In Box Review of Classic Airframes 1/48th Scale
British Boulton Paul "Defiant" Mk.1
Limited Run Multi-Media
Kit no. 95-404 3995
By Ray Mehlberger
OUT OF PRODUCTION
Copyright 1995
Available one place overseas from an individual.
I paid $29.00 for my kit back in the 90's.
By Ray Mehlberger
OUT OF PRODUCTION
Copyright 1995
Available one place overseas from an individual.
I paid $29.00 for my kit back in the 90's.
HISTORY:
The Boulton Paul Defiant is a British interceptor aircraft that served with the Royal Air Force (RAF) during World War II.
The Defiant was designed and built by Boulton Paul Aircraft as a "turret fighter", without any forward-firing guns, a concept also implemented by the Royal Navy's Blackburn Roc.
In combat, the Defiant was found to be reasonably effective at its intended task of destroying bombers but was vulnerable to the Luftwaffe's more maneuverable, single-seat Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters.
The lack of forward-firing armament proved to be a great weakness in daylight combat and its potential was realized only when it was converted to night fighting.
It was supplanted in the night fighter role by the Bristol Beaufighter and de Havilland Mosquito. The Defiant found use in gunnery training, target towing, electronic countermeasures and air-sea rescue. Among RAF pilots it had the nickname "Daffy".
SPECIFICATIONS:
Role: Two-seat fighter, night fighter, trainer, target tug
Manufacturer: Boulton Paul Aircraft
Designer: John Dudley North
First flight: 11 August 1937
Introduction to service: December 1939
Status: Retired
Primary users: Royal Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force, Polish Air Force
Number built: 1,064
The Boulton Paul Defiant is a British interceptor aircraft that served with the Royal Air Force (RAF) during World War II.
The Defiant was designed and built by Boulton Paul Aircraft as a "turret fighter", without any forward-firing guns, a concept also implemented by the Royal Navy's Blackburn Roc.
In combat, the Defiant was found to be reasonably effective at its intended task of destroying bombers but was vulnerable to the Luftwaffe's more maneuverable, single-seat Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters.
The lack of forward-firing armament proved to be a great weakness in daylight combat and its potential was realized only when it was converted to night fighting.
It was supplanted in the night fighter role by the Bristol Beaufighter and de Havilland Mosquito. The Defiant found use in gunnery training, target towing, electronic countermeasures and air-sea rescue. Among RAF pilots it had the nickname "Daffy".
SPECIFICATIONS:
Role: Two-seat fighter, night fighter, trainer, target tug
Manufacturer: Boulton Paul Aircraft
Designer: John Dudley North
First flight: 11 August 1937
Introduction to service: December 1939
Status: Retired
Primary users: Royal Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force, Polish Air Force
Number built: 1,064
THE KIT:
Classic Airframes was a division of Bringuier Aviation Products based in Chicago, IL in the 90's. I believe they went out of business ?
This kit came in a shrink-wrapped tray and lid type box.
The box art shows a Defiant in flight. It is overall jet black, with a shark mouth on the nose, red fuselage code DZ roundel, serial no. N3328. It was with 151 Squadron, RAF, 1941.
One side panel has a small color repeat of the box art, followed by features of the kit: contains an unassembled 1/48th scale plastic kit,
polyurethane and photo etched parts, complete cockpit interior, markings for 2 aircraft, complete assembly and decorating instructions.
There is a warning that the kit contains small parts and the kit is not suitable for children. Classic Airframe's European Division's P.O.-address in the Czech Republic is shown and the kit was made there.
Classic Airframes was a division of Bringuier Aviation Products based in Chicago, IL in the 90's. I believe they went out of business ?
This kit came in a shrink-wrapped tray and lid type box.
The box art shows a Defiant in flight. It is overall jet black, with a shark mouth on the nose, red fuselage code DZ roundel, serial no. N3328. It was with 151 Squadron, RAF, 1941.
One side panel has a small color repeat of the box art, followed by features of the kit: contains an unassembled 1/48th scale plastic kit,
polyurethane and photo etched parts, complete cockpit interior, markings for 2 aircraft, complete assembly and decorating instructions.
There is a warning that the kit contains small parts and the kit is not suitable for children. Classic Airframe's European Division's P.O.-address in the Czech Republic is shown and the kit was made there.
The other side panel repeats the small color repeat of the box art, followed by a one-paragraph history of the Defiant and Classic Airframes P.O. address in Chicago, IL.
WHAT'S IN THE BOX:
The kit contains 3 pale-gray trees in a stapled-shut clear cello bag, tan resin parts in a cello bag, a brass PE fret in a cello bag, 2 vacuformed canopies and turret blister, 2 vacuformed wing light lenses and 2 lengths of steel tubing, a black photo negative, the decal sheet and 2 instructions. This kit is truly-multi-medial!
The kit contains 3 pale-gray trees in a stapled-shut clear cello bag, tan resin parts in a cello bag, a brass PE fret in a cello bag, 2 vacuformed canopies and turret blister, 2 vacuformed wing light lenses and 2 lengths of steel tubing, a black photo negative, the decal sheet and 2 instructions. This kit is truly-multi-medial!
Trees are not alphabetized.
The main instructions consist of a single-sheet that is folded in the center to create 4 pages in 7 1/2" x 9" page format.
Page 1 begins with parts trees and decal sheet illustrations.
Page 2 begins with international assembly symbol explanations in 4 languages, including English. The bottom of page 2 to page 4 gives a total of 11 assembly steps.
The second instructions is a single-sheet, printed in color on both sides of slick-coated paper. It is 6" x 8" page format.
The face side has the history of the Defiant and its specifications, over line drawings of 2 other aircraft kits that Classic Airframes manufactured: kit no. 95-405, a Soviet Mig-3 and kit no. 95-403, an Italian Macchi MC-200 "Saetta".
The reverse side is the painting and marking guide. It shows two 4-views:
1. A Defiant that is the box art scheme (already described above)
2. A Defiant that is in a wave pattern of dark-earth and dark-green over a duck-egg blue under- carriage. It has a gray fuselage code of PS roundel A and a white spinner and black serial no. N1535. It was with 264 Squadron, RAF, mid-August 1940.
The main instructions consist of a single-sheet that is folded in the center to create 4 pages in 7 1/2" x 9" page format.
Page 1 begins with parts trees and decal sheet illustrations.
Page 2 begins with international assembly symbol explanations in 4 languages, including English. The bottom of page 2 to page 4 gives a total of 11 assembly steps.
The second instructions is a single-sheet, printed in color on both sides of slick-coated paper. It is 6" x 8" page format.
The face side has the history of the Defiant and its specifications, over line drawings of 2 other aircraft kits that Classic Airframes manufactured: kit no. 95-405, a Soviet Mig-3 and kit no. 95-403, an Italian Macchi MC-200 "Saetta".
The reverse side is the painting and marking guide. It shows two 4-views:
1. A Defiant that is the box art scheme (already described above)
2. A Defiant that is in a wave pattern of dark-earth and dark-green over a duck-egg blue under- carriage. It has a gray fuselage code of PS roundel A and a white spinner and black serial no. N1535. It was with 264 Squadron, RAF, mid-August 1940.
There is also a sheet with the history of the Boulton-Paul Defiant and drawings of Classic Airframes next releases.
The 1st pale-gray tree holds the wing halves (3 parts)
The 2nd pale-gray tree holds the fuselage and elevators (4 parts)
The 3rd pale-gray tree was made in a centrifugal-mold that spun the molten plastic into arms and it looks like a wagon wheel. It holds: the main wheels, turret tub, exhaust pipes, wheel wells, air intake, propeller and its spinner, landing gear legs and doors, tail wheel, turret gun supports etc. (36 parts)
The tan resin parts consist of the turret guns, cockpit side walls and floor etc. (9 parts) There are heavy pour lugs that need to be sawed off and removed.
There are 2 vacuformed sheets that hold the cockpit canopy and turret blister. You get two in case you mess one up and need a spare.
Next is the brass PE fret and the black photo negative in a stapled shut clear cello bag with a stiff white card to keep the PE from bending.
The PE fret holds: the dashboard face, seat belts, air intake grills, seat (to be folded to shape) etc. (about 35 parts)
The black photo negative sheet holds the instrument dials.
The PE fret holds: the dashboard face, seat belts, air intake grills, seat (to be folded to shape) etc. (about 35 parts)
The black photo negative sheet holds the instrument dials.
Next is the brass rod.
The decal sheet completes the kit's contents.
There is no pilot figure provided. Detail is very lightly engraved and may disappear under a heavy coat of paint.
The flaps are all molded solid.
The flaps are all molded solid.
Highly recommended.