Amodel Comet 4B 1/144th.

[Chuck E]

Just blitzing an Amodel Comet 4b in BEA markings. Photos to follow.

This is my first Amodel kit and, though the panel lines are neatly engraved, I have had issues. The starboard fuselage half is poorly moulded just forward of the wing, as though the tool was damaged. It has also got a huge hump in the spine. DON'T PANIC! I treated the banana shaped parts as a vac-form and glued .020" tabs along the edges at strategic place. I then glued the nose section using Tamiya extra thin liquid poly. When dry, I did the same at the tail end. So Far, so good. I finally cemented the bulging centre section, which pulled right back into shape and need only a very small amount of filler to tidy up.

Is this sort of thing par for the course with Amodel kits? Full review to follow. Off to the model club for a couple of hours.

[Arcwelder]

Unless things have changed radically in recent years, yes. They've got all the Eastern short-run "characteristics" and then some. They do have some really cool subjects but they're a fair bit of work.

[Barry]

Yes, that's just Amodel being Amodel... though their more recent releases are greatly improved over older ones. The thing about Amodel is that,usually, the basis for a good finish is in there...just needing a bit of modeling skill to bring it out.

[Chuck E]

This is the model. Same mark as Airfix, but some very neat wing panels.

The warped fuselage showing the hump.


Tabs in place.

Looking better and no filler just yet. Primer added to show any blemishes.

Together with primer and flashed over with white.

I need to tidy up that canopy insert. Just tacked on here.

Not too bad after it's all together in flying pose. Ford Polar Grey seems to fit the bill.

I made a huge mess of the red wing panels ( Not supplied ) but managed to remove the offending decal. I'll try again tomorrow.

[Clashcityrocker]

Looking good.

Nigel

[PTB11]

Very nice work.

[Zee28]

Looking very smart mate! I am currently plucking up the courage to tackle an Amodel kit, they do some Soviet subjects that interest me, but I am a little apprehensive....

Zee28

[Chuck E]

Nothing to worry about, Zee. The model looked a bit daunting, due to the poorly shaped fuselage, but if you take your time it all comes together without any problems. Just don't expect Tamiya style fit. I'm hoping that they bring out a 4C next.

The experience has certainly not put me off Amodel and I think that this kit is a very nice addition to my collection. I'm looking to get one the small Wessex helicopters next. Maybe a Canberra, too.

[Eric Mc]

Is it enough of an improvement (or indeed, ANY improvement) over the old Airfix Comet?

[Chuck E]

Certainly the panel lines are a lot neater and are engraved. The Airfix airlines that I have had recently seem to have had the tools tidied up a bit. The Airfix decals are very nice too, and give you two options. This means that you have a spare set in each box for your older kits with the yellowing decals. I do like the idea of no windows in the kit parts and just have them on the decal sheet. The same goes for the very tiny cockpit windows.

The prices are basically the same at around £14.99. To be honest, I had hoped that Amodel would have done the 4C. I'd love Airfix to continue to issue new 'Sky Kings' in 1/144th. They are selling, as we can see from other manufacturers. Zvesda are doing the more modern ones, along with Revell. Roden have a beautiful Britannia out. We could benefit from other British aircraft in this scale. Luckily, Welsh models are producing some nice subjects, many with very neat resin parts and super decals.

[Eric Mc]

When I attended an Airfix talk a couple of years ago they stated categorically that they wouldn't be issuing any new airliners in 1/144. Basically, they said that the market for 1/144 airliners was small (compared to - say - World War 2 subjects) and that Revell, Zvezda, Minicraft etc were more or less satisfying that market now.

What was the last "new mould" 1/144 airliner released by Airfix? I recon it must be the Douglas DC-9, which dates from around 1975.

[Zee28]

Nothing to worry about, Zee. The model looked a bit daunting, due to the poorly shaped fuselage, but if you take your time it all comes together without any problems. Just don't expect Tamiya style fit. I'm hoping that they bring out a 4C next.

The experience has certainly not put me off Amodel and I think that this kit is a very nice addition to my collection. I'm looking to get one the small Wessex helicopters next. Maybe a Canberra, too.

Thanks Chuck, you have helped persuade me to take the plunge, I have just ordered my first ever Amodel kit! Wish me luck (because I am not a skilled as you guys), it'll be up in the Aviation section soon!

Zee28

[Chuck E]

It would appear that I've painted the wings grey when they should be natural metal. I've been looking through some old photos to check this out and all the aircraft shown have bare metal wings with the usual BEA Scarlet panels. No big deal, I'll just paint them in. The instructions are just not clear on this at all. The colours are coded by letter and 'B' is shown as Humbrol 147 Light Grey. Now, the box art, which is really nice, does appear to show the wings looking more metallic. Silver ( F ) is only shown on the undercarriage. Ah, well. Out comes the paintbrush.

One serious problem has been the decals. The colours are good, but they are so fragile. Everyone broke up when I tried to apply them to the pre-wetted gloss paint. The black band, featuring cabin windows, not only broke into numerous pieces, but actually started to flake away along the edges. It seems that there is no varnish to them. By that I mean that I thought that decals were printed onto a carrier film patch in layers, to take all the colours. Following this, some form of clear coat over the top to give strength and an overall sheen. It seems that this is not the case. I've been applying decals successfully for many years and these are the worst I've ever used. Even code letters and the red boxes broke up. I'm not even sure if I can touch them in tidily enough. Masking would probably just tear the decals away again, so I'll need to try another approach. Possibly using old Airfix decals, if the windows match. Maybe I should request spares?

[Arcwelder]

Amodel decals are printed in hell on the skins of rabid hyenas. That bad.

[Eric Mc]

Shame about the decals. Liveries Unlimited (sadly no longer in business) did a very nice set of BEA Red Square decals. You might be able to track some down on the internet.