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New Academy 1/48 F4U-1a, is it really new or a reissue of the HC kit?


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Calling the HC kit terrible is not justified. It is not terrible at all.

The Acadamy F4U-4, now that's a terrible kit. It's entirely the wrong shape. The HC kit is the right shape.

That doesn't mean there's a good reason to buy one. For those who can justify the fairly reasonable price of the Tamiya kit, that's the one to go for as it is clearly the best in the scale. For those who are on a tight budget the Arii / Otaki / Matchbox kit is both basically accurate and available for practically nothing (I generally pay about £4 for one of those)

But if you already have an HC kit, or if you win one in the club raffle, it's not a terrible kit that you have to dump on eBay for 99p starting price. It can be made into something very nice. These two examples shows that...

http://hyperscale.com/features/2002/f4uiamr_1.htm

http://airfixtributeforum.myfastforum.org/Hobbycraft_1_48_F4U_quot_birdcage_quot_Corsair_HC1525__about20140.html

Edited by Work In Progress
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the Hobbycraft/Academy might not be the best Corsair ,but it isn't bad.

I think it is a 'middle of the road ' design.

there are better ones out there ,but will cost you more.

there are cheaper ones out there , but are less accurate.

the Academy version of the F4U-1D that I have is molded in a better, darker and denser plastic than the

earlier Hobbycraft versions of the kit that I have.

although the kit will be the same ,at least is is made from a better quality grade of plastic.

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Did they fix the dihedral of the wings, or make the fuselage less fat? Probably not. Anybody build the Hobby Boss version that just came out? As I write this I have the Collings Foundation B24 and B-17 flying around outside and it is phenomenal. I think I will spend the 500.00 to go for a ride in the B-24 tomorrow. Anyway, I do have the HC "British Corsair" but after seeing a completed version of the Birdcage Corsair I can't get past that fat fuselage and almost dihedral-less wing. I will stick with the Tamiya kit, and if the HB builds into a decent late model Corsair I may consider that one, but the new HB 1/48 Skywarrior just came out and that has been on my top ten list for a long time. Next stop is the Cougar, but that is for the Cold War site.

Cheers

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Calling the HC kit terrible is not justified. It is not terrible at all.

I built the birdcage kit in the mid 90s when it came out, like much of Hobbycraft's output it was perfectly serviceable, few vices, had dropped flaps (a nice touch) and built into a good looking replica straight from the box. The problem was the Tamiya kit came out a few months later which... well its Tamiya. That would be like "Monsters" coming out a few weeks before "Pacific Rim". The HC kits main sin was that it wasn't the Tamiya kit, which is rather stating the bleedin' obvious, but just because its not does not render it "terrible" in my book.

I can see nothing to indicate that it's anything besides a reissue of the HC kit. They'd have a big order to fill to try and beat the Tamiya kit.

But if they have key markets where they have a strong market presence, they won't need to. People do buy stuff other than Tamiya sometimes for various reasons.

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Did they fix the dihedral of the wings, or make the fuselage less fat?

No, Vought never did fix the wonky dihedral in the wings of the Corsair- it was the same weird configuration all the way through! :winkgrin:

I did notice a bit of "chubbiness" in the fuselage more-or-less aft of the cockpit when comparing to others, but my main complaint with the Hobbycraft is the abysmal fit of the flaps (trying to have them up) and the gun insert in the leading edge. I've fiddled with the wing bits numerous times, and always put it back in the box and on the shelf. Really, if you care enough to build a Corsair, do yourself a favor and build the Tamiya. (I'm still partial to the Otaki (by any other name would build as sweet...), but it will need some dressing up (engine, wheels, and vac canopy if you want it open- but then you'll also need a cockpit!)

bob

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Why do you think the fuselage and dihedral are wrong on the Hobbycraft kit?

All I can say is just compare it to the Tamiya, or even the old Moogram kit. The lack of dihedral of the outer wings, combined with the incorrect anhidral of the gull / inner section of the wings attached to the fuselage. The fuselage is also quite wide in comparison to the Tamiya, Hasegawa, and Heller kits. Like the Academy Spit Mk XIV, it's visually "off"/ doesn't look right. This doesn't mean it is a terrible kit, but like the Academy Spit it is too hard to make it look like the real thing. But of course this is just my opinion, if the HC kit looks fine to others then just forget what others say and build it. Even though the Hasegawa Mk IX has it's issues, that doesn't mean I won't build the ones I have, even though the Eduard MkIX is the benchmark. To each his own I guess.

Cheers

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