FZ6 Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 (edited) I was in Antics today getting some paint etc and they happened to have the new Airfix Defiant on the shelf. Despite having one on pre order from another source I decided I'd like more than one and snatched it up. I'll probably make a start on it sooner rather than later but thought I would take some sprue shots to share with fellow Britmodellers who may not have seen it yet. I know little about the Defiant so can't comment on accuracy but it looks very impressive and the panel lines despite being quite deep seem much finer than earlier kits. Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Decals are nicely printed a didn't notice the lighter blue on the fin flash until I saw the decals. Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr The new pilot figures are nice and crisply detailed and a change from the standard Airfix Pilot we are used to and one of the crewmen looks really excited to be included in a new tool Boulton Paul Defiant Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr I think this kit has just moved up my priority in the to build pile. (or to finish something pile in my case) Regards, Mark Edited February 2, 2015 by FZ6 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spookytooth Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 If he is the pilot, I would be worried as the gunner... Looks good though, I am thinking of getting one myself, having built the original Airfix one back in the 70`s. Thanks for posting. Simon. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesP Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Not sure why the guy on the left has massive hands and feet and the one on the right "has woman's hands" and feet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiger331 Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Not sure why the guy on the left has massive hands and feet and the one on the right "has woman's hands" and feet. Agree……its one area Airfix really need to address since their aircrew figures don't seem to match the quality of their more recent kits…..WWII era pilots in modern jets, a single crew figure in the Lancaster, midgets in both the 1:72 and 1:48 scale Folland Gnats, the list goes on……its almost like they are an afterthought and, therefore, rushed. It's very nice that they include them (I wish others would too) but they should spend a bit more time on accuracy and consistency of standard (just like the rest of the kit). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pby Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Guy on the left is probably a sgt or something the other guy with his tie is probably the pilot and yes left guy looks busy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woody37 Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 That's it, those feet have just put me off buying one Joking aside, it looks stunning. more money to be handed over! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich G Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Looks really nice, certainly a step up from the old kit which I think I've made one or two of before now. Rich Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit Leader Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Not sure why the guy on the left has massive hands and feet and the one on the right "has woman's hands" and feet. I'm hoping you guys are not taking this issue that seriously - surely?? Are you really going to notice all this once both crew members are sitting inside the cockpit with the clear canopy & turret (with painted frames) glued over the top? I've spent many an hour painting and detailing a 1/72 cockpit only to see - well nothing much really... Cheers .. Dave 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edgar Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Not sure why the guy on the left has massive hands and feet and the one on the right "has woman's hands" and feet.Heavier gloves and boots perhaps? Turret controls weren't easy to manipulate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Thanks for the pics mate That looks really nice, open canopy option and optional-position canopy fairing too... one-piece turret glass too, no seam to disguise... The crew figures look really good when you consider how small they actually are compared to the photograph (I believe that the 'woman's hands' remark was a light-hearted reference to Tom Baker's old sea captain in Blackadder II and not a genuine complaint, as the hands don't vary much in size anyway; the feet on the smaller chap are most likely to ensure he fits in the cockpit and as Dave points out you'll have a hard time seeing them once he is in there) - I shall be fitting them in mine, anyway... Cheers, Stew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveCromie Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 (edited) That does it, as soon as SWMBO isn't looking I will be purchasing several of these and the Xtradecal set too! I was very disappointed about Airfix's lack of wheel well detail right up until my eyes started functioning and saw the separate wheel well parts - Airfix seem to be getting the hang of undercarriages recently (Hurricane and Typhoon were rather nice I thought). Also really nice to see the fairing options for both the glazed section and the wooden(?) rearmost area. Just a question for the cognoscenti....given the main difference between the MkI and the MkII were the enlarged carb intake, the longer nose due to the new Merlin and the extended fin could Airfix be planning a MkII later on? As far as I can see all it would require is new fuselage halves and a larger carb intake or have I missed something else - very probably I know! If so a single new sprue is all that would be required..... Cheers for the pics! DC The definitely Defiant daft PS Is that NF MKI antennae I see on Sprue C? Edited January 20, 2015 by DaveCromie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FZ6 Posted January 20, 2015 Author Share Posted January 20, 2015 We'll I made a start last night and assembled the interior and the wing. The fit is perfect so far. The only minor issue I've found so far is that the trailing edge of the wing. The crew figure comments are intended in jest. The Pilot is the one on the right and the Gunner is the one on the left and looking how they fit I'm guessing the proportions of the figures have been compromised to get them to fit in the space provided and they look fine when test fitted in the cockpit. One thing I noticed which is a nice touch is two types of exhaust so we have a set for the spares box! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tempestfan Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 midgets in both the 1:72 and 1:48 scale Folland Gnats, the list goes on……its almost like they are an afterthought and, therefore, rushed. They used to have pilot figures (of the same general pattern) in different sizes for the past 50 years to be able to have them fitted in confined 'pits like Gnat, Tiger Moth etc. In many cases they had to amputate the legs anyway. That certainly looks like a huge advance over the 1961 kit. Is it the lighting, or are the panels on the tailplane markedly deeper than on the wing uppers ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kev67 Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Not sure what the pilot or is he the gunner is doing, maybe he's looking at page 3 of the Sun 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesP Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 The crew figures look really good when you consider how small they actually are compared to the photograph (I believe that the 'woman's hands' remark was a light-hearted reference to Tom Baker's old sea captain in Blackadder II and not a genuine complaint, as the hands don't vary much in size anyway; the feet on the smaller chap are most likely to ensure he fits in the cockpit and as Dave points out you'll have a hard time seeing them once he is in there) - I shall be fitting them in mine, anyway... Indeed, thanks Stew. BTW the pilot in the old Defiant kit was not the standard WWII chap, this guy had a a moustache! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_modeller Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Whats with the two different shaped canopies ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Whats with the two different shaped canopies ? There are three canopies as far as I can see - open, closed up with the turret fairing raised, and closed up with the turret fairing lowered. Also stumbled across this Defiant Gun Turret Drill for detail obsessives Cheers, Stew 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_modeller Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 There are three canopies as far as I can see - open, closed up with the turret fairing raised, and closed up with the turret fairing lowered. Also stumbled across this Defiant Gun Turret Drill for detail obsessives Cheers, Stew Blimey.. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Blimey.. Quite Cheers, Stew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seahawk Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Defiant Gun Turret Drill for detail obsessives Nice find: thank you. Glad to see all the gunners shown had small hands. So relieved Airfix avoided that fatal flaw. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Selwyn Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 There are three canopies as far as I can see - open, closed up with the turret fairing raised, and closed up with the turret fairing lowered. Also stumbled across this Defiant Gun Turret Drill for detail obsessives Cheers, Stew Wouldn't want to have to get out of that turret in a hurry! Got to put your chest para on , disconnect, O2 and intercom, unstrap, turn the turret sidewards and open the perspex doors............ And then jump without hitting the tailplane! Selwyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Wouldn't want to have to get out of that turret in a hurry! Got to put your chest para on , disconnect, O2 and intercom, unstrap, turn the turret sidewards and open the perspex doors............ And then jump without hitting the tailplane! Selwyn There was an emergency escape hatch for the gunner underneath and aft of the turret but it doesn't look easy to get to, or very big for a man wearing a parachute, and I believe that the attrition rate for Defiant gunners (even compared to Defiant pilots) was very high. Cheers, Stew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Millman Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 I very much appreciate you providing that link, thanks. If I'm understanding the film correctly the canopy and rear decking retracted and elevated automatically as the turret turned. That would be a factor in displaying the model. I haven't re-checked images but I'm sure I've seen Defiants parked with the turret guns in the non-stowed position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hacker Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Can't make up my mind, day scheme or night fighter maybe even convert it to a target tug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hook Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Can't make up my mind, day scheme or night fighter maybe even convert it to a target tug Piffle and balderdash. Why choose? Just get at least three kits. C'mon. You know you want to. Cheers, Andre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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