Rabbit Leader

Sweedish Saab J29 Tunnan vs. Ruski Mig 15UTI ??? - "Swig 44" Cannot tell where the join is though - you have covered this up nicely. Cheers. Dave.

I wanna know what's to the left of the Big Javelin. Is that one of the new Lanc Mk'II's all painted up? That Javelin does look good. I'm sure that once I see another excellent Adam Tooby Boxart design, i'll probably fall for this and buy one as well. Just not sure if this big beast will fit inside my relatively small glass cabinet. Be a shame not to put on that huge refuelling probe!! Cheers.. Dave.

I really like this scheme as well. Takes a lot of guts to complete what you've just done, however the rewards must be really satisfying. Well Done. Cheers.. Dave.

I'll start with the positives. They make great RAAF subject matter.Unfortunately, the overall quality is way below what one might expect for the price you pay. They seem to go by the name Novascale on eBay, however the decals are marked Aussie decals. Now I'm a pretty fussy modeller, however there's something quite wrong when the one serial number is not in line and has different font and characters. Don't start me on their idea of what they call a roundel. You don't even have to look that hard to spot that most of these are not circular and the colour register is too dull. Try looking at them under any type of magnification and you will be amazed how poor these decals are. Sorry - I'm not normally that negative, however ill never purchase another sheet again as long as my eyesight keeps me in this hobby.

Great news about the Xtradecals information - 2 sheets should have plenty of great subjects, how about an all RAF version and a secondary Export sheet. Having saying that - the kit decals are fantastic. My two kits arrived from those great chaps at Hattons yesterday. I believe Airfix could have sold this as a series 3 kit, smilar to their Sabre, however I'm glad they squeezed all the parts in a Series 2 box. Good on you Airfix. Cheers .. Dave.

That's not fair.. I only had plans to purchase one of these kits, however having now seen the boxart and decal options - I think i'll collect a pair of these as well. It appears that my Airfix budget for 2013 will have soon doubled by the time all these kits are released.. Cheers.. Dave.

The first pic takes your breath away, then the supurb quality continues throughout. US Navy weathering is top notch... love it. Actually Love them all.. Great 2012, roll on 2013 Cheers .. Dave.

Sean, I don't want to spoil the party however those decals should be applied to a late war P-40N / Kittyhawk IV, not a P-40C Tomahawk. Having saying that - it looks quite good. "Watch my Form' is a pretty famous RAAF P-40, so although I loath Aussie Decals, I'm pretty sure thay would not show these markings on a Tomahawk style P-40. There's probably more decals on this expensive sheet to have another crack at an accurate P-40M/N. Academy's 1/72 kits are rather good. Cheers and once again sorry for being corrective - Dave.

Very impressive... Just love those belts - Tamiya tape you say? I've been struggling to do homemade seat belts for ages.. Any clues with your technique would be gratefully appreciated. This is a lovely replica of a great aircraft. Good to hear that the decals went well. I've been tempted to buy a sheet myself. Cheers.. Dave.

There are a couple of model shops in Perth and surrounds that are pretty good at getting Airfix product in - eventually. I am hoping that they will get a reasonable number of these in (although for some reason I never saw the new tool Gnat over here). I would prefer to support them. Worst comes to worst I will try Lucky Model - being closer to us the postage is a good deal less.[/quote Simon, Don't be put off by the postage prices from the UK. Please do yourself a favour and go to ehattons.com. They are mainly a model train company from Liverpool, however stock all the range of Airfix models on offer. With the great exchange rate at the moment (and long may it last) they also deduct the VAT from the final price. If it's a Gnat your after you will pick this up for less than $A10.00 (most probaly $8.00-ish) including postage. They charge only GBP2.00 for Airfix series 1 kits and only GBP4-5 for most others. It really pays if you buy 2-3 kits at a time. I had 2 x Vampires on pre-order and was only charged $A21.00. I should have mine in about a week from now. My theory here is that you buy Asian manufacturer kits from Asia (Tamiya, Hasegawa - Hobbylink Japan) and Airfix from Hattons... Trust me on this one.. good luck. Cheers.. Dave.

All, We should all be celebrating the fact that we now have a cheap / mainstream / and (from what I see) great kit of an important British aircraft. I do not build resin, nor do I have the paitence for PE, however I seem to have inherited Noah's desire to purchase two or more of most things. The fact that this little Vampire is very affordable and accurate must make this excellent value for money and from what I read here, most members will buy more than one. Sure - sink marks and what some would term "deep panel lines" aside - I do not see why anyone would not want to praise Airfix for giving us a long awaited subject rather than scorn them into oblivion. Give me a Vamp over a new F-16 / Bf109 anyday.. Airfix - you have made many modellers very happy - Please keep reading these forums (if you do?) and taking credit for a job well done. Cheers.. Dave.

Paul, Excellent review. I have two kits on their way via mail order and just cannot wait to prize mine open. You are spot on about Airfix's latest decals and quality. I suspect, like most modellers out there I rarely consider building the kit manufacturer's chosen subject(s), however this Vampire is that good that I just might build my two exactly as Airfix have offered. Can I just say - long live Airfix and most importantly its excellent backing by Hornby. This years Airfix range is going to be very hard to resist. Cheers... Dave.

Great to hear all these positive vibes about this kit. I've got two on the way from Hattons, however living "Down Under" will need to wait a little longer yet. If it's better than their new tool P-51's then we are really in for a treat. I wonder how quick the initial supply will sell out. Could it be some type of 1/72 kit sales record?? Xtradecal - where's your forthcoming decal sheet - RAAF Telstars please... and many dayglo RAF versions as well - Thanks. Cheers and lookng forward to any reviews (in box or otherwise). Dave.

Hopefully the Spitfire Vc is a brand new (Mainstream manufacturer) tool.. How long do we have to wait for a cheap / quick build Vc to hit he shelves. Looks like we may have to wait until Airfix announce their's sometime in the distant future. Both 1/72 & 1/48 please. Cheers.. Dave.

Speaking of Airfix Starter kits, is it true that the decal sheets supplied with these kits DO NOT include stencils etc? I read somewhere that the RAF P-51D Starter Kit in 112 Sqd colours does not even include the Aircraft's serial number?? Not sure if this is true however. I would think that the RNZAF Vampire would be a popular choice, however if the stencils are not supplied with the decal sheet, I see this kit as a "No Brainer". Shame really, as Airfix would probably sell more of these if the "common stencil" decals were supplied as in their mainline range. Cheers.. Dave.

Steve , Better put azzaob onto Hattons, what do ya think.. Might save him some of those kiwi dollars?? Cheers.. Dave

That's one of the nicest Mustangs I've ever seen. Love the cockpit and w-well colours. Excellent job.. just perfect. Cheers .. Dave.

I believe that "Bird Poop" is not that far off scale.. those birds can get pretty large down your way!! Jokes aside - nice build, great aircraft and from a fellow "newbie" - welcome aboard. Cheers .. Dave.

Although I do not have many "Runs on the board" so to speak - I find that as long as the clear parts are "futured" or gloss coated, Tamiya Thin Liquid Cement seems to work quite well. That GS Hypo cement does sound pretty good however. Just searched for it on ebay and it costs next to nothing. I'll be placing my order shortly. Cheers .. Dave.

Kiwi Steve, Thanks for putting up such a fine selection of photographs. You Kiwis sure know how to put on an Airshow! The photos of the Mossie are just marvellous and great inspiration to crack open a new kit of the type. Cheers.. Dave (Brisbane).

I totally agree. Apart from all the personal jibes and comments, this is a good forum about a fairly important British aircraft. Had I not logged on to Britmodeller and viewed the photos and read all the comments, I would have purchased one (or two) of these kits and have been totally disappointed. It would have ended up with all the other crap old kits I have or hopefully sold off on ebay or a modellers swap meet for a loss.. Looking forward to reading the comments on Airfix's new T.11, however I trust Airfix and already have 2 kits on backorder. Cheers and happy modelling... Dave.

Very nice... I'm also building one of these little beauties myself. Seems to go together with very little effort. Besides snapping the control column in half as I was removing from the sprue (heavy sprue gate for such a thin part) I have found this to be a neat and well engineered kit. Congrats on a great build. Cheers Dave

I know the picture that you are talking about, however doubt that it will be used in he new tool 1/72 kit. From what I've seen, this kit will be issued as an early Mk.1 with Fabric wings. The Calendar artwork features aircraft from 1 Sqd during the BoB campaign. Fabric wing Hurricanes would not have been seen on the frontline during the summer of 1940 (although I may be wrong).. Cheers Dave.

As some of us refer to Trumpeter & Hobby Boss as Trumpyboss, what then are we going to call this kit. 1. Vamp-om 2. Ven-pire 3. ?? Cheers Labbit Reader (sorry - that's Chinese for Rabbit Leader)..

I know we are all being a little premature, however what about those wheel well cut-outs? If I'm correct, I can see that the wheel wells are seperate parts that will probably need to be attached to either the bottom wing, or underneath the top wing (if it all lines up). These appear to have the squared off outboard ends, however the cutouts on the wings themsleves are too circular too me. It may require a little filing here and there, however should we realy have to do this in this day and age. I can live with replacing the canopy and intakes, however the rest is fairly major surgery to me. i still believe a certain 'other' company would still do a better job than this. How many of you believe that Airfix will get any of there 2013 releases wrong. I've already put my pre-orders in with the knowledge that these kits will be fantastic. i cannot wait for this year to end and read all the new release Airfix 2014 related forums in December. I felt like a 10 year old when they announced their 2013 range. Cheers to all - Dave.