Finished Aircraft Reviews

“This kit really surprised me for its build quality. Overall this is a very well-produced kit that is excellent value for money and makes up into a nice kit.” Dave Coward, Reviewer July 2011
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“I would say that I have enjoyed building it; the kit itself is easy enough to construct and goes together very well. Would I say it gives value for money compared to the Hasegawa version? Of course it does; it retails at nearly a third of the price of the basic kit and gives a good representation of the real aircraft. The decals and weapons are a plus point of the kit as well. The only thing that I feel the kit is let down on is the shape of the nose, which I think Hasegawa got right and Academy got slightly wrong. I am sure that the rivet counters out there will notice this, but the majority of the modelling community out there will forgive Academy for this and hopefully buy this kit.” James Vaitkevicius, Reviewer
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“As a kit it is a very nice build and what is more is very good value for money at around half the price of the Eduard offering. There are easy areas to improve such as the cockpit but to be honest I really enjoyed building it straight from the box and I must admit that I do like the finished product.
I must highly recommend this kit if you want a nice hassle free, value for money build but if you are a stickler for absolute accuracy get the Eduard kit but be prepared to pay for it!!” Dave Coward, Reviewer May 2011
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“This is a fabulous kit, easy to build and comprehensive. Lots of good detail inside and out and at an extraordinary price. I say go for it you’ll love it! Les Venus, Reviewer
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“The Aeroclub model of the Gnat T.1 is a mixed media kit consisting of injection moulded plastic fuselage, wings, tailplanes, cockpit tub and undercarriage doors with white metal for the engine air intakes, undercarriage, cockpit side consoles, instrument panels and seats.” Ian Graham, Reviewer
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“The Airfix kit still makes up into a good-looking model of the mighty Vulcan – the shape is good although there are some oversized parts and some simplification that’s a bit dated now – examples include the fuel dump pipes and crew access ladder. I really enjoyed this project, even if I did drop the finished model off my workbench just before photographing it! ” Geoff Coughlin
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“So what does the RRP of £13.00 price bring to you? At more than half the price of the Hasegawa version of the kit, more weapons, a great choice and variety of options included in the kit, I am sure this will sell by the bucket load. I have been really impressed with the kit and its construction. To be honest, it is a little small for my large hands, but I am impressed with the way the kit has turned out. The in kit options and scheme options make this an exciting prospect for young and old, inexperienced and experienced modelers alike. It would be great if Airfix decided to upscale this kit to 1:48th Scale, and I for one would buy a few..” James Vaitkevicius September 2011
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“I really like this model. It is a nice size and I’ll look forward to a comparison with the Italeri Hawk, which I will do as a future build.” Es George August 2011
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“The Hawk 128 is a pretty straight forward starter kit that can be built into a gem of a model. Airfix have done really well with the introduction of these new moulds and credit should be given to them for re -inventing their business which hopefully will attract budding new modellers in years to come. I know if I built this as my first kit, the build quality alone would inspire me to build another!” James Vaitkevicius
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“When I was asked to build this kit I approached it with a bit of trepidation as firstly 1:72 is not my normal scale and secondly this is an old kit but that all said it was a Buccaneer and I like Buccaneers. Upon receiving the kit I liked the box art, a great picture of two Gulf War 1 Bucc`s resplendent in their desert colour scheme with that fantastic nose art. Unfortunately my heart sank when I opened the box to be confronted with my pet hate – raised panel lines!! A closer look at the parts showed the age of this kit as there was a fair bit of flash but nothing that wasn’t easily removed.” Dave Coward, Reviewer
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“Initial thoughts upon opening the box is there is a lot of plastic in here, but there again there should be for the £115ish retail price. The kit parts appear to be nicely moulded and there is the biggest instruction book I’ve seen in a model kit along with 2 colour charts for painting the aircraft and the figures that are included. The kit has options for 5 aircraft and it’s nice to see that Airfix have sorted out their previous decal issues by getting Cartograf to produce the ones in this kit. This build will be interesting in another way as I’ve just completed the Tamiya Spitfire so it will be nice to compare what you get for a similar price from both manufacturers but this summation I will leave till my build conclusion. Well enough about initial thoughts lets see how it builds.” Dave Coward, Reviewer
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“That’s it! How has it been as a build? Well I can say it ranks amongst the best. Technically the kit is excellent and I think had I built it straight from the box the problems would have been limited to some small gaps at the wing root and the very fiddly undercarriage. I never really sorted this out and I don’t know whether the manufacturer’s build recommendation would have made it easier. I ended up fudging it a bit as I kept to various other builders recommendations as to the order of assembly. It is not a pocket money project but it will keep you away from other expenditure if you are diligent!!! Top marks to Airfix.” Julian Seddon, Reviewer
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“The bottom line is… while the original was ahead of the game when it first came out, this kit is still 20 years older than the Tamiya offering and nothing will change that. You can build a decent looking model from it, especially if you take more time and care than I have but the Tamiya kit is just so much less bother to build. Perhaps that’s the trouble. We’re so used to the modern ‘shake ‘n’ bake’ kit we’ve forgotten that sometimes we need to work at something to get a good result.” Paul Kirsopp, Reviewer
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“On balance I have to say that I loved this build – plenty of fun to be had and the model makes up into a great replica of the original. Airfix has made a quantum leap in terms of quality with the tooling and inclusion of Cartograf decals is the best thing they’ve done for a long time. Airfix must ensure that quality decals are included in all their kits from now on. Fit of parts is exceptional but the poor location of some of the sprue gates (for example the pilot’s canopy) can leave parts damaged. Some great options are included too like Red top and Firestreak missiles or Matra rocket pods and even bulged or un-bulged tyres! 

I can’t imagine that you haven’t got one of these yet or at least ordered one but if not, buy one, it’s superb!” Goeff Coughlin, Reviewer
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“
The instructions would have you use the earlier moulded seat and, to be honest, it isn’t anywhere near as well tooled as the Martin Baker Mk.12 seat designed for the FA2? So I changed the seats over and the FA2 seat does just squeeze into the tub designed for the GR.7. I thought about using the other tub, but it doesn’t look like it will work with the different main instrument shroud, so just the seat was used. Oddly, the GR.7 cockpit tub supplied doesn’t have any side consoles and is incorrectly shaped so to fix this I simply cut the side walls down to make them flatter and this made a flat ledge. Onto that you can stick the decals supplied for use with the FA2 kit, but, of course using the main GR.7 instrument panel in front of the pilot. This has the correct two square CRT screens either side of the main instruments.” Geoff Coughlin, Reviewer
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“Considering this was a build that I initially intended to just do as a time filler in between some bigger projects I ended up being very taken by it ; in fact so much so that I wanted to finish it over these other projects – that gives you an idea of how much fun it was to build. The fit is good, the decals are great, it’s quick to do (I finished it in 2 evenings and an afternoon!!) and it has some great colour schemes. Overall a real pleasure to do and I will definitely be picking up some of Airfix’s new tool releases as they come out especially if this is anything to go by.” Dave Coward, Reviewer
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“Arguably, this new Bf-109E from Airfix is the best engineered kit that the company has produced. I’ve built many of their kits over the years and previously their 1:48th EE Lightning or maybe late mark Spitfire in the same scale or indeed recent large 1:24th scale de Havilland Mosquito, but for me this sneaks it on the line for me. A great kit: lots of options like different windscreens, dropped flaps, open-closed canopy, different canopies (rounded or square), quality tooling and fine recessed panel line detail, well detailed cockpit and very finely tooled small parts like the MG17s, separate detailed wheel hubs, bulged tyres and so on. Excellent fit of all parts too. The big down side are the decals – again and Airfix needs to address this situation now. There seems little point producing such a great kit that leaves the build experience deflated by models that will ruin all you good work.” Geoff Coughlin, Reviewer
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“I’m a Bf110 fan, I have built four in 1:48th scale and now three in 1:72nd, the other two of these being the early Revell Bf110G-4 and the Italeri offering of the same variant. I liked the build of the Airfix kit, the consideration that has gone into making it easy for the modeller to achieve a creditable model was clear throughout and its accuracy compares very favourably with the other two of the same scale. Would I build another one, or recommend it – most definitely! Would I attempt to use the decals provided…….oh no! Mr Airfix, you have to address this problem as soon as possible.” Max Williams, Reviewer
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“This 72nd scale MIG 15 was a very pleasant project to build and while not a state-of-the-art kit, it represents a superb balance of cost and quality by Airfix. The packaging is first class and very appealing, the colour camouflage guide is extremely welcome and the model is crisply moulded with enough detail to satisfy a novice or experience modeller. I thoroughly enjoyed building the kit and I would strongly recommend it as a satisfying, quick-build distraction from the more demanding projects that many of us tend all too often to get bogged-down with!” Andy Brown, Reviewer
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“Well I did it! I completed my first ever ‘Spitfire’ model and I am very pleased with the final result. The kit is terrific from the box but with the right hands this can be a show stopper. Yes panel lines are too deep and rivets too heavy so a couple of coats of Halfords own might help here?” Les Venus, Reviewer – July 2011
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“I think the overall quality of the kit is excellent and will be a welcomed kit to many of the modellers out there. Okay, there are minor issues with the moulded “open” canopy, but compared to Airfix kits of old, this beats them hands down. It is a lovely little kit to build that can be enjoyed by the experienced modellers out there to the novices & kids alike. There are lots of options like an open/closed canopy, dropped flaps, quality tooling and fine recessed panel line detail, well detailed cockpit and separate detailed wheel hubs, bulged tyres and so on. Excellent fit of all parts too. The big down side are the decals – again and Airfix needs to address this situation now. 

Having said all this, it is still great value for money at around £15 and on balance it must come highly recommended.” James Vaitkevicius, Reviewer
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“I must admit I am really enjoying these new Airfix kits (their 1:72 BAe Harrier GR-9 is up next for me – and you…!), the fit has been fantastic, no filler required, easy and logical instructions with plenty of options such as bomb bay doors open or closed, different weapons load out and a good choice of schemes make this a superb kit for all skill levels alike. It is also great to finally see the last of the iconic “V” bombers being widely produced for the mass market at an affordable price.” James Vaitkevicius, Reviewer July 2011
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“I intended to build this kit straight from the box but I noticed a couple of places where I can improve it without buying any resin or etched brass, a few bits of plastic card and lead foil will do the job. I am sure for those of us that like to do a bit of detailing this kit will make a good starting point.” Neil Pepper, Reviewer
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“This is a lovely little kit which builds into an excellent replica of an aircraft that played a vital role in the development of anti-aircraft weapon systems and the training of fighter crews. I thoroughly enjoyed building this kit and am very grateful to Alistair McClean for its release. Despite some casting imperfections on my sample I have no hesitation in giving this kit the highest recommendation. If you are interested in the development of UAV’s, surface to air and air to air missile systems or just want a unique and colourful addition to your display shelf you really should get a copy of this kit.” Ian Graham, Reviewer
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“This completes a very enjoyable build for me. It had everything, the anticipation, the quality build, compact and satisfying. The instructions left a little to be desired, but a little homework got me there. Recommended to space modellers, if you can get hold of one.” Dave Smith, Reviewer – August 2011
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