I bought this kit a few weeks ago. I haven't had a chance to start working on it yet but i did pop open the box to take a look at the contents. What I found is typical of most Trumpeter kits. The usual well molded frets with pretty decent part detail. No excessive mold flash and no mold slip. Dimensions seem to look right with the pictures I have on file. If it isn't perfectly to scale it's so close I can't tell with the calibrated Mk1 eyeball. ;) The kit contains their standard waterline upper hull molded in grey with their standard red plastic lower hull giving the waterline or full hull construction options. Which is one of the main reasons that I like Trumpeter kits. The only downside is that the lower hull is a little light on details. This isn't a huge problem as most will probably build this as a waterline kit anyway. And the lack of detail on the lower hull isn't so bad as to keep you from making the kit full hull should that be your original intent. The only other kits available in similar scale are by Revell (1/720) and Airfix (1/600). This trumpeter kit has FAR more pieces and are of greater detail than both the Revell and Airfix offerings. The only manufacturer that could probably make as good of a kit is Dragon. But they don't make a 1/700 Prinz Eugen. So if a 1/700 Prinz Eugen is what you want then this is most certainly the kit for you. The Prinz Eugen is also available in 1945 outfit if a late war version is what you're after.

Had a good time building the Prinz Eugen by Trumpeter. The fit was excellent and came together well. Very nicely detailed and you will be very pleased with the finished model. However, patience is a must. The most difficult were the AA guns and masts. Even with a sprue cutter, one of the masts snapped in half. I was able to salvage it and everything turned out well. I have a number of Trumpeter ship kits still to build, but I've learned to pace myself and not attempt to do too much of the finer details without walking away for another day. Overall, it's a beauty and you will enjoy looking at it when you're finished.

The most difficult kit I have ever built, it is complex and meticulous, but it is difficult because it has many fitting errors, it takes a long time to build and it is a cheap kit.