Small Scale Military Headquarters

Did anyone else get a replacement pin for bomb swing arm pivot taped inside of the outer carboard box??

Still waiting for mine to arrive. planning on getting some dark denim blue paint and some llight chambray color paint to use on one Corsair pilot to simulate the uniform worn by the enlisted gunner. Also have to remember to paint his shoes black.
Should be more in keeping with the original uniforms they wore.
JOC

Got my Dauntless together. I barely had it out of its box before I went upstairs & ordered another. Tman's review is spot on.

My favorite paint job in the collection to date - great scheme & impressive weathering.

Jim@Merit - very, very nicely done! The folks that put this together did some excellent work.
I applaud the 'more model, less toy' approach.

Wish the bombs came off the wings, but a minor gripe.

As Tman mentioned, a slightly truncated Corsair pilot looks good in the front seat. I have a GI Joe in the back for now. Getting the crew sorted out is a little tricky, go easy on the gun mount. The detail in the cockpit is worth the hassle, the canopy alone is a thing of beauty.

Looks like maybe pre-packed by Merit? Packed very well (yeah, Barbarian, I got a pin in a bag with mine too).

This is an ambitious level of detail & craftsmanship for 1/18. IMHO, Merit has pulled it off.

snake wrote:

dragon53 wrote:For those who are going to order the Coral Sea Dauntless, keep in mind that Flyingmule is offering a free model for orders of $150+ through June 19 via its email promotion code.
I got a free Hobby Master F-4N Phantom that I almost bought a month ago with my Dauntless.

Thanks for the reminder, dragon53.

Wasn't going to get the Coral Sea version, and hold off for the Midway, but with a deal like this, too hard to pass up.

Some nice models available for "free", and I also went for a HM F-4. VF-84 Jolly Rogers CAG. A $70 value.

Wow! That's awesome, I remembered the free model offer, but couldn't locate the email with the code, so I missed out...

well, i buckled and ordered a Coral Sea dauntless. Looks so good, didn't want to pass it up....heh. I guess i can find room for two dauntlesses in my life.

Just got the box from Fedex and couldn't wait to open it. The DETAIL is off the chart. The rubber wheels instead of the hard plactic shocked me. Then to open the wheel well and hydrolic hoses. Nice!! Worth every penny. Great Job Jim.

When I went assemble this beast I ran into a snag on the wing where it meets the front fuselage. One corner by the leading edge is hanging up. See Photo.



Anyone else run into this? I planned on cutting it down with an exacto, but wanted to see if anyone else has ran into this issue. Everything else went together perfectly.

Jim@Merit wrote:

dragon53 wrote:JIM@MERIT:

I just ordered a Coral Sea Dauntless a few minutes ago. My only complaint about the model is that it needs pilot figures. To me, a model plane, particularly as large as 1/18, is naked without pilots. For the price of almost $170, I think pilots should be included.

If Merit cannot provide pilots, I hope you can persuade BBI to release its 1/18 Navy pilots that were included with its F6F Hellcats and F4U Corsairs.

I'm looking forward to getting the Dauntless as it has received a rave review here From Tmanthegreat, whose review persuaded me to order one.....but the Dauntless would be even better with pilots.

Yes, let’s hope BBI will soon re-release their USN pilot figure. Their figure will work fine with minor modifications. I think that will be the best bet for the time being.

Dear All

Just wonder how many of you really want to see a correct early war USN crew for your SBD-3?

Jim

pizzaguy wrote:Just got the box from Fedex and couldn't wait to open it. The DETAIL is off the chart. The rubber wheels instead of the hard plactic shocked me. Then to open the wheel well and hydrolic hoses. Nice!! Worth every penny. Great Job Jim.

When I went assemble this beast I ran into a snag on the wing where it meets the front fuselage. One corner by the leading edge is hanging up. See Photo.



Anyone else run into this? I planned on cutting it down with an exacto, but wanted to see if anyone else has ran into this issue. Everything else went together perfectly.

Please do not cut off anything. They should fit fine if positioned correctly. Please send me a PM and I will guide you through.

Dear All

Just wonder how many of you really want to see a correct early war USN crew for your SBD-3?

Jim


absolutely, two sets here.

Jim@Merit wrote:
Dear All

Just wonder how many of you really want to see a correct early war USN crew for your SBD-3?

Jim

Probably everybody.

I just ordered 3 Corsair pilots though.

My Merit Dauntless went together really well tonight. Photographed just about everything and am processing the pics as we speak. I'll post my review on the Diecast Hangar Pub and the Diecast Aircraft Forum either tonight or tomorrow night. I will post links to those reviews here.

This model is engineered really well. Jim your team is to be commended. There is room for improvement on either Merit's end or the modeler's end; a quick summation:

I'd like to see "SBD-3" printed on the 13 red/white rudder stripes; the main bomb could use more detail and stenciling to match the standard of the airplane body and wings stenciling; the propeller hub's silver part (the base of the nosecone) is not concentric on my model (the paint is uneven, not the shape); the rear gun could use more detail, (modelers: replacing the overly-thick sight with photoetch might do the gun well); the center dive brake could use a tab to hold it in the retracted position; the arrestor hook should actuate (again, keeping up with the standard of the rest of the model).

There's been talk of the fragility of this model. I don't see that at all. It's a tight, robust plane. The working parts can be moved without fear. Get used to working the dive brakes. They fit the plane better after they've been opened and closed several times. You will quickly feel a comfort zone when you handle the assembled model--the working parts work.

I also heard that the plastic was going to be thinner, and there would be more assembly for the buyer. Well, I don't feel the plastic being any different than my other 1/18's, and also, assembly went smoothly and was easier than the BBI Corsair or Zero.

Comments on the packaging: I don't know why Merit sometimes puts quotation marks around the word Dauntless. Also, some of the photos on the box show Enterprise machines. Admittedly, Clear Coral Sea-era photos of Lexington SBDs are rare, due to the sinking of that ship after the battle. Also, in the write up Merit says "In the Battle of Midway, the Dauntless was perhaps the most vital weapon in the conflict." Perhaps? Has there ever been a more decisive weapon in such a complex battle? The US used B-17s, B-26s, SBUs, TBDs and PBYs, all of which did nothing to harm the Japanese forces. The Dauntless was by far the most vital weapon.

What Merit has done with the beloved SBD is nothing short of incredible. The paint job is tastefully done. This is a very beautiful model. The fit takes a bit of muscle but the joints are tight and true. A lot of care went into the design and production of this model. Thank you Merit!

Has anyone gotten the little landing gear pieces and pins into place

I can't get mine in...any tips on getting these parts on?

Corey

Jim:
Still waiting for my planes to arrive. Put me down for the correct USN WWII crew for the SBD. I'll take at least 4-sets, can never have too many.
JOC

Greetings:

I got mine today and assembled it. A lot has already been said and discussed about the model so I won't rehash the old details other than to say the detail and the overall look of the model is truly befitting the legendary SBD. I will discuss more in detail and do more pictures but for now some short comments

I think one highlight of the model no one mentioned is the box. I love the box art with the color profiles of the Dauntlesses, the pictures from World War II, etc. I thought this gave the box some flash and uniqueness. Much better than the 21st boxes.

The paint scheme, weathering and working details are terrific. This is what 1/18 should have been from the start in terms of the quality and the detail. Had all the planes been like this, the scale might have survived with more membership and support. As has been mentioned, this is easily the best 1/18 World War II aircraft put out, possibly the best 1/18 aircraft ever made.

I think one of the biggest drawbacks of this model is the way the small pieces for the landing gear were designed, the black ones you have to add to the plane and insert the pin. This pin is so small and so hard to get a hold of it is almost impossible to get these parts on. Also, the pins fit very tightly so they have to be forced on pretty hard. It is also not an easy spot to attach a part. I fiddled with it and eventually ended up breaking one of the gray tabs on the landing gear trying to get this part on. I finally glued the parts into place as my plane will probably be sitting on a shelf. If I ever want to display the plane gear up I will just remove these pieces. I lost the pins. I would strongly suggest Merit try to install this part at the factory in future releases...way too difficult to get into place without breaking something. As Tman said, these parts are not even needed as the model looks fine without them. These parts and the lack of crew figures would be my big complaints about the model. I also think something along the lines of theHobbymaster 1/32 Dauntless where you could have an option for a twin or single machine gun assembly would be nice

A really commendable effort by Merit on this airplane! I am impressed! Having studied the Dauntless greatly due to my family connection with the aircraft I will say this plane looks and represents the famous dive bomber well. I wish my great uncle could see this model. He would enjoy it I'm sure. Just incredibly well done for a plane that was sorely needed in 1/18.

Only one picture tonight, my Dauntless was joined by the Sakai Zero for the picture. These two planes look TERRIFIC together as I have always liked the BBI Zero. I have two Avenger guys in my Dauntless. The back Avenger guy is the head, arms and torso only. I have him sort of wedged in where he looks correct. The pilot I removed the lower legs. I figure no one would look in the cockpit to notice. Think they look fine for now until something better comes along and I had these guys as spares so it worked well.



Regards

Corey

Can you tell me more about these landing gear pins? Mine SBD will be in next week, and I was wondering what these landing gear pins are used for?

COREYEAGLE48:

Great photo of the Coral Sea Dauntless. I hope you post some more.

Jim@Merit wrote:[Dear All

Just wonder how many of you really want to see a correct early war USN crew for your SBD-3?

Jim

That would be excellent! Hopefully any potential figures could be made to fit the tight confines of the cockpit. I would take two sets myself

Just got back from the beach and the Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola where I was able to see a beautiful Dauntless up close and personal, and my Dauntless was waiting for me when i got home. This thing is a homerun Merit!!!!! I was only going to buy one Dauntless but the quality for the price is outstanding and so I will be buying all of the paint schemes of this one. Only sad thing about this is having to wait to see what else you will produce!

Sabrefan wrote:Can you tell me more about these landing gear pins? Mine SBD will be in next week, and I was wondering what these landing gear pins are used for?

They are a tiny rod and metal pin that attach to a circular bracket on the landing gear strut. The strut and door are seperate pieces. The pins are supposed to represent a pushrod or something of that sort between the gear and the door.

As Coreyeagle48 noted, the piece is very difficult to insert, because its very tiny, in an odd position between the strut and the door, and its difficult to shove the pin through the hole due to fit issues. Would have been good had Merit assmebled this piece on their end.

I attempted the pin assembly on my plane, found it not worth the effort for something so small and not very noticable, and so left them off.

Compared to everything else positive with this plane, the pins are so minor in my opinion as to not overshadow anything else.

Greetings:

The attachment part in question in a piece on the real plane that pushes out the rectangluar piece on the landing gear. On the Dauntless, when the gear retracts, this piece retracts and pulls this rectangular piece in to fit in flush with the wing. When the Dauntless pilot lowers the landing gear, this pieces opens and locks pushing out the rectangular piece on an angle as you see it when the Dauntless is sitting on its gear. The piece also provides support to the real part on the real aircraft. As tmanthegreat said, this piece is not really needed and I would advise everyone to leave it off. Forcing it will most likely break the small tabs (like I did) because the piece is so small. The pin fits really tightly if at all. Again, no one will notice they are off. I have mine guled on but will carefully remove them if I ever hang the plane or sell it.

By request (I thought my photos were out of favor here...guess not), here are some more photos of the Dauntless. Just a stunning plane! Sorry for the delay I have been doing photos at night as the driveway is so hot during the day with the heat wave we've been having that the poor Dauntless would be no match for it.

Corey

Thanks for the pictures

CW4USARMY wrote:Just got back from the beach and the Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola...

Gosh, wish you had told me you were in P'cola. I woulda had you pick up a dining room set from my dad so I could come pick it up from you. You're only an hour from me as opposed to five and a half to my dad's.

You were up for hauling furniture, right?

COREYEAGLE48:

These are great photos. Thanks for posting them.

Greetings:

Here is another photo of a real, still flying Dauntless. This is the Commemorative Air Force's SBD-5 (originally an Army A-24 variant) taking off at the Reading World War II Weekend.



One thing Merit did not do (maybe due to the experience of the F-14) is make the Dauntlesses gear shock absorbing. Take a look at the photo above and you will notice the gear legs extend down past the gear pieces. The Merit model they do not do that. This was a shock absorbing gear design on the Dauntless. When the plane is sitting on the ground the gear compresses.

Greetings

This is for Jim@Merit.

I would be down for three or four crew sets if they get made as well.

Corey