Good first aircraft kit?

[Panzermeister36]

I plan to try and build my first aircraft kit soon, as it seems like all the armour guys are doing so, so I guess I'll see what all the fuss is about! I already have 2 1/72nd kits, an Academy Cessna A37 Dragonfly and a Revell Me. 1099b, but they're quite good looking and I don't want to mess them up. I want something a bit cheaper and maybe easier. I'm looking for:

1. Good fit
2. Good decals
3. 1/72 scale
4. Not too complicated/large
5. Preferably a WWII fighter plane but meh...

So does anybody know of a couple of good, inexpensive 1/72nd aircraft kits to look out for? I know there's a lot of Revell and Airfix in my LHC. If you know of a good manufacturer too then please mention it. Thank you

[chief5437]

You won't go wrong with a new tool Airfix kit. They're doing some good stuff at the moment. Just make sure it's new tool and not an old kit, re-boxed!

[Panzermeister36]

You won't go wrong with a new tool Airfix kit. They're doing some good stuff at the moment. Just make sure it's new tool and not an old kit, re-boxed!

Alright thanks buddy

[BrummieModeller]

Try the 1/72 P51 mustang by airfix the red tails one that's a great little kit

[Panzermeister36]

Try the 1/72 P51 mustang by airfix the red tails one that's a great little kit

Thank you for the fast reply! I'll check out Airfix!

[hook1169]

You won't go wrong with a new tool Airfix kit. They're doing some good stuff at the moment. Just make sure it's new tool and not an old kit, re-boxed!

How do you tell if it is a reboxed kit?

[Darkblade88]

With great difficulty from my experiance

[chief5437]

You won't go wrong with a new tool Airfix kit. They're doing some good stuff at the moment. Just make sure it's new tool and not an old kit, re-boxed!

How do you tell if it is a reboxed kit?

Easy, just google the kit number, eg. a07300, find a review and most will tell you if it's new tool, re box or whatever. Scalemates is a good site, it can give you the full history of the kit. When it first came out, what changes have been made, and when new toolings have come out.

[Panzermeister36]

Thanks guys for you support!!

[hardihood1]

i think Airfix is a great first kit.Airfix 1/48 scale BF109 is a great one. or you could get a starter set from airfix. comes with glue, paints, paintbrushes and a kit you choice in 1/72 scale. a newer airfix kit would need much or none cleaning and fit issues to major.

[Lee]

If you wanted to try 1/48 I would recommend any of the Tamiya 1/48 Spitfires. They are sublime kits that literally just fall together. When I did mine I didn't need one drop of filler at all! They cost between £16-£18

[ScaleModelling1105]

Try the airfix 1:72 a6mb Mitsubishi zero. Do NOT buy the one with the white aircraft on the box. That's an old tool. The correct one has a green zero on and cost £5.99 in the UK. You could also try the airfix 1:72 focke wulf fw-190a8. I have this kit in the stash and it's a new tool. I've heard great things about it too. Just to say I haven't built the zero but am probably about to buy it I've just heard lots of good things. Hope this helped.

[MakingModelsAgain]

Seriously cannot recommend the Tamiya 1/72 A6M2b Zero highly enough. I've built their 1/32 Spitfire before and it was astounding, but to have that same level of precision engineering and thoughtful design go into a 1/72 kit is, in my humble opinion, unparalleled. I'm now at the weathering stage and I did not use or was even close to needing a drop of filler. I haven't even glued the two parts of the canopy simply because I didn't need to - the fit was so exacting, it stays fast without it. Every part went together so well, I was actually giggling to myself. The cockpit is superbly detailed - 19 parts in all and has features some 1/48 kits are without. It's not the cheapest kit, mind you - £17.99 as compared to, say, the Airfix Zero at £7.99, but the money is there in the plastic and in this instance, you do get what you pay for. Cost aside, it's the perfect way to start building flying tanks. Here's my WiP thread - http://intscalemodeller.com/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=4015

[Panzermeister36]

Alright thank you guys for your help

[hook1169]

Thanks for the info Chief.