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Beechcraft 18 Battle Axe Models
Reviewed by Tony Darienzo
Two sprues of moderately soft plastic with finely engraved panel lines, vacform windshields and decals are contained in a stout plastic bag. Instructions consist of one 8 ½ by 11 inch exploded diagram with several detailed sub-assembly construction insets. As with most limited production kits, parts are heavily attached to sprues and need some cleanup work. However, the molded parts contain excellent detail with finely engraved panel lines where necessary. A well-detailed cockpit is provided minus any side-wall panels. The passenger compartment has floors and bulkheads with molded on details. Preliminary construction has been commenced. The interior has been added to the fuselage halves and the fit of parts at this stage is excellent. Three decal and painting options are provided for: a U.S. Army Air Forces BE-18 [UC 45] at Assam in 1942, depicted in natural aluminum; a U.S. Navy JRB4, Pacific Theater in overall dark sea blue, and; an Aeronautique Navale JRB4 [no date], in overall natural aluminum. The interior painting instructions appear to be correct only for the Aeronautique Navale aircraft. For example, instructions call for interior floors to be painted red-brown, a color I have not come across in any U.S. aircraft. This is a fine kit that should be fun to build. I will keep HyperScale visitors advised of progress during construction of this kit. Review Copyright © 1999 by Tony
Darienzo
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