Airfix Bristol Blenheim Mk IV

[GraemeT]

 

Hi All,

 

First posting for some time - the Airfix Bristol Blenheim Mk IV in 1/72 scale.

 

Not the new one, but the old one. A Series 2 boxing from around 1986 (according to the box lid), I've inherited from family. I actually built this when I was a kid in the early 1980's, captivated by the long nose windscreen, and it may well have been one of the final kits I built in my first phase of this hobby.

 

So, how was the build as a grown-up in 2021? 
Painful.

 

- A warped fuselage and some gouged plastic from the sprue gate required sanding down of the rivets to try and smooth the surfaces. It may or may not have had the desired effect. I still needed putty.
- Minimal internal detail, not unexpected. Not overly bothered so long as I made the aircrew look respectable.
- The windscreen: a real adventure for the frame, so used acrylic paints for this as it was easier to correct any overspill. I kept the enamels for the remainder of the kit.
- The Gunner: wasn't happy with that circular mounting piece that was obscuring his face, so I removed a chunk of it to look like a tidier gun placement. Quite happy with that, until I dropped it trying to impress the wife with a show of my skills in miniature. Recovered the pieces and got it together again thankfully.
- The engines: super-happy with how these turned out.
- The landing gears: nearly broke me, after I broke them. There's a dollop of putty in the port wheel well, to keep the flimsy struts together. Then I set the kit down a little hard near the end and bent the tail wheel.

 

Very fiddly, very delicate and a product of its time. Still, in a perverse kind of way I thoroughly enjoyed it and would like to have a go with the modern Mk I and IV Airfix toolings in the future.

 

One final thing to add was a delightful documentary I found on YouTube - The Forgotten Bomber (1989). I knew it was quickly outclassed during WWII, but my admiration for this plane and its crew have my total respect.

 

Anyway, some pictures.

 

 

 

 

Thanks for viewing,
Graeme

[RMCS]

Lovley 

[jackroadkill]

Let's be honest, you've made a silk purse out of the sow's ear that this kit is.  I have one lurking at the bottom of the stash (hoping to get it into a group build next year) and it's pretty rough, at least by modern standards, and especially when compared to Airfix's latest mkIV offerings.  I just hope I can do mine the same justice you did yours.

[Vinnie]

You've made a good job of an old kit. Well done.

[Homer]

Excellent work well done 👏

[keith in the uk]

That s great , remember building this kit way back in the 70s , if i recall it was in Scale Models Mag for the Battle of Britain series of aircraft.

Cant remember who built it but the main faults of the kit were the engine nacels over the wings were too long , and the tail being the wrong shape,  

The builder cross kitted it with the Frog kit and if i recall turned out a little stunner.  

[Wulfman]

I have this kit in stock, you have made a wonderful job of it, great modelling ! ( Mine won’t be built, any time ever ! )

 

Wulfman

[bigbadbadge]

What a cracking job on this old kit  great work it looks fantastic. 

Chris

[fishplanebeer]

The models from the 1979-80 Scale Models series on BoB kits were made by a chap called Ray Rimell and his Blenheim did indeed involve cross-kitting with the Frog Blenheim 1, which at the time was considered to be the best around. He used the engines, rudder, ailerons and wing tips from the Frog kit along with a healthy amount of patience and modelling know how!

 

All of the articles covering 12 kits were then repackaged/republished as a combined set in 1982 and again in 1990 and I have both for some reason but they make interesting reading when compared with what the market now has to offer. They illustrate just how much kits have improved since then and how fortunate we are now to enjoy such a comprehensive choice.

 

Regards

Colin.

[kapam]

I think your perseverance and hard work paid off!

Very nice result!

Glad you stayed with it through the mishaps.

[dogsbody]

I have this in both paper and as a PDF:

 

 

 

 

 

Chris

[fishplanebeer]

That's the one!

 

They originally released it earlier in 1982 in magazine format but did this further soft back/bound re-issue in 1990 to coincide with the BoB 50th anniversary.

 

Somehow Mr Rimell managed to produce quite stunning results from what were quite basic kits by today's standards.

 

Regards

Colin.

[Sky Keg]

Already imressive but when taking into account the difficult and old molds, it becomes worthy of residence inside a museum.  

 

Mike

[junglierating]

Fab nothing better than making old kits look good 👍