Academy 1/700 R.M.S. Titanic
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Overview
Few, if any, ships are as familiar as the R.M.S. Titanic. Hailed as
an unsinkable ship, the Titanic went down on its maiden voyage in 1912.
That disaster quickly became one of the most popular nautical stories
told, starring as the main subject in untold numbers of books, plays,
and films. The latest epic film about the ship, directed by James Cameron,
proved that interest in the story was still high as viewers sat through
the nearly 200 minute long film. For those with less patience, I recommend
“Titanic
in 30 Seconds,” which captures the highlights. For the full
story of the Titanic, a quick Google search will inundate you with everything
you could possibly wish to know about the Titanic.
The Kit
 This
is the second Titanic kit from Academy, with their first being quite a
bit larger at 1/400 scale. This kit, to 1/700 scale, will better fit on
smaller shelves, and also will fit in with existing 1/700 ship models.
This latter point is particularly useful in demonstrating the size of
the Titanic, as there are few ships that approach its nearly 900-foot
length. The kit is molded in three colors: black, white, and tan, roughly
matching the finished colors of the actual ship. While this is perhaps
a good feature for new modelers, eliminating the need for painting, most
other modelers will want to finish this model with their regular choices
of paints. I would recommend using a good gray primer beforehand, to help
cover up the plastic color differences before laying down the various
colors used.
 The
basic breakdown is similar to most other Titanic kits, with a one-piece
full hull and a multi-part upper decking. The main central deck and superstructure
fits snugly onto the hull, and the fore and aft decks mesh up to that
main piece smoothly. From that point on, the rest of the assembly focuses
solely on building up the deck details and superstructure. Capstans, cranes,
masts, and vents are all separate pieces, and while the plastic is somewhat
thick for this scale, a bit of thinning coupled with thin washes should
create some acceptable results. I strongly recommend looking through the
instructions repeatedly beforehand, as there will be some painting required
before the ship is fully assembled.
 Moving
on to some of the other external details, as this is a smaller scale some
of these are simplified. A good example are the lifeboats, which are molded
together with their davits in one piece that fits onto the upper deck
piece. The stacks are three pieces each, in contrast, which allows for
much more detail to be present. The small decal sheet provides the minimal
markings found on the Titanic, namely the ship’s name on the bow
and stern and the flags to fly from the masts.
Conclusion
 Although
somewhat simplified compared to their larger kit, Academy’s 1/700
Titanic is a very nice kit and one that is more likely to be built given
its common scale. Out of the box it would make for a decent replica of
this famous ship, and I am sure that it will not be too long before we
see some aftermarket photoetch sets to really make this model shine. My
thanks to MRC
for the review sample.
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