The first step is the nine-piece cockpit assembly. The instrument panel lacks some of the finer detail that I would have liked to see, but includes an optional decal to fill in the gaps. As a result of the simulated raised instrument bezels, the decals did not seat to the panel well, despite several applications of Micro-Sol. I would advise sanding the panel flat before applying the decal. But then again, it is difficult to visualize the panel on the finished product. The seatbelt is represented by a decal, and it scales up nicely. I spent 1-1/2 hours painting the cockpit details, then, I assembled it as the instructions called for. Every piece test fit very snugly without the need for glue. Just about every piece has a tab in which the adjoining piece firmly attaches, avoiding the possibility of making a mistake. I then glued the hidden joints just for good measure. When it was completely assembled, I had a realization at just how meticulous model building can be: almost two hours painting a piece of plastic the size of 0.5” x 1.25”.

In Step 2, the instructions call for inserting a “wing” tab into the fuselage, forming the rear wall of the main landing gear bays. This will help in making a very tight fit of the wing assembly to the fuselage in Step 5. At this point, I deviated away from the instructions, as I did not glue the cockpit to the fuselage halves. I Moved to Step 4, and completed the wing assemblies. Important Note: Before final assembly of the wing components, you must drill out the holes for the external stores. If not, it will be impossible to accurately locate them once the wings are glued together. The instructions note the hole sizes needed. I then dry fitted the wings, horizontal stabilizers and fuselage. They fit tightly without any significant gaps. I will not need any filler on this one! I then painted the assembly according to the instructions. I chose not to paint the vertical stabilizer “off” white, as I could not find any reference with this scheme. After two coats of paint, I applied one coat of Future, decals, then another Future coat to seal the decals, then finally an acrylic dull coat. The decals were very delicate, so, much care and patience is needed when applying them. I tore four decals during the process, one being torn in three places. Thanks to Micro-Sol, there is no evidence of such tears in my finished product. The decals adhered well to the model with no silvering noted. The Micro-Sol helped them to sink into the recessed panel lines to give a painted look.

I then returned to Step 2. The engine and wheel wells have nice detail. The engine assembly has notches in the parts, so they too can be assembled without much worry about incorrectly aligning the parts. The landing gear went together smoothly. Then the propellers came next. The props are four blades molded in two assemblies. The spinner is molded into the outer assembly.

The canopy does not come with the option of being displayed open, but I did open it anyways. I had to stretch the canopy a little so it would glide over the fuselage. It actually looks realistic. The pitot tube is very fragile, and extra care must be taken when removing from the sprue. I had to heat it up to straighten it out. Not an easy task to say the least. I ended up with a few hot fingers. The munitions assembled just like I would have expected: with very few lines.

No putty was needed to fill gaps. The only two gaps I encountered were hidden by a little dab of superglue. The parts are free of all flash, and are firmly attached to the sprue, but left very little, if any at all, artifacts after removal.

The kit comes with two finishing options:

1. “Little Chief”, Lt. Frank Klibbe, 8^th AF, 56^th FG, 61^st FS

            2. “Sleepy Time Gal”, 5^th AF, 58^th FG, 69^th FS

            I chose to build “Sleepy Time Gal”

This kit went together very tight and was a very easy build, especially for the inexperienced modeler. The majority of my build time was spent on painting. At $20 for the kit, this is a great investment for anyone wanting to add to their 1/72 WWII aircraft collection. This kit was successful in getting me excited about building in small scale. So much so, that last evening, I bought a 1/72 Tamiya F4U-1D Corsair. Review to follow soon.