A nice detailed review. Looks like Fujimi toned down the raised LO surface detail from the test shots. I wonder if they took note of the backlash Hasegawa got for their exaggerated raised LO detailing in the 48th scale kit? Looks like they got the inboard LEF bulge wrong; just like every other kit has. Same goes for the trailing edge of the tail hook fairing.
Some things I noted with my sample:
The cockpit tub detail is decent, but it’s a bit heavy for the scale. I found the Instrument panel to be under represented as there is no raised MFD (Multi Function Display) or PMFD (Primary MFD) face plates. The face plates of the MFDs/PMFDs stand out prominently from the instrument panel and should have been tooled the same way, but it is 72nd scale.
Then wheel well detail is mostly guess work with fictitious detailing. There’s no representation of the deep webbing detail of the aft bulkhead; a characteristic of the real jet. The landing gear is as plane as it gets in this scale. The nose gear is particularly plane and also inaccurately done with the thin upper cross section and over scaled steering links. I checked the wheels and note that the nose wheel assembly scales a bit too large for the scale.
Some technical corrections to note:
The kit engine trailer is actually a combination of both the hardback and R & I (Removal & Installation) trailers. There is no such combo trailer for the pratt F-119 motor, as the R & I and hardback trailers are two different pieces of equipment. Those large wheels are not steering wheels, but large adjustment wheels that elevate the engine trailer rails in order to adapt to the aircraft rails (for R & I) or the hardback trailer for transportation.
The smaller GBU-32 was typically referred to as the mini or baby JDAM. These should be part of the standard ordinance for any F-22 kit. What would have been a nice touch is if a BRU-61 and SBDs were included. The review mentions “AIM-7s”, which would be wrong as the Raptor does not carry Sparrows. Also, there’s no such thing as “AIM-7X”, though I think that’s probably a typo. The instructions also show the AIM-9Xs on AVELs in the Main Weapon Bay, which is not correct as the AIM-9X would need a special adapter to do so and they are typically loaded on the side weapons bays.
Aside from a few technical errors, that was a good box review of the Fujimi F-22. Overall, the Fujimi kit has some good points going for it, though I’m not convinced it trumps the Academy kit. It’s a decent F-22 kit and certainly one of the top three F-22 kits in 72nd; the other two being Academy & Revell/ROG.
Mike V
