Hi all, have been on hiatus for a while, but am back now. After much agonizing and soul searching, I too have pulled the trigger on this kit. Don't know where I'm going to put it, and with over 1,100 parts I will probably spend the rest of my natural life building it. But.. it is mine..
For the poster who said the detail is no better than the ancient Revell U-47 kit, I beg to differ. The level of detail is incredible on this kit! As an example, the diesel engine is a kit unto itself, it is that detailed.
It even has a full crew, who are very well done, and even a nearly complete torpedo loadout. It is just amazing. That being said, there are a few things I do not like, such as the deck already attached to one half of the hull. I would not have had a problem with that, except that none of the deck hatches can be opened. On a kit of this level of detail, that particular design decision is inexplicable. Removing this deck (or the hatches) would be a pain in the arse for sure.
Another disappointment is that none of the wooden bench seats are present on the conning tower railings. However, I'm sure the aftermarket will take care of that minor issue. Still and all though, I am VERY impressed with this kit. I have been waiting for something like this for decades, and finally it is here. I am also glad to see that AMP has already released decals and a 1/48 cloth flag. There was no way I was going to build U-552. Everyone and their brother will be building it, and in any case I never build anything with the kit supplied decals.
Don't know as I want to build the U-96 either, but I will undoubtedly support AMP and get the set. The Peddinghaus 1/48 decals are atrocious; hopefully some other manufacturers will also release 1/48 decals for this kit. I will be interested to see if START Verlag does one, as they did for 1/72 and 1/144.
Also, for the poster that said the kit would look better without the clear hull section, it appears that the kit can be built without it. Another way folks could go is to cut sections out of the clear hull half, and paint the rest. This would in effect make the kit like a giant version of a 1/72 Revell kit with all the CMK parts added. I am strongly tempted to go that route myself. Don't know for sure yet. It will be a while before I get that far with the build, so I have plenty of time to think about it.
All in all, two big thumbs up for Trumpeter's new 1/48th U-boat offering!