Reviews : Italeri C130J Hercules Aircraft

I picked this up because I was thinking it would be fun to detail the cargo area and have an updated version of this venerable workhorse. Sadly, I was wrong. The cockpit is minimal at most, and you would think that with all those windows you could see more inside. You cant. The kit has you fill windows to make one version (of the 4 you can choose from). It would have been easier to open the windows instead. The clear parts barely fit in the space and took a lot of filler to get even close to fitting. The interior- although expansive, lacks any sort of realistic detail. The worst part of this kit was the fit of the engines to the wings. Painting was a blast - but raised panel lines make washes and weathering a bit trickier than it should be. I hope that at some point this kit is updated to recessed panel lines (like the AC-130 kit, which I also have), and that the overall level of detail is enhanced and upgraded. Having this, the AC-130 and the MC-130 kits you can see the same issue running through at least 2 of the kits, so It will be interesting to compare deeply the issues between the 3. As it is, the kit would be frustrating for beginners. If you want more of a fight than it might be worth, then by all means go for it - if not, look elsewhere.

Italeri has gotten a lot of mileage out of this kit and the J model Hercules is the latest iteration of this old kit. This kit can only be built as a short body aircraft, so you will be limited to those operators like the US Coast Guard and others that use these early J models. There are a few guys out there making fuselage extensions so all is not lost. The front of the landing gear sponsons aren't correct for a J but Brengun Models makes a set in 1/72nd scale as well as a set of corrected engine nacelles and spinners for the Rolls-Royce engines but you will need to do a little work where they attach to the wings. Flightpath Models makes a very extensive photoetch set that does the cockpit, cargo bay and landing gear bays. The kit fits reasonably well but it has raised panel lines, a basic cockpit and an empty cargo bay. My model is still on the build table but it will be finished in USCG colors with station markings for Port Angeles, WA. The Coast Guard sheet was originally issued by Italeri separately from the kit and it is very comprehensive.

so i cant hate on italeri too much, being that they are really the only company to tackle the most widespread cargo aircraft in the world (which still confuses me). i'm in the air force and see these planes very regularly. this kit looks good from far but is far from good. its obvious that they used their old mold for the H model, which is fine but i would have expected a little more correction that they provided. the engine nacelles are totally the wrong shape, they were changed to fit the much more powerful engine for the J model. the sponsons on the side of the aircraft are too short, the intake on the right side is a big difference between the H and J and is almost laughable at italeris attempt at it. all this being said, it is your only option for a J model. so i sucked it up and im working on their 1/48 scale one now.

Great kit great build parts fit well changed the rear deck with 2 small pins so that deck can be opened and closed easily