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Review Author
John Lyons
Published on
July 24, 2011
Company
Revell, Inc.
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$21.95

Short History

The P-47N - the last variant produced - was initially developed to escort B-29 bombers during air raids over Japan. The most distinguishing feature of the "N" variant was its in-wing 50-gallon (190-liter) fuel tanks, which extended the aircraft's range by 2,000 miles (3,200 km).

What’s in the Box

This looks like a reissue kit, the copyright marks on the underside of the wing show a 1997 date. The parts are separately packaged, the spurs are molded in grey styrene.

Length: 9-1/8" Wingspan: 10-3/4" Parts: 105

Kit features recessed panel lines, a detailed radial engine, a detailed cockpit, weighted tires, complete under wing stores, a detailed pilot and markings to recreate P-47Ns flown by pilots Lt. Oscar Perdomo and Lt. Col. Ollie O. Simpson.

Building the Kit

Book Author(s)
Robert Forsyth, Illustrated by Jim Laurier
Review Author
Roger Rasor
Published on
July 24, 2011
Company
Osprey Publishing
MSRP
$22.95

From 1936 to 1939, nearly 19,000 German ‘volunteers’ (some of whom actually did volunteer) made up an aviation group known as the Legion Condor. Number 99 in Osprey’s ‘Aircraft of the Aces’ series provides an interesting and well-researched story of how Germany’s involvement in the Spanish Civil war came about, what the Luftwaffe volunteers experienced as member of the Legion Condor and how many of the pilots eventually achieved ace status. It is a fascinating story about a significant time in history.

Book Author(s)
Tom Pope
Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
July 24, 2011
Company
Tom Pope
MSRP
$22.00

Editor: Contact Tom Pope for obtaining the drawings.

It’s not often I do a review on something before I have fully worked it, but this one deserves the time. How many of you have the Tamiya 1/350 USS Enterprise in your stash? And how many of you have thought of making a hangar deck for the model, but didn’t want the hassle of cut/fit/throw away, repeat? I just finished the Dragon Independence, and can categorically state a hangar deck makes a major impact on the final product… Why not the Enterprise? Although this is not provided in the kit, it doesn’t require too much work; that is, unless you don’t have dimensions and detail.

Review Author
Jack Wade
Published on
July 23, 2011
Company
Quickboost
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$6.65

This is a simple replacement part that is substantially more detailed than the kit part. It is molded perfectly with no flash or bubbles to be seen. The pull handle is provided as a separate part on a common casting block with the seat. The parts must be separated from the casting block with a saw and the pull handles glued in the appropriate location for which a diagram is provided.

Pictured here with the Quickboost example are the kit seat and an example from the now out of production Cutting Edge offering for comparison. Obviously the difference is with the details including additional “plumbing” and safety belts. The Quickboost example is considerably more “strappy” than the older Cutting Edge product and any preference for one or the other may well be a matter of personal taste as both seem to be accurate depending on how the belts fall when left to rest. The busy look of the Quickboost seat dresses up the cockpit nicely with little fuss for the modeler.

Review Author
Jack Wade
Published on
July 23, 2011
Company
Quickboost
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$4.88
  • QB 72 269 (flaps) $4.88
  • QB 72 270 (slats) $3.70

These two sets allow the Academy F-8 kit to be displayed with the flaps and slats dropped. The Academy Crusader is a very nifty kit - one of their best. The kit offers the option of having the variable incidence wing in the raised position, but the flaps are fixed in the up position and the slats, although separate parts, are not designed to be positioned downward either. Unless you don’t mind bending the accuracy rules, you can not pose the wing in the up position because the flaps and slats automatically dropped when the wing was in the raised position on the real thing. To maintain accuracy, the modeler wishing to display the wing in the raised position needs to resort to modifying the kit parts. These sets from Quickboost are designed for the task.