One of my local hobby shops just got in 2 Hobby Craft 1/48 Do-17Z kits, and a quick rummage through the box left me with a good impression, but I wanted to ask if anybody has any experience building this kit, and if so, what opinions you have.
Also, I’ve heard that Hobby Craft is notorious for copying other companies’ kits, so is there any info on this? I’ve never seen a 1/48 Do-17Z by any other company. Doesn’t really matter, if it’s a good kit. That’s an aircraft I’ve always wanted to build in a larger scale ever since I built the little Monogram kit decades ago.
Any info or opinions would be greatly appreciated!
Have’nt built a Do-17N but have built other hobbycraft kits and have found that one side of the fuselage maybe a little smaller then the other. So a little putty comes in handy
I used the Hobby Craft DO.17 as the example piece in my article on Weathering Basics. The interior is a total loss. Completely out of scale and inaccurate, also very empty of detail. There are no cockpit kits that I am aware of so you will have to scratch build the interior if you want to go that far. I built mine from the begining with the intent to hang it so never worried about the cockpit. The fuselage has a banana bow to it that should be corrected but would not be noticed by any other than the pickiest purests. A fun kit to paint and nice addition to a ceiling airforce.
HobbyCraft has repackaged alot of the Trumpeter kits, both Armor and Aircraft. I can think of several right off hand, such as the 1/32 Mig17F, most of their new armor releases, and even the 1/24 scale aircraft, but with different decals. If you can’t find anything for the HC kits, just try looking for the Trumpeter kit.
Thanks for the info, fellas!
Good looking DO.17, Swanny. What are those interesting markings? And where can one read your article on weathering basics?
I’ll probably hang it, too, so I won’t be too concerned about a dead-on cockpit.
Those are Romanian Markings from an Aeromaster He-111 sheet. The weathering article can be found on my website - the link is below my signiture picture. I know, the artwork on the PB4Y probably distracted you so you couldn’t see the link.
Oops! Didn’t see it there at all, Swanny!
I checked it out. Nice site!
Went back to the shop today, and picked up the Dornier for 1500 yen ($13.60US). No idea if this was a good price, but it looked worth it.
I see what you mean about the cockpit. Sparse and very simplified.
An interesting thing is that this is one of the few kits I’ve seen that you have to modify to build it gear down! You have to cut the gear doors apart. Absolutely zippo as far as wheel well detail goes, though. I’m building it gear up.
Good choice on the gear and definitly a good price for the kit. This kit can be dangerous, when I built mine I discovered that I had developed a Dornier complex and had to get the Monogram 217E then the MPM 217K? vac then the Koster M conversion then another 217E to stick it on… and then…and then… where will it stop??? Need…more…shelf…space…
I have to admit, Dornier did make some gorgeous aircraft. THe only one I have at the moment is the Pfiel, but even that one is a work of art. I’m sure more will be coming soon. That is a very nice 17, Swanny. I may have to add on to my ceiling soon…
I just picked up the Airwaves PE set for the Do-17Z. According to the shop owner, that’s about all there is available for the 1/48 Hobbycraft kit. Not a big fret, but it looks like it’ll spruce up the cockpit somewhat and has a couple of bits for the exterior as well. Not bad for 1,100 yen ($10 US), I reckon!
Since I haven’t built an aircraft since 1996 (well, I built the Revell Hindenburg last year, in between tanks, tanks, and more tanks!), I’m going to focus on the basics and on giving her a nice Luftwaffe paint job.
One more Q: my local hobby shop has tons of books, but I could find no references for the Do-17Z.
Any suggestions?
There’s some pics here (38), including B&W cockpit photo. http://www.luftwaffepics.com/ldo171.htm
Good luck on the bird ! (and don’t forget to restock your RLM colors !)
Thanks for the cool link, Pix!
I’ve noticed that the Hobbycraft instruction sheet seems to be a bit suspect, so I reckon I’m gonna need tons of good ref pix!
hey guys,[:)]
i built the hobbycraft do-17z kit a few weeks back, and agree with all said above regarding the interior which is a complete piece of junk[:(!], and the landing gear which is tough[:(!]:
i’m not a scratch builder [V]so just shoved some ju-88 resin cockpit detail to fill the space (a big one!)…highly inaccurate, but pleasing to the eye nonetheless[:p];
the landing gear was about as much scratchbuilding as i ever want to do[V][:(!][}:)]…nothing fitted where it was supposed to, and it still looked and felt as if it were going to snap at any time!!
…and i thought it was just me who thought the fuselage made it look like the dornier banana-plane!!![:p]
all that said, the kit still looked quite cool after i completed it…i suggest some resin guns (from ju-88) and etched gunsights, and maybe some superscale decals…i’m a big Battle of Britain fan, so this plane had particular interest…
if you need details of decals, just ask.
regards,
nick
Howdy, Nick![:)]
Thanks for the info. I’m avoiding the dodgy landing gear altogether! Not a bad idea about the Ju-88 cockpit set. Might do that myself, or just stuff it with bits from the spares box!
The airwaves PE set has gunsights and triggers, so I might just spruce up the kit guns, which are simple, but straight and round.
Did you notice the rampant ambiguity in the instructions? One example is the location of the loop antenna. Step 1 says put it on the forwardmost hole in the canopy, then in step 2 it’s on the fuselage. The painting diagrams show it back on the canopy, but in the rearmost hole. The box art, which must have been done by a kid in the 1st or 2nd grade, doesn’t show it at all.
So I have 4 choices just for the loop antenna! [:(!]
Gotta check those refs…
Anyway, I love the aircraft, and it seems like a great model can be had, so here I go!
Brian, The kit is definitely a Hobbycraft “original” and is not a particularly good model, to be honest. The same can be said for the whole series of 1/48 that they make, which includes the E/F, M/P, and Z. I certainly agree with Swanny’s comments and agree that the worst failing of the kit is the cockpit. You really have to be motivated (and prepared to invest lots of research time) to get through the confusing instructions. The landing gear is not that bad if you make sure to glue the struts (B29) very securely to the firewall plates (C9). Parts B33 through B36 (gear bracing) offer little or no structural support for the gear. So if you avoid prepainting these items you can probably do the gear without THAT much trouble. The banana problem is not worth the bother, in my opinion. Hobbycraft has released the Do-17Z with “new-tooling” or “re-tooling” recently but most people say it is the same old kit with much better and more comprehensive decals. I don’t know if the instructions are revised and I’ve heard some complain that the clear portions are hazy, or some such thing. I’d suggest you replace the canopies with vac-form. I don’t think someone with marginal interest in the Do-17 will usually finish one of these HC kits. Having said that, you can see a complete build of this subject at ARC: http://www.arcforums.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=81272 The loop should be on top the canopy but it seems oversized and much too thick. You might want to a spare bombsite fairing to approximate a teardrop shaped fairing that is sometimes seen on these aircraft. I can pass along some useful reference info, if you write me off-board.
Wow Shreddy, how’d you find this three-year-old thread? It was great re-reading it! Thanks for all your input on the kit.
Sadly, although my original posts were brimming with enthusiasm, I never started the kit. Actually, I sold it and the PE just this past February at a modeller’s flea market for 3,500 yen (about $30 USD).
Still, there’s a bunch of good info in this thread for anyone else who wants to build this kit, so thanks for the revival, Shreddy!
Better late than never? I’d imagine there are many people (like yourself) who have bought this kit and watched any enthusiasm slowly get sucked away … After finishing one of these kits I am devoting the rest of my days to warning others about it. We must do what we can to reduce suffering in the world. I must admit that I’m tempted to get another Do-17Z though…
J-hulk, for a few pics of the Do-17 cockpit go back to Swanny’s site. On the home page at the top of the list is the review and construction link. Just click the pic. At the bottom of the page are a few picks of the cockpit of the plane.
EDIT: Oops. Didn’t notice the thread was that old. Guess he don’t need the info now.[:I]
Wow, where does the time go? It doesn’t seem like it was that long ago when I did the original posts to this thread. I have since reviewed the E/F kit in the series. Hopefully with the renewed interest in the whole series we might see some good aftermarket pieces show up soon.
