new in the box kit.
This kit had too many parts to count, and is probably the best kit available of the HE-162. There were no instructions with the kit, but Dave Morrissette was kind enough to put me in contact with some IPMS types who scanned and emailed me a set within a day or so. Thanks, guys.
There was supposed to be a photo etch sheet with this kit, but it was not included. The biggest thing was the instrument panel, but I muddled through and scratch built one.
This kit has extensive interior details in both the cockpit and the wheel wells. The gun troughs are well done, but the gun barrels converge too far inwards, so these should be drilled out and replaced. The pitot tube on the nose is too small, and should be replaced anyway, as it will never stay on the model during the assembly process. There are no trim tabs on the rudders. This is the only model that has the correct shape of the flap trailing edges at the wing roots. Lindberg ignores this, and the others only hint at the correct form. There are some little rings below the main wheel axles, and these will break off if you are not careful.
The landing gear assembly is a little fiddly, and some very small and delicate parts must be inserted into place before the fuselage halves can be joined. Then you have to watch out so that you don’t break something off during assembly. It takes a lot of patience to line everything up properly, but if you can do it, the results are impressive.
This is the only kit with a detailed engine. Some photo etch material should have been installed, but it doesn’t look bad without it. You lose a lot if you display this model closed up, so leave the cowlings open and raise the canopy. This is that kind of a kit. I wouldn’t recommend this kit for beginners, but if you have moderate modeling skills, you should have no problems with this one. It is highly labor intensive, and has a lot of very small parts.
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