World War II buffs can easily envision B-25s or A-20s on the attack, skimming low toward their targets with guns blazing.
But the Baltimore? Aside from its crews, not many remember Martin's twin-engine light bomber. Lost between the sleek Maryland and the famous Marauder, the Baltimore was flown by British, South African, Free French, and Greek air forces, primarily in the Mediterranean theater.
Classic Airframes recalls this forgotten bomber in two boxings (each with different markings). My box offered a Coastal Command and three Royal Air Force schemes.
The kit features engraved detail and numerous resin items, including two full engines with separate cylinders. Options include a turreted or open rear-gun position and standard or tropical air-filter intakes.
All the resin parts make detailing the interior a lengthy process, but the fit is outstanding. I had to mount the rear floor section ¼" farther forward than shown to align the interior with the crew positions. You can save time by omitting the radio-room interior; it's impossible to see and it doesn't fit.
I wish Classic had instead detailed the open gun position, where a nice resin machine gun and mount hover in empty space. The open position requires fuselage surgery to install a new fairing, replacing the molded turret fairing.
After trimming the "cupholders" off the bombardier's seat, I finished and installed the interior. The resin twin .50-caliber mounts are ill-defined - I just glued them to the turret ring.
After the interior, the fuselage builds up quickly. The rear fuselage has depressions for fixed "scare guns" supposedly mounted by the lower rear window. I filled them in, but check your references - some planes had them, some didn't.
Speaking of armament options, the wings have flashed-over ejection slots for Baltimores with wing guns. The instructions don't mention them, nor are the gun ports molded into the leading edges - so, I left them alone. The wings' and tail's trailing edges are a little thick but well molded. Fit to the fuselage is great - no filler required.
Engine nacelles are molded onto the wing, ready to accept the gorgeous resin engines and injection-molded cowls. Despite the instructions, I glued the cowl halves together and fitted the engine inside after trimming off most of the cylinder tops - then had problems lining up the cowls and the air intakes. Follow the instructions and you won't have this problem.
Wheel wells are formed by folding the side walls - seems odd, but it works well. The main gear needed cleanup but otherwise was OK. The lack of a tail-wheel axle makes it impossible to mount the tail wheel to the fork. I used the kit mount and added a modified nose gear from my spares for a fork. In contrast, the main wheels look good and fit well.
The large clear parts fit well with slight trimming. Take your time with the stepped windows at the nose - they add a lot to the plane's looks. If you build the turreted version, you'll need a steady hand to cut slots for the guns - they're molded closed, probably to prevent breakage.
After some minor gap filling, I painted a desert scheme with Polly Scale acrylic. The decals are opaque, in register, and go down well without much solvent.
Classic Airframes' Baltimore helps fill out a roster of WWII bombers with a well-detailed, accurate kit. I spent a little more than 20 hours on mine. The model has a few problems and is not for novices - but the only things you need, besides patience, are a new tail wheel and some detail in the open gun position. The results are worth the extra effort.
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