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Showing topics in Aircraft Reviews, Kits, Aftermarket (updates/conversions), Decals & Masks, Reference material, Armoured Fighting Vehicle Reviews, Kits, Aftermarket, Diorama & Accessory, Reference Material, Kits, Aftermarket, Reference Material, Vehicle Reviews, Sci-fi & Real Space Reviews, Figure Reviews, Locos, Trains & Layout Reviews and Tools & Paint Reviews posted in for the last 365 days.

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  1. Last week
  2. Julien
    In this boxing yes it does. I used the wrong photo earlier . Your post was edited to remove the massive photo quote. julien
  3. 71chally
    Thanks AR, the original picture didn't feature that and my post has been edited by a mod. All makes sense now.
  4. Romeo Alpha Yankee
    This photo from above wold suggest this
  5. 71chally
    Ah, so does the fuselage have the nose cone molded on to it?
  6. Julien
    Its the wrong picture.
  7. 71chally
    You're going to have to explain that to Mr Thicky over here?
  8. Julien
    About £20 less depending on where you shop.
  9. nheather
    Jadlam have it for £33.64 delivered. They often have 10% or more discount days. Sure to be one on Black Friday. https://www.jadlamracingmodels.com/revell-heinkel-he111-h-6-1-48-plastic-model-plane-kit-03863/ Cheers, Nigel
  10. Adam Poultney
    Do we have a price for this one? Very appealing scheme on one of my favourite WW2 aircraft. Might have to consider this one in future
  11. Adam Poultney
    Does this version cost less then? I think not including the gear might be a mistake but dependant on the price I would be tempted to hang one of these up
  12. bentwaters81tfw
    It's gonna take a lot of Appliance White.
  13. Julien
    Antonov An.225 Mrija (04957) 1:144 Revell Beginning life as an enlargement of the An-124, the An-225 was developed to carry the Soviet Buran Space Shuttle, which obviously wasn't to be a long engagement, and after a period in mothballs, it was re-engineered to be used by Antonov for carrying oversize loads, which it now does all over the world. There is only one airframe in existence due to the expiry of funding during construction of the 2nd airframe, which after more than a few false-restarts, only now might see completion to be used by another carrier in China. It holds a few world records for wingspan of an operational aircraft and for carrying the heaviest single load. The conversion of the An-124 involved lengthening the fuselage and wings to accommodate another two engines, and of course the number of wheels and gear legs were increased too to spread the load around, with the innovative "kneeling" nose wheel arrangement that makes loading cargo through the front visor an easier task. Its first commercial flight involved transporting four main battle tanks, a task that gives an idea of the huge capacity in terms both of volume and weight that this monster has. It has been surprisingly active, as its capacity and cost hits the right spot on more occasions than you would think. It also pinched the title of largest cargo plane in service from the American C-5 Galaxy, which it is fairly substantially bigger than, even in 1:144. The Kit This is a re-release from Revell of their completely new tool. At first look it might seem an odd choice when you consider that there is only one airframe extant on this blue marble of ours. That said, it is a stunningly massive monster of a gigantic behemoth. Seriously though, if you've ever seen this aircraft at a show or in the air, it will have made an indelible impression on your retina, as your mind struggles to comprehend just how large it is. The same thing will probably cross your mind when you admire the box on the shelf of your local hobby shop, or when it arrives at your front door. It's a big'un with the box measuring 43 x 60 x 12cm, and yes. It's also a top-opener, which is nice. There are only seven sprues of white styrene, plus one of clear parts, but with the exception of the clear parts, they're pretty large sprues, and there are a lot of parts. The boxing is very much a paired down version of the original kit, there is no separate nose, no interior and no landing gear, indeed a stand is now included to display the model on. First impressions are excellent. The quality of the tooling is very fine and crisp as befits a 1:144 model, with lots of detail.. The breakdown of the parts also shows a great deal of thought has been put into the construction and long-term welfare of the model once it is on display. Construction begins with the interior structure that will support the massive kit, there are to bulkheads and a linking part. The tiny cockpit is a single part that is painted up and attached to the top of the roof at the front, while another spacer is fixed to the roof toward the rear of the assembly. At this point the fuselage is still open aft of the wing leading edge, which is closed by the large T-shaped insert that has a sturdy spar applied to its inside, and includes the inboard upper section of the wings for strength and to prevent any tricky seams being pulled open by the weight of the wings. At the rear another spar is installed in the tail to accept the empennage later in the build. The canopy is fitted at this point too, sliding in from the front. A similar insert is fitted under the fuselage straddling the main gear bays. As already mentioned, the upper wing root is a single part that spans the fuselage, and has a stiffening spar fitted to stop the model's own weight from pulling it apart. The upper wing panels are attached to the end of this centre section, with a portion of the spar and a U-shaped mating surface also helping seam integrity. This is all then hidden away by closing up the wing using the full-span lower panel, which is repeated on the other side, with clear wingtip lights added. The Mrija's angled H-tail is next, with the upstands and the horizontals made up from two parts each, fitted together over the aft spar to obtain the correct angle, with the uprights perpendicular to them, as shown in a scrap diagram. The two dorsal humps over the wing roots are made up from two parts each and applied to the surface on their raised positions. At this stage the 225 is looking like the world's biggest glider, as the wings are devoid of engines, of which you must now build six. The internals are identical, so with the fan, trunking and intake lip added together, they are inserted into the six external housings and pylons that are all different, so take note of which construction step each one represents with a mark inside the pylon or similar. Each wing also has six flap actuator fairings, which are two parts each and again fit in only one slot on the wing, so be careful not to get them mixed up. With those in place, the engine pods are added to their recesses on the wing, locating with two pins for additional strength. As this is the in-flight option has all the bay doors fitted flush. After a few aerials are fitted on the nose, additional drawings show how the two open options should look once complete. Markings One airframe in existence, so there's one scheme, right? Not quite, this decal sheet has markings the airframe wore 1992 to 2007, and the slightly different ones 2007 to 2008 The decal sheet is very long, as it has a set of cheat lines, they are printed for Revell by Cartogrf (designed by Daco), with good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. The only thing that I will mention is that the yellow in the Ukrainian national markings is printed as orange for some reason? Conclusion It's hard not to be impressed by this kit, and not just from a point of view of size. The quality of the tooling is excellent, the level of detail is first-rate, and the engineering expertise that has gone into creating it is impressive, demonstrating a desire for the complete model to sit on your shelf for years to come without concern for it pulling itself to pieces under its own weight. Splendid! The price-point represents good value when compared to other similar-sized kits, and what's included improves that further. If you have the space in your stash and/or on your shelf, there's nothing holding you back, and even if you don't have the space, when has that ever stopped us? Extremely highly recommended. Revell model kits are also available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or
  14. Paul A H
    Yakovlev Yak-1b 1:72 Brengun Prior to the outbreak of WWII, the Yakovlev Design Bureau was best known for designing and building lightweight recreational and sporting aeroplanes. Starting with the Yak-2/Yak-4 light bomber, Yakovlev used this experience to create a sequence of successful, lightweight aircraft which used composite construction to reduce weight. The fighter aircraft produced during this period were largely compact and highly maneuverable. While the development of the new aircraft was not without difficulty, by the time Operation Barbarossa got underway over 400 Yak-1s had ben constructed, although not all were operational. In contrast to the MiG-3, the Yak-1 excelled at low altitude combat, with just 17 seconds required to perform a full circle. Although lightly armed by western standards, the Yak-1 was popular with Soviet pilots. It went on to be developed into the Yak-7, Yak-9 and Yak-3, with over 37,000 examples constructed in total. Brengun are a manufacturer of limited run kits from Brno, the Czech Republic's second city. They first came to my attention via their Hawker Typhoon kit back in 2013, but their catalogue is diverse, including kits and aftermarket parts in a range of scales. As befits a dimunitive aircraft, their Yak-1 arrives packed into a small, end-opening box, inside which are three frames of grey plastic, a small frame of clear parts, an even smaller fret of photo etched details and a sheet of decals. There are around sixty parts in total, excluding the photo etched details. The cockpit makes extensive use of photo etched material, with parts for the instrument panel, seat support arms and cockpit floor all rendered in metal. Plastic parts include the seat itself, the control column, oxygen bottles and medical kit. The sidewalls are nicely detailed and include the characteristic internal steel framwork. Once complete, the cockpit and the pin for the propellor can be fixed inside the fuselage halves. The upper deck and cowling is moulded separately to the fuselage, and includes nicely recess for the 20mm ShVAK cannon. Assembly then turns to the flying surfaces. The rudder is moulded separately to the fuselage and connects via to slots to the vertical tail. The lower surfaces of the wings are moulded as a single central span, while the upper surfaces are moulded as separate parts. The main gear bays are pretty nicely detailed and should be of sufficient depth. Each of the engine exhausts is moulded in four parts, all of which connect from the outside of the airframe. The undercarriage legs are accurately represented, with the same excellent level of detail as the rest of the kit. Each leg is made up from four parts excluding the wheels. The canopy is moulded in seperate stages to allow it to be finished in the open position. Decal options include: Yak-1b, 586 IAP (Women's Fighter Group), 1943; Yak-1b, 910 IAP, flown by Nikolai A Kozlov, February 1943; Yak-1b, 3 GIAP, flown by Lt. L.P. Savkin, Baltic Region, 1943; Yak-1b, 291 IAP, flown by A.F. Lavrenov, 1943 Each of the schemes is finished in the same green and black over pale blue camouflage. Despite the lack of variety, the decals look nicely printed. Conclusion There can be no doubt that Brengun's Yak-1b is a limited run kit but this doesn't mean it's any less appealing. It is nicely produced, has plenty of interior detail and captures the look of the real thing very nicely. The surface detail is delicate and the fabric over the rear fuselage is particularly convincing. Overall this looks like a really nice little kit that should be enjoyable to build. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  15. Julien
    Heinkel He 111 H-6 (03863) 1:48 Revell The He.111 was originated in secrecy, disguised as a civilian transport in the mid-30s, but once Nazi Germany came out of the closet and disregarded the Versailles agreement, it immediately became clear that they were rearming in a major way. The early civilian and military variants had a more traditional stepped canopy, and there is a famous piece of film that is used and reused in documentaries showing a D or "Dora" variant dropping bombs during the Spanish Civil War as part of the Condor Legion, which was Hitler's proving ground for his new designs and Blitzkreig tactics. Various revisions followed until the P, which introduced the now-iconic stepless fully glazed cockpit, which improved both aerodynamics and the pilot's situational awareness. The P series saw limited action in WWII as it was replaced by the more competent H variant, substituting Junkers Jumo 211 engines, detuned to give it the throbbing beat that was to be heard over Britain almost until the end of the war. The H-3 had an improved version of the engine and increased numbers of machine guns for self-defence. As is often the case with wartime development, the end of the Battle of Britain saw the introduction of the H-4 with better engines and external bomb racks. The H-6 had improvements in design. The Jumo 211 F-1 engine gave it increased. Defensive armament was upgraded with one 20 mm MG FF cannon in the nose, one MG 15 in the ventral turret, and in each of the fuselage side windows, some carried tail-mounted MG 17s. The performance of the H-6 was also improved; he climb rate was higher and the machine could reach a slightly higher ceiling. Overall weight of the H-6 increased to 14,000 kg (30,600 lb). The Kit This is a reboxing of the excellect ICM kit, ICM have raised their game substantially over the recent years and Revell are tapping into this with their homemarket distribution system. The kit arrives in their lidded top-opened with a glossy card lid and painting to top it off, with 11 sprues in medium, grey styrene, and two in crystal clear styrene, an instruction booklet in line-drawn colour, and a long decal sheet that can be found ensconced within the booklet. On opening the bags, it is very apparent that this is a modern tooling, with lots of lovely details, crisp moulding, and some very clever engineering on display. This version also includes torpedoes which the variant could use. Construction starts with the two wing spar parts, which are separated by the gear bay roof assemblies and a walkway part. Additional detail is added to the bulkheads along with the fuselage walkways and a smaller bulkhead toward the tail, with the lower portion of the mid-upper "turret" ring attached to the floor. The cockpit floor is then assembled with rudder pedals, instrument panels, seat and control linkages, slotting into the front spar once finished. An additional chair and the overhead instrument panel are installed later in the build. As a prelude to closing up the fuselage, the tail wheel is fitted together, which has the wheel moulded-in, and consists of three parts. Preparation of the fuselage halves involves adding the inserts into the wing roots and making good the join; inserting the paired side windows; adding ammo can racks; radio panel; the pilot's control column, and more glazing in the ventral gondola. The spar/cockpit assembly is then fitted to the starboard fuselage half and the port side is added along with some glue. The rudder is separate and fits to the fin with actuators, then the missing fuselage panels between the spars are added, which of course will need painting and fettling in if you're bothered about the "endoscope brigade". If you are intending to fit the tail armament option then the tail cone will need to be sawn off and the new one added. The mid-upper insert is designed to cater for different "turret" installations, and has a lovely serrated ring moulded-in, with controls and bracing strut added before it is installed into the fuselage opening, closing off much of the rear fuselage. You can pose the bomb bay open or closed by selecting one of the two panels, one of which has opening for the bomb bay, where the bombs are suspended tail-first in a framework that is peppered with lightening holes so that the included bombs are visible within. With the bomb bay finished, it is inserted into the fuselage from below, filling yet another gap in the skin. Even if you are leaving the bays closed, the bomb bay can be seen from the side windows, so it's best to build that assembly and install it anyway to prevent that section from being see-through from the sides. Racks for either bombs or torpedoes are added to the underside. The bombs themselves are built up from two halves that have two fins moulded-in, and a single part that fits on the tail forming the other two fins in a cruciform layout. To these are added stiffening brackets, with two bombs in total to make externally or two torpedoes. These are two part main bodies with main propeller and a 6 part tail to be made up and added. At this point the wings are begun, with the lower sides added to the fuselage/spar assembly first. The ailerons are separate, and are built up before the uppers are added, as are the elevators, and the two engines, which are provided in their entirety, along with much of the ancillary equipment and engine mounts. The completed Jumo 211s are fitted to the front of the spars and depending on whether you want to display them or not, and then enclosed by cowling panels, radiators and the intake/outlet ramps. The bottom cowlings can be split to reveal the engine detail, which is a good way of showing off the detail without ruining the lines of the aircraft. The upper wings and ailerons are fitted, the remaining cowling panels with the exhausts are added, with the latter having a decent indent at the tip to simulate being hollow, and finally the nose glazing, which has a machinegun and the aforementioned overhead instrument panel, which is moulded in clear styrene and is provided with a decal for the instruments. The nose "cone" is a separate clear part, and it too is fitted with a machine gun with a choice of single or twin drum mags and dump bag for the spent brass. Another two MGs are fitted to the front and rear glazing on the gondola, and the mid-upper gun is added to the turret ring, along with the protective clear shroud at the front. A different nose cone is provided if using the heavier armament and a different underside blister noses is included. A new clear rear blister nose is also included in the new box. A new open or closed top blister is also included. The main wheels are each built up from two halves, and placed between the twin legs that have the main retraction jacks moulded in, and secured with a number of cross-braces between the two legs. An additional ram is fitted within the bay, attached to the rear cross-brace. The gear bay doors fit to the bay sides with large tabs, as do the bomb bay doors if you are using them, and these last parts have the correctly separated four "petals" that are seen on the real thing, rather than a single panel. The props are made up from a single part with two part spinner and back plate, which fit onto the engine's output shaft through the vented front of the cowlings. Markings There are tow decal options included in the box, one of which share the same RLM70/71 splinter pattern over RLM65, and the other is in the ETO scheme as per the box top. From the box you can build one of the following: 1H+MM, 4./KG 26 Sicily Aug 1941 G!+EH, 1./KG 55, Russia, Aug 1941 Decals are designed by AirDOC and printed in Italy. These can easily be cut off before they are applied however, so it's not an issue. No swastikas are provided so the modeller will have to source these. Conclusion The He.111 is a truly iconic shape, and we're long overdue a new tooling of the type in this scale. This is a great kit for Revell to have in their inventory. Very highly recommended. Revell model kits are also available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or
  16. Paul A H
    PZL P.11A Polish Fighter Plane 1:72 IBG For its time, the PZL P.11 was one of the most advanced fighter aircraft in the world. While many nations were still using bi-planes, Warsaw-based PZL (Państwowe Zakłady Lotnicze - State Aviation Works) had designed and built an all-metal gull winged monoplane fighter. The high wing provided the pilot with a good field of view and produced less drag that the bi-plane fighters of the time. The type drew orders from overseas as well as Poland. The aircraft was ordered by Romania and was built under licence by IAR. By the time of the German invasion of Poland however, the type was outclassed by the Bf 109. The majority of the Polish Air Force was lost fighting bravely against the invasion. The PZL 11 is one of a growing number of aircraft kits produced by IBG Models. This kit follows the likes of the RWD-8 and PZL 23A and continues IBG's method of producing numerous versions from a common set of moulds. This boxing is the PZL 11A, but an PZL 11G is also availble. Inside the box are seven frames of light grey plastic, a single frame of clear plastic, a fret of photo etched brass parts, a small sheet of pre-marked clear plastic and decals. The parts are all superbly moulded and I'd go as far as to say they look as good as anything else from central Europe. A quick review of the instructions reveals this to be a well-detailed kit, comparable to an Eduard product in places, althought without the complex breakdown of parts. Constructions starts with the cockpit. Most of the details are moulded in plastic, but the fret of photo etched parts contributes components such as the rudder pedals, throttle and seat harness. Aside from a rather nice cockpit framework, there is also plenty of detail moulded into the fuselage sidewalls, which should make for a rather nice overall effect. The two machine guns also fit into the inside of the fuselage halves before they can be fixed together. Once the fuselage has been assembled, construction turns to the engine and cowling. This multi-part assembly is very nicely detailed and there are individual parts provided on the photo etched fret for the ignition wiring (although this could be omitted if cutting out and glueing these tiny components is likely to drive you round the bend). Once the engine and cowling have been fitted to the fuselage, the flying surfaces can be assembled. The fit and rudder are separate parts, as are the elevators. This means you can finish the model with these parts in your choice of position (photographs of examples on the ground seem to show the elevators in a lowered position). The ailerons are also moulded separately to the wing. The undercarriage is nicely detailed and there are photo etched parts for the strengthening wires. A choice of parts are provided for the windshield. You can choose the conventional option, which is a straightforward part moulded from clear plastic. If you are feeling brave, you can take the second option. This involves folding the cockpit canopy from photo etched brass and then fixing the pre-marked clear plastic sheet in place. The decal sheet provides three options: PZL P.11a, 112th Fighter Squadron, Zaborow Airfield, Poland, September 1939; PZL P.11a, 114th Fighter Squadron, Poniatow Airfield, Poland, September 1939; PZL P.11a, 113th Fighter Squadron, Warsaw, Poland. The decals are nicely printed. A decal for the instrument panel has been included too. Conclusion There appears to have been a resurgence of interest in the early WWII period and this kit adds to the growing number of kits that represent aircraft from that period. Although we've been relatively well served in recent years by Azur Frrom and Arma Hobby and their P.11s, IBG's version includes a number of advantages such as separate control surfaces. Once again the Polish firm have produced a high-quality kit of an important aircraft. The level of detail is excellent and the quality of manufacture is up there with the best. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  17. redcap
    A tremendous kit review and accompanying pictures - thank you! Gary
  18. Viking
    Hannover Cl.II (Early) 1/32 Wingnut Wings. (32079). The Hannover CL.II was designed in 1917 as a two seat escort fighter to protect other two seat reconnaissance aircraft.Hannoversch Waggonfabrik AG were actually manufacturers of railway waggons who had branched out into license building Halberstadt, Rumpler and Aviatik aircraft. Their first indigenous design was the CL.II, which first flew in July 1917 and entered service in August 1917. Like the Roland CL.II the fuselage was a lightweight structure formed of thin plywood layers covered with fabric and doped, as were the wing centre sections. It makes an interesting comparison with the Bristol F.2b fighter as some of the design aims were the same. Most obvious was the need to give the gunner as wide a field of fire as possible. Frank Barnwell did this on the Bristol aircraft by placing the fin and rudder pretty much half and half above and below the fuselage. The CL.II achieved it by shortening the span of the tailplane but maintaining the surface area by making it a biplane unit, and locating the gunner very high in the fuselage. Also similar to the F.2b the top wing is at the crews eye level, giving them an excellent view above and below. Unlike the Bristol with its lower wing mounted below the fuselage on short struts, the Hannover simply has a much deeper fuselage to maintain the gap between the two wings. In service it was very well liked, being strong, fast, highly maneuverable and generally versatile. It also had the advantage of being smaller that most two seaters, leading allied pilots to think it was a single seater that could be sneaked up on from behind. Any pilot who did so would place himself at the mercy of the rear gunner. As the war progressed into 1918 the Hannover was also used in the ground attack role, and continued in front line service up until the November armistice. The kit. As always the artwork is beautiful, this time showing a Cl.II in the escort role fending off an SE.5a attempting to attack an Albatros C.X. Inside are eleven individually bagged sprues, three large decal sheets, a small etched brass fret, and a set of the outstanding Wingnut Wings instructions. The plastic parts are pretty much the same as in the previous release (32024), but the decal sheets are all new. Sprue A. This mostly holds the interior and tailplane parts. The main cockpit part is A42 which is the floor and fuel tank, forming the core around which much of the rest of the detail is built. It is a sobering thought that the pilot sat above the petrol tank, when the risk of fire through enemy action or accident was high. One of the interesting 'bonuses' of building Wingnut Wings kits is that they are so accurate, you get a real insight into what these machines were like. When building up an interior I can't help but drift into thoughts of what it must have been like to have been aircrew on machines like this. Great stuff! I guess it why we all enjoy this hobby so much. Enough daydreaming, and back to reality. The Observers cockpit for options B and E has the choice of fitting a '50cm Flieger Kammer' Camera, and a Telefunken Type D wireless (found on sprue G3). These are such lovely parts, that it really is very tempting to use the, both even have their own miniature decals to further detail them, the wireless alone has eight of them. Also worth mentioning here is that the etched brass fret has some bracket work that is used to further detail the Observers cockpit. The parts are beautifully moulded, with delicate frameworks, bulkheads, levers and switched that go to make up the pilots and observers cockpits. There are also the distinctive biplane tailplane, elevators and ailerons. As expected all are moulded to perfection with fine trailing edges and delicate rib detail. Also exhibiting superfine moulding are the wing mounted radiators, a choice of either a Mercedes-Daimler or a Teeves & Braun unit depending upon which of the marking options you choose. They come as upper and lower inserts that are fixed into recesses in the wing centre section. Further items are the pilots LMG 08/15 Spandau in both 'solid' or 'High detail' etched jacket form, Undercarriage legs, Observers gun ring, and engine bearers. The following 4 photos are from my build of the previous release of this kit, taken a few years ago. the give a good idea of how well this all assembles. Sprue B. The wings are moulded with beautifully sharp, lightly scalloped trailing edges. There is fine rib stitching detail and a lovely aerofoil section that cambers gently but definitely across the top and bottom. Substantial locating tabs on each wing will make their fixing very strong. Always impressive is the standard of moulding that Wingnut Wings achieve on large parts such as these. There are never any flaws such as sink marks or short shots, just precise, clean, and perfect mouldings. Sprue C. Traditionally the smallest sprue in a Wingnut Wings kit (because there isn't much glazing on aircraft from this era), the parts are still to the same uncompromising standard as the rest of the kit. Crystal clear, the pilots windshield even his tiny rivet detail along its bottom edge, where it is fixed to the fuselage. Also on this sprue is a camera lens for the observers 50cm 'Flieger Kammer'. Sprue D. There are two of these, sensibly each supplies parts that need to be duplicated, such as the main wheels.In addition to the wheels are various fine struts and brackets for the tailplanes, some tiny flares, and inspection covers for the forward lower fuselage. The inspection covers are moulded with real open louvers, and it is much appreciated that they are provided as separate parts rather than being moudled into the fuselage halves, when they would sit on the seam line and be impossible to clean up. Another smart move by Wingnut Wings. Sprue E. The Argus As.III engine is moulded with separate sump/crankcase and cylinder units, to which is added all the necessary pipework and anciliaries. Pushrods run from the crankcase to the rocker arms on the cylinder head on the left side of the engine. There area three types of propellers to choose from, Niendorf, Germania, or Reshke. You are given the option of using a set of cylinder halves with the pushrods moulded in (E14) but where moulding limitations mean that there is no gap between the rods and the cylinders, or cylinder halves with no pushrods moulded on (E13), and you provide your own 0.5mm wire to create them. Sprue F. The fuselage halves are most prominent here, along with the upper wing centre section, cabane struts, ailerons, and engine cowlings. The fuselage captures the shape of the real thing to perfection, and has very neat detail both inside and out. There are some light ejector pin circles, but they have cleverly been located in areas that will be hidden once the fuselage halves have been joined. The engine cowlings are amazing. All four of them feature delicate 'D' shaped cooling louvers, part F7 alone has thirty one of them within a small area, all perfectly formed. Alternate nose caps are provided with different cooling hole patterns, again depending upon which marking option you have chosen. One of them will require you to open a flashed over hole (part F10) for options A and B. The Upper wing centre section is made from upper and lower units, with big slots to locate the big tabs on the outer wing panels from sprue B. This will make for a very strong upper wing assembly. Three 'G' Sprues carry generic items that are applicable to several aircraft, so not all parts will be required for this kit. Sprue G1 carries the Observers armaments, a choice between a Parabellum LMG/14 or a Parabellum LMG 14/17. The main difference is in the cooling jacket for the gun barrel. The /14 has the familiar large fretted jacket (and there is the choice of a 'solid' moulded barrel, or an etched brass one), while the 14/17 was fitted with a much thinner air cooled jacket barely any wider than the barrel. Sprue G2. There two G" sprues which contain half a tail trestle each, that can be joined to make the complete article. Also present are some Granatenwerfer grenades and two types of flares, along with external racks to fit on the outside of the Observers cockpit. Wheel chocks complete the parts for use with this kit, but there are also some handy parts for the spares box such as oxygen flasks and 12.5Kg PuW bombs. Sprue G3. This is a real treasure trove of diorama accessories, with four types of reconnaissance cameras, three types of flare pistols, first aid kit, homing pigeon box, box of photographic plates, step ladder, barograph, and even a mascot Teddy bear! There are also propellers from Axial, Astra, Heine, and Wolff, which are not required for the model, but would be useful in any workshop diorama. Photo Etch As mentioned previously the etch fret holds air cooling jackets for the 'High detail' LMG 08/15 Spandau, and Parabellum LMG 14. The pilot and Observer are supplied with seat belts, there are the bracket assemblies for the Observers cockpit, and the shutter mechanism for the wing mounted radiator. A nice touch is the little embossed name plate for the aircraft, with the Wingnut Wings logo on. Decals. Three very large sheets are found in the box, only just fitting the length and width. Printed by Cartograf the first sheet covers all the individual markings for options A to E. There are also a mass of instrument, placard, stencil and other details, including those for the cameras and other diorama accessories. Two further sheets provide the lozenge decals. There are complicated combinations explained for the options, with four and/or five colour lozenge being used, sometimes with four colour on the mainplanes and five colour on the ailerons. Lozenge is also given for the tail group, up to where it blends with the fuselage. Options Hannovers often featured irregular hand painted lozenge shapes on the fuselage often over painted with a dark glaze, which is the case for options A to D here. It is not difficult to do, but in case any modeller is unsure Option D is given as simpler alternative of a pale blue machine with clear doped linen wings. There are a few minor variations within the given options, (A) can be finished as (A1) without the wing stripes and upper fuselage chevron, or (A2) with them. Likewise (B) can be done without the red comet on the side as (B1), or with it as (B2). A. Hannover Cl.II 9276/17 “White 5", H Bronner, Royal Bavarian Schusta 27b, late 1917 to early 1918 B. Hannover Cl.II 9280/17 “Comet", Grönhagen? & J Gfrör, FA (A) 282, November 1917 C. Hannover Cl.II 9301/17 “White 4", J Missfelder, Royal Prussian Schusta 12, March 1918 D. Hannover Cl.II 9398/17 “2", JKH Müller & A Zitzelsberger, Royal Bavarian Schusta 24b, March 1918 E. Hannover Cl.II (Rol) 622/18 “White 2", Bayerische-Fliegerschule 5, mid to late 1918 Conclusion. This is a welcome return of a kit that sold out rapidly in its initial release (Kit 32024) and then began to fetch large prices on the second hand market. It has all the hallmarks of Wingnut Wings kits, beautiful mouldings, excellent fit, exquisite detail, fabulous instructions, and high quality decals. It is also a very good looking aeroplane, having a tough sturdy look that was possessed by few of these early biplanes. I am able to confirm that it is a trouble free build with absolutely no pitfalls or things to watch out for, as I built the previous release when it came out a few years ago. Get one while you can, it was one of the fastest sellers last time it was available, and I wouldn't be surprised if that is the case again. Highly Reccomended. Footnote: As mentioned earlier, I have already built the previous kit of the Hannover Cl.II a few years ago, finished with markings from the aftermarket Pheon Decal sheet. I have a few photos of the completed model, showing some of the diorama ccessories that come with it.
  19. 593jones
    Hopefully that is the case as the rest of the part should be in the bag and repairable. I'm very pleased with my kit, it's quite near the top of the to-do pile
  20. Shalako
    Many thanks for your reply Seahawk. Cheers Bill
  21. Rorynes
    The spelling mistake is due to this: https://www.haf.gr/history/historical-aircraft/potez-po-25-a2/ where Grandmodels most probably took the name from Hellenic Air force official site. However in english version the name is "grec"..
  22. Seahawk
    I have my doubts about the quality of Airfix's plastic as well, not diminished when I noticed that the surface of Airfix sprues starts going soft/dissolving when used just to stir Humbrol enamel. But I have had no problems with the new Buccaneer. The plastic is smooth and slightly glossy. As far as I am concerned, the panel lines are now fine enough that any complaints about them would say more to me about the complainant than the kit. Where I think Airfix could still improve is in the definition and sharpness of the detail parts and interior, eg ejection seats and cockpit consoles: the parts looks exactly like the CAD images but IMHO lack the sharp 90 deg angles and clear definition of the real thing. With that one qualification I am entirely content with Airfix's new Buccaneer. It's so good I'm actually building it! No problems with mine either.
  23. Rorynes
    In this price I would expect more stuff inside like string,brass tubes for rigging and some resin details.There are similar kits in 1/72 like AZ Avro 621 Tutor and Special Hobby Polikarpov R-Z which cost half the price almost. I predict that the kit will sell a lot and the price was set so high on purpose because many people will choose Azur instead from Grand Models resit kit which is nice also. Anyway it looks a very nice kit.
  24. The_Lancaster
    I had a look at that! Well spotted, however upon closer inspection it looks to be snapped rather than short-shot. Hopefully, given that, it will more isolated.
  25. Julien
    Well spotted, just checked mine and thankfully its OK
  26. Mick4350
    My kit is also ok. Well spotted !
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