How big should 1/18 scale aircraft get?

[Dauntless]

Saw the Spruce Goose when she was in Long Beach thought they took her to Oregon or something.

I really don't see something like a B-25 being a problem. Whether it is marketable these days who knows?
I used to own many 1:6 vehicles and the White Scout car was in a very long box, huge by toy standards. Surely a B-25 would've fit in something as big with the wings detached.

If there is any chance of seeing any more 1:18 WWII fighters I still think the P-40E Warhawk and P-51B would be good. Staightforward paint jobs, no mottling to worry about, plenty of different choices.

Big four engine jobs? Not likely but on the other hand HK Models has made a 1:32 Flying Fortress, a couple of other WWII aircraft like the B-25. They cost a fortune unbuilt. Why not make a pre-assembled pre-painted version less complicated without as much detail, interior parts etc. A few companies like Easy Model base their planes on kits like Trumpeter. Corgi uses their Airfix kits for die cast from what I've read.

[pickelhaube]

I'll give a beer to whoever builds the Hughes-Kaiser HK-1 Hercules, better known as the "Spruce Goose" in 1:18 scale

Well at least it does not look like it has panel lines . That would make the build a little easier .

[aferguson]

bump

[Studly]

Depend's on how big of a Hanger you can afford lol

[Axis Nightmare]

As long as it's made as a model and not as a toy. Being intimately familiar with our B-25, the retract system is somewhat complex with the main gear doors opening during the retract and also closing after extension. If it's like so many of the toy's examples with retractable landing gear, it will likely be as FUBAR as the P-38 which doesn't even have the nose gear in the correct place. A two-option gear for retracted or gear down would be nice. Would be such a disappointment if one was produced that sacrificed accuracy for toy-like features. Same with pilot figures. The canopies of some planes sit too high so to fit mostly rigid pilot figures despite being somewhat articulated. The P-38 and P-47 come to mind.

[tmanthegreat]

Going back to the 2009-2010 era, I think the JSI F-14 demonstrated the limits of 1/18 scale aircraft… Granted there were issues with JSI, their quality control, and materials used to construct the model like weak plastics, but the model is massive and unwieldy and hard to do too much with. I have both the VF-84 Jolly Roger’s and the VF-154 Black Knights F-14s and both have spent much of the last 14-15 years (or two years in the case of the VF-154 plane) hanging on my ceiling and looking pretty. Due to the size and fragility of the JSI F-14, I can’t and don’t handle them much. The BBI jets are easier to handle and they made the right decision in sacrificing functionality for durability. The Merit Harrier is a great size, though also suffers from the weaker plastics like the JSI F-14… But, yeah, the JSI F-14 was really too big to be practical and other 1/18 planes of similar or larger size would be as well…

[Crimson Pilot]

I went the RC route for the B17 and B25. They are very close in scale. The B17 took up the corner off my ceiling. Great to have but difficult to display the way it should be. I agree about the unmade and unpainted possibility. Cheaper to put out and you can make whatever version you want.

[aferguson]

there are models of Spruce Gooses that are bigger than 1/18. Look up on Youtube the giant r/c planes people have built.