I asked for this review product as motivation to finish a 30 year old project. On my “shelf of doom” sat a partially completed Fujimi Cutlass which I purchased from the Squadron Shop near Silver Spring, MD circa 1987. Remember when Squadron had “brick and mortar” stores?

While waiting for the package to arrive, I dusted off the Fujimi box and was surprised to discover it was not as far along as I thought. More on this, later.

Thank you to Bert Kinzey and Rock Roszak for continuing to bring back a tremendous resource for the modeler and aviation historian, in a print-on-demand format. Thank you to the IPMS Reviewer Corps for allowing me to review the latest Detail & Scale publication describing history, details, and versions of the F9F Cougar. The official title is F9F Cougar in detail & scale, Detail & Scale Series, Volume 2 Revised Edition. This volume is part one of a revised Cougar series first published in 2014 and focuses on aircraft history and details. There are all sorts of new materials in this volume compared to the previous edition. A later revision will include colors and markings of Cougar units.

Kit

The 1/48 Eduard photo etch exterior kit contains one unpainted photo etch tree containing approximately 40 individual parts. The double-sided instruction sheet is generally easy to follow. Several kit parts will require cutting; these are indicated in red as is standard fashion for Eduard instructions.  

Reviewer’s Comments

Your use of this exterior PE kit will depend on how you wish to build your plane. Therefore, I recommend the builder take the following into consideration when making a decision about this PE kit: decide in advance whether you want to have an open or closed bomb bay, if you want to have open or closed cowling vents, and consider your tolerance for fragility.