Kit | Boxtop Picture | Pre-build and Trial Fit Notes | |
| Ace Mi-28, kit no. 1500 |  | This appears to be a re-issue of the Revell kit under a new manufacturer's label. The parts are for the most part excellently cast, with crisp engraved panel lines, a nice smooth finish to the plastic and with a thin and clear canopy. There are some seams to be scraped on the small parts. The twin tail rotors are molded as one single piece - pity! The decal sheet is useless, being poorly printed, and it does not provide any decals for the instrument panels or seat belts, which would have been nice. A trial fit of parts shows that the fit appears to be excellent, with many of the seams being hidden by other parts which should reduce the amount of seam finishing. Before I can build this kit I still need to decide what camo and markings to apply to this kit since the decals are not usable.
Well, I came across a most attractive scheme for the Mi-28 and found it on the Begemont decals sheet for the Mi-28 & Ka-50/52, sheet no. 72003. After receiving the sheet and inspecting it along with its instruction sheet, I decided to confirm that what was on the sheet was what was on the real machine. My web search revealed some flaws with the decal's markings and instruction sheet. This kit has proved to quite easy to build, but once again I'm stuck. This model was part of a two item purchase off eBay. The item I really wanted, the Pavla Fa-330, has already been built. This kit was the other item in the auction, and now I know why it was included as a package deal with the Fa-330. It is missing a part - the swivel mount for the gun. So now I need to find or manufacture a replacement. Oh well! | |
| Airfix Westland Scout, kit no. 1042 |  | This is indeed a kit cast from old molds. Fit appears to be marginal in many places. There is no detail for the exposed engine, and nothing but a basic interior, which will need to be dressed up since it is completely visible through the canopy. The clear parts are not too thick, and the plastic does have a nice smooth finish to it. The decals suck big time, being translucent, out of register and fuzzy. What a waste of the earth's natural resources! If this is the best Airfix can do, then they might just as well save a few trees and not bother including decals at all. I have no option but to find new markings for this kit before starting to build it. | |
| KoPro Convair XFY-1, kit. no. D-2 |  | Trial fitting has shown that this kit will go together quite well. There is a bit of flash on most of the parts that needs to be removed. The panel lines are engraved, but they are a bit on the large and deep side and they do not align with each other at the wing tip pods. There is no way I can fill and rescribe these lines and have them look like the other engraved panel lines on the kit, so I will be forced to fill all the panel lines on the pods, and leave them as such. The canopy is nice and clear and quite thin. The decals are excellent, with the only drawback being the not dark enough blue used on the US Stars-and-Bars. There is some interior detail for the cockpit, but it could be improved a bit if desired. The instructions are a bit vague as to the placement of the cockpit pieces. All in all a nice looking kit, and this will probably be my first attempt at an all metal finish. Got this one started and it is nearing completion. Just stalled at the moment due to hesitation on my part with regards to applying the metal finish. I think this one will be shelved until the spring when I have had a bit more time to think about exactly how I'm going to finish it. | |
| Huma Focke-Achgelis Fa-223, kit. no. 5000 |  | I just had to have this kit, and it looks like it was well worth the money. Trial fitting has shown that this kit will go together very well. There is some of flash on some of the parts, but not many. The panel lines are engraved, and not too over done. There is sprue of plastic detail parts for the cockpit and rotor heads that rival photo-etched brass in their delicateness. The canopy is nice and clear and quite thin. It comes in three pieces. The decals are the only drawback being thick but in register and quite opaque. I don't think I'll use them because of their thickness, and will either try to find replacements or model the kit without markings, as seen in at least one photograph. There are decals for the instrument panel though, which is much appreciated. The instructions appear to be straight forward. All in all an excellent kit, and a quantum leap ahead of their Fl-282 which is a really poor kit. I'm looking forward to building this one, and it is going to be placed near the top of my build queue. | |
| Revell Germany Tiger UHT/HAP kit no. 04485 |  | I just had to have this kit, and it looks like it was well worth the money. Parts appear to be extremely well cast and I expect that fit will not be an major issue anywhere. Unfortunately it is molded in dark green. There are two options, one for a German machine and one for a French machine. I'll probably do the French version as I think the nose gun makes it look much more sinister. | |
| Revell Germany EC-135 VIP kit no. 04475 |  | Another Revell Germany offering that looks like it was well worth the money. Parts appear to be extremely well cast and I expect that fit will not be an major issue anywhere. There are two options, one for the demonstrator model in over gloss black and Australian machine VH-GKK. This latter verson is intriguing, and I did some web searches and found some pictures at airliners.net. It would appear that the box art is a bit misleading, in that the machine is actually a dark metallic smoky grey and not the light silver grey as shown on the box top.
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