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1/144 787 advice


Volant

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Hello all,

 

Scalemates seems to suggest that Revell and Zvezda (and also Doyusha in Japan..) are all from the same moulds. Is this correct?

 

I don’t really mind which I build, but generally the 787-9 has better proportions to my eyes, relative to the -8. In which case, is the Zvezda the only gig in town?

 

Last question - I can’t seem to find British Airways decals available. Does anyone know of any?

 

Thank you,

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Thanks Pin.

 

I am able to google, and unfortunately I don’t use Amazon. Clearly I’m winning my personal battle with Bezos, it’s not going well for him at the moment…

 

Thank you re the plastic. I assume (if my googling skills are up to scratch..) there are only 787-8 decals available for BA. I’ve never built an airliner before, looks like the windows are decals. If so, do you think I’d be able to use a mash up of the decals from a 787-9 kit, and aftermarket -8?

 

Obviously you can change it with the extra letters, but interesting that the preformed reg on the TB decals isn’t a real one.

 

What is the quality of TB decals like?

Edited by Volant
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I have the TB decals 787 sheet in my stash although I haven't used it. It is screen printed and the print quality is excellent. It only provides the tail flag, fuselage flash, titles and registrations. TB have missed the crown although they are far from being the only decal maker to forget about it. The registration which TB provide, G-BDRM, is a 787-8 although there is probably enough lettering on the sheet to do any BA 787.

 

As to windows, whether you build your model with transparent windows or window decals is entirely your choice. TB just provide plain black window decals which won't look great on the finished model. If you want to go down the decal route you should check out Authentic Airliner Decals. They have a wide range of "photo real" window decals covering most modern jet airliners including the 787 These are far superior to anything else on the market. If you want to see what they look like on a selection of finished models here is the link to my Yearbook entry. All the models except the Viscount and Skyvan use Authentic Airliners window decals.

 

Dave G

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All the BA 787s start G-ZB**
 

-8 are G-ZBJ*
-9 are G-ZBK*
-10 are G-ZBL*
 

Not a complaint at all, as there are sufficient decals to do whatever you want, more a wry observation.. Google seem to suggest Gemini Jets do a diecast 787 with the same reg.

 

Thank you for the info regarding the TB decals. As I say, this is all new to me - even the decal manufacturers are companies I haven’t used on military aircraft, so it’s invaluable. I’ll take a look at the Authentic Airliner decals, and also your builds.

 

Thanks again!

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51 minutes ago, Skodadriver said:

I have the TB decals 787 sheet in my stash although I haven't used it. It is screen printed and the print quality is excellent. It only provides the tail flag, fuselage flash, titles and registrations. TB have missed the crown although they are far from being the only decal maker to forget about it. The registration which TB provide, G-BDRM, is a 787-8 although there is probably enough lettering on the sheet to do any BA 787.

 

As to windows, whether you build your model with transparent windows or window decals is entirely your choice. TB just provide plain black window decals which won't look great on the finished model. If you want to go down the decal route you should check out Authentic Airliner Decals. They have a wide range of "photo real" window decals covering most modern jet airliners including the 787 These are far superior to anything else on the market. If you want to see what they look like on a selection of finished models here is the link to my Yearbook entry. All the models except the Viscount and Skyvan use Authentic Airliners window decals.

 

Dave G

G-BDRM is a Chipmunk  👍

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1 hour ago, Volant said:

All the BA 787s start G-ZB**
 

-8 are G-ZBJ*
-9 are G-ZBK*
-10 are G-ZBL*
 

Not a complaint at all, as there are sufficient decals to do whatever you want, more a wry observation.. Google seem to suggest Gemini Jets do a diecast 787 with the same reg.

 

 

Good point!  That explains why when I put "G-BDRM 787" into Google it was mostly diecast models that came up. I obviously saw what I expected to see and I should have gone to the BA fleet list. :banghead:

 

If it's of any interest I am currently building a Zvezda 787-9 to be finished in KLM livery. It's a pretty straightforward build with no show-stopping problems although the engines need a fair bit of time and effort.

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I suspect the design of the TB decals pre-date the Binliner* deliveries, as did their A380 sheet with G-MSNO (should be G-XLEx). However there are other options:

 

787-8

Drawdecal: https://www.drawdecal.com/product/1200-british-airways-787-8-dreamliners/

F-Decal: https://www.f-dcal.fr/decals/index.php?id_product=884&controller=product&id_lang=1

8ADecs: http://www.8adecs.com/cgi-bin/fdecals.pl?opc=show&id=166

 

787-9

Drawdecal: https://www.drawdecal.com/product/1200-british-airways-787-9-dreamliners/

 

Drawdecal will only ship UK orders via FedEx so unless you want a number of their other sheets to even out the $33 flat rate cost (and any potential customs charges) you may want to look at just building a -8 or trying to adapt the registration from one of the other two sheets. Definitely go for the Authentic Arliners windows, they're far superior to the basic ones on any of the sheets.

 

Jonathan

 

* allegedly so named by the Engineers in a UK airline due to their opnion of the quality of the interior fittings - rubbish inside, a plastic exterior 😆

 

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16 hours ago, XV571 said:

Drawdecal will only ship UK orders via FedEx so unless you want a number of their other sheets to even out the $33 flat rate cost (and any potential customs charges) you may want to look at just building a -8 or trying to adapt the registration from one of the other two sheets.....

Sorry to disagree but a few days ago I received a three sheet order from Drawdecal sent by normal mail at a cost of $16.50, not cheap but a lot better than $33. HMRC didn't show any interest in it despite a correctly completed customs declaration although past experience suggests that can be a matter of luck.

 

Dave G

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I'd like to add that the Revell kit is moulded in white plastic, and Zvezda's in their usual grey. I think Revell's white plastic is a bit softer and easier to work with. Also, the Revell kit includes much better decals, but that has already been said above.  

 

Also, I have one set of British Airways 787-8 by 26Decals I'm willing to sell for a friendly price, PM me if interested! 

Edited by TheFlyingDutchman
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On 1/20/2023 at 5:08 AM, Skodadriver said:

I have the TB decals 787 sheet in my stash although I haven't used it. It is screen printed and the print quality is excellent. It only provides the tail flag, fuselage flash, titles and registrations. TB have missed the crown although they are far from being the only decal maker to forget about it. The registration which TB provide, G-BDRM, is a 787-8 although there is probably enough lettering on the sheet to do any BA 787.

 

As to windows, whether you build your model with transparent windows or window decals is entirely your choice. TB just provide plain black window decals which won't look great on the finished model. If you want to go down the decal route you should check out Authentic Airliner Decals. They have a wide range of "photo real" window decals covering most modern jet airliners including the 787 These are far superior to anything else on the market. If you want to see what they look like on a selection of finished models here is the link to my Yearbook entry. All the models except the Viscount and Skyvan use Authentic Airliners window decals.

 

Dave G

I have a TB decals set that I have ordered in november for an air new zealand 787-9, however the shipping time is absolutely insane as I have still not received them, is their shipping time this long or not? I am from the united states BTW

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Thank you, sorry, I’ve missed a load of replies…

 

The 26decals are 1/200 - I saw there is the Hasegawa 787 in that scale.

 

This is likely the only airliner I’ll build, I usually do 1/72 military aircraft. As such, continuity of scale isn’t too important.

 

How does the Hasegawa compare to the Zvezda/Revell kit? I suppose it’s less shelf space…

 

I’ve obviously missed the boat on the 26decals (thank you for the offer TheFlyingDutchman) and they don’t appear on 26decals website - are they hard to get hold of?

 

Once again, thank you all for great advice on an area of the hobby I’m not familiar with!

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I am building a 1/200 B747-400 and realized that a 1/144 is a better scale for airliner, my personal opinion. It gives more detail parts and I can detail the parts too. 
I am looking at the B787 too and it shall be a 1/144.

My 1/144 B777-300ER is in my stash, waiting for it’s turn to build. 
Oh….those decals with photo windows look great. I bought these for my B777.

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On 1/31/2023 at 7:51 AM, Volant said:

How does the Hasegawa compare to the Zvezda/Revell kit? I suppose it’s less shelf space…

 

Good kit. Because of smaller scale some parts such as main gear are expectedly simpler than in 1/144 but will nevertheless look good on the shelve 

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Thank you all.

 

I’ve found 1/200 decals by Draw Decal, should I do the Hasegawa and save shelf space.

 

Although it appears Authentic Airliner Decals only do the photo realistic windows in 1/144 for the 787…

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  • 1 year later...
On 1/20/2023 at 10:08 AM, Skodadriver said:

I have the TB decals 787 sheet in my stash although I haven't used it. It is screen printed and the print quality is excellent. It only provides the tail flag, fuselage flash, titles and registrations. TB have missed the crown although they are far from being the only decal maker to forget about it. The registration which TB provide, G-BDRM, is a 787-8 although there is probably enough lettering on the sheet to do any BA 787.

 

As to windows, whether you build your model with transparent windows or window decals is entirely your choice. TB just provide plain black window decals which won't look great on the finished model. If you want to go down the decal route you should check out Authentic Airliner Decals. They have a wide range of "photo real" window decals covering most modern jet airliners including the 787 These are far superior to anything else on the market. If you want to see what they look like on a selection of finished models here is the link to my Yearbook entry. All the models except the Viscount and Skyvan use Authentic Airliners window decals.

 

Dave G

I've just purchased a second hand set of TB Decals for the BA 787; whatever the print quality, the fin flashes are far too large.  The top red and blue sections are not much smaller than the complete fin decal from 26Decals (which is a very good fit on the kit plastic).  Also the white "highlight" in the flashes is not subtle.

 

I can upload photos if anyone would like a comparison.

 

On the plus side; the TB offering for the BA A350 is almost the correct size but only includes G_XWBA and no spare letters to make any other registration.

 

Mike

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