Accurate Miniatures

1/100 P-51D & Bf-109F EZ-Builds

Kit Number: #1003 & #1004

Reviewed by  Jim Pearsall, IPMS# 2209

MSRP: $7.95 each Accurate Miniatures, 4341 Triple Crown Drive, Concord, NC 28027 www.accurate-miniatures.com Thanks to Accurate Miniatures for the review kits. NOTE: These kits have already been reviewed by Sofia Fox (7) and Olivia Fox (10). A tough act to follow. [Ed.Note: We had several reviews of the A/M Ez-Build's last year and held this one, at which point it became lost in the backlog. These are good kits for young modelers and were a Make 'n Take hit at our chapter contest last year, so we have 'found' and published the review.] The Aircraft: Nothing new here. If you're unaware of Bud Anderson's P-51D or Werner Molders' Bf-109F, you've either spent a lot of time in a cave or you build only modern jets (Ed.Note: or beautiful biplanes). The plane that won the first half of the air war in Europe (Bf-109) and the one that won the second half (Mustang) are represented in these two kits.

The Kits Each kit has 2 sprues with grey plastic. The parts are pre-painted, no decals, as the markings are already painted on. There's also a clear canopy and a base. The kits have recessed panel lines. The painting is nicely done. The markings are correct, although the Bf-109 lacks any swastikas. Construction When I started these kits, I expected them to be snap-tite kits. I was disabused of this when the fuselage halves wouldn't stay together on either plane without an application of glue.

The interiors are one-piece, with the pilot figure fitting in the seat, then the whole assembly fitting into the fuselage halves.

I was also very happy with AM's method for attaching the parts to the trees. Instead of having the attachment point on the outside surface of the aircraft, the sprue makes a dog-leg and attaches to a spot which won't show when the kit is assembled.

This also means that the fuselage halves don't mate unless the little spots where the sprues connect are cleaned up. I tried a hobby knife, a riffler file, and finally found that the best and easiest job is done with a fairly broad medium-fine grit sanding stick. Where the fuselage interior can be reached with a precision applicator, putting Tenax ® or Micro Weld ® in from the inside gives you a beautiful joint. I used both of these products. The fact that these kits are both cleanly molded and have great fit is a plus. There were minor gaps at the wing root, but a few moments of holding the parts together after glue application made them almost invisible.

Another impressive feature of the kits, particularly the 109 was the landing gear. The 109's gear legs are set up so that if they are correctly inserted on the correct side, they will have the correct angle. Getting that unique "look" on the gear legs has always been difficult, but this kit makes it much easier. Finishing: Not much here. There's a "peel & stick" name tag which goes on the front of the base. Otherwise, everything is already done. Overall: These kits are really marvelously done. If they were in 1/48, had a lot more pieces, but had the same shape and fit, they'd be lauded as competition for the Japanese kit makers, and the reason for a "buy American" campaign. I usually look for a couple of things on P-51s. Is the scoop under the fuselage nicely done, and is it correctly shaped? How about the landing gear doors? On the AM P-51D, the scoop is a thing of beauty. It is far superior some 1/72 scale kits I have built. The shape is "right". The other P-51 in this photo is older, but I'm having trouble finding 1/144 P-51Ds. I had to create a new scoop for the 1/144 P-51, as all that was under the wing was a hole. Plus the canopy shape is suspicious. Yessir, the AM P-51 is a "keeper". The telling feature on a Bf-109F is the cowling. AM's cowling on this 109F again looks right, and matches the drawings I've got. The comparison kit is Tamiya's Bf-109E Trop. A nicer kit, but twice as expensive. So why buy these kits? If you've got grandchildren, or other young visitors, these kits are for you. They can be fully assembled in about an hour, which meets the younger set's attention span, and allows them to build something to take home. They're good looking, historically correct (OK, we'll forgive the swastika.) and give the neophyte modeler something they can do themselves with minimal help, and they're a step above snap-tites. I like them. Noah and Ben thank Accurate MIniatures and IPMS/USA for additions to their kit collections.

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