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Which 1/72 Victor kit


ModellerUK

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Seen as there is no 1/72 VC10 yet 👎Boooo!! 

Im looking at doing a Victor in 1/72, my first Large aircraft. 

My question is what is a recommended kit for a Tanker? Should I wait for the new Victor? 

Thanks 

Edited by ModellerUK
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3 minutes ago, Graham Boak said:

Wait.  The Airfix kit is far superior to the Matchbox.

Quoted for understatement of the month :)

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13 minutes ago, Graham Boak said:

Wait.  The Airfix kit is far superior to the Matchbox.

I know Flightpath do a K2 detail set at £28 however is the Airfix going to outdo the Matchbox/Flightpath combo? 

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I have the Flightpath set for the Matchbox kit, and know the sheet to have problems with the shaping and fit of the canopy framing, if nothing else.  There may be a few areas where the etch sheet has superior detailing but understand that the Airfix kit is far ahead of the Matchbox in areas such as cockpit interiors and intakes where etched brass is less suitable.   I would be very rude about the fit and appearance of the Matchbox outer wings and there's no way that the etch sheet can address that.

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I'm going to take a different slant on this one.

 

The Matchbox/Revell Victor is 30+ years old but the one I have in the stash is still crisply moulded( Revell boxing). Once made it also looks fine from a couple of feet away.

The kit already has basic tanking equipment on the sprues.

The Airfix one will cost you c.£50, the Matchbo/Revell one less than £20.

 

If  it's your first big model I'd go for the Matchbox one and use it to learn on.

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16 minutes ago, iainpeden said:

I'm going to take a different slant on this one.

 

The Matchbox/Revell Victor is 30+ years old but the one I have in the stash is still crisply moulded( Revell boxing). Once made it also looks fine from a couple of feet away.

The kit already has basic tanking equipment on the sprues.

The Airfix one will cost you c.£50, the Matchbo/Revell one less than £20.

 

If  it's your first big model I'd go for the Matchbox one and use it to learn on.

It is my first Large aircraft that I plan to incorporate into a diorama of a fairly decent standard in flight. 

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I don't see any particular magic or difficulty in doing a large model rather than a small one, it just takes longer to paint!  It could be argued that the Airfix kit would be more difficult because of the much greater detail and hence part numbers provided.  If you aren't bothered about interiors or undercarriage that aspect would be minimised.  If you build the Matchbox you will struggle with the wings and intakes, and be left with something that looks like a Victor but remains less than satisfactory.  You could throw in not just the Flightpath parts (lipstick on a pig is just a bit unkind) and the Paragon intakes (if you could find a set), spending more than on the Airfix kit for what would remain an inferior product.

 

I don't know whether anyone has tried to add any of the Flightpath parts to an Airfix kit.

Edited by Graham Boak
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2 minutes ago, stever219 said:

The reissue of the Airfix kit due out later this year contains parts for a basic (diurnal) SR-fit and markings for XL193 (IIRC) in 543 Squadron markings.

Will this be suitable for an operation  corporate recce Victor as used before the black buck raids ?

 

Phil 

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In short “Yes” and “No”!  By the time of Corporate all of the surviving Victor 2s had been converted to K. Mk. 2 standard and were desperately needed as tankers to support the Black Buck sorties, so no ripping out of bomb bay tanks to reinstate the SR. Mk. 2 camera crate, pyrotechnic container(s) and supplementary fuel tank(s), all of which had probably been scrapped a dozen or more years previously.  

 

The Victors used for reconnaissance during Corporate were in standard K. Mk. 2 fit but retained as many of the bomb aimers’ windows as possible to facilitate use of cameras: many of the fleet had had the windows replaced with metal plates as they aged and spares became harder to come by.  As Airfix’s revised kit also contains parts for a K. Mk. 2 you should be able to model a 1982-vintage recce jet by careful choice of serial number, e.g. XL192 (still the longest-ever reconnaissance mission IIRC).

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  • 1 year later...

Just come across this thread while trying to find out the size of serials on the underside of Victor B.1 wings. 

I'm a bit late to help the OP of the thread, but for anyone who comes across this in future, I have a few points on the Matchbox Victor.

The nose shape is by far the worst part of the kit. First of all, the canopy panels are too short and it is missing a panel. Then the main issue is that the nose is far too bulbous, this comes from the curvature of the canopy being only sideways, causing the curvature in front of the canopy to be wrong. It is also incorrect underneath, but this is less noticeable. I'm not sure about shape of the bomb aimer's window, but it doesn't look right. Also, the nose probe and IFR probe will need replacing.

The intakes are the wrong shape, they are almost symmetrical. These will need replacing with resin

The main wheel wells are too far back I think

Raised panel lines

The tailplane needs reshaping

Outer wing angle is wrong

Crude and clunky detail throughout

 

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The 1983 Matchbox kit is best used as a paint mule or given to the wee lads or lassies to play with.  It is in no way worthy of any of the prodigious amount of work it would take to try to fix its myriad problems.  In 1983 it was the bee's knees.  I was doing somersaults across the living room when I got one.  But that was then, and this is now.  And now you could do no better than the magnificent new Airfix kit (of which I have three - but don't tell the missus).  Now I just hope I can build them before I depart the pattern for good.

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