I recently picked up the ProModeller Helldiver at an IPMS show, factory sealed for $15! This is a truly beautiful kit. I also picked up the Eduard cockpit pe detail set for $5 from another vendor. There was another one floating around but sold quick. The old Monogram 1/48 P47D and all the Century Series Jets are done very nicely and have beautifully detailed cockpits. I specially like the old Monogram F-100.
Is the present Revell 1/48 P-51D the old Revell kit or the re-worked Monogram P-51B/C /
I think that kit is the old Monogram kit, but I stand to be corrected.
If I recall correctly, Bill Koster was the gentleman responsible for a lot of the Monogram kits and their accuracy. I’ve fond memories of building a lot of the kits from the 60’s and 70’s - I do think they still hold up very well and are a great value for what you get.
i just built that one recently. here is the company stamp I had to sand off:
A good number of the kits I have are Revell/Monogram. That is all the local Hobby store (aka Michaels) carries. I think they are pretty good. Enough basic detail for an OOB build, and enough room for improvements to help build your skills
OWL
Glad to hear it.
Does the Revell 1/48 scale P-51 D kit have recessed “engine” detail molded inside an open engine panel?
The current 1/48 Revell P-51D is a re issue of a Monogram kit that was issued in the late 70s. Owl’s pic shows '77, and my memory is hazy on that. I do recall building it. It was a step up from their P-51B with a much nicer cockpit, and some gun bay and engine detail. Also a real nice seated pilot. Revell also did a P-51D around the same time, but it is not quite as nice.
I took a survey of my completed kits a short while ago, and Monogram is certainly top dog there so far. Especially when you include my fast movers in SEA camo or grays.
Sprue-ceGoose: “Does the Revell 1/48 scale P-51 D kit have recessed “engine” detail molded inside an open engine panel?”
I did not take a picture of that, but yes, it did have engine detail
OWL
Thanks, guys.
I asked about the P-51 D kit because I remember buying the Revell kit in the mid 1980s but giving up on it because of fit and rivet problems.
If you guys are interested about the detail issue, I have three old Monogram P51D"s that I want to build eventually. I can photograph and post the details since they are unbuilt. They really look very nice with crisp details. The raised panel lines should be easy to scribe to make them recessed. The pilot figure is also very nice.
Gotta ditto Bondo and the others regarding the kits to avoid… ALL of them are fine kits, when you add the prices into the mix…
Sure, they have their drawbacks, but that’s why they cost 12-16.00 rather than 35-60.00… One only has to look at what modelers here do with them to see it… Monogram kits are far and away the biggest “bang for the buck”, followed closely by Lindberg’s biplanes…
As for scratchbuilding, that’s a skill that one has to develop… As far as I’m concerned, that’s probably, next to finishing, the most important skill to master… No manufacturer gets it 100%… The first time you stretched a piece of sprue for an antenna, you were scratchbuilding…
Another thing is raised vs recessed details… Many of the older aircraft kits had raised lines simply because those are easier to mold, but some details are indeed raised… The Monogram SBD kit this more or less accurately… The early SBDs did in fact have numerous rivets sticking up all over the place, as well as overlapping panels, rather than flush rivets and butt-jointed skins… And a lot of the high-end shake & bake kits released today have recessesed lines and sunken rivets that are so far out of scale that they’re laughable…
Speaking of the Monogram TBF, here’s some shots of mine in progress, with a mix of scratchbuilt parts and old kit parts:
In the ones
below, I remove the plastic behind the front row of jugs and added more cut from a P-61 engine, along with a new vac-formed cowl.
As for scratchbuilding seats, they too are pretty easy…
I took a piece of sheet plastic and cut it, then used a lighter to heat-form it into a seat-pan and armor plate for the gunner.
Holding the part in one hand, I moved the lighter close to the edge of the part, an’ it magically turned 90 degrees and I quickly grabbed it with my thumb and finger to form the dimple in the pan for the parachute pack. I cut the armor plate back into shape with a scissors, then sanded it round, adding a small piece of plastic for a mount.
So basically, there’s nothing magical about scratchbuilding parts for the Revellogram kits… You just need to set your mind to it, and look around the house for parts & materials…
If you can find one (They crop up on Ebay from time to time) get a Mattel Vac-U-Form machine… I’ve had one for years and it’s absolutely essential for the Creative Gizmologist. Being able to vac-form canopies, cowls, gear doors, panels, etc, is a Godsend for a scratchbuilder like me… There’s a guy on Ebay that sells the plastic sheets for it as well, both in clear and white. That’s also how I solved the canopy issue with the Monogram Dash 4 Corsair… I cut out the entire frame, glued the canopy into it, the then vac-formed the canopy and windscreen as a unit, then cut the canopt from the windscreen… Took a couple-three attempts, but the plastic’s cheap and you can afford to throw way the ones that you screw up, unlike “store-bought” replacement parts.
So go ahead, buy any of the Revellogram kits…
Oh, one more thing regarding accuracy… That’s entirely up to you… 99.9% of the people you who view your work won’t know the difference if you use a P-61 seat in a TBF or cut down a P-47 panel for the SBD. Unless they have the refs right in front of them or actually flew 'em, you’ll get a “pass”… “Suggestion”, rather than “Duplication” is where Imagineers and Creative Gizmologists shine… It just has to “look busy” in there, it doesn’t need to be bolt-for-bolt, rivet-for-rivet… Those B-25 radios in the center cockpit of the Avenger look just fine under the canopy…
These are reposts, but here are some Monogram classics I’ve built, since getting back to the hobby:
The P-40N in 1/72:
The TBF in 1/48, with modifications to make it a -1C:
(yes, I need to repair the radioman’s tunnel canopy, it doesn’t fit)
and the P-47D razorback, finished as Lt. Frank Klibbe’s “Little Chief”:
I love these kits!
@DoogsATX, I included the Kingfisher with the other USN aircraft, because it’s actually contemporary to them, it’s part of that generation. But I’m with you–I built it as a kid, too. I made the landplane version, so I could put it in my book shelf carrier deck display with the others [:D]. Now I have one in the stash, to finish as a yellow wings BB scout.
@Hammer–Your work is beautiful and impressive, as always! Well done!
The P-39 was issued in the late 60s, I think, and I remember reading that it represented a new level of detail in Monogram’s kits. I think the P-51B is also from that generation of kits, and if I’m not mistaken, the new issue by Revell includes a retooling of the molds to replace the raised panel lines with engraved lines. At least, I recall reading that somewhere online. I haven’t picked one up, though, to compare to the original kit boxing in my stash.
And that stash includes the following Monogram kits:
P-40B (4 or 5 kits)
F6F (in progress)
P-47D bubbletop (in progress)
P-47D razorback
2 SBDs (70’s white box and a Revell boxing with the Operation Torch markings)
TBD (5 or 6 kits)
TBF (2 more kits) (I’m going to need a 1/48 scale carrier when this is all done)
Me-109 (2 or 3)
Ju-87
Fw-190 (2 kits)
B-24D (the bonus boxing that included another P-40B, but it’s an eBay find and the fighter was gone)
P-38
P-39
P-61
A-26
B-26
PBY
A6M? Zero
and also 3 Nichimo copies of Monogram kits, the Dauntless, Helldiver and Spitfire IX.
And technically, the 2 Revell B-17F’s that I have are really Monogram kits, since it’s generally accepted that Revell copied the Monogram kit.
In short, I love Monogram!
Best regards,
Brad
Yes, my Monogram SBD that is in perpetual build mode has benefitted from lots of canabilization and some creative gizmology in the cockpit to make it “look busy”…
The pilots seat DF loop antenna, and gunners “turret” came from a derelict TBD
Much of the radio detail came from a scrapped B-25 along with a couple .50s for the cowl.
I scratch built an instrument panel overlay for the kit decal using some thin styrene, and an oil cooler with sprue and brass screen
And removed the kit bomb yoke mount and replced it with a reshaped piece of sprue.
Improved instrument panel placed along with canabilized TBD scope/sight
Working on a P-47 Razorback from Revell/Monogram right now, it looks like it was originally pressed in 1967. It’s cleaned up nicely and I had almost no fit issues with it. For $10 I cannot complain, decent detail (mostly all raised), but the price was right. I’m enjoying these cheap Revell kits, if I screw up I’m not all that mad.
Bidding on the Monogram P-47D bubbletop right now. I remember having a lot of fun with it and getting pretty decent results back when I was a teenager. It’s one of the maybe 6 or so kits that went along when my parents moved from Dallas to Phoenix once I went to college. Eager to see what I can do with it now, and to do a warm-up before splurging on the Tamiyabolt.
It builds up great! The only accuracy issue that kit has is the allignment of the wing guns. A minor issue that only a Jug lover would catch.[^o)]
Visited local Michaels during lunch to find the Revell / Testors kits expanded to a 12 foot long by 6 + high section with Revell 1/48 aircraft (WWII and modern ) , Revell autos and snap tite- lotta Star Wars snap tite gaining.
Now more Revell 1/48th WWII aircraft at Michaels than Hobby Lobby so the 40 pct coupons go there.
That, and apparently, the wings on the bubbletop are 1/8" too far back, because the design team used a slightly inaccurate drawing from a British magazine, when researching. When Monogram later developed the razorback, they had gotten data from Republic and corrected this error. I haven’t put the kits side by side, though, to see if this bears out.
Both the bubbletop and the razorback are very good kits, in my opinion and acknowledging that there are a lot of very nice 1/48 P-47 kits out there today. I wouldn’t turn my nose up at the newer kits, but I’m looking to build a selection from many different makers.
Can’t beat the pilot figure in the Monogram Thunderbolt, either, it’s a great little figure.
Best regards,
Brad
The P-61 is a bear of a build from what I hear. But, I’ve never had any big issues or complaints with Revell-Monogram kits myself. Sure, there are minor problems here and there, but, isn’t that the case with the majority of models, regardless of manufacturer? For RM models, I usually find good deals on good kits.
I notice the Mongram Hawker Typhoon is due to be re-released … [:D]
Any comments on that kit?