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I have never built a Boulton Paul Defiant but have wanted to for years. I never fancied the original tooling and never got round to getting an MPM one. When Airfix announced their new Defiant last year I was excited to hear this and when I saw one in Antics on Monday I snapped it up and the parts didn't stay on the sprues long after I took the photos shown in this thread. http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234974956-airfix-boulton-paul-defiant-sprue-shots/ First job is the interior. It is really well detailed for what you can see through the small opening but I feel there is scope for detail to be added. I plan to keep it as it is and just make up some seat belts or add the pilots. 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 I then assembled the wings. The wheel well is nicely detailed although I bet there is scope for some detail to be added. Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr The only thing I don't like about this kit so far is the trailing edges. I think they are a little on the thick side. This would be tricky to sort out. I've never had much success at sanding the inner faces of the wing to thin the plastic down. Also the ailerons moulded solid to the lower wing so thinning them would mean losing detail. I'll live with it I think. Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr The three photos below show the different configurations you can choose to display the canopy and turret fairings. Canopy closed, Fairings raised. Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Canopy closed, Fairings lowered. Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Canopy Canopy Open, Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Some of you may notice the turret loses a gun barrel between shots. They are very fragile and need handling with care. Fortunately I had already decided to replace them with Master gun barrels. Just two mins with a pin vice and a 0.5mm drill bit and the new barrels are a perfect drop fit and are a massive improvement over the kit ones. Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Here is a shot of the kit dry fitted together. I would say the fit is close to perfect on this one so far. Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr I also thought I'd share a diorama base idea I have. When I was in B&Q the other day I noticed they had some very cheap pine corner shelves and I thought they were perfect for displaying 1:72 WWII fighter aircraft and from first impressions it looks like it might work. Airfix 1:72 Boulton Paul Defiant by Marks CVS, on Flickr Next up painting the interior. Regarding colour schemes I'm spoilt for choice. I have the two nice kit schemes along with the Xtradecal sheet on order. I think I am going to go with a night fighter. I remember seeing a classic airframes Defiant built in a night fighter scheme that was so battered a lot of the original dark green/dark earth was showing through. Not sure if that one was artistic license or if they did get that bad....

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

On Hannant's 'Future Releases' list - http://www.hannants.co.uk/product/X72217 I'll be in for one of these, for sure Cheers, Stew

Hi, Another rather old model from shelf - Boulton-Paul Defiant, made out of Airfix kit but I was trying to reshape it following drawings in 1/72. The whole fuselage is made wider, turret is completly new (home-made), new u/c and both coolers. Now I think that two detail should be improved - a propeller (blades are to narrow) and main canopy (which is remain untouched and with wider fuselage it is a bit narrow as well). A compromise, what was achivable, those days - some teens years ago. Have a look Regards Jerzy-Wojtek

Hi all, The third build in my trilogy, and the one that keeps me awake the most at night, is the Airfix Boulton Paul Defiant mk1... A kit considered the anti-christ by many - The newish box hides a kit first tooled in 1960...... This will be built hopefully with some etch and maybe some new decals...... The box Some Sprues..... (look at those rivets!!!!) A closer look at some of that glorious detail Some more sprues..... And the "transaprencies" or as airfix circa 1960 would like to call them "bricks" Lets take a closer look at those "transparentbricks" - oh that's right - there are ejector pinmarks on the inside of the canopy - that's going to be a treat to get rid of If I can somehow find a vac form canopy I'm going to have to... As ever any known pitfalls (please form an orderly line) please let me know.. Thanks for looking Tuco

Hello All, I had this half-finished Defiant lurking in the closet. It was one of my first models after returning to the hobby and it's been stalled for several years now. I had painted the dark earth and duck egg blue, neither of which I liked, and had made a mess of the turret. I pulled it out over Christmas and lost the turret somewhere in the process. Problem solved! I replaced it with a Matchbox Halifax turret (an optional part in the kit) with a scratch built interior and guns. The turret has some elaborate interior structure to hold the guns in place, which I replaced with some bent acetate sheet for the gunner's aiming window. I also added some black-painted paper strips for the new framing. It's a nice kit and looks spot on when compared to photographs. I modified "PS-A" to "PS-V" and added a new home made serial number. Someone described the Defiant as a bad idea, well executed and the last picture shows off how sleek it could look... Compare the last picture to http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Boulton_Paul_Defiant.jpg. Thanks for looking, Adrian

Airfix Improvement Sets – Hurricane, Stirling & Defiant 1:72 Valiant Wings Valiant Wings have brought out a range of 1/72 aftermarket products to improve or convert existing kits. These particular samples are for a selection of Airfix kits. Their range covers vac form, etch and resin upgrades and as their website states, they aim to “offer simple to use modelling solutions to improve or upgrade kits that have been on the market for some time”. Their niche is focussed on those who are venturing into the realm of aftermarket for the first time having gained some experience building kits ‘out of the box’. Having this clear focus behind a product range is quite refreshing. That said, the solutions they have aren’t just restricted to novice builders, they can be used for any level. Additional to what is described below, the instructions that come with the sets is very comprehensive. Apart from very detailed guides on how to use the parts contained, you also get tips on further correction / conversion work required to the kit including additional correction sets on the market as well as references to relevant books that will help in your research. Boulton Paul Defiant – Nose Correction Set for Airfix kit Here is a replacement nose section to replace the very poor kit profile. The nose is moulded as one piece with a separate prop spinner. The parts are formed on a resin back plate, so I recommend the purchase of a razor saw if you don’t already have one to remove the parts. The parts are nicely moulded with no visible bubble holes. Fine surface detail is presents on the nose cone. There is some flash behind the moulded in exhausts, so you will need to trim this off, a modelling knife should do the trick here. Short Stirling Mk.IV Nose Conversion for the airfix kit If you’re wanting to build a Stirling, then there is Hobsons choice, the venerable old Airfix kit. As standard, the kit comes as a Mk.I/III with the front mounted turret, however this conversion allows you to build the Mk.IV Transport / Tug used successfully later in the war. Moulded as a single vac form piece, this makes for the easiest way of upgrading the nose, requiring you to cut the existing nose off the kit 26mm from the front. The instructions also offer guidance on the other modifications to complete a Mk.IV. Hurricane II Improvement Set for the New Tool Airfix Kit Although the new tool kit from Airfix is pretty good, this set improves it in several areas. The kit prop I believe is about 3mm too small in diameter so a replacement is provided. Replacement wheels, carb intake, cannon, underwing pitot tube and two types of exhausts (fishtail and normal) all benefit from the fine detail you can get from resin moulding compared to plastic injection moulding. This set will sharpen up the look of your Mk.II and true to their objective, all parts are direct replacement for the kit parts. Care will need to be taken removing the prop from its support plate as there are thin connections running the full length of two of the blades. A sharp modelling knife will be required to do this. Hurricane I Photo Etch Improvement Set for the Airfix kit This set provides a simple pre-coloured etch set to enhance the Hurricane Mk.I. Primarily designed for the airfix kit, it should fit most kits in the scale too. You get a new panel built up in 3 layers, seatbelts, radiator grill, pitot tube, canopy handles, rear view mirror and control column. This is a great starter set if you’re new to using photo-etch details. I recommend some fine tweezers for handling these parts if you don’t currently have any. Conclusion The range of products offered by Valiant Wings is well thought out. I’ve been daunted by some of the aftermarket sets I’ve had in the past both in terms of skill needed (that I never had !!) and shear number of intricate parts, so I do appreciate a range of products that caters for people who are newcomers into this aspect of modelling. The quality of the parts is good and a selection of respected aftermarket producers such as Eduard and CMR are used to make the parts on behalf of Valiant Wings. Review sample courtesy of

Tomasz Gronczewski has written an article about Frederick Hughes and his Defiants going from day-fighting to night. We´re proud to publish the article on our website: http://www.ipmsstock...n-paul-defiant/ /Lars Befring for IPMS-Stockholm