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1/72 Grumman Avenger


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I figure the Hasegawa kit is the best to have, but how far off is the Academy kit?

Does anybody know about the Aoshima kit? Is it one of their later releases with recessed panel lines or is it kind of clunky with lots of rivets? I've also seen the Airfix kit, how is that one, one of the better Airfix kits or is it one of the dogs? I noticed the Airfix kit is labeled as a TBM, is it accurate for a TBM? What were the major differences between the TBF and TBM? Is the Tarpon a TBF or TBM or are there differences between all three?

Any other 1/72 options?

Thanks in advance.

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Regarding the Aoshima Avenger, I think King Arthur said it best: "RUN AWAY! RUN AWAY!" Seriously, it's utter crap..one of Aoshima's early releases. I had one years ago, and as I recall I let a kid with no modeling experience build it for practice. It only vaguely resembles an Avenger, and is noticeably undersized for 1/72..maybe more like 1/76 or even 1/80.

Before going any further, a quick bit on the differences between the TBF and TBM. The TBF was built by Grumman, and the TBM was built by the Eastern Aircraft Division of General Motors (Grumman "farmed out" production of the Avenger and Wildcat to GM so they could concentrate on filling the massive orders for the Hellcat.) The TBM-1 was basically the same as the TBF, but some noticeable changes were introduced on the TBM-3: The TBF only had a single intake on the top of the cowl, while the TBM-3 had a second intake added to the lower cowl lip. The TBM-3 also had a full ring of cowl flaps, while the TBF just had a couple of flaps on the top and sides of the forward fuselage. Early TBFs also had a single gun forward of the cockpit on the right side, while later Avengers got rid of the fuselage gun in favor of a gun in each wing. I'm not entirely sure what the exact differences are between the TBF/TBM and Tarpon..I'll defer to our resident Brits on that.

As for modeling, the Hasegawa Avenger is hands down the best and most accurate in 1/72..I'm building it right now. It has been released as both the TBF/TBM-1C, and as the TBM-3, with the correct features for each variant (except the propeller in the TBM-3 kit should be the later "paddle blade" type.) It features crisp moldings, petite engraved panel lines, and is the only Avenger in 1/72 to offer the option of an open bomb/torpedo bay. It includes a torpedo and wing rockets, but no bombs. The cockpit is rather sparse, with just the basic seats and bulkheads, and decals provided for the pilot's instrument panel and consoles. I'm not sure if it's currently in production though..it's one of those kits that Hasegawa does a run of every few years, rather than keeping continuously in the catalog.

I believe currently your only other options in 1/72 are the Academy and Airfix kits The Academy kit represents and TBF/TBM-1, and is loosely based on the old Frog molding, but with engraved panel lines. It's one of Academy's earlier efforts, with rather heavy moldings lacking in finesse, and not much in the way of detail. However it is probably easier to find than the Hasegawa kit, and considerably cheaper, and it builds up into a credible looking Avenger. It also includes the bulged side windows of the Tarpon, although as I recall they're molded as solid clear blobs rather than hollow blisters. The Airfix kit is a TBM-3, and a relatively decent effort. The basic shapes are OK, but it's covered with raised rivets.

HTH,

Steve

Edited by Steve N
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Steve,

thanks so much for the detailed explanation. I often get confused with the Avenger variants. As you said, the Academy kit IS easier to get my hands on than the Hasegawa kit. Is it possible to use the Airfix kit's cowling & graft it onto the Acad kit to make a TBM-3?

TBM-3, with the correct features for each variant (except the propeller in the TBM-3 kit should be the later "paddle blade" type.)

Any visual examples so that I can see the difference? Also, does anyone make the correct TBM-3 props then?

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The paddle-blade prop can be sourced from a Hellcat or an F4U-1D kit (Hasegawa's reditions of these kits have decent props in them as does the Tamiya F4U-1D).

Regarding props, that is the single most noticiable exterior thing to fix on the Academy kit, as the hub on the one in the box is very poor. Change the prop and the Academy kit is a credible representation of the TBM-1C if one either doesn't mind the lack of interior detail or is willing to scratchbuild it. There might be a resin set out there for the Hasegawa Avenger that could be added to the Academy kit also, but I'm not sure of who might have made it or availability.

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There's definitely an Eduard photo-etch set for the Hasegawa Avenger, and I would think the interior bits would work on the Academy kit. The only improvement I made on my Hasegawa Avenger was to add True Details resin seats.

Is it possible to use the Airfix kit's cowling & graft it onto the Acad kit to make a TBM-3?

I'm not sure how well the fuselage contours would match up, and I think you'd have to do some surgery. I'd have to dig out the Academy kit, but as I recall the cowl is molded as part of the fuselage halves, with only the nose ring as a separate part, while the Airfix kit has a separate complete cowl.

Oh, and while we're on the subject of 1/72 Avengers, I just remembered that Lindberg released a TBM-3 "back in the day." It's pretty simplified and clunky though..here's a thread I found showing the parts and the built-up model..

Lindberg Avenger Build Thread

SN

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Thanks for the detailed input Steve, that was very helpful.

Thanks as well Joe, good to know about the Tamiya Corsair prop. I've got a couple of the Tam Corsair and they have two props in each kit so I could use one of those props on the Academy kit.

It would seem there is a difference between the exhaust pipes on the TBF and TBM as well as the cowl, as I found some Quickboost resin exhaust pipe sets for each online.

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I have this one. Haven't built it yet. It's not too bad looking, kind of like the Academy kit. In fact, it looks like Academy started with the FROG moulds and spruced them up. Instead of raised panel lines, the Academy has ingraved lines. Some other details have been refined, too. Some of the details parts could be drop-in replacements.

FROG.jpg

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Is it possible to use the Airfix kit's cowling & graft it onto the Acad kit to make a TBM-3?

Not really - the parts breakdown is very different in that area.

The gills are actually on the fuselage parts.

Only then would you find if the fuselage sections are similar.

Easier to find the kit for the version that you want to build.

Here's an Airfix TBM-3 that I finished last week

TBM3Avenger002.jpg

Airfix from 2004

AcademyTBF1Avenger.jpg

Here's are My Academy TBF-1s.

First a TBF-1 in Atlantic scheme. This one has the early cowl gun represented with a decal.

Academy_TBF1_AvengerWhite.jpg

Then a TBF-1C. These and TBM-3s had a 50cal in each wing

Academy_TBF1_AvengerBlue.jpg

I've got another Academy kit to build as a FAA aircraft.

Something else that anyone with the Academy kit should know - that yellow nose 301 aircraft that's depicted in the kit, should really be a TBM-3.

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IIRC, another issue with the Academy kit, is the lower fuselage side windows are for the Tarpon. The kit does not include clear parts for the regular TBM/TBF windows. They're relatively easy to make, but it's annoying to have to.

Mike

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IIRC, another issue with the Academy kit, is the lower fuselage side windows are for the Tarpon. The kit does not include clear parts for the regular TBM/TBF windows. They're relatively easy to make, but it's annoying to have to.

Mike

Mike, does this mean that the Academy kit out of the box is a Tarpon?
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Mike, does this mean that the Academy kit out of the box is a Tarpon?

As I said, it's almost a clone of the FROG kit. The clear parts are the same in both kits. In fact most of the parts are the same. Academy tweaked the moulds and moved some of the parts around on the sprues, but it looks like you could switch parts between kits without modification.

Sprue shots:

FROG:

http://modelingmadness.com/scotts/allies/gb/avengerpreview.htm

Academy:

http://www.luckymodel.com/scale.aspx?item_no=AC%201651

Chris

Edited by dogsbody
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As I said, it's almost a clone of the FROG kit...it looks like you could switch parts between kits without modification.

It is and you can. Even the stand was identical in the early issues - is this still on the sprue?

peebeep

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As far as it being a Tarpon, it has a bulged window but do either have the appropriate interiors? These, particularly the central observer's post, differ from the USN standard.

The Academy kit's pretty basic, you'd need aftermarket to do either version's interior in an accurate manner.

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I`d say you have a fair shot at procuring the Hasegawa kit if you live stateside. I tried to order mine from skywaymodels wich lists 3 different ones, but i don`t know the availability of any of them..they don`t seem to keen on answering my inquiries :-(

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