p-38 F/H

Modeling Subjects Aircraft
1

hello fellas i am planning on doing a P-38 either an F or H i have been looking for and it seems that the only games in town are the Hasegawa ones, my question is how good are them? i have heard that those kits are somewhat lame and lack of detail on the wheel wells and in the cockpit panels, does anybody has a word of advise? is this really true are they bad or “easy” kits?-

thanks in advance

Regards

Hector.

2

In 1/48 Academy also makes a kit of the early cowled Lighning.

3

never seen that kit before, but wich one is better?

thanks in advance

Regards

Hector.

4

I’ve built the Hasegawa. It’s not easy, but it’s a nice kit with more detail that the Academy in 1/48.

Wihle I’ve never built the Academy one, I hear it is easier to assemble and accurate as to shape…just less detail.

5

I’ve built the Academy P-38E and thought it was pretty good, but all P-38’s will be a hassle getting all the booms, wings, and tails fit together. I do remember some work filling and sanding around the engine nacelles on the Academy kit. I have the Hasegawa kit as well, and perhaps the Academy looks a wee bit better to me but I haven’t built the Hasegawa kit yet. A little aftermarket will help either one in the cockpit, but neither are just empty shells there either. Depends on how far you want to go, I guess.

6

I guess i will try to do something i have never done before, i have made upmy mind, im gonna go for the Has P-38F and gonna get the Verlinden P-38 Lightning Update, i dont know if theres any other AM items that i might get, so will start looking for as many add ons as i could, i will give it a try as i have never gone that far before-

thanks fellas!

Regards

Hector.

7

[2c]

You may have already bought your stuff but I thought that I would chime in anyway. I prefer the Academy kit over the Has. I think that it looks more like a P-38. I also have had fewer issues with the wing/boom joints as well. Yes, the Has kit does have more detail from the start, I just think that for the money, the Has kit needs a little too much work.

I hope you enjoy your Lightning. They are always “educational” builds no matter which kit you get.

8

Just an FYI, the differences of the early P-38s to the “J” not only is the shape of the engine cowls but also a redesigned cooling system in it’s entirety.

9

[xx(][xx(][xx(][xx(]

Thank you Screaminhelo, in fact yes i have bought the HAS kit, i once built a p-47 from Academy and it was fun but didnt like it much thats why i went with HAS but the kit didnt impact me as i expected, will have to buy a lot of A M items and i will make it a learning experience… see how it goes-

Thanks fella

[xx(][xx(][xx(][xx(]

10

Monogram makes one in 48th scale as well, I built one like…10 years ago. Was’nt a bad kit at all, like already said, aftermarket resins and PE parts will help any kit.

11

Just remember that when you are building a Lightning, there is no such thing as an easy kit.

Take your time joining the booms with the wings, this can be an adventure in seam filling with any maker. Some like to join the booms at the tail first, then make it work at the wing. The canopy is a 5 piece affair that can get a bit fiddly as well. Don’t get in a hurry and it makes a good model OOB.

I really prefer the Academy kit mostly from a bang for the buck point of view. Even though I find Academy to capture the look better (booms are slimer and there are fewer flush rivets) either kit looks good in the end. I don’t think that there is a great difference in overall detail between the two kits.

Although I have built the Monogram kit many times (one on the bench as we speak) it is showing it’s age. It isn’t engineered nearly as well as modern kits (the horz. stab. is a one piece affair that slides through the booms). The molds are worn and later kits don’t fit as well as the first one I built more than 20 years ago. The canopy was always a bit of a challenge. All things considered though, I love this kit. It can be built as a J,L,M,F-5 or a droop snoot OOB. The latter 3 do require some surgery but it is not really that bad. At one time, I had one of every version possible from this kit. Several moves later, I am starting over with the M.

Have fun with the Has kit. I don’t think that you will be sorry. It isn’t a bad kit at all.