Kit: No. 61051
Scale: 1/48
Manufacturer: Tamiya, distributed by Tamiya America, 2 Orion, Aliso Viejo, CA 92656-4200, phone 800-826-4922
Price: $31
Comments: Injection molded, 80 parts (1 metal weight), decals.
The Gloster Meteor brought Britain's Royal Air Force into the jet age in 1944. It never faced the Me 262 (good thing - the Meteor would've been outclassed), but it downed a few V-1s and flew some ground-attack missions in the closing days of World War II.
Tamiya's kit has features of prototype and later Meteors, similar to the example on display at Cosford Aerospace Museum in England. This aircraft (DG202/G) is one of the original prototypes, but has speed brakes and other attributes of a Meteor F.3. Its paint scheme is questionable, as the dark earth and dark green upper surfaces were not standard on fighters when the Meteor appeared.
I decided to build my Meteor out of the box but apply a color scheme most likely used on the prototypes: ocean grey and dark green over yellow.
My first impression when I looked in the box was "wow." The surface detail is outstanding, and the detailed engines can be viewed with either removable covers or clear covers in place. Tamiya's 10-step, pictogram-style instructions are accompanied by a 1/48 scale painting diagram.
I glued the speed brakes in the closed position, then painted the upper and lower wing halves separately to reduce the amount of masking. Don't forget to add the provided nose weight to keep the model from flopping back on its tail.
Assembly went without a hitch - no putty was needed, but I did have to sand the seams where the engine nacelle noses join the wing leading edges. A good pilot figure is included, but the cockpit looks as though it should have side-wall detail added.
The kit canopies are designed to be displayed open; I closed mine and had to adjust the fit.
The well-printed Scale-Master decals feature markings for the first prototype (the aircraft I modeled) and two F.1s in service with 616 Squadron. They went down with a touch of setting solution.
My Meteor measures correct in length and only 3 scale inches short in span according to my main reference, Edward Shacklady's The Gloster Meteor. My decision to paint the camouflage grey and green was reinforced by information in the old Ducimis Camouflage and Markings No. 11, Meteor, Whirlwind, and Welkin.
If you can overlook or correct the mix of prototype and production attributes, Tamiya's Meteor is a fine kit for intermediate builders. I spent merely 15 hours on mine, and it looks good parked next to my Aeroclub Meteor F.8 (see Workbench Reviews, November 1996 FSM).
Ross Whitaker