Manufacturer: MPM, available from Squadron Mail Order, 1115 Crowley Drive, Carrollton, TX, 75011-5010, 972-242-8663.
Kit: No. 72087
Scale: 1/72
Price: $14.98
Comments: Injection molded, 56 parts (12 resin), decals.
Pros: Good exterior detail, good resin details, well-printed decals, needed subject.
Cons: Cleanup needed to get parts to fit, few part locating devices, one-piece greenhouse canopy can't be opened.
MPM's Vindicator is a welcome subject. The kit's surface detail has fine recessed panel lines, but the moldings are heavy and show some flash. The resin parts (engine, guns, bombs, and other small details) are beautifully molded, but they are fragile and need to be carefully cut from their pour stubs. The four-page instructions give a short history, parts map, 10 assembly drawings, and paint and marking guides. The part numbers given in the assembly steps must be translated by the parts map as there are no numbers on the sprues.
Parts fit was fair. I recommend dry-fitting the instrument panel to the cockpit's tubular frame to figure out its relationship to the fuselage coaming. The frame fits into the fuselage, but there are no location indicators in the cockpit, so you're on your own. The stabilizers fit flush with their fuselage mounts - no tabs or slots to help alignment.
MPM's injection-molded canopy is well done, but the long greenhouse is molded in one piece. Segments of canopies of this era slid back over each other, so it's nearly impossible to mold them thin enough (unless they are vacuum-formed - which MPM used to do) to pose them opened. My sample needed file work along the bottom edges to make it fit cleanly on the fuselage.
MPM's rendition of the oil cooler/carburetor air intake scoop on the right side of the cowl is hemispherical in cross section, but it should be more rectangular. The bombs and centerline bomb crutch are well done.
I just had to use the decals for the ill-fated Midway detachment of VMSB-241; its very faded red discs for the national insignia represent an early-1942 paint-over to avoid gunners' confusion with Japanese insignias. I had no problems with the decals, and Solvaset snuggled them into place.
The only dedicated reference on the Vindicator is Tom Doll's SB2U Vindicator in Action (Squadron/Signal). The finished model looks right compared with photos and specifications.
My model took me about 15 hours to build, most of the time spent cleaning the parts from flash and mold seams and test fitting. Because of the extra work cleaning and fitting, I recommend it to experienced modelers.
David P. Anderson