Boeing 747-8F Cargolux - 1:144 Revell

[woody37]

Boeing 747-8F Cargolux

Revell 1:144

Affectionately called the ‘Jumbo’, the Boeing 747 was proposed in the mid 60’s to meet the increasing demand of air travel, triggered by an initial request from PanAm. Long distance travel had already been revolutionised on a wide scale commercial basis by the 707 and DC-8, but whilst the 747 was being drawn up to meet growing airline needs, Boeing expected the long term future of the industry to move towards supersonic solutions. As such, the 747 was designed from the outset to be able to be adapted for the freighter role. As the history books have since noted, the supersonic era didn’t come to fruition, so the 747 has endured a successful role in both passenger and freighter configurations for the last 45 years. From an initial order by PanAm, the 747 has since flown more than 40 billion miles, equivalent to over 100,000 return trips to the moon and has transported 5.6 billion people by operators spanning 89 countries. The latest generation of the 747 is the stretched and more economical 747-800. Again, this is built both in dedicated passenger and freighter configurations, but benefits from much more powerful engines (66,000lbs) whilst delivering a 20% reduction in fuel costs. The freighter version can lift over 190 tons of cargo and has a range of nearly 8,000 miles.

The kit
If you’ve built any previous generation 747 kits, you’ll be immediately drawn to the shear length of this kit. Contained in a top opening box which is a little unusual for Revell, though much preferred, you’re presented by 7 white plastic sprues as well as the fuselage halves. Initial impressions are most welcoming for someone who is used to vintage airline kits lacking in detail. The exterior surfaces have fine recessed panel lines and the detail in areas like the engines and landing gear have certainly moved on. There are some signs of flash on the smaller parts such as wheels and fan blades, though not a great detail and nothing the average builder wouldn’t be comfortable dealing with. Whilst Zvezda have also produced a 747-8, as far as I’m aware, they have only done the passenger version with the much longer upper deck, so converting that would require much more work and a donor kit.

 

 

 

 

 

So lets look at the assembly. The instructions start with the gear bays and cockpit. Now in my experience, these are areas much neglected by your typical vintage kit, but Revell have addressed them well. Detailed gear bays and a relatively detailed cockpit are included. Given that little will be seen of the cockpit, what is included is more than adequate. The landing gear has more parts for assembly than any of the classic 747 kits including separate parts for the brake disks, so for beginners, there will be a little more challenge. The wheels have small amounts of flash around their circumference, so some patience will be required tidying these up given the number that there is. Obviously, if you prefer to have the undercarriage retracted, this will save some time and a stand is included in the kit if you choose this option which is a nice feature.

Once the gear bays have been assembled, they are fitted into the fuselage halves. Given that they are internal and there will be some weight on them, using plenty of glue is recommended on this step to avoid some choice words and unrecoverable situation later in the build! 40g of weight is advised in the nose, but you may want to add a bit more for peace of mind. With the gear bays attached, the fuselage is assembled and a separate belly fairing fitted. Take note of using the stand to open up the holes on this part. An internal strut brace is also fitted prior to fitting the fairing to reinforce the wing box area. Surface detail on the fuselage is reproduced well, the recessed panel lines are quite refined. The fuselage is unique to the freighter version, not having the windows in of its sister passenger kit.

 

 

 

 

 

With the fuselage complete, attention turns to the wings. This looks to be a straight forwards affair, with 4 flap jack fairings on each wing moulded in two halves each. Surface detail on the wings is consistent with the fuselage.

 

Next come the engines. Traditionally, building airliner engines has required a skill to present the intakes without seams, but Revell have designed these incredibly well. Separate one piece intakes prevent seam issues and an intricate two section fan assembly using the same technique as Zvezda allows the complex curved blades to be reproduced. The two fan sections slot together to form a single fan. There is some evidence of flash on a few of the fan blades in this kit and the sprue connections are many, so care may be needed when removing them from the sprues and tidying them up due to their fragile nature. Comparing the moulding to the pictures in Rich’s Zvezda 747-8 review, Revell parts don’t look as well moulded due to the flash. Each engine / pylon assembly uses 14 separate parts to put in to context the effort Revell have put in to this area of the kit though.

Assembly finishes with gear doors and various antenna that are included and of course the cockpit windscreen. If you have chosen to use the stand, this goes on at the end too.

Decals
The decal sheet is large and vivid given the scheme included. Register and detail within the markings are quite stunning, many stencils included as well as the livery. The sheet includes decals for no less than 6 Cargolux individual aircraft:
LX-VCA City of Vianden
LX-VCC City of Ettelbruck
LX-VCD City of Luxembourg
LX-VCE City of Echternach
LX-VCF City of Grevenmacher
LX-VCH City of Dudelange

 

Conclusion
This is a truly 21st century representation of an airliner with much more detail than early generation 747 kits. It’s engineered well, typical of Revell of late. There is some evidence of flash on a few of the intricate parts as mentioned that will need some patience and care to handle, but shape wise it looks very good with little criticism across the internet in this respect from what I’ve seen. If heavy freighters are your thing, this is a must have kit for your stash.

 

 

Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers.

 

 

For further information visit

[Viking]

Nice review Neil, It makes an interesting alternative to the Zvezda passenger version.

Revell made a good choice of scheme there as well, I might be tempted to get one of these, I just need to figure out where to put it when it is finished!

[stringbag]

Great review Neil.

Revell have made a nice job of those engines by the look of things. I know that at the moment, we are limited in terms of livery for the -800 but I'm sure we will see a greater choice available as more airlines start buying.

Thanks for the review.

Chris.

[marky sparky]

Making this baby right now. She's a big bugger and I'm thankful to Revell for supplying a stand, the thought of painting those wheels!

So far, the fit is pretty amazing, though the front engine inlet piece isn't too great but easily fixeable.

I'm toying with the idea of getting aftermarket decals and doing the bird in B.A. World Cargo markings (Twosix Silk STS44201).