eljefe
09-05-2015, 03:23 AM
I had built several Estes kits in the late 80s/early 90s and then another round about 2001-2002. The instructions always had the standard warning about possibly needing to wrap tape around the nose cone to get a good fit in the body tube, but I'd never needed to use it. In fact, parts always fit together like a glove.
I purchased a bunch of new kits over the past year, most of which date to 2013 production runs. The ones I've built so far are mostly E2X kits, and I've noticed that body tubes are routinely very loose fitting on nose cones, couplers, and transitions. Two to four layers of tape are typically needed to get a good fit.
Is this observation just a fact of life from shifting production overseas or have I been unlucky? I'll be starting Level 1 and 2 kits shortly, so it will be interesting to see if these parts fit together better than the ARF and E2X kits.
I purchased a bunch of new kits over the past year, most of which date to 2013 production runs. The ones I've built so far are mostly E2X kits, and I've noticed that body tubes are routinely very loose fitting on nose cones, couplers, and transitions. Two to four layers of tape are typically needed to get a good fit.
Is this observation just a fact of life from shifting production overseas or have I been unlucky? I'll be starting Level 1 and 2 kits shortly, so it will be interesting to see if these parts fit together better than the ARF and E2X kits.