Reviews : Revell-Germany Vought F4U-1A Corsair Fighter Plane

The 1/32nd scale Revell Corsair has been around since 1970 and it is still a good if somewhat basic kit. Compared to the Tamiya or Trumpeter offerings it is definitely way behind the curve for details but it has a reasonably accurate shape and it offers a blank canvas to those who want to push their detailing and scratch-building skills without breaking the bank. I am presently using a combination of kit parts and scratch built items to bring it up to snuff. It won't have the same level of detail as the Tamiya but it will surpass the original Revell items by a lot! An example of what I want to do is the landing gear bays. I am adding the wing main spar, ribbing and a couple of actuators but that's it. Straight out of the box it builds up into a nice display model and the decals in this issue have good register and the colors look right and there are decals for the instrument panels and side consoles which the earlier issues of this kit didn't have. There is very little flash which is surprising when you consider that the molds are 54 years old. A small but interesting detail showed up in the outer wings. On the inside of the lower half of each wing there are small bullseye marks and when compared to a set of detail and scale drawings they match the rocket pylon positions of the F4U-1D. Having built this kit more than once I have not seen this before so maybe they were going to release a D model? All in all a lot of these old kits are still worth the time and effort to make them shine and maybe inspire a new modeler to join the hobby.

If you don't mind endless hours of scraping and filing, this kit is surely for you. There was SO much flash on everything I almost stopped halfway through and tossed the whole thing in the trash. The parts fitment even after careful trimming of parts is okay at best. The wings are supposed to be able to fold up or lay down with this strange hinge mechanism they cooked up, but good luck ever getting it to line up right when it's done. There's so much wing weight hanging on such a small hinge that it'll never quite sit right. Also, if you want the wings to be even when they fold up, you're on your own. The parts for this mechanism don't line up well at all and need to be trimmed here and there until they fit. If you plan on having moving wings, make sure you have plenty of medium C/A glue and a bottle of accelerator handy! Unfortunately, the cons far outweigh the pros on this one. The raised panel lines and insane number of rivets combined with all the flash and the horrible wing setup make this one a no-go for me. The only good thing I can say about this kit is that the cockpit has more detail than a typical Revell kit.

This is a re-issues of Revell's 1/32 scale Corsair. It offers a nicely detailed engine. Cockpit detail is somewhat lacking, but there are aftermarket photo-etch cockpit detail sets that will vastly improve the appearance of the cockpit. Vereldin offeres an excellent resin replacement cockpit. The wheel well detail is sparse,but can be recetifed with a little scratch building.There is little flash on the sprues, and overall fit is good. The kit can be displayed with the wings folded or extended. If you choose to display them folded, you will have to scratch build the wing fold area, hyd. lines control linkages etc. I plan on replacing my kits struts and wheels with aftermarket ones, as the kit ones a somewhat lacking in detail, but is nothing which is impossible to improve, either by scratch building additional details on the kit gear or replacing them with aftermarket metal gear.Overall this is a nice kit, especially the price. I would recommend this kit.

Revell initiated their famous 1/32 warbird series in the '70s, and they were state of the art for the day... While it cannot compete with Tamiya's fantastic $150 Corsair, Revell's F4U holds up well, especially when considering its bargain basement price (a modeler can build a squadron of Revell kits for one Tamiya ;) ). The details reflect its 1970 release date, the kit has a bit of flash, but the fit is good, the engine is remarkable, and the shape is right. WIth some modeling skills and additional aftermarket parts and detailing, a stunning model can be the result... Several modeling websites have completed Revell Corsairs that are truly works of the modeler's art. Recommended as a challenge for experienced modelers to work their magic, or as a first big scale kit for newer hobbyists on a budget.

You can't beat this kit for the price. The details are a little sparse especially in the wheel wells. The panel lines are raised, but still look good. The tires have no detail at all, just plain plastic circles. The hing system on the wings works pretty good but anything is better than the Revell 1/48 version. The engine detail is nice as well as the cockpit (instrument decals). You could get aftermarket parts but that would drive the price too high. Again for the price its almost a sin not to purchase it. Its a fun build

I was impressed with the size of the model considering the price of the model, very reasonable for a 1:32 scale model. I did enjoy building and modifying the engine which I proceeded to make into a highly detailed engine. Few flashing parts but overall not bad and a few alignment issues but none that can't be resolved with a little work and patience. Model size is nice and makes for an easy assembly model. Overall model rates between a four and five star, so I'll ,go ahead and rate it a five.

As the information says, the wings on this one can be folded up. The mounting for this is a tad difficult, so don't rush. WAIT for the glue to really bond and dry or you will be doing this over and over and over. Same for the landing gear. That said, this is a big model that paints easy and the rest comes together easily. You won't be disappointed if you put the time in on this one. I gave it a Good rating and not excellent because of the wing mounting system for the folding wings.

Not much flashing -parts fit well - instructions could use some improvement especially the build of the engine and the manifold in the rear - other than that it was a fun build. I glued the wings into the down and fixed position - too much hassle to try to have folding wings

This is the first model that I am building in a long, long time. Like others, I found some flash on the parts, but nothing I can't live with. It's a fun model to do since it's been a long time since I've done anything in plastic. I'm taking my time with this model.

Inexpensive kit of the same thing as the high priced one. If you are not an expert professional model builder this kit is perfect!

Great model. Went together well no major gaps. Took creative license with the decals to suit my taste. I enjoyed building it