Warbird Information Exchange

Revell AG now has pics of test-shots of their forthcoming 1/72 B-17G. Looks to be the most detailed Fort in any scale! I'll definitely be picking up one. Or two. Or twelve...

http://www.revell.de/de/produkte/modellbau/service/info_channel/bildergalerien/b_17_flying_fortress/?id=917

According to someone who actually has a test-shot in hand, the kit does include the navigator's astrodome as well as the standard and Cheyenne tail guns. Apparently out-of-the-box the kit only has the unstaggered waist guns but moving the right waist gun forward to the "staggered" position shouldn't be that difficult. It will also feature a complete interior, including the radio room (a first for a 1/72 B-17.) The engines/nacelles are particularly nice..and something that no 1/72 kit has ever gotten quite right. Panel lines look a bit overstated, but of course we're looking at enlarged photos of an unpainted test shot. I'll reserve judgement until I see the actual kit.

Several features of the test build hint that Revell is planning an F in the future..the flat clear panel on top of the nose, the cheek guns and nose windows as separate inserts, and the open radio room gun mount. It's hard to tell from the pics, but it also looks like there is provision for the waist gun wnd deflectors.

Seems a bit ironic that the best B-17 kit ever is being produced by a German company!

SN

That's a seriously great looking kit. The Airfix Corsair I'm working on right now looks like a silhouette ID model in comparison. It's questionable how much interior detail you will be able to really see. I love the old standard the 48th scale Monogram B-17 , but to mega detail it and then glue it up always seemed like a shame.

_________________
Andrew King
Air Museum Director with no Museum to Direct
Open to Suggestions

I'm looking forward to the release in october.

However, other than the niggles noted upthread, I'm not sure what seems to be happening with the exhaust expansion chambers on the inboard nacelles. It looks like they've tried to replicate the late-war larger chambers, but that's caused the whole pipework to stick out too far.
Of course, as has already been mentioned, it might just be the way this particular one has been assembled, combined with the lack of the cowling in the photo.

All the best,
PB

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Paul Bellamy

401BG Association Historian & Honorary Life Member
401BG Historical Society (UK) Member
1st Air Division HQ Historical Society (UK) Founder Member
Director of Archives & Collections, Airfield Research Group Archive, Alconbury
RAF Alconbury Base Historian

It looks like the windshields are too big by about 15% and the profile of the cockpit structure looks to be too squared off and high judging from the photos.

_________________
Don't make me go get my flying monkeys-

we need a good E model!

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Shop the Airplane Bunker At
www.warbirdbunker.com

Here are some of the test-shot sprues..the text is in German, but the pics are in English.

http://www.ipmsdeutschland.de/FirstLook/Revell/Preview_Rev_B-17G_72/Rev_Boeing_B-17G.html

This looks to be the most detailed B-17 kit ever..blowing away all previous 1/72 offernings, and even leaving the venerable Monogram 1/48 kit in the dust.

The sprues show a number of parts indicative of an F (or even E) including the early sliding waist windows, and a blanking plate for the chin turret..HOWEVER..as this is a test shot I would not be surprised if the sprues are "gated off" to exclude an non-G-specific parts in the final kit.

SN