[smd4]

Of couse, why is the rear antenna placed so far towards the tail? Almost any Corsair book you pick up shows it closer to the cockpit. Certainly it's just as easy to do it wrong as it is to do it right!

[smd4]

How is the cockpit detailing on these models?

[mustangdriver]

They are not bad. For the price they are a great value.

[smd4]

Well, I finally got my first Corsair model. What follows are some observations.

I understand that this is meant as a toy, but it is so well done, that it almost requires two reviews--one as a toy, and one as a model. I'll try to combine both.

This is certainly only of the best-proportioned pre-built models I've yet to see, whether that's 1:18 plastic, 1:48 die-cast, or any other scale/material. Contrary to the original poster's observations, my wings are solid and stable, with no gaps between fuselage and wing root, and the landing gear doors are well-attached. In looking at the hinge construction, I cannot understand how they would drop off. The hinges consist of "C" shaped clips that go around plastic rod, and unless the "C" shaped material is mis-cast, they should be very reliable.

As far as toy LG doors, they may in fact be a bit fragile. The LG doors are well-detailed--inside and out! The front air brake/door that's attached to the LG strut is completely the wrong shape--this appears to have been done as a compromise to facilitate the operating landing gear, which does work quite well. If the gear is up, this will be less noticeable. The tires are plastic, but you have to press them with your fingernails to know.

The engine is one of the best I've seen--with the second row of 9 cylinders just visible behind the first row. The cowl flaps are in the open position, leading this to be a wonderful model to display with the gear down (in flight, the cowl flaps were closed). The propeller is slightly mis-shapen, in my view--the blade tips have no twist, and are perpendicular with the fuselage. Seam and panel lines are well defined and crisp. Rivets are not too large, and are nicely spaced.

The wings fold nicely, and will not pull out, like 20th Century Toys' large 1:18 model. The hinges seem fairly robust. It would have been nice to see the inside of the wings painted zinc chromate, but this is an easy fix for even the novice modeler. The wing tips have red and green clear plastic for the starboard/port lamps. The right wing features a detail you might be hard-pressed to find on more expensive models: There is a prism-shaped protrusion just to the right of the gun ports--a modification made to keep the right wing from stalling before the left wing during landings. Great touch!

The canopy is a bit of a disappointment. There is a very visible seam through the clear plastic on both the windshield and the sliding canopy that's very distracting. The sliding canopy does not slide--it's so loosely attached to the plane that opening it a 1/4 inch allows the canopy to fall off. It will not stay in position if pulled all the way open--there is a nearly 1/8 gap between the fuselage and the canopy on each side when fully open, so it just sags there. Really just bad workmanship here, even for a toy. What kid wants to constantly retrieve his canopy from the floor after doing barrel rolls?

The cockpit interior is actually pretty nice. The gauge location matches the prototype, there is a gunsight, and even the oxygen tank and trim wheels are correctly modeled. Again showing that whoever designed this model must have had some familiarity with the real thing, there is no "floor." The pilot in these birds sat with his feet resting on trays with the pedals in front. The curved belly of the plane was visible below. 20th Century has even taken to modeling the rodding that extends through the fuselage, connected to the stick! Nice touch.

Below the seat, on the plane's belly, there is a glass (clear plastic) window in the fuselage. I've not seen this in drawings; I've seen one photo with what appears to be a window in this location. Again, if this is prototypical, very nice. It's certainly a detail that didn't need to be modeled, but it's very cool. The antenna location behind the canopy is in the wrong position--another easy fix for the modeler.

Another detail I've never seen modeled properly is the vertical stabilizer. To offset the torque of that massive 13'4" Hamilton prop, the vertical stabilizer was offset slightly to the left. 99% of most Corsair fans probably wouldn't have noticed if this detail was missed; 100% of kids wouldn't have a clue. It wouldn't have bothered me in the least. But there it is: The mold was designed so that the front of the stabilizer is shifted left-of-center maybe a 1/16 of an inch. Wonderful!

The paint job is top-notch. I've never seen paint so dead-on flat! There is slight weathering that really makes you think you're looking at a custom built model that would have cost hundreds. But you can probably find one for less that $20.

It really is hard to believe this is a "toy." It has great proportions, is more rugged than a kit-built model, has some nice operating features, is well-painted with accurate graphics and is a nice size. I do wish they could fix the canopy issues, but other than that, this is the best Corsair you can get for the money.