Kit: No. AP33
Scale: 1/72
Manufacturer: Hasegawa, distributed by Marco Polo Import Inc., 532 S. Coralridge Place, City of Industry, CA 91746
Price: $20.98
Comments: Injection molded, 62 parts, decals.
GRUMMAN'S AVENGER was the U.S. Navy's only effective shipboard torpedo bomber of World War II. As such, it was also the heaviest American aircraft to operate regularly from carriers during that conflict. Grumman built the TBF, with the Eastern Aircraft division of General Motors building the similar TBM. Eastern built 7,546, better than three-quarters of all Avengers.
Hasegawa's kit is similar to others in its recent line of 1/72 scale WWII aircraft. It features simple construction and near-perfect fit, recessed panel lines, and basic interior detail. This makes it ideal for beginners to produce a fine miniature without having to spend days installing tiny parts.
The Avenger didn't take long to put together; the toughest part was masking the big greenhouse canopy and gun turret. I had a little trouble fitting the cowl ring, but it did not require filler. The wing/fuselage joints were perfect.
Superdetailers may want to improve on the cockpit as only the pilot's office is moderately detailed. The addition of a torpedo and optional open or closed weapons bay doors is handy, but the bay interior is sparse. The turret gun has little detail, and the turret fits so tightly that the paint on the frames scrapes off when you install it. A few swipes with a file should fix the fit there.
The main canopy comes in one piece, so you have your work cut out if you want to open it. I recommend vacuum forming a copy as the original is too thick to have the sections fit over one another. My canopy was scratched, so I buffed it out with Blue Magic polish and coated it with Future.
I painted my model with AeroMaster white, intermediate blue, and flat sea blue. There's not much to the markings, so decaling went quickly. Both marking choices (the alternate is an Atlantic scheme) are featured in my main reference, Charles Scrivner's TBF Avenger in Action (Squadron/Signal).
The finished model measures only a few scale inches short in length and span. Except for painting the canopy, beginners should be able to finish this kit with pleasure. I took 30 hours on my sample, about average for me.
Jim Terry