godfrey1775 Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 (edited) I saw this kit the other day in the hobby shop and inquired about, having never seen it before. I was told that it is an excellent kit and it is certainly attractively priced. Is this a new kit? Has anyone on here built it? How does it compare to the venerable Tamiya Thunderbolt? Edited August 10, 2011 by godfrey1775 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jester292 Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 Which scale are you referring to? I can only speak in 1/48 terms. Are you talking about the P-47D or the P-47N? I don't think Tamiya made a P-47N. If it's the D, go with Tamiya. Aaron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
godfrey1775 Posted August 10, 2011 Author Share Posted August 10, 2011 Sorry! Yes I am referring to the 1/48 scale. I know the Revell is the "N' and Tamiya's is the "D" , but just comparing bubbletop P-47's, I'd like to know how the Revell stacks up. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
waylandcool Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 The P-47N that Revell just released as a rebox of the Pro-Modeler kit from a few years ago. Not a bad kit for the price. The Tamiya D has more detail then the Revell kit but the Revell kit is still a nice one. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
godfrey1775 Posted August 10, 2011 Author Share Posted August 10, 2011 It looks like it has nicely engraved panel lines. If i threw in an aftermarket cockpit, seat and added some photoetch, it would probably still come in cheaper or at least comprable to the Tamiya, and I'll bet you couldn't tell the difference! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jester292 Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 Tamiya's is very nice. One of the nicest kits ever produced (in my opinion). I have built Pro-Modeler's P-47N and I enjoyed that very much. The gear wells are quite unorthodox, but its a nice kit. The decals were good, too. If you get the Tamiya "D", splurge for an aftermarket decal set. Aaron Quote Link to post Share on other sites
James Colley Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 (edited) Isn't this more a question of what type of P-47 you want to build, if a D, then Tamiya is the choice; The Revell kit isn't any good for this, as it's an N; if you want to built an N, they Tamiya isn't an option, as they don't do one, and Revell is your choice. Edited August 10, 2011 by James Colley Quote Link to post Share on other sites
godfrey1775 Posted August 10, 2011 Author Share Posted August 10, 2011 Isn't this more a question of what type of P-47 you want to build, if a D, then Tamiya is the choice; The Revell kit isn't any good for this, as it's an N; if you want to built an N, they Tamiya isn't an option, as they don't do one, and Revell is your choice. Actually I'm really not concerned if it is a "D" or an "N" model, I just like the bubbletop Thunderbolts and the Revell is priced half of the Tamiya. I just wanted to see if anyone had built this Revell offering and if it can hold it's own against the Tamiya. (Especially with a little aftermarket TLC.) I have not seen the Revell kit inside the box or seen a built one in person, but I'm told that it IS an excellent kit. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
redwoodmodels Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 Sorry! Yes I am referring to the 1/48 scale. I know the Revell is the "N' and Tamiya's is the "D" , but just comparing bubbletop P-47's, I'd like to know how the Revell stacks up. The Revell N is the most accurate N I think in shape and detail (the Academy N at the very least has the wrong engine, and I think wrong prop). The Revell N, however, is NOTHING like Tamiya in terms of quality. The cockpit is generally ok (I actually like it), but the seat is totally unusable (replacement is available - link). The surface finish is pebbly (at best), and the recessed panel lines are inconsistent and disappear in places (like on the belly). The assembly of it is weird with part of the bottom fuselage molded as part of the lower wing, and that part is not the same size or shape as the fuselage it's supposed to fit into. The landing gear are pretty detailed, but they're molded as part of the wheel bay wall, which means that the landing gear are sticking out of the wing from the second you decide to glue the wing halves together. The gun ports are a separate part, and those parts are not the same size or shape as the wing. My upper wing parts were severely warped (bent upward & flat airfoil) because the back part of the wing is much thicker and cooled much slower than the other part. Part of the flaps (top and bottom) are molded as part of the upper wing, and that created huge sink marks on the upper surface of my wing along the flap lines. The engine has the right crank case, but is way too small in diameter. It looks like maybe 1/50th scale or smaller. There is a step where the forward cowl ring is about half a millimeter smaller than the cowl all the way around. And compared to Tamiya, the fit of that kit sucks. HOWEVER...I've seen this kit built mostly out of the box (except for the seat and engine) into a GORGEOUS model with a little work and skill, so it is very doable. It just isn't shake and bake. Plus, at the local grocery store toy isle, they have this kit for $12, which means you can buy at least 4 for the same price as one Tamiya P-47M. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jester292 Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 (edited) I'm not doubting anything Redwood is saying, but I just want to throw out there that the fit of my Pro-Modeler (Revell) P-47N was "better than decent" to "good", mostly "good". The panel lines were consistent and there was no step on the cowl. The wingroots had large gaps on the top. Your milage may vary. I have built both kits. Aaron Edited August 11, 2011 by jester292 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
redwoodmodels Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 Here's a thread showing some of the issues (especially the panel lines). The cockpit shots are kind of blurry, but you'll get the idea about the seat. I don't think this kit needs a resin cockpit, just a seat. http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/lofiversion/index.php/t20618.html There's a built model about half way down the page where you can see the sink marks in the top of the wing above the flaps. Scott had the same problem with the warped wings that I did, but both of his were warped. http://www.modelingmadness.com/scotts/allies/us/pmp47n.htm Here's a spure shots topic. You can see the funky design of the wings, especially the center section, ailerons, and flaps. See how they divided the flaps halfway across on the bottom? On mine, there's a big gap along that join that I'm trying to figure out how to fix. You can sorta see the sink mark across the top. That sink mark is directly above the join on the bottom. http://cs.finescale.com/FSMCS/forums/p/139897/1466122.aspx I'll have to take my own picture of the cowl, but there's a step of about 1/2mm all the way around the cowl where the cowl ring joins the main part of the cowl just like there was on the Monogram B-25J (if you've ever seen that) and I think the Monogram A-1 Skyraider as well IIRC. The cowl should look like Tamiya's. There's also a step in the cowl flaps where they're mounted to the cowl about 1/2mm higher than the surface of the cowl. They're posed open so you can't just sand them down. I think the OOB guy just cut them out and remounted them equal to the surface of the cowl. Don't misunderstand. I'm not trashing this kit. THIS KIT IS THE ONLY WAY I KNOW OF TO BUILD AN ACCURATE P-47N OOB (for the most part). And it is especially nice at this price. I'm just saying, it's not Tamiya. If you buy this expecting that, you won't be happy. But if you buy it expecting a chance to exercise and expand your modeling skills, then you'll be overjoyed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
redwoodmodels Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 Actually, on the Scott Van Aken build, you can see the steps in the cowl. http://www.modelingmadness.com/scotts/allies/us/pmp47n.htm Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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