Thanks my friend @johnb!
Yes, those are some BIG models!

@lgardner: not only is this project impressive (I love the cockpit work), but it decisively puts to rest the Major Complaints from the Professionally Dissatisfied that the kit is "unbuildable" due to shape issues. Once you have this on its feet and painted, no one will notice all those things people moaned about when the kit was released. I have one of these myself and your work is definitely Temptation.

That cockpit is awesome, Louis! Looking forward to seeing this built. Someday I’ll do a Tamiya kit in 1/48. It’s a plane that I’ve always liked. I built the old Revell 1/72 kit as a kid around 1972. I built the Dragon kit in ‘93.

I know it has been a very long time since I have posted any updates. But I have managed to make some considerable progress with the building. The wings are assembled. The inner landing gear bay details were glued on the lower wing. This small raised part was actually part of the lower wing surface on the real plane. This caused a big bunch of hoopla and drama when this kit first hit the shelves. This is one of the reasons why some others have stated this kit is "un buildable"... yet here it is right in front of your very own eyes. This flaw is not very easily seen once everything is built up around it.

The previously assembled engine nacelles were installed on each wing.

I decided to build mine with the flaps deployed, even though these aircraft were not often seen on the flight line with them down. I wanted to show the additional details that were built into the kit right out of the box.

Here's a close up showing some of the details of the landing gear wells.

The engine cowlings were also assembled. Here the parts were prepped for gluing. I took the route that Spiros has done, and assembled the radiator parts before placing them into the cowlings.

These little round openings are what secure the radiators in place on the cowling.

However it's much easier to build the radiator assembly outside...

and then add it inside the cowl afterwards.

The spinners were also built at this time...

more to follow... stand by. 🙂

I painted the air cone that forced the airflow through the radiators using RLM 66. I also painted the radiators using an aluminum color.

Here you can see a close up showing the details that are barely visible once these parts are installed.

The cowling and radiator assembly fits very nicely against the engine nacelle.

The amount of radiator detail that is barely visible, becomes even less visible once the spinner is in place.

Here you can see how it looks with pictures taken from different angles.


The tail assembly was built and installed. Here I have temporarily placed the wings in position, to get an idea as to just how big this plane will be once it is completed.

This is a 6 inch steel ruler placed on top of the fuselage in between the engines. This gives you a good idea as to how big the model is.

Later on I decided to go ahead and glue the wings in place permanently.

I am experimenting with using different backgrounds to use for taking the final pictures.


So far this model has been a joy to build. It is also very big... as you can see, so far no filler has been required. I'm sure that some will eventually be needed, but it will be very little in contrast to the overall amount of plastic that has been used to form these parts.

As usual, comments are encouraged.

This is such a wonderful progress, my friend @lgardner!
I have a few other projects to finish, then recuperate with my Uhu!

Pedro, @holzhamer
Yes it is good to be back at it again. I agree with you, that you do get a lot for your money with this kit.

Like the other recent Revell 1/32 scale "new tool" releases, you get a lot for your money. I'm talking about kits like the P-51D-5, the Bf-109G series, their 1/32 Fw-190's and Spitfires, and then we can't forget about the He-111 and Ju-88 new tool kits... There's a lot of plastic stored in this box, and so far the fit has been very good. I am also very pleased with the details so far. I know that some people have bashed this kit to pieces for "this landing gear floor is shaped wrong and shouldn't be raised like this", and "this engine nacelle shape isn't proper", but I am very happy with it. As a rule don't pay too much attention to these people. Granted they are likely correct about what they say... but they also likely spend too much time complaining about kits and don't actually BUILD any. For me this model has been an absolute joy to build, and the fit has been spot on. One really can't complain at all about any of these kits I mentioned when you consider the price tag. If the incorrect things bother you too much, you can always add some resin bits to correct these deficiencies and still come out ahead.

Be on the look out for me to build one of their 1/32 scale Heinkel 111 kits, (and a big Ju-88A1) in the near future as part of our Luftwaffe group,... as soon as I finish up the Ju-52.

I have managed to knock over my 3X magnification light and break it in the process. This light has served me well, almost 20 years now. I hope the new one will last half as long. Mine would likely still be working, had I not broken the bulb, although the starter was acting up too, so it is likely a good thing this happened. Everything happens for a reason. The new replacement is due to arrive on the 21st.

The hobby room swap over is going well, other than the light mishap.