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Revell P-51D - Great, or merely Good, or ??


CANicoll

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Just wondering Guys,

 

I see a Eduard resin replacement propeller for the mustang at Hannants.

 

How is the kit Prop?

 

Thanks for any info

Edited by ajf
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No replacement is necessary, but kit props always need some attention.

 

For the Revell P-51D the outline shape looks good enough to me, but prop blades generally can do with some refining and sharpening along the trailing edges, and then while still slightly warmed, a little more twist can be induced by pulling between your best pincer-like thumb and fingertip as you would with a pressure roller. You may as well round off the leading edge and remove any moulding line that might be lurking there while you're at it.

 

It helps to know when determining leading and trailing edges, in which direction your prop turns. So Merlins are almost always right hand tractor i.e. the port blade rotates toward starboard, or in a clockwise direction when viewed from the pilot's position.

 

One handy tip I picked up from some informative soul in one of the many reviews and builds I've read is that the blade cuffs were a rubberised material - perhaps even rubber - and should not show worn metal or scratches. I repeat it here as something worth being aware of when the Prismapencil or drybrush is being wielded with gay abandon for those llke me who didn't already know..

 

Having said that, I had read previously that the reason for the cuffs were that they assisted cooling in radial engines, which makes sense.

So I'm not clear on what benefit they bestowed on Mustangs. But they're all learning experiences, right?

Edited by Chek
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Just to point out that a lot of the critique regarding this kit is the result of poor cleanup of the parts. These days the fit of parts is so precise that if not cleaned up well issues may arise.

That's just good old modelling. Not mentioning the lack of quality control on some kits.

It's a nice product for an excellent price. Sometimes it seems we cannot accept anyting other than Tamiya quality these days.

Cheessh :hmmm: :innocent: :whistle: :wicked: :thumbsup:

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I'm surprised this thread is still going, I have not checked in while. Having finished my RoG Stang a month ago, I have had time to reflect on the build. Yes, there were some frustrations, if you were to quantify the sink marks filled in inches, it was a lot! By my best estimate I filled 24†of sink marks, this was not counting the ones I missed on the gear doors and top wings. For a modern tooled kit, it is almost unacceptable, this is the most amount of filler I have used on ANY kit I have ever built...however...for $27 I paid, I have accepted it as a necessary evil. The other bad part is the canopy, it just sucks, it is optically distorted, no way to fix other than replacement. However, both sink marks and the canopy are cheap fixes, I probably used $1 worth of filler and you can find Tamiya canopies for a few bucks. Problem solved.

 

Now, having said that...the RoG Stang is an incredible Value that if you have the time and patience will give you a beautiful model. Having finished, I am very happy with the look of the final product. It's 95% great shape, a few things that don't look perfect, like the chin scoop, but as I have the Hasegawa to compare with, it is miles ahead in detail. And...I will probably get attacked for saying this...I think the cockpit is better than the Tamiya! I have to admit that I bought mine as just a practice build for figuring out how to do NMF finishes, but as I tackled and overcame its issues, it came out better than I thought.

 

This week, the one I ordered back in early December finally showed up on my doorstep, and I have plans for it, I will be upgrading it with rivets, new canopy, Yahu or Eduard IP, brassin wheels, and Montex masks. So, yes, I will be building another one!

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'm quickly losing patience with these two I'm building.  I'm almost there, and I will finish instead of throwing into the round file.  But just last night I was fitting the belly scoops.  The fuselage gap at the small scoop isn't even flat.  Kind of V shaped where the two fuse halves go together. Creates a nasty gap that needs filling.  The large scoop has a nice contour to it but the belly is flat where it meets.

Main belly scoop itself too narrow by more than 1/16 of an inch leaving  gaps on the side that need extensive filing and filling.

Fitting the wing to the fuse was another frustrating area. I finally figured I had to trim some plastic in the wing assembly to get the wing forward enough to lock into place properly. 

Tread on the wheels doesn't even line up. Probably going to sand down the centers to look worn out.

Lets not even get started about the canopy arriving split in half. 8 weeks later and still no replacement. I think Revell going belly up has ended any hopes of ever getting a replacement.

Edited by ScottsGT
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Scott, sort of a dilemma Isnt it? DO you keep plugging on, knowing you have to replace the broken canopy with such an optically dirty one, which may never come. The tires are horrible, I looked at them and said, hell no! I ordered resin wheels, and a replacement decal set. Although, if I had known early, I would have grabbed a canopy out of my Tamiya kit. But, if you leave the canopy open to display the cockpit, its not so bad. I did finish mine, and it produced a nice model.

 

I ended up getting another one (I ordered in early December), I plan on a few mods for the next one...

 

1. New Tamiya canopy.

2. Eduard or Yahu IP

3. Barracuda cockpit decals

4. Resin flaps

5. AM decals

6. Resin Wheels

7. lots of filler

 

If the above adds up to about $80, then factor in about another $30 for all the shipping...Wait a minute...why don't I build a Tamiya? You can get it for $99 shipped. 

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Scott, sort of a dilemma Isnt it? DO you keep plugging on, knowing you have to replace the broken canopy with such an optically dirty one, which may never come. The tires are horrible, I looked at them and said, hell no! I ordered resin wheels, and a replacement decal set. Although, if I had known early, I would have grabbed a canopy out of my Tamiya kit. But, if you leave the canopy open to display the cockpit, its not so bad. I did finish mine, and it produced a nice model.

 

I ended up getting another one (I ordered in early December), I plan on a few mods for the next one...

 

1. New Tamiya canopy.

2. Eduard or Yahu IP

3. Barracuda cockpit decals

4. Resin flaps

5. AM decals

6. Resin Wheels

7. lots of filler

 

If the above adds up to about $80, then factor in about another $30 for all the shipping...Wait a minute...why don't I build a Tamiya? You can get it for $99 shipped.

 

Just to be fair...

To bring up your Tamiya to the same level as the Revell with the add-ons, you need to add the price of the same add-ons save the canopy and (perhaps) the putty ;-)

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I think the Revell kit is the de facto 1/32 P-51D for those who'd rather, or through financial circumstances, have to spend £30 on a kit, instead of £95.

 

I've bought four. Eduard will soon start throwing out cockpits, gun bays, landing flaps, etc, so you can details the bits you want, and the rest of the AM market will want to catch up with such a high-selling kit.

 

I can't thank Revell enough. With the Mk.II & Mk.IX Spitfire, Fw 190A-8 & F-8, Me 262 nightfighter & early He 219, I've bought an awful lot of plastic for not a lot of money recently. If they could just release some new Ju 88's and He 111's, I'd be delighted and have enough to keep me going for many years.

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 I think Revell going belly up has ended any hopes of ever getting a replacement.

 

Revell has not gone belly up unless you're talking about Revell USA.

Revell Germany (soon to be Revell) is still cooking and you should

get replacement parts from them. It may take awhile but Revell has

always been good about that sort of thing. They should have a U.S.

distributor soon which would make replacements quicker  :shrug:

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