The first new kit of the iconic Flying Fortress in two decades, Revell Germany’s brand-new B-17G has just about everything you could ask for in a 1/72 scale World War II bomber: accurate shapes; full interior; detailed bomb bay; movable gun turrets; realistic landing gear; and attractive decals.
The kit has it all — but much of it will be nearly invisible once it’s assembled. Out of the box, this initial release represents a pair of early-production B-17Gs with the original-style tail guns and matching waist-gun positions. Fear not: Alternate parts on the sprues suggest Revell Germany’s intentions to issue a late G and an F model. The later-style Cheyenne tail turret also is included, as are two different bombardier noses, two cockpit covers, three radio-compartment covers, three alternate waist-gunners’ windows, and alternate astrodome and nose-side inserts. There’s no indication that a staggered gun position is planned, but experienced modelers should be able to fix that for late B-17Gs. The panel lines are recessed and a bit heavy for the scale. Many of the .50-cal machine guns are molded in three parts: (tiny) grips, body, and barrels with perforation detail. Beautiful decals are provided for two Forts from the 91st Bomb Group, Nine-O-Nine and Little Miss Mischief.
The kit’s instructions require careful study. Though only a handful of parts is shown in each step, the diagrams are small; as many as 18 steps are crammed onto one page. Adding to the confusion is the parts-numbering system. The parts maps help, but the numbers are scattered among the sprues in no order, and the sprues don’t have individual labels. This means a lot of time spent hunting for a particular part among the 317-piece puzzle.
Construction starts with the bomb bay, complete with racks and support structures as well as pairs of 500- and 1,000-pound bombs. The forward and aft bulkheads also serve as mounting spars for the wings. It was here that I encountered my only assembly glitch. The bomb bay grid structure (two No. 4s) slide into slots in the forward and aft bulkheads. I suggest that you don’t glue them but let them float. I glued one of mine a bit too high in the slot and it prevented the wing spars from fitting properly through the slots in the fuselage.
The interior compartments are all fitted with seats and equipment, and the gun turrets (except for the chin turret) include ammo cans and belt chutes. Great stuff, but once the fuselage is closed, you won’t see much of it. The ball turret is realistically mounted on a trapeze. The top turret sits a bit tall — looks as though the bottom frame is repeated as the lip of the turret structure. Interestingly, the top turret just drops into its hole; there is nothing to hold it if you don’t glue it in place.
I noticed that clear parts over the flight deck and on the inside of the nose cone looked like beveled glass. Don’t know what that’s all about.
I was impressed with the engines and their nacelles. Each Wright Cyclone comprises six parts, and you get alternate open and closed cowl flap rings and realistic superchargers. One of the sprue gates in my sample kit wasn’t closed completely, and plastic leaked through to form an extra cowl, a blunt one that would be found on late B-17Gs.
One more nifty feature: The flaps are molded closed into the bottom halves of the wings. But activators are provided, along with instructions on how to cut away the flaps and mount them in the dropped position.
I painted the bird with Testors Model Master enamels. Then, after a clear gloss coat, I applied the decals. They all fit fine and responded to Solvaset. A clear flat coat produced a nice, even sheen.
I didn’t attempt to weather Nine-O-Nine due to the deadlines, but, having flown 140 missions, it deserves a good coat of grime.
I spent 31 hours on my Flying Fortress. Although the kit is not perfect, its detail and options clearly place it at the top of the pile of B-17s in this scale.