[conemaugh]

I have been noticing these on the "bay" for quite a while now. Anyone have any comments. The Tupolev Bear looks interesting.

[flyXwire]

The Bear would make an interesting companion next to any 1/144th F-4, F-14 etc. if you want to have a "Cold War" themed display, imho.

[Epapazian]

I purchased quite a few of these several years ago, primarily because many of the bombers, in particular, were not made by anyone else. Unfortunately, unless one is willing to repair or correct obvious errors such as misplaced and off-color insignias, broken props, huge gaps, poorly assembled engine parts or misaligned tailplanes, most of these models are a disappointment. They are hastily-cranked out mass produced items designed as a publisher's promotional give-away, so their generally poor quality is hardly surprising. After considerable effort, I was able to salvage planes like the FW-200, SM-79, Short Sterling, Wellington, Cant Z 1007, Betty, Sally, C-46 and others ---but some were in such bad shape that they went quickly into my "bin". I recommend caution in considering the old Atlas planes and a careful examination of any pictures that are posted by the sellers.

On the positive side, you may wish to take a look at the new Altaya 1:144 bomber line which has been covered in several threads in the IXO section. Like the Atlas models, these too, are mass produced publisher's give-aways, however, their toolings are new, the quality is improved and a lot of very interesting planes---The B&V 222, Emily, Piaggio P. 106, JU-290, FW-200,---are included. The first of these, a B-17, B-24 and Lancaster, are also being offered by some eBay sellers for about $35 a crack, so this is a good opportunity to do some sampling and assess their quality. Having seen the B-17 in person, I plan to buy most of the unusual planes in this series, but I am prepared to make corrections and do total repaints when this is called for.

[conemaugh]

Thanks for the opinions. I thought as much about these diecast. The cockpits appear to resemble "Coke" bottle glasses and the gaps are huge in the photos I've seen. I'll resist the temptation.