General Grievous Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 At one time, Revell of Germany still had the old Revell mold, but I believe it still had the VF-84 box art. Yep, I confirm this. I was actually surprised when I saw a RoG blue box with that same old Revell VF-84 art. GG Quote Link to post Share on other sites
juan Posted September 7, 2009 Author Share Posted September 7, 2009 Thanks! In regards to the Revell and Monogram kits, the confusion comes because Revell and Monogram merged in the late 80's. Monogram felt Revell had better name recognition, so after awhile, they dropped the Monogram part of the name and went with Revell. It was just another example of how inept Monogram's marketing department is. The top model is the Revell release from back in the 70's. It's so bad that the picture on the box is actually of the Fujimi kit! The Revell kit has no wheel bays at all, and the cockpit has decals for the instrument panels and no control stick. The only small thing going for it is that it has the pre-production gun vent. That's the only thing I can think of that is actually a positive aspect of that kit. The Monogram, on the other hand, looks very nice when built up. There are some fit issues, but they can be overcome. I've built over 50 of them in my modeling life. It has good detail overall, and nice shape. All of the "Revell" releases as of now, even Revell of Germany for the most part, are the Monogram kit. At one time, Revell of Germany still had the old Revell mold, but I believe it still had the VF-84 box art. Essentially, if you don't purchase a Revell Tomcat with VF-84 box art, you will end up with the Monogram kit. Hopefully that will help a little. Thank you very much, Darren... Now I know the differences between Revell & Monogram moldings... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
toadwbg Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 Thank you very much, Darren... Now I know the differences between Revell & Monogram moldings... And knowing is half the battle Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fishwelding Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 And knowing is half the battle (Sigh). You're fishing for a "Yo Joe!" aren't you? I agree that Monogram's marketing team has been, well, perplexing to me over the last several decades. It's like Microsoft. They do make some great products, but their PR people are sometimes a positive liability. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
muswp1 Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 (edited) Quick question, when did Monogram "update" the F-14A boxing to a maybe F-14A+ standard. Sometime in the 1990's, Monogram modified the box description to claim that the kit had been updated to F-14A+ standards. I think all they did was just adding the F-110 burner cans and the updated NACA gun vents. Edited September 7, 2009 by muswp1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Darren Roberts Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 Quick question, when did Monogram "update" the F-14A boxing to a maybe F-14A+ standard. Sometime in the 1990's, Monogram modified the box description to claim that the kit had been updated to F-14A+ standards. I think all they did was just adding the F-110 burner cans and the updated NACA gun vents. I think you're referring to the Italeri kit. They updated (very poorly, I might add) the base A kit into an A+/B kit. It never had the NACA vents and the GE nozzles were horrid. Everything else was the basic A kit. When R/M released their D, they changed the engine shroud, which were permanently changed, but not the fairing. The also included NACA vents, the ECM blister on the boattail, and GE nozzles. They didn't touch the cockpit, so essentially what you got was an "almost" F-14B, except they didn't provide the TCS chin pod, only the dual chin pod. It's only been recently that R/M has released a "true" B and D. See the comments on R/M's marketing department! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fishwelding Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 Hasegawa By the way, does any aftermarket decal outfit currently produce these markings in 1/48th scale? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
THX1138 Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 Great overview. I'm building the Italeri one, as a "quicky in-between" to improve my skill before I get a new Hasegawa. I do also remember building the old Revell VF-84 one. It was horrible. But then again, it was the 80's. Many things from that period where horrible. Luckily there were many good things too Quote Link to post Share on other sites
muswp1 Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 (edited) I think you're referring to the Italeri kit. They updated (very poorly, I might add) the base A kit into an A+/B kit. It never had the NACA vents and the GE nozzles were horrid. Everything else was the basic A kit. When R/M released their D, they changed the engine shroud, which were permanently changed, but not the fairing. The also included NACA vents, the ECM blister on the boattail, and GE nozzles. They didn't touch the cockpit, so essentially what you got was an "almost" F-14B, except they didn't provide the TCS chin pod, only the dual chin pod. It's only been recently that R/M has released a "true" B and D. See the comments on R/M's marketing department! No, the kit I saw was R/M's current F-14A kit. It still had the old VF-142 box art, but on the side panel was where it mentioned the alledged "upgrade". I'm betting it came out when the molds were altered for the first "D" kits. EDIT: I found the kit on R/M's website: Revell 1:48 Scale F-14A Tomcat Edited September 7, 2009 by muswp1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Darren Roberts Posted September 7, 2009 Share Posted September 7, 2009 No, the kit I saw was R/M's current F-14A kit. It still had the old VF-142 box art, but on the side panel was where it mentioned the alledged "upgrade". I'm betting it came out when the molds were altered for the first "D" kits.EDIT: I found the kit on R/M's website: Revell 1:48 Scale F-14A Tomcat They are lying to you! :lol: I looked on all of the boxes I've got, both old and new, and I can't find anywhere on the box top that says it's upgraded to an A+ (which it's not). So, the website is in error. That's a big surprise. Chalk another goof up to R/M's marketing department. :D Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Skull Leader Posted September 8, 2009 Share Posted September 8, 2009 one cool (and oft overlooked) aspect of the EARLY revell kit is that it featured the shorter gun-muzzle often found on the pre-block 75 airframes that were in the prototype and early test jets (even some VF-124 frames had this early on.... and I think one managed to make it into the 80s with the short-nozzle... Darren may remember more). The overall shape of the revell kit isn't BAD (I thought it fit the bill better than the testors/fujimi kit, personally), it just has a serious lack of detail and yes, a few shape issues (no gear bays, ugly nose/windscreen, etc) Still a fun kit, I think! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
VFA-103guy Posted September 8, 2009 Share Posted September 8, 2009 I have one of the early Revell releases of the F-14 in VF-84 markings that I bought some 20 years ago still factory sealed. I got it at K-Mart for a whopping $9. It wasn't a great kit by any means, but the box gave it a cool factor. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Space Tiger Hobbes Posted September 8, 2009 Share Posted September 8, 2009 I have an Italeri kit billed as an F-14A+ on the box, but it's the original A parts inside. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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