High Planes 1/72 Republic P-47N Thunderbolt

HIGH PLANES 1:72 REPUBLIC P-47N THUNDERBOLT

Reviewer: Derrick Winters (rec.models.scale)
Kit Review submitted: 2 December 2002

Kit Details:

High Planes #72051 - P-47N Thunderbolt

The Kit:

I picked this up for $25AUD at a model store and had heard about, but never built a kit from these guys before. Since they are local, I thought it was high time to give them a go. I went into this project realising there was a fair bit of work ahead of me but also conscious that my experience and skills should get me across the line. Was I right? Well read on and find out.

This is marketed as kit number #72051 and comes in a reasonably sturdy box with a static black and white sketch of the aircraft - a bit like looking at the aircraft from a two o'clock high position. Inside the box is a mixture of plastic, metal and resin. The plastic is in a light blue colour and covers the majority of parts for this kit and totals about 27. Panel lines are finely engraved. There are four white metal parts making up the tailwheel, undercarriage legs and cockpit control column. There are three resin parts provided for engine and main wheel components. A single and very clear vacform canopy makes up the final included component of the kit.

Georgia National Guard boxing

Instructions:

This is probably the first point where you know the kit should only be undertaking by those who are experienced at building Limited Run Kits. There are no real assembly steps as such, only a list of parts, a couple of sketches and a suggested order of assembly process. In otherwords, don't really expect to be directed through the construction phase. If you have already built early releases of MPM or similar style kits with one double sided sheet of instructions containing only one or two sketches with the parts and the basic area into which they go, then you would have a fair idea of what I mean here. Colour schemes and markings are provided for the basic aircraft version with blue nose and striped tail, and FS numbers are quoted.

Construction:

Absolute care must be taken when removing parts from the sprue as attachment points are heavy and it is extremely easy to gouge and break plastic. As with most limited run kit parts they really benefit from a proper clean up, removing imperfections, ejector pin marks, small bits of flash and the like. Before mating parts together it is also of benefit to properly test fit, trim and then sand the mating surfaces to suit. This is a standard set of tasks throughout the construction phase, which I won't continually remind you with during the review (it's enough to point it out fully here). Stock up on some sandpaper and filler as these two essential tools are called upon at regular intervals.

The basics are provided for in the cockpit which is simply seat, stick, instrument panel and floor. Apart from the control column these parts are all plastic. Test fit of the fuselage halves around the cockpit floor revealed a gaping chasm, in the fuselage, so the floor had to be trimmed accordingly. Positioning of the floor correctly is not a strength of the instruction sheet so experience and some amount of luck is needed in knowing exactly where it is supposed to go. Taping the seat to the floor and the fuselage halves in position was the way I went about determining this, as well as scribing a line underneath (or at the corners) the floor as a marker to where the floor is to be placed later. The instruction panel is a poor fit and could do with some extra detail. I'm not sure if there is an aftermarket set for the cockpit, but if there is, get it! Remember, there is a clear bubble canopy to place on later so a lot of detail will be seen. I worked with the kit parts and then added side console, rudder pedals and some radio equipment from stretched sprue. Seat belts were added from masking tape. The cockpit interior was given an interior green wash and affixed inside the fuselage half. After a bit more test fitting and trimming, the fuselage halves were brought together and clamped with rubber bands and pegs. Afterwards the join lines were filled and sanded ready for attachment of the other main components.

On the whole the fit of all the major components was not too bad, but the absence of locating pins and the like must be noted. Remember this is a limited run kit so have to proceed as such. All the parts need their mating surfaces sanded and prepared to aid in the adhesion process. Filler will be needed in most areas and test fitting with necessary adjustments is also very common. A couple of areas that need particular attention are the wings and engine/cowling with poor fits being the main issue at hand. The wheel well bay does include some detail but needs to be shaved down so upper wing halves fit. A sanding of the trailing edges to thin them out does not go astray either.

The engine block is resin and needs to be attached with super glue. It's a poor fit inside the cowling which in turn is a poor fit onto the fuselage. Prepare surfaces well, test fit and then trim to overcome these challenges. With limited run experience behind you it is not too bad.

The undercarriage was reasonably straight forward providing a thorough clean up of the parts and surface preparation was applied first. Some plumbing and other small components were added from stretched sprue. To emphasise again that this kit is for experienced modellers the final external detailing must be scratch built. Combining usage of stretched sprue, plasticard and the spares box I added on the wing cannons, exhaust rings, aerials and pitot probe.

The propeller blades do not look quite right for some reason when compared to static aircraft photos but were nevertheless added onto the the nose, and effectively this was the final thing placed on the kit.

Colour Schemes:

You have a choice of four aircraft to reproduce from the decal sheet, all of which are finished in overall natural metal and olive drab anti-glare top surfaces. The options are:

19 FS, 318th FG, 'Honolulu Tina' with blue nose ring and black/yellow striped tail fin. This was the version I chose since it looked the most colourful and striking.
463 FS, 507th FG, 'Shell Pusher' featuring blue triangles on yellow tail fin.
456FS, 414th FG, 'Pris Prissy' with black band on rear fuselage in front of an all blue tail area.
456FS, 414th FG, as example above with serial code 774 and an all blue nose ring in addition to the colour notes above.

I found it was necessary to apply an undercoat of primer to this model and fix up any imperfections. I applied insignia yellow to the tail, medium blue to the cowling and nose ring, silver to the fuselage and olive drab to the top surfaces - all from the Humbrol range with each stage masked off before moving to the next. The natural metal scheme was applied first before the other colours.

Decals:

Printed by Fantasy Printshop the decals have very good colour depth and are thin and go onto the model surface very well. The black tail stripes need a touch up with paint afterward to hide some yellow seeping through. The properties of the decals were not that much unlike propagteam which I have used on many occasions before, the same applying principles should be used here. Apart from a couple of decals trying to curl into themselves I had no problems and would rate them as being very good.

Accuracy:

I placed the completed kit against various reference sources and overall the completed model certainly captures the P-47N in convincing fashion. The dimensions are also spot on to scale, or near enough thereto. My only real gripe is with the propeller blades, not matching my photos. Overall otherwise, very acceptable accuracy.

Overall Recommendation:

I was going to start this paragraph off by referring novices to the Revell kit, before I suddenly realised that's actually an "M" kit they produce! In any event Heller produce an "N" but I do not know how accurate that kit is (see review via links below - Ed). I found this kit pretty rough going at times but I achieved an excellent finished model. If this is indicative of High Planes model kits then it is fair to say they should only be built by experienced limited run modellers who know how to get themselves out of rough spots and can scratch build the extra detailing components required to complete the model. On the plus side this is an accurate P-47N as best as I can assess, and the result at the end of the day was well worth the effort put in. I may have been a bit on the critical side with the construction notes above, since it is my first High Planes kit, so they might be a little easier once you get a couple under your belt. Anyway, on the basis of the notes stated in this paragraph the kit can be recommended.

Related Reviews:-

Related INBOX Reviews:-

Academy 1/72 P-47D Thunderbolt "Razorback"
Revell 1/72 P-47M Thunderbolt [revised 99' tooling]
Revell 1/72 P-47M Thunderbolt ['99 tooling]

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