end up cutting themselves, the metal can be sharp if not handled properly.

Super cool and super detailed. Warning, these are HARD to put together. Some pieces are tiny and very fragile. I have broken a couple of tiny parts, but glued them back together. They still get fives stars because it's not their fault I broke them. You need to set aside a few hours to finish one.

This was a kit with small parts but not difficult. I will say that I bent a laser cannon too far then twisted it to get the right angle and it broke off (my fault) but super glue solved the problem.These kits are fun to build with the right tools, in this case a set of smaller diameter cylindrical items to bend items around will help. As other reviewers state - use small cutters to remove parts from the sheets - DO NOT BEND OR ROCK THEM because it will deform the part. See picture. Get into these kits & enjoy.

This thing takes some time but is very satisfying once completed. First if you are new to these just know the end products are pretty small. Typically these things will end up being between 3-5 inches. Although it is not needed for the construction I highly recommend having a set of jewelry tweezers and some super glue. It will make it much easier on your fingers, I couldn't imagine putting it together without.