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1:32 Douglas A-26 Invader from Trumpeter/Hobbyboss?


Iain

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4 hours ago, thierry laurent said:

Indeed, they were using DC-6 propellers. T-33 wingtip tanks have globally similar shapes but alas the dimensions were totally different. You cannot use them (this was one of the first things I checked when I got the kit). 

Interesting on the tip tanks ... do you have dimensions?  Perhaps we could reach out to "K"?

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Okay, I've now well and truly stepped in it - I just bought the kit, and a Big Ed PE set to go with it. I have more AM 'goodies' I plan on buying, such as engines (I'm thinking about buying the Fast Fix engines), but there's no great hurry there as it will probably take a couple of months for this kit to arrive on its slow boat from China. This will NOT be an OOB build, but at least I'm prepared for that. I will post my thoughts about the kit whenever it arrives.

 

Regards,

 

Jason

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14 hours ago, thierry laurent said:

Indeed, they were using DC-6 propellers. T-33 wingtip tanks have globally similar shapes but alas the dimensions were totally different. You cannot use them (this was one of the first things I checked when I got the kit). 

They're not making any of this easy, huh? LOL

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I have taken Tamiya Corsair Propellers and cut the tips down  9/32" in length, just a guess, but they look pretty convincing as A-26K props ????hOuGr4s.jpgzLu0X9N.jpg

 

As far as the Hobby Boss kit goes, so far, Yes the fuselage is bad in cross section, I feel it can be corrected to a "Look A Like" profile for most, a lot of work could make it right though. The gun nose seems to be pretty close to the right shape as far as drawings show. One thing good about Hobby Boss kits is that they mold them with really heavy walls so it leaves alot of material to sand away at least !!! The engine cowlings are wrong, but they are really only wrong from what I see is that there is a lack of "ark" in their profile, they seem to be too angled from back to front, verses a nice "arc" towards the front of the cowl opening.  I think you could wrap a strip of styrene around the front third of the cowl and fill and sand and make it it look a bit better without having to replace, Just my take on it...

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Mine's arrived - mixed feelings - but a far better starting point than the old ID Models vac I was playing with 25 years ago IMHO.

 

Minded to do a review if there's any interest - I think we know most of the issues at present - but I think there are a few more that need to be addressed.

 

Iain

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43 minutes ago, Iain said:

Minded to do a review if there's any interest - I think we know most of the issues at present - but I think there are a few more that need to be addressed.

 

Iain, as you are one of the most respected and trusted members of this website, I always appreciate your thorough and thoughtful reviews of kits. To boot, if you notice something that none of us did, we can all be the wiser. I'd say fire away.

 

- Dennis S.

  Thornton, CO USA

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Well, I just received some of my AM gubbins for the A-26 kit. I'm very impressed with the Fast Fix engines - very detailed, down to the wiring, and all in one piece. No glueing separate cylinders onto the engine (which I hate doing). Remember that it's not an entire engine - just 1 and 1/2 cylinder banks. But it will look very nice in the A-26 cowlings, whenever I receive my A-26 kit. And it should fit nicely - the eBay listing even had them fitted in the A-26 cowlings, and they looked very nice indeed.

 

Regards,

 

Jason

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That's fine with me, Thierry! I'm not planning on a B-26K, right now. I'll wait for someone to come out with some AM parts for that version (hopefully), then maybe order another kit. What I'm interested in now, is a WWII or Korean War Invader (I realise the canopy is off, being a mix of the early and late canopies, but hopefully some AM manufacturer will rectify that). I'm gratified to see the amount of AM parts being released, in both resin and PE, and it seems like I'm stocking up on most of it.

 

Regards,

 

Jason

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I was just looking through my kit. Its a bit confused isnt it. The canopy is suitable for an early B but then theres no ventral turret. The dual cockpit and control wheels appear to be a dead ringer for the B-26K.  I was going to just build this straight from the box and stuff all of the inaccuracies , but now im in two minds.

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I'm going to try and sort out what I can, using AM parts, and any scratchbuilding I can do (without too much trouble). I want my model to be detailed, and reasonably accurate (no 14-cylinder R-2800s, for example), but I'm not going to make this my life's work. This is just a hobby, after all. I'll have a better feel for what I'm up against once I get my kit. It looks like I'll have all my AM parts by the time my kit arrives.

 

Regards,

 

Jason

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

In my eyes, surface detail of the Hobby Boss kit is pretty nice. The large parts also fit together pretty well. But shapewise, it's flawed. The biggest problem for me is the fuselage cross-section, especially at the canopy area, where it's very obvious. Therefore I started to think about a solution, using 3d printing, which ended up in a littel act of surgery. Here is the current status:

 

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Cheers

Alex

 

Edited by AlexM
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