Airfix 1/72 Nimrod By Shane Jenkins

Introduction

The Airfix Nimrod has finally arrived, after waiting a couple of years for it to happen. Now, has it been worth the wait? That is something we hope to answer by the end of this inbox review.

The Kit

The kit comes in a VERY large box with 7 sprues and with close to 250 parts. Airfix give you the option to build a Nimrod MR.1, MR.2, MR.2P or the R.1P. The parts are finely moulded with recessed panel lines and very nice detail - the separate entry doors are a nice touch. With three sprues given over to avionics/bombloads you hav lots of choice as to what bombload to carry or you can have the bomb-bay closed.

The transparent parts are of an acceptable thickness. The fuselage windows consist of individual parts fitted internally and will do the job nicely - some people however may want to go the Krystal Kleer/White Glue route here.

The control surfaces ie: flaps and rudders are moulded separately to the wings and tailplanes and will need close attention to references depending on how it is modelled. The detail supplied with the cockpit is reasonable and leaves plenty of scope for the modeller who wishes to do more detailing.

The engine detail is very basic but will come to life with a nice paint job and maybe some minor scratchbuilding additions will enhance the look. The undercarriage detailing is also nice, you have the option of going wheels up with the wheel covers appearing to have a nice closed fit.

The wings form part of the fuselage/bomb bay when fitted to the model. Test fitting of the wings gave a good fit with not much filling required - although there is always some on such a large wing surface. The panel lines seem to be too deep, however once it's painted this should look ok.

The kit comes with six options for the following: 203 Squadron RAF Nimrod MR.1 at Malta in 1977, 201 Squadron RAF MR.2P from Operation Corporate in 1982, 201 Sqadron RAF MR.2 at the Fincastle Trophy at RAAF Richmond, 42 Squadron(R) RAF MR.2P, Nimrod Line Squadron MR.2P 2007 and 51 Squadron RAF R.1P Waddington 2007. Also included are stencils and cockpit details. The rather large decal sheet is in register and of good colour and comes with colour profiles. The instruction sheet is suitably comprehensive for a kit of this size and complexity, however it does scrimp a bit on the history and specifications of the craft.

Conclusion:

Like I said in the intro, we've been waiting for this kit for a couple of years since the announcement. Cheers to Airfix for delivering an injected Nimrod to us. This kit is not cheap but you do get a lot of plastic and a big completed model at the end of it. Now has it been worth the wait? Well, I'd have to say yes it has - it looks reasonably accurate and will go together with a minimum of extra work. Although it is a large kit, any modeller who has built a few kits should be able to have a Nimrod on their display shelf. For those wanting to convert to a Comet, it looks like it can be done, but will involve some work.

With Airfix releasing this in a limited run like the TSR.2 a few years ago, this kit will fly off the various shelves around the world, so get in quick before they are all gone. I recommend this kit with the caveat that it is slightly expensive and it will be in high demand because of the limited run.

Review sample courtesy of SANDLE Hobbies

Disclaimer: For those who worry about such things, yes I do own SANDLE Hobbies and sell the above kit among others.