My hands are now shot with arthritis and I can't do the detail work on models any more. My last model of the Bismarck was the old Revell kit many years ago. I tried to build the Tamiya model last year, but my hands are now too bad.
I decided to look on ebay and found that one could get a "factory finished" model made from the Tamiya kit, painted with all kinds of PE parts added. If you order this from the manufacturer, Master Works ( I think they are based in China) it will cost you anywhere from $500 to $700. I was able to buy one on ebay for $220.
It is very nicely done. I have compared it to my unfinished Tamiya kit ( which I gave to my 35-year old son to complete for himself) and cannot see anything that is missing. One could nitpick and suggest a couple of inclined ladders as shown on some models, but these are not always depicted on illustrations I've seen anyhow.
I mention this in case any of you prefer ready-built models and did not want to pay top dollar for the Master Works models, there have been a number of vendors selling them on ebay and I've seen one go for as little as $125.
I'd like to know if anyone else has an opinion of this model
Thanks for any comment.