Best options for F-117 and F-22 in 1/72?

[Ian Shumsky]

Hi,

I normally model armour, but I have a soft spot for some of the new generation of stealth aircraft... probably as some of them look more like spacecraft than aircraft! As a bit of a break from tanks^H^H^H^H^H targets I'm thinking of building a little 1/72 scale display including a F-117 and F-22. I see that there are many kits out there, so I was wondering if someone would be able to offer some suggestions as to the best options and let me know if there are any useful AM type items that would really set them off.

Many thanks in advance,

Ian

[Ian Shumsky]

So far I've been able to identify the following base kits:

F-22 Raptor Kits:

• Academy 12423 Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor
  
  
• Fujimi 722221 (BSK1) F-22 Raptor
  
• Hobby Boss 80210 Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor
  
• Italeri 1207 Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor
  
• Revell 4386 Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor
  
• Tamiya 60763 F-22 Raptor
  

F-117 Nighthawk Kits:

• Academy 2107 Lockheed F-117A Stealth Fighter
  
• Airfix 05033 Lockheed F-117A Stealth
  
• Hasegawa 00531 (HAE01) Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk
  
• Heller 80347 Lockheed F-117A
  
• Italeri 0189 Lockheed F-117A Stealth
  
• Italeri 1264 Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk Stars & Stripes
  
• Tamiya 60703 F-117 Stealth
  

For the Raptor, the Revell offering looks to be the most promising, but I have no idea which would be best for the Nighthawk.

Cheers,

Ian

Edit: additional kits highlighted in bold

Edited August 4, 2011 by Ian Shumsky

[Tedfellows]

Don't forget the 1/72nd Fujimi F22 kit!

Adam

[Ian Shumsky]

Don't forget the 1/72nd Fujimi F22 kit!

Thanks, added to the list! Looks like a great kit but a bit on the pricey side... Then again you usually get exactly what you pay for...

Cheers,

Ian

[Howard of Effingham]

ian, the academy kit in 1/72 is worth a mention.

excellent choice of decals, weapons and choice of clear or smoke canopies and weapons bay doors.

all for about £20 and fits reasonably afaik.

much the same can be said about the quality of the revell kit too.

[Mandrake]

For the F117 your best option is the hasegawa kit.

There are two versions though, one with an open bomb bay, one without.

[Ian Shumsky]

ian, the academy kit in 1/72 is worth a mention.

Thanks -- I'll keep an eye out for that and see what I can find.

For the F117 your best option is the hasegawa kit. There are two versions though, one with an open bomb bay, one without.

Interesting... I'd be looking for the one with the open bomb bay doors so would probably end up with the wrong one knowing my luck!

Cheers,

Ian

[hacker]

l remember building the Italeri kit and it was not bad and it does come with open bomb bay doors as well

[F-32]

I built the Italeri stars and stripes kit and recall it being very nice indeed

[Mike V]

So far I've been able to identify the following base kits:

F-22 Raptor Kits:

• Academy 12423 Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor
  
  
• Fujimi 722221 (BSK1) F-22 Raptor
  
• Hobby Boss 80210 Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor
  
• Italeri 1207 Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor
  
• Revell 4386 Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor
  
• Tamiya 60763 F-22 Raptor
  

F-117 Nighthawk Kits:

• Academy 2107 Lockheed F-117A Stealth Fighter
  
• Airfix 05033 Lockheed F-117A Stealth
  
• Hasegawa 00531 (HAE01) Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk
  
• Heller 80347 Lockheed F-117A
  
• Italeri 0189 Lockheed F-117A Stealth
  
• Italeri 1264 Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk Stars & Stripes
  
• Tamiya 60703 F-117 Stealth
  

For the Raptor, the Revell offering looks to be the most promising, but I have no idea which would be best for the Nighthawk.

Cheers,

Ian

Edit: additional kits highlighted in bold

Haseawga leads the 72nd scale F-117s by far. Academy's F-117 has shape issues, though not near as bad as the 48th scale disaster. Airfix and Heller's F-117s are quite awful in shape / detail wise and should be dead last. Italeri is not as bad as Airfix and Heller but is still far off from the F-117's true shape. It should be mentioned that Monogram's "Snap-Tite" kit is the second most accurately shaped 72nd F-117 and deserves recognition on that alone.

Academy's 72nd F-22 is well done (listened and corrected the vertical and nose errors found of the 48th scale kit) and edges out Fujimi for 1st place, though the Hasegawa kit may soon take first. Revell of Germany is a close third and would have been second if it weren't for some shape & detail accuracy issues. The "Copy-boss" kit is a rip of Italeri and Revell. However the execution was bad so it suffers from a lot of errors and is on the crude side. Like its 48th scale brother, the Italeri F-22 is plagues with shape errors and the detail is a joke. The Tamiya F-22 is a rebox of the Italeri kit.

Mike V

[-Neu-]

Academy's 72nd F-22 is well done (listened and corrected the vertical and nose errors found of the 48th scale kit) and edges out Fujimi for 1st place, though the Hasegawa kit may soon take first.

I'm curious about your view on this. Most people I've seen argue Fujimi kit is slightly more accurate and has better details, but that its price is too high. Thus Academy's slightly inferior model is a much better value for money. Is there something that I'm missing?

Moreover I don't think Hasegawa will produce an F-22 for some time given the market saturation.

[Mike V]

Fujimi has some issues with the aft end and there are some other key details that are suspect, which I'll be covering later on. Academy corrected two of the major errors that would have carried over from the 48th scale kit, which gives it an edges shape wise, over the Fujimi kit. The two are very close, so I plan to get more in depth and compare them to some solid references as well as my notes from the program.

Hasegawa is supposed to release a Raptor in 72nd, though the time frame is not clear. The market is not that saturated, if you consider the most lucrative model kit market is in Japan.

[-Neu-]

Fujimi has some issues with the aft end and there are some other key details that are suspect, which I'll be covering later on. Academy corrected two of the major errors that would have carried over from the 48th scale kit, which gives it an edges shape wise, over the Fujimi kit. The two are very close, so I plan to get more in depth and compare them to some solid references as well as my notes from the program.

Hasegawa is supposed to release a Raptor in 72nd, though the time frame is not clear. The market is not that saturated, if you consider the most lucrative model kit market is in Japan.

Hasegawa at one point stated they were going to (early 2010 I think it was), but it was never heard from since. I actually think the Su-37 is their F-22 as they decided to focus on other projects instead of competing with Fujimi's kit.

When I referred to saturation, Japan was mostly what I was thinking of. When I visited there six months ago, almost every shop I entered had the fujimi kit in stock, suggesting to me that hasegawa would have a steep hill to climb to make an F-22 profitable. Moreover the Fujimi kit offers quite a few bells and whistles that would not be available for a Hasegawa kit. I think its basically pushed them to shelve the project for the time being.

[Mike V]

According to the Reps I've talked to the 72nd Hasegawa Raptor was still a go back in June, though will likely be delayed. I think they are considering significantly reducing or eliminating the exaggerated LO surface detail that has received so much criticism, even from their domestic market.

Also understand that Japan's domestic market is a little more stringent than the US or Europe, as they place a higher emphasis on quality and accuracy; a reason why the Chi-Com kits and other lesser quality kits don't sell well there. Taking that into account, there certainly is room in the Japanese market for a 72nd F-22, especially from Hasegawa. One domestic 72nd F-22 kit is not a real deterrent. The 48th Hasegawa F-16 still sells quite well in Japan, despite the superior Tamiya kit's release, which has set sales records of its own. The F-22 is becoming quite a popular subject for modeling, so each company has or is looking into producing a model kit of their own.

[-Neu-]

According to the Reps I've talked to the 72nd Hasegawa Raptor was still a go back in June, though will likely be delayed. I think they are considering significantly reducing or eliminating the exaggerated LO surface detail that has received so much criticism, even from their domestic market.

Also understand that Japan's domestic market is a little more stringent than the US or Europe, as they place a higher emphasis on quality and accuracy; a reason why the Chi-Com kits and other lesser quality kits don't sell well there. Taking that into account, there certainly is room in the Japanese market for a 72nd F-22, especially from Hasegawa. One domestic 72nd F-22 kit is not a real deterrent. The 48th Hasegawa F-16 still sells quite well in Japan, despite the superior Tamiya kit's release, which has set sales records of its own. The F-22 is becoming quite a popular subject for modeling, so each company has or is looking into producing a model kit of their own.

Interesting... though I hadn't heard that the fujimi kit's issues were that bad. Moreover I don't think its just about the lack of accuracy that holds chinese kits back, but that is another discussion.

At one point there was some rumblings about a Hase F-35; have you heard anything about that?

[Howard of Effingham]

i just want to add here, that i have started the revell kit and have found a bit more flash than i expected.

especially around the weapons bays, tailpipes and main gear doors.

e-nuff flash, just to make one check how many scapel blades i have.

[Mike V]

Interesting... though I hadn't heard that the fujimi kit's issues were that bad. Moreover I don't think its just about the lack of accuracy that holds chinese kits back, but that is another discussion.

At one point there was some rumblings about a Hase F-35; have you heard anything about that?

Most Chinese kits are not well received in Japan, primairly due to the typical poor accuracy and qualtiy issues. It's not that they don't try, but their target market is just about every location but Japan.

The 72nd F-35 was still a go last I had inquired, but I think they are looking into some last minute design updates.

[Smudge]

Hi, I am looking for a F-22 in 1/72. Since seeing one at RIAT last year, it just blew the place (and me) away, what an amazing aeroplane. I have been lucky enough to peek inside what I recall was a Tamiya boxing. For over £40 it didnt even have a tinted canopy, which if you've ever seen a F-22 in the flesh, you'll know is a 'must'. So no sale on that one. I have peeked at a rather unusual 'Mini Hobby Models' 1/72 kit, (coments please?) and for £12 it looked fairly respectable (still no tinted canopy). I am pleased to hear about the Academy kit, sounds nice and has that canopy.

With an aircraft as special/secretive as the F-22, can anyone really be sure about acuracy? I would love to have the answer, how many people out there have built Raptors? and which one looks 'right'?

[Giorgio N]

Be careful with every tamiya 1/72 kit of a modern subject: these are all reboxes of Italeri kits, and while they might make sense in Japan, where they are cheap, they don't make sense in Europe, where they end up being very expensive. An original Italeri box is way cheaper !

Mini Hobby Models is a chinese brand that to the best of my knowledge only ever issued copies (most likely non authorized...) of other manufacturers kits. Most 1/72 aircraft kits seem to be copies of Italeri products, so I'd safely bet on the F-22 being originally from italeri too. However, while the tamiya option contains a proper italeri moulded kit in a different box, the mini hobby is a clone and often these clones are bad fitting and while cheap can cost easily as much in filler...

As the italeri F-22 is not that good, all of the above is probably academic anyway....

[Mike V]

Hi, I am looking for a F-22 in 1/72. Since seeing one at RIAT last year, it just blew the place (and me) away, what an amazing aeroplane. I have been lucky enough to peek inside what I recall was a Tamiya boxing. For over £40 it didnt even have a tinted canopy, which if you've ever seen a F-22 in the flesh, you'll know is a 'must'. So no sale on that one. I have peeked at a rather unusual 'Mini Hobby Models' 1/72 kit, (coments please?) and for £12 it looked fairly respectable (still no tinted canopy). I am pleased to hear about the Academy kit, sounds nice and has that canopy.

With an aircraft as special/secretive as the F-22, can anyone really be sure about acuracy? I would love to have the answer, how many people out there have built Raptors? and which one looks 'right'?

As mentioned, the Tamiya kit is a rebox of the Italeri F-22; hardly worth £40, or even half that! The Mini-hobby is not any better and as Giorgio mentioned, it's a basic copy of the Italeri kit, which is one of the worst F-22 kits in both 72nd and 48th scale.

Having worked on the jet for over 6 years, I can say according to my experience and personal references, the Academy or Fujimi kits are the best and most accurate F-22s in 72nd scale. I'd recommend the Academy kit as it's well detailed and less expensive. The fit is pretty good overall, thought eh intakes can be a problem.

Mike V

Edited October 27, 2011 by Mike V

[Bennygman]

Interesting... I'd be looking for the one with the open bomb bay doors so would probably end up with the wrong one knowing my luck!

Cheers,

Ian

If you did then CMK make a nice resin bay complete with LGB 'trapeze's'. it's intended for the Academy, but is a very easy fit to the Hasegawa. Just cut the doors off and Bob's your uncle. Without having seen Hase's interior I'd be willing to bet the Resin one is nicer. It also adds a satisfying 'weight' to the model.

Steve.

[Filbert_Wang]

Apologies for raising this thread from the dead. 

 

Does anyone have any thoughts on the 1/72 F-22 kits around nowadays, +9 years from the previous comments?

[Silverkite]

it was said on past threads and maybe on some other forums that:

Academy oddly enough managed to catch all the little details and shapes of it

Fujimi is a close second but something in the rear area was off

Revell is a distant third

 

Italeri was once reboxed by Revell and Tamiya and it's a no go

Hobbyboss is a simplified clone of Italeri kit and it's also a no go

 

Luigi

[FZ6]

A thumbs up from me for the Academy kit.

 

It's not been surpassed since this thread started.  I don't think Hasegawa ever ended up releasing an F-22 in 1/72

 

Mark

[Robertone139]

Good luck finding the Fujimi Raptor.

It seems Academy is the best, then Revell.