DESTINATION MOON ROCKET FROM FANTASTIC PLASTIC

George Pal’s Destination Moon movie of 1950 was a classic of its kind. The acting was rather indifferent, but it did have a handsome spaceship, the Luna, looking like a sleeked-up version of a World War II German V-2. And that became the style of virtually all sci-fi rockets of that era, streamlined beauties that soared through the midnight depths of space.

If only it had turned out that way - here we are now, 40 years on from the Apollo landings, with a return to the Moon that seems further away than ever. Euro plans include human landing by 2030 at the earliest, while China and India may even end up beating the US back there.

Still all that shouldn’t get in the way of a bit of nostalgia, and that’s the spirit of the 1:288 scale Rocketship Luna kit from Fantastic Plastic. It’s an ultra-simple piece of kit engineering, with just seven parts, including the meteor-pocked lunar surface base. One of these is a rather unpretty prop, to stop the nuclear-powered craft from falling over - it’s odd that the original Luna designers didn’t simply use a triangular pattern for the landing legs, a much more elegant solution.

Sprayed silver to represent the original’s bare-metal finish, and with some careful detailing on the cratered base, plus a little airbrush weathering around the airlock door, rocket exhaust, control surface and landing leg areas, the Luna should make a great addition to a sci-fi model collection.

Visit Fantastic Plastic here.

WEIRD WHEELS - WHY DOES REVELL SUPPLY THEM?

As you may have realised by now, we’re fans of today’s non-cement snap-together kits. For the ham-fisted or time-poor, they’re a great way to assemble a model at the speed of light, yet be able to add some finishing touches - a touch of weathering, say - to turn it into a personalised statement that’s a long way from being a toy.

We’re enthusiasts of Revell’s Easykits, especially the Star Wars hardware. The 1:100 scale aircraft from Revell are reasonable takes on the real thing, if simplified somewhat. The Panavia Tornado IDS (box, top pic) is beautifully pre-finished in Tiger Meet markings, with a tailfin and rudder that form, quite simply, a small work of art. Components are neatly presented on two runners (middle pic), and need only a little fine trimming when twisted off. The clear canopy is supplied separately in its own bag, so there’s no chance of scratches in the box.

So... after all that care and effort producing the rest of the kit, just WHY Revell, do you supply three crummy bits of inaccurate plastic purporting to be the undercarriage of this Euro-attacker? The parts (bottom) bear no relationship to any aircraft flying today, and what’s worse, are supplied as standard issue with other aircraft in the range, such as the bright orange F-4 Phantom II. It’s bizarre!

Of course, assemble this Tornado in cleaned-up flying condition, and it will look just fine, though you’ll have to provide your own stand. Score: Components 7/10, Markings 9/10, Wheels 0/10.

There's a good range of Easykits to inspect here.

TAMIYA SUPERDETAIL SPITFIRE NOW RELEASED

We were talking Spitfires in mid-September, when we saw that Tamiya was showing its brand-new 1:32 scale Mk IXc at the Tokyo Hobby Show. And now the little beauty is officially on release. As the pics above show, the Spit is loaded with mouthwatering detail, in particular the 12-cylinder Rolls-Royce Merlin engine. The engine cowling panels are pretty much to scale and to achieve this are just 0.4 mm (0.01 in) thin. You can remove them easily to show off the Faberge jewel-like Merlin that Tamiya has crafted.

There’s also a highly-detailed cockpit and a neat little 16-page booklet, packed with reference pics taken by the Tamiya team when they were researching the model. The aircraft is marked JE-J, which was the Spit flown by Royal Air Force ace James ‘Johnnie’ Johnson, and Tamiya’s sculptors have done a pretty good job in creating a fair likeness of him to 1:32 scale.

The Mk IX is pretty much SMN’s favourite Spitfire, so the Tamiya kit will be given a workout in the near future, if only to check Tamiya’s ‘most accurate yet’ claim.

The Tamiya 1:32 Spitfire will be available from stores and online suppliers very soon. Meantime, if you can’t wait - or would simply like to graze a Spit or three - there’s a tasty lineup for you here.

Pictures courtesy Tamiya.

FORD RACING CAPRI TO 1:43 SCALE FROM CORGI

First off, let’s just say that Corgi has made a decent fist of the Ford Capri Mk3. Shape and proportions are pretty good, with neat detailing to the wheels. The real thing is generally reckoned as the best all-rounder of the Capri series, various models of which were made from 1961 to 1986. The Mk3 in particular was a well-balanced good-looker, and fitted the bill as a Euro-size mini-Mustang pony car. These days it’s reckoned as a collectible classic, though some still run in anger on circuits and dragstrips.

It’s a mystery why Ford let the model die - the Capri really ought to be in its Mk6 or 7 version by now - but there are rumours of a rebirth in a year or two’s time. Come on Ford! And another mystery is Vauxhall/Opel's great-looking Calibra - why did the company drop it so suddenly a dozen years ago?

Rant over, and back to the models. A trawl through SMN’s Vault of Ancient Models revealed the Tamiya 1:24 scale Zakspeed Capri, which was finished with a dinged and dented ‘dirt and grime’ look. The kit was a good one to build with absolutely no fit problems, and a driver figure that looks just right in the cockpit. The kit came complete with a rear-mounted electric motor that can still drive the soft rubber tyres. The real thing had its engine upfront, but at least Tamiya's neat underbelly detail included the bottom of the engine.

The pictures above show:
1 Corgi Capri Mk3, 1976 race winner.
2 Capri powered up for drag meets.
3, 4 SMN’s own Tamiya 1:24 Capri.

Amazon has a range of Capri models here - look out for the original ‘hairdresser style’ Ford Consul Capri from the early 1960s. Amazon has the Corgi model featured above at a small discount.

eBay has some Tamiya Capris on sale here, and there's also an attractive-looking photo-etch detail set from a Belgian seller.

HALLOWEEN HORROR'S EVE GREETINGS TO ALL MODEL FANS

Yes, it’s that time of year again, with ghosties, ghoulies and things that go *bump* in the night. And for model makers a chance to use a chunkier knife, and dispense with the airbrush, paint, filler, cement and scalpel.

So here’s a science-fictional quartet of pumpkins for your delectation. Have a good one tonight!

Note that one of the pumpkins is a steampunk creation, so just to let you know that the Museum of the History of Science in Oxford, UK, has an amazing show running until February 21, 2010. If you have even a smidgeon of interest in the genre, and can possibly get to Oxford, do go - it’s just amazing. Visit the Museum here.

The pictures above show:
1 Cylon pumpkin, from Battlestar Galactica.
2 Death Star pumpkin, from Star Wars.
3 Steampunk pumpkin.
4 Mobile pumpkin, motorized with Lego.

SMN thanks the pumpkin creators - imagination runs rampant in the spectral model making community!

AIRFIX 1:72 SCALE DAMBUSTERS DIORAMA DISPLAY

Barnes Wallis, inventor of the bouncing bomb used in the World War II raid against a series of enemy dams, died 30 years ago today, so it’s a fitting moment to see how kit makers have treated the subject. The video shows a longish clip from the 1955 movie of that raid, The Dam Busters.

A new Dambusters release from Airfix should certainly be on the ‘maybe treat myself’ list as, although it’s marked as a gift set that includes paints, cement and brushes - and indeed as a Level 2 (8 years-old and up) product - the draw is really the potential display-factor. The kit comes complete with a fairly realistic German dam, with a 1:72 scale Avro Lancaster flying over the top. Strictly speaking, the dam is somewhat undersized but even so, the combo will make a fine talking piece, especially if side-lit by a small desk lamp in a darkened room. It’ll look impressive, as the dam measures some 432 mm (17 in) across.

The Lancaster itself is a fair representation of the real thing, though the 1:72 scale Revell kit is more accurate and cheaper - but you don’t get a dam in the box. Tamiya’s big 1:48 Dambuster is packed with detail, but is pricey, and has a few inaccuracies too. So there’s no one perfect kit, though there are aftermarket conversions available, mostly aimed at improving the Airfix kit. Your choice!

A brief afterword on packaging - congrats to Airfix on the steadily improving look and feel of its kit boxes. The latest ones show that there are people who seem to really care about design and marketing.

The pictures above show:
1 Airfix Dambusters kit.
2 Barnes Wallis.

Barnes Wallis picture, courtesy IWM/PD-BritishGov.

The Airfix Dambusters gift set is available from Amazon here.

Revell and Tamiya Dambuster Lancs are available here.

MINICRAFT CATALOGS FREE ONLINE

Minicraft is a respected name in plastic models, and their catalogs - general and this year's - are available for download in pdf format. They’re big files mind, but the general products one in particular has some gems.

In this, there’s a reminder that Minicraft is one of the relatively few companies that offers those Cinderellas of the model world, general aviation lightplanes. Minicraft makes a small range of Cessna, Piper and Beech aircraft to 1:48 scale, which are neat and tidy replicas of the real thing. A Cessna may not be as exciting as an F-16 loaded for bear, but even so, every collection should have one or two GA planes, if only for comparison. It’s tempting though, to apply camo markings, then hang some attack hardware under the wings and fuselage. Hey, SMN’s being aggressive again, but if we’re being honest, plain old ‘white with a stripe’ is not so thrilling.

There’s another item in Minicraft’s selection that strikes a chord - a really nifty rendering of Noah’s Ark. It’s a good size at some 470 mm (18.5 in) long, but the real kicker is that it includes heaps of cross-sectional detail, including three decks, living quarters and animal cages. A figure of Noah and some animal pairs are included, but this must show an early moment in filling the big boat, for Minicraft supply just 16 critters, hardly enough to restock a post-Flood planet! Come on Minicraft, you should add a zooful, plus Noah’s family, even if they have to be in an add-on pack. Minicraft products are available at model stores and online suppliers.

Download Minicraft catalogs here.

Amazon has a range of Cessnas, from 1:72 kits to RC flying models here.