I just recieved the trimaster kit today, and upon opening the box, I have to say I’m not very impressed. At first look the details are ok, but again,I’m not real excited.
The decals are old and yellowed.
This kit is numbered MAB-101 and is dated 1987! Oh-oh. Is this the kit everyone has been talking about? Please tell I didn’t order the wrong one. Please tell me to relax and the kit will build up to a nice Dora. They want almost $50. for this kit, I hope It’s worth it .
Puzzled in Ohio,
Jerry
Yes, it is worth every penny, im my opinion. It is FAR more accurate than the Tamiya kit. The decals will need to be replaced, but there are some beautiful aftermarket ones available. Check out Eagle Cals.
There are a couple things I suggest wuile building this kit. Separate the two instrument panels. Glue the bottom one to the cockpit tub, and the top one to the locators in the assembled fuselage halves.
After the fuselage halves are assembled, align and glue the wing tops to the fuselage. This will prevent any sanding or filling at the wing fillet, which might remove detail. When you install the lower wing, the fuselage will flex enough to ensure alignment.
The landing gear/wheel well can be a little tricky. Align the main gear and retractor arms by dryfitting them to the well. Glue the retracrors to the gear. When you glue the wheel well to the lower wing, move it forward and make sure that the gear legs and retractor arms (sounds like anatomy !) align at the proper angles.
Take your time, and dryfit. This is not a “shake-the-box” kit, but it looks more like a 190 than anything else in this scale.
Good luck on the build. I can answer any questions you may have (I’ve built a few of these).
Sweet, Thanks Pix. I guess I should be happy with the accuracy issue. After a closer look, the pe and metal parts do look impressive. I guess I was under the impression that this was a newer kit. I guess not all older kits are bad kits.
Thanks for the build tips. I’m sure they’ll come in handy. Also thanks for the pics of your build. If mine comes out half that good, I’ll be a happy camper.
I was hoping to hear from you, cause I know you are familiar with this model, and I needed to be reassured that I bought the right thing.
Thanks again Pix,
Jerry
I am awaiting the Trimaster kit. Can someone confirm the landing gear bay is open and that there are parts to depict the rear of the engine?
Thank you.
First, welcome to the forum, Mode !
The trimaster kit has the same closed wheel wells as the BMW radial-engined Fw 190s. I got an email from a person who makes resin plugs for this area. They look good, and are reasonably priced. Here’s a link to them:
http://partsrparts.homestead.com/Partslist.html
Use the “Click here to view parts.”
Here’s an article I did on this kit. I went into more detail about it:
http://s96920072.onlinehome.us/Gal4/3401-3500/gal3496_Fw-190_Lachance/gal3496.htm
Hope this helps !
Thank you very much for the information and the links.
Mark
Pix,
Thanks for the link. I’m gonna post it on the Langnase GB.
Dragonfly,
Fear not, you have the right kit! It is older, but the Trimaster kits were the first “High Tech” kits to come out. Sure, the decals need to be replaced, but the decals that come with the kit are not entirely accurate anyhow, so they’re discardable. The kit itself fits pretty well and builds up into a beautiful airplane. Coupled with the few corrections that need to be made (wheel well/engine bay), you can definitely turn it into one heck of a build, far better than the Tamiya kit.
Ok! Now… Where do I get the corrections(wheel bay,engine bay) and who makes them.
I really want to do this right.‘’ Whoops… I should have read pix’s reply first. Thanks Pix, you’re a godsend
Jerry