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The sprue gates are reasonably fine and far better than Airfix’s new tool Typhoon I recently reviewed. There are some quite fine parts; and these are some of the best I have seen in a new tool Airfix kit, conceding little if anything in refinement compared to other brands like Hasegawa. The clear canopy parts are thin with good clarity. Airfix’s tool makers have managed to leave a few prominent ejector pin marks that will need cleaning up, as will sink marks in a few areas. The bomb doors on my sample were a little warped, but should straighten out with some hot water treatment. This is a sterling effort from Airfix (which reminds me, if only Airfix rather than Italeri were to release a new Stirling kit!). I consider this to be the best Lancaster kit so far released, with the promise of several versions including a long-awaited Mk.II. On the market for 80 years now, the Airfix brand has been one of the leaders in modeling in Great Britain. It is none other than the oldest manufacturer of plastic model kits. The British company was founded in 1939 by Nicholas Kove,a Hungarian businessman. In the early days, Airfix only manufactured inflatable rubber toys.
As to its competitors from Revell and Hasegawa – You can save around 25-30% on Airfix and buy the less accurately shaped kit from Revell. The price of replacement resin wheels, which really are a must with the Revell kit, will reduce its price advantage however. For around 60-80% more than Airfix you can buy Hasegawa’s kit which offers only more refined panel lines and better props, but falls short on interior detail, no lowered flaps option, and inferior shape in a few subtle places. For my money then, Airfix is clear winner, and deservedly so. Common with many kits, as it eases the release of parts by reducing mould suction associated with a perfectly smooth finish.Rather than give lengthy written explanations, take a look at the accompanying images and it should be apparent as to why I feel Airfix are the winner in the engine nacelle stakes. All glazing is nice and clear with quite fine framing. The main canopy looks good. All that is left in terms of standard Lancaster bits area some pitos, a DF loop and the like. The 1980’s Airfix kit is still quite serviceable with fine raised rivet detail rather than recessed panel lines. There is a Grand Slam boxing if that’s what you are after. Interior detail is inferior compared to the kits previously mentioned. Each year, Airfix impresses modeling fans with new featured products and special products. The British brand produces a wide range of kits to satisfy all modeller profiles. The topics presented are varied such as: There have been no mainstream kits of the Lancaster Mk.II with its radial engines, nor of some of the later Lancaster versions. These, and models of Lancastrians, Manchesters, Lincolns and Yorks have remained in the realm of conversions or all-resin kits. Although outside this review’s scope, there is still only one 1/48-scale Lancaster by Tamiya (also with a dambuster boxing), which is also long in the tooth.
Note some Lancasters were fitted with the larger Lincoln vertical tails. This includes the BBMF aircraft. I think there might be resin aftermarket parts that cover this but no kit has them to my knowledge. The operational schemes of the Grand Slam carriers has been discussed from time to time, sometimes heatedly. All too often latter day experts of the self-designated kind are most vociferous in their attempts to impose their alternate facts. Rupert Moore was an experienced and careful observer who took notes. I know whose opinions I trust. Lesson: Wash the pieces in warm soapy water before painting them and (perhaps) undercoat them with a neutral colour, particularly if using acrylic paint. I think that Airfix has the best lines, and equal best internal detail. Surface detail is a bit heavier than its rivals, but this is balanced by there being less of it.Airfix beats Hasegawa on accuracy and shape but in small ways (engines, wing dihedral, mid-upper turret fairing, and canopies), beats it convincingly on internal detail, and falls behind on panel line finesse. Some of the pieces for this model are quite thin and delicate so there are times when painting the pieces before sliding them in to place makes it more difficult. The Lancaster’s development and operational history must be one of the best known amongst aircraft modellers and enthusiasts. With this in mind I shall not provide an account here. For those who want to know more the Internet is replete with information on this famous WW2 bomber and the famous Dams Raid, not to mention numerous publications and video documentaries. Lancaster wings are a pretty basic shape, so I was not expecting too much variation between brands. None agree exactly on the engine datums, and Airfix has its engines a bit wider out from the fuselage than the other two, not by miles, but there is a noticeable difference. The best of the three modern Lancaster kits, accurately shaped, good interior detail, promise of several variants, and good value.
The kit is engineered in a slightly unusual way compared to most Lancaster kits because the wings must accept both in-line and radial engine options. Theses differ in the way the nacelles blend with the wing, and so Airfix has cutouts in the wing leading edges to allow for this. The other unusual aspect is the way the two wing spars, having been inserted through the fuselage, then have the wheel well interiors attached directly to them. This then requires that the wings be assembled around the wheel wells and onto the spars. All well and good, except that one of the benefits of building WW2 British heavies is that you can usually assemble the wings separately from the fuselage to aid dealing with seams and enable the wings and fuselage to be painted and decaled separately from each other. All is not lost however, as you can assemble the spars and wheel well structure as per the instructions, then simply cut through the spars adjacent to the wheel well to enable these to be assembled with the wings separately. More than enough spar will be left to slide the wings onto later after painting. The rearmost part of the fuselage adjacent to the elevators is catered for by an insert to allow for slight variances depending on the model of tail-turret fitted.
The IWM photo of 2 of them together with a standard B1 in standard bomber command colours clearly shows the upper surface colours to be the same, and not the Light Earth/Light Green combination observed by C Rupert Moore. sqn operated B1 Specials in standard uppersurface camouflage (ie Dark Green/Dark Earth) with a low demarkation and light undersurfaces, which have been quoted as either Sky or Medium Sea Grey, in the closing stages of the war. AJ-T piloted by Flight Lieutenant Robert Norman George Barlow DFC (RAAF), No 617 Sqn, “Operation Chastise, RAF Scampton, England 16/17th May 1943. This aircraft and its crew were unfortunately lost in action on the Dams Raid.
A great addition to what’s already available and significantly better than the Revell offering in my view in terms of detail, tooling and options. The recessed detail is ok but could be finer for sure are counterbalanced by the beautifully delicate and detailed undercarriage legs and bulged tyres – all positive, as is the choice of decals. It offers good value for money and all in all a nice new kit beautifully presented. Option A: Avro Lancaster B.I(F.E), Tiger Force, No.35 Squadron, Royal Air Force Graveley, Cambridgeshire, England, 1945 A figurine is a miniature-sized statuette that reproduces an animal subject or fictional character to scale. It is important to choose the scale of the figurine to ensure the realistic effect of the scale model. The Airfix catalogue offers products in a wide variety of scales:The engine nacelles are well done, and I think capture the seemingly simple but actually quite subtle lines of the real plane well. I would go so far as to say they see the best representation of these that I have seen in 1/72nd scale. The carburettor air intakes are moulded solid, and will benefit from being opened up; and if appropriate, you could add PE mesh intake-guards by Brengun. The propellers for the dambuster option are the pointed type; both these plus the wider paddle blade type are supplied. I am not sure if the pointed type’s chord may appear just a little under-nourished. The spinners however look pretty good to me. Finally, there is the 1958(?) Airfix kit. It’s probably more accurate than the Revell, but would take a lot of work to bring it up to the standard of any of the modern kits. What was the underside colour? Sky as in the book or medium sea grey as on the artwork or something else as noted in the other thread
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