Price: £8.00 approx
Review by: Geoff Coughlin (Jan 2012)
Our thanks to Revell for supplying our review sample.
Some good inspiration for your build…
Initial Assessment
We continue to review many new and re-released maritime kits from Revell and very welcome the manufacturer’s release programme is too.
Within this kit, there are six sprues moulded in white plastic and my immediate reaction is how big this vessel is. The hull looks enormous compared to the upper superstructure, but all looks to be cleanly moulded and promises to be an absorbing project.
The issue, as ever with a kit building this larger scale, is how much detail to add and what to replace, if anything. Frankly, the choice is yours!
I don’t usually comment on the price of kits, mainly because this is such a subjective matter and so many modellers have such different views on the subject; and, of course, price variations are great between country to country and supplier to supplier.
In this instance though I was hugely surprised to see how low the price was for this model – it immediately looks like great value for money.
The Kit
Click on the thumbnails to enlarge the images.
There’s some good detail is on offer here: superstructure, railings and of course the deck crane. There’s a small launch as well.
There is some flash that’ll need to be removed, but overall the mouldings look quite good.
Perhaps the biggest drawback is that the windows are moulded solid, but it all depends what you have in mind for your project. They can easily be opened up using a motorised modelling drill or pin-vice drill and files. Then you’ll have the opportunity to detail some of the wheel house and interior.
Many of the parts will benefit from additions and some you may even decide to replace, but it’s all about what you want.
This could be a great starter kit for someone who’s new to maritime modelling, as well as the basis for something much more involved if you have some experience.
Looking at the video that I have included above, you’ll see that there are some great additions you can add to make your model unique.
Instructions
This comprises a booklet in the usual Revell style, with exploded diagrams showing where the parts go – clear enough. The model is hardly complex so a build should present few, if any problems to modellers at any level.
Decals
Revell include a small decal sheet with appropriate deck markings and they look good enough to use – just remember to apply them onto a high gloss finish and then matt down as appropriate to reduce any chance of decal silvering.
In Conclusion…
Yes, pretty good really for the money and size of model. Lots of people buy and make maritime models in this scale and this would be an impressive addition to your collection – with work and effort.
After all, this is what scale modelling is all about and, for the money, the kit can provide a great basis for creating something really unique and special.
FEATURE STAR RATING (out of five)
Quality of moulding ***
Accuracy ***
Instructions ***
Decals ****
Subject choice ****
Overall ***
Geoff C.