Thanks for the comments Mike !
M. Brindos
Any problem areas to look out for with this one??
Just one: I had a problem with the front cockpit/canopy. I thought I could do a better job by not following the order laid out in the directions - so I'd guess that I'm at fault. It seemed like the right thing to do at the time ! (famous last words for many failures !)
There are two parts of the fuselage (that make up the walls of the cockpit) that are separate pieces. These join to the fuselage at the panel line that is directly over the front of the light grey wing walk area in the photo below.
I joined the two cockpit halves together first, then glued them to the fuselage, then put the 2 side canopy parts on, and finished it all off with the top canopy piece.
The directions would have you join two of the canopy parts to their respective cockpit parts, then join these two assemblies together, then join them to the fuselage, and lastly add the third canopy piece.
It just seemed like things might be more stable if I got all the non-clear parts assembled first. Stable ? Yes ! Alligned well ? Not so much.
When I eventually got everything together there was alot of sanding to remove interference and some slightly "off" angles between some parts.
Here's a shot of the worst of it - after alot of correcting.
There are gaps where the top canopy part joins the others (above the pilot's head), and there's an offset of the side canopy part in the portside back corner where it joins the fuselage. No probs on the starboard side.
Other than this difficulty - the kit is really very nice. Some have expressed in reviews that they think the depth of the recessed panel lines is a bit on the deep side, but I prefer them like this, they're great for picking up washes and they stand up to a bit of sanding and the relatively heavy coat of paint that results from multiple brush painted layers. The clear parts are beautifully clear and the framing is very well defined which makes canopy painting a walk in the park.
Decals were good. (I'm pretty sure they're Cartograph decals) I had a small amout of silvering that I painted over, and some of them didn't snuggle down into panel lines as well as I would like. It's strange - I've had some of these cartograph decals in new Airfix kits respond really well under micro-sol solution and some that have seemed to stay stiffer. (?)
And then there's the fact that this is one of the only nice Blenheim kits that is readily available - and at an Airfix price.
I'd definitely recommend it. If you can supress the urge to go against the directions, you might have better luck than I !
Chris