The US Navy’s most widely-used torpedo bomber of World War II, the Grumman TBF Avenger, filled a critical gap in combat capability shortly after the United States’ immersion into the war. The Grumman TBF’s and license-built General Motors TBM’s replaced the aging and obsolete Douglas TBD Devastator. Avengers operated in a host of roles through 1954, including torpedo bomber, level bomber, and anti-submarine duties.

Academy proudly rolls out the first of its recently licensed Accurate Miniatures (AM) classics in the form of the TBM-3 Avenger. First introduced to the market under the Accurate Miniatures brand in 1996, this kit is truly a “Sweet 16” (year-old) work of art. The hallmark AM tooling’s detail and precision rivals that of Tamiya’s, with exceptional fit and minimal fuss.

After receiving this review sample, I have to say I have yet another favorite publisher. I have a particular interest in the Pacific theater of WWII, and this book succinctly discusses the history of the air war between the start of the conflict at Pearl Harbor through the battle of Coral Sea. It also discusses many of the battles in between. The book includes not just the US and Japanese forces, but also sections dedicated to Allied forces from Russia, England, the Netherlands, and the AVG in China.

There are ten sections to the book:

History

The Bad Medicine Model was created in 1970, designed by the infamous designer Tom Daniel. With over 85 designs to his credit, this one doesn't disappoint. It's based off of an old delivery truck c-cab with a skeleton at the wheel.

The Kit

Upon opening the box, one will find a one-piece body molded in purple, a leather-look fitted seat/casket for the driver, two soft wheels for the front and the two rear wheels molded, in two pieces each, from black plastic. The parts found on the sprues were molded in white, purple, and chrome-plated. A nice touch is that the rear wheels are flat on the running surface and the rubber on the sides appears to have the pull marks that a true drag car's tires would look at high speeds. Parts were individually packaged to prevent damage in transport.