¹⁄72

Airfix has shown images of the wing fold of their upcoming new tool 1/72 scale Blackburn Buccaneer S Mk.2 RN

”One of the other new tooling projects announced at the beginning of the year was the Blackburn Buccaneer S Mk.2 in 1/72nd scale, one of the most capable strike aircraft to see British service and a kit many Workbench readers are very much looking forward to getting their hands on. In the 97th edition of our blog, we were pleased to bring you an exclusive update from this project, with the very first showing of the test frame components from the tooling, which clearly illustrated how our designer Matt had cleverly split the individual pieces of the kit to produce a highly accurate scale representation of this famous aircraft. Clearly, as this is a keenly anticipated new kit, the images came in for some close inspection and we were grateful for the many complimentary comments we received in the days following publication, along with a noticeable spike in pre-ordering activity for the kit. One or two modelling forums did carry comments from several modellers who were concerned that they could not see how the parts allowed the model to be constructed with its wings raised in carrier stowage configuration. Whilst these concerns were quickly allayed by fellow forum members, explaining how the frames included additional parts, we thought that we would clarify the situation now, so that Workbench readers can begin to consider in which wing configuration they intend to build their Buccaneer, before the kit is already lying on their workstation. Having discussed our intentions with Matt, he was only too happy to spend a little time away from his computer to produce a quick sample model build to illustrate the steps required. The following images have been provided by Matt and will hopefully be of interest to our readers – please remember that these parts are test frame components from the first plastic injection through the new mould and are only intended to illustrate the wing fold build option.
This series of build images have been produced in just a few minutes by Buccaneer designer Matt, who wanted to show how easy it will be to finish the model in the folded wing configuration. This first image shows where and how the lower wing section should be cut if this option is desired. Hopefully, the images featured above show how the raised wing option has been planned and how simple the modification procedure actually is. The full span of the lower wing has to be cut down the panel line as illustrated, if you intend to build your model in this raised wing configuration and new lower wing sections are included as an option within the kit itself. The new Buccaneer kit was developed in this way because the feeling amongst the team was that most modellers would be intending to build their model in flight configuration, providing an accurate scale representation of this iconic naval strike jet and in that case, Matt wanted to ensure the correct wing alignment was available to modellers. The appealing wing raised option is very much available and just requires a little prior planning and the use of some additional parts which are all included in the kit. Hopefully, this clarifies the situation and just leaves us all pondering the question, will we finish our Buccaneer with the wings up or down? We would like to thank Matt for breaking away from his busy day to provide these informative build pictures, which we hope you will find informative.”
Airfix

Release date September 2019

A06021 - Blackburn Buccaneer S Mk.2 RN – 1/72

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