It's a shame Martin that you think that way, you being the 'admin guy', but you are entitled to your opinion and I do respect that. I would'nt say that the hull planking was sole destroying, monotonous/repetitive perhaps, but such is 'hull planking' , maybe we should have just received a big one piece hull and that would have saved the bother!!
Personally I found it was fun and I had a sense of acheivement once it was built.
I'm now finding that having received the parts 101-103 which contain the main decking that I have made some mistakes in my method of building the hull, but I'm putting it right, I'm not rubishing the kit, my fault, I'v got to fix it, that's what it's about! This kit is not meant to be simple and straightforward. (even though some would say it is, Amati advertisement springs to mind!!)
It's therefore a bigger challenge than it was meant to be for sure, some parts I'll admit are not very good, especially some of the plastic parts,but the brass parts are as good as any I've used in any kit, this is the 'upside'of the build. Unfortunately, (back to the plastic) I've seen myself 're-making' some of these or just finding a way to 'improve' on them, "OK for you" you might say...but for the money we're paying, whether the part be plastic, brass, resin, wood, should all be 100%, all we should have to do is apply the part to the kit as per instructed.... and that's it!
Having to 'fix stuff??' ....well, let's face it, we are not all pro's, semi pro's,or just 'an ordinary (but good at it!!) builder' who have no problems whatsoever fixing these things, unfortunately, some will be beginners looking for a step into the 'big stuff club' and unfortunately, some will fail misserably in their attempt I'm sorry to say, and all the 'bad stuff' that comes out of that goes straight back to the manufacturer!
So in summing up, I feal (personally) that it is a great product and the end result will indeed produce a very good model of the Bismarck, but it comes down to me as the builder to make it this way. On the negative side 'Amati' should have made it quite clear that this model 'will not suit beginners' they should have advertised it as 'For Competent Modellers Only", or maybe like the 'Plastic Kits' had a 'Skill Level', or maybe just been honest and said "This Kit may be difficult and trying at times, not suitable for beginners or modellers with a heart condition"........Good luck to you all.........Dave