Photoetch or Lasercut?

[Raja Ahsani]

Hello gentlemen, fellow papermodellers

I'm planning on building Gremir's HMS Lance soon and i'd like to ask some little questions
I'm planning to do the railings and ladders on the ship, what would you think will be better, using PE or lasercut part? i have no problem in building multi media model, on one side PE needs painting to look quite decent, but the laser cut is quite flimsy.
And i observed that WAK also has the same HMS Lance model in printed format that's pretty much the same with Gremir's (and i guess designed by the same person), WAK released a set of laser cut formers for their printed kit, does it compatible with Gremir digital kit? has anyone tried to use extras for printed kit for digital one before?

I appreciate your answer and experiences, thanks in advance

[CMDRTED]

other than specific formers for the hull, most of the laser etched card accessaries can be switched from one similar ship to another. card parts are flimsy when not installed but can be surprisingly sturdy afterwards. they require painting also. I trend away from photoetched as they sometines can be a pain when bending around corners etch.

[Sakrison]

I used both laser-cut card and photo-etched brass railings on the GPM Bismarck. I agree with Ted, laser-cut railings can be just as sturdy as photo-etch once they are installed. Neither one stands up to rough handling. Each has advantages and disadvantages:

PE can be closer to scale with finer detail, but it requires using CA to install it or repair it, and to join sections. It requires painting. Its finer detail (chain railing on the Bismarck) can make it harder to see at 1/200 scale.

LC can be a little fussy on tight or complex bends but you can install it and repair it with white glue. It might require painting but it can be colored with pens, pencils, and markers.

On the Bismarck, I used PE brass railings on the main deck and LC card railings on the upper works. If I were doing it again, I would do it the same way. The card was easier to work with on odd-shaped upper decks and I really prefer working with white glue over CA. The brass had the chain-rail detail that I wanted on the main deck and it easy to install in the main deck's long straight runs.

My LC card railings from Thomas Pleiner were cut from grey cardstock that didn't need any painting. Unfortunately, he has stopped producing them, at least for now. I think the LC railings from GPM are white but I'm not sure.

[Raja Ahsani]

Thanks for the insight gentlemen
I finally settled with LC after seeing coloured one on GPM, It's much cheaper than PE anyway. ordered and hopefully will arrive soon