Finally, there is the 1958(?) Airfix kit. It’s probably more accurate than the Revell, but would take a lot of work to bring it up to the standard of any of the modern kits.

Revell were not far behind Hasegawa with a well priced modern kit featuring quite a bit more detail. Unfortunately, as with their later Halifax kit, Revell was asleep at the wheel during some stages of the kit’s development. Most notably they forgot to crank in enough wing dihedral, and churned out some very bland and oversized main wheels. Fortunately both problems are easy enough to fix. Like Hasegawa, Revell got carried away with fine engraved panel lines, again especially on the wings. Revell too have offered a dambuster version of the kit. Fortunately, Revell’s price is such that these wing and wheel issues can be fixed whilst still have some change left over compared to the Hasegawa alternative. Nothing serious - No parts map and minor errors and omissions in instructions; fuselage side windows too small and no chamfer on elevator outer edge (both easily fixed); exaggerated fabric effect on ailerons and decaled rather than 3-D instrument panels. The sprue gates are reasonably fine and far better than Airfix’s new tool Typhoon I recently reviewed. There are some quite fine parts; and these are some of the best I have seen in a new tool Airfix kit, conceding little if anything in refinement compared to other brands like Hasegawa. The clear canopy parts are thin with good clarity. Airfix’s tool makers have managed to leave a few prominent ejector pin marks that will need cleaning up, as will sink marks in a few areas. The bomb doors on my sample were a little warped, but should straighten out with some hot water treatment.

Who is the manufacturer Airfix?

Whilst this is good first hand reporting from what would appear to be a reliable source, the late date and the unusual scheme would indicate this is one of the trials schemes. Note some Lancasters were fitted with the larger Lincoln vertical tails. This includes the BBMF aircraft. I think there might be resin aftermarket parts that cover this but no kit has them to my knowledge. Lancaster wings are a pretty basic shape, so I was not expecting too much variation between brands. None agree exactly on the engine datums, and Airfix has its engines a bit wider out from the fuselage than the other two, not by miles, but there is a noticeable difference. You do get a pilot if you want to add him – but he looks a bit retro to me and out of keeping with the rest of the kit. Undercarriage Airfix beats Revell on accuracy and shape quite significantly in some areas (engines, wing dihedral, mid-upper turret fairing, and main-wheels), equals it on internal detail, and falls behind on panel line finesse.

The kit is engineered in a slightly unusual way compared to most Lancaster kits because the wings must accept both in-line and radial engine options. Theses differ in the way the nacelles blend with the wing, and so Airfix has cutouts in the wing leading edges to allow for this. The other unusual aspect is the way the two wing spars, having been inserted through the fuselage, then have the wheel well interiors attached directly to them. This then requires that the wings be assembled around the wheel wells and onto the spars. All well and good, except that one of the benefits of building WW2 British heavies is that you can usually assemble the wings separately from the fuselage to aid dealing with seams and enable the wings and fuselage to be painted and decaled separately from each other. All is not lost however, as you can assemble the spars and wheel well structure as per the instructions, then simply cut through the spars adjacent to the wheel well to enable these to be assembled with the wings separately. More than enough spar will be left to slide the wings onto later after painting. The rearmost part of the fuselage adjacent to the elevators is catered for by an insert to allow for slight variances depending on the model of tail-turret fitted. The Lancaster’s development and operational history must be one of the best known amongst aircraft modellers and enthusiasts. With this in mind I shall not provide an account here. For those who want to know more the Internet is replete with information on this famous WW2 bomber and the famous Dams Raid, not to mention numerous publications and video documentaries.The accompanying images, especially the one featuring all three wings in line, highlight the difference. I am inclined to think that Airfix is probably the most correct here. Each year, Airfix impresses modeling fans with new featured products and special products. The British brand produces a wide range of kits to satisfy all modeller profiles. The topics presented are varied such as:

Airfix have captured some key shapes better than their competitors, they have supplied plenty of nice interior detail, some of the best of which will hardly be seen in the wheel wells. Some parts are very finely moulded, and I like the plastic Airfix uses as it is nice to work with. The transparencies are very well done with delicate framing and very good clarity. The provision of a bomb-trolley for the Upkeep mine is a nice touch. Lesson: Wash the pieces in warm soapy water before painting them and (perhaps) undercoat them with a neutral colour, particularly if using acrylic paint. There have been no mainstream kits of the Lancaster Mk.II with its radial engines, nor of some of the later Lancaster versions. These, and models of Lancastrians, Manchesters, Lincolns and Yorks have remained in the realm of conversions or all-resin kits. Although outside this review’s scope, there is still only one 1/48-scale Lancaster by Tamiya (also with a dambuster boxing), which is also long in the tooth. The instructions are logical and well laid out. The usual exploded-stage diagram approach is used. The colour painting guide is provided as a separate sheet and I like that, making it much easier to use and have in front of you when painting and applying the decals. I simply love the ‘Tiger Force’ scheme with the Lanc in white – stunning and a great challenge for us modellers to get it looking authentic.The 1980’s Airfix kit is still quite serviceable with fine raised rivet detail rather than recessed panel lines. There is a Grand Slam boxing if that’s what you are after. Interior detail is inferior compared to the kits previously mentioned. What was the underside colour? Sky as in the book or medium sea grey as on the artwork or something else as noted in the other thread