Most of the strength for the model comes from the aluminum tubes, so the nose that hangs off the end has very little support. You've got to remember, the mindset when building these models was that they only had to survive the shooting schedule. Most models of the day got thrown in the dumpster after the film was over. No one ever imagined that these models would still be around 35+ years later - or being shipped all over the world to be displayed. The plastics get brittle, glues start to let go and paint colors start to shift. Some of these old models just start raining parts when you move them around. They certainly weren't made to last decades after filming.
The 4 foot X-Wing was another victim of that shipping event. Actually it was a victim of it's own design. Except for the central aluminum tube, the armature was made of acrylic and after 30 years it had gotten brittle. It came back looking like a model kit. Everything had dis-assembled itself: wings, engines, fuselage, lasers, cockpit… It looked like someone had clipped the parts off the sprues and tossed them back in the box.
Lucasfilm uses a professional shipping company that is used to dealing with fine art; but with fragile things and thousands of miles, sometimes the worst happens.
The 4 foot X-Wing was another victim of that shipping event. Actually it was a victim of it's own design. Except for the central aluminum tube, the armature was made of acrylic and after 30 years it had gotten brittle. It came back looking like a model kit. Everything had dis-assembled itself: wings, engines, fuselage, lasers, cockpit… It looked like someone had clipped the parts off the sprues and tossed them back in the box.
Lucasfilm uses a professional shipping company that is used to dealing with fine art; but with fragile things and thousands of miles, sometimes the worst happens.