Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADDED !

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Coreyeagle48
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Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADDED !

Post by Coreyeagle48 » Sat Jan 28, 2012 2:57 pm

Greetings:

The Ford Tri Motor was designed as a cargo transport and passenger airliner and first flew in 1925. Between 1925 and 1933, about 200 of these aircraft were produced. Although the aircraft looked the same in design, many different engine configurations and features were options for specific customer requests. The aircraft was used all over the world as a civil aircraft and for military use. The aircraft was claimed to be the safest around and used an all metal construction of corrugated aluminum alloy which was strong but increased drag. The design was a leap over other airliners at the time and kept with the Ford tradition of being reliable and inexpensive to operate. The simple design allowed repairs to be made "in the field" and quickly. For the time, the aircraft offered comfortable and reliable passenger service.

The Tri Motor survives today in museums and one flying with the EAA continues to tour the country and offer rides. The aircraft has also been seen in several flims, most recently the Johnny Depp flim Public Enemies. Another Tri Motor is on display at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C.

Authentic Models is one of the few companies to offer a large scale, pre assembled model of the legendary Tri Motor. The airplane is an interesting piece which will generate a conversation and certainly bring to life the time of the early airliners in a model airplane collection.

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The Trimotor arrives in a big box with the wings not attached to the aircraft. This is done by simply screwing them onto the aircraft with two screws located on the bottom of each wing. A second box contains a polished metal display stand which has to have the arm screwed onto the base. The stand is impressive in the size and weight and has to be the best stand for any mode airplane I have ever seen. Two small holes in the bottom of the airplane allow the aircraft to be put on the stand.

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The model can be displayed off its stand as the landing gear is strong enough to support the model easily. The model is a large model with a wingspan of about 40".

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The model features many realistic details such as metal exhaust pipes, authentic looking engines and the classic wheel fenders the Tri Motor had. The best feature by far is the construction of the model. It has corrugated aluminum over its wood frame just like the original Tri Motor. This creates a tremendously realistic looking Tri Motor model. If you look inside the cockpit and passenger area, seats are in there as well. Unfortunately the cockpits can't be opened to access these areas to add some passengers. It would be a nice touch, but is not needed and the model does fine without this feature.

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The propellors simply slide on and then are secured with a propellor nut. Early models this company did had three blade props which is not correct. Authentic Models made the correction and the model now comes with correct two blade propellors. The control surfaces do move on the model and the corrugated surfaces do show some blemishes, but Authentic Models wants these planes to appear to be handbuilt, so they do not want them to be picture perfect. The natural metal finish is nice though a decorative airline version would be nice for some color. With the way the aircraft can be taken apart and the simple design, a customizer could easily make this into an airline version or add custom markings.

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Overall, this model is an amazing piece. It is a seldom done aircraft in a large scale and with detail that will easily make people take a second look. The model is well built and looks right for the aircraft and the features. Although pilots in the cockpit would be nice and a choice of markings would be interesting, it is not needed. The model could easily be customized and the natural metal finish really gives an antique feel to the piece. The display stand is very well built and one of the best I have ever seen. This model gives glory to the old Ford Tri Motor that certainly made a major contribution to commerical aviation.
Last edited by Coreyeagle48 on Tue Jan 31, 2012 6:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review

Post by ram04 » Sat Jan 28, 2012 3:13 pm

Wow :shock:, that is really nice, with it being aluminum over wood I bet it has some weight to it?, just when I think I'm not wanting anything else, I have to see something as nice as that :lol:

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review

Post by smittyrob64 » Sat Jan 28, 2012 4:17 pm

Beautiful, it looks fantastic.

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review

Post by Snake Man » Sat Jan 28, 2012 4:34 pm

.......And the price is ????? And we can buy one where ???

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review

Post by ram04 » Sat Jan 28, 2012 5:08 pm

I did a little search and these are not cheap, of course anything that nice would'nt be, what I found was in the $500.00 dollar price range.

Coreyeagle48 may know a better vendor to find this from 8)

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review

Post by NWarty » Sat Jan 28, 2012 5:35 pm

Authentic Models does some amazing stuff.

I have their large, Sopwith Camel and it's exquisite.

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review

Post by gburch » Sun Jan 29, 2012 4:18 am

Great review -- gorgeous model ...
... I need to make more money . . . .

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review

Post by Panther F » Sun Jan 29, 2012 4:52 am

So nice, need to get one.













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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review

Post by 456THBG » Sun Jan 29, 2012 12:40 pm

Really awesome plane - Great review!

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review

Post by snake » Sun Jan 29, 2012 2:48 pm

Fantastic looking model, Corey. 8)

Great review, and pics as well.

Would be nice if it was painted in a scheme that you liked, but as so few are made, all NMF is probably best.

Looks like another winner from Authentic Models.

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review

Post by Studly » Sun Jan 29, 2012 3:56 pm

Wow Very Nice Mate

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by Coreyeagle48 » Tue Jan 31, 2012 6:48 pm

Greetings:

Had the chance to take the Ford outside today do some some photographing of some of the finer details of the model.

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The Ford looks good sitting outside where the natural metal looks much better in the natural light. The corrugated metal is excellent and if you look inside the windows, you can see the passenger seats are in the cabin. The passenger cabin had one row of seats on each side. Interestingly enough, the seats were attached to floor pieces which could be removed from the Tri Motor when it was needed to carry cargo. Passenger luggage was stored in the compartment under the seats or in compartments in the wings. The doors for these compartments are actually on this model. You can also see the engine exhaust pipes in this photo.

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Closeup of one of the engines showing the detail of the powerplants and the exhaust design used on the Trimotor engines.

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The passenger door and foot step. This was the correct position of the door. You may remember Indiana Jones boarding a Trimotor in the movie Temple of Doom through this door near the beginning of the film.

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This is one beautiful model. If there was any complaint about this model it would be the fit of the wings where they join to the rest of the plane via a wood support which gets screwed into place. The design of the fit allows some movement. So the wings do not fit as tightly as they should and this can have some bad consquences. During the shooting of the pictures, I flipped the Trimotor to tighten one of the wing screws and actually snapped one of the wood supports inside, making the wing even more loose. I solved this by gluing the support inside the main wing, which keeps the wing where it needs to be. I am going to do the same thing on the other side to keep the other side tight. I glued the support where it slides into the main wing, this way if I ever sell the plane I can still unscrew the wing pieces and ship it disassembled. This is a minor issue though and is a very simple fix. Overall an impressive airplane and a model very unique.

I did pay about $500 for this model and it was money well spent. Truly a unique piece and at a detail level very seldom seen on built models.

Corey
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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by flyboy_fx » Tue Jan 31, 2012 6:59 pm

Detail seldom seen on models under $1000. :lol:

Where did you pick her up?!?!?
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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by snake » Tue Jan 31, 2012 7:33 pm

Outstanding Corey! 8)

A beautiful and truly unique model, that is easily worth the $500.

A fantastic addition to your collection.

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by CW4USARMY » Wed Feb 01, 2012 7:24 pm

That's one beautiful plane Corey! Thanks for the sharing the pics. Now I must......stop.....wanting one! :wink:

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by flyboy_fx » Wed Feb 01, 2012 7:32 pm

I'm feeling like I need one too!
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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by Coreyeagle48 » Wed Feb 01, 2012 10:25 pm

Greetings:

It is really an incredible model with a few minor issues. As previously mentioned, the wing fit is problematic and it is very easy to do two things 1.) strip a screwhead and 2.) break the wooden spars used to join the wing sections to the rest of the plane. I am very fortunate when I leaned too hard and broke the spar I was able to fix it. I also used just a tad of super glue to help hold the wings into position and keep them from being a bit loose. I used a small amount of glue though in a place where I can still get the wings off should I resell the plane. Other than that the plane is just perfect.

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by f56tbird » Fri Feb 03, 2012 9:00 am

Corey,
Where can I get one of these planes and the cost and shipping.

Thanks... :?: :D
There was a demon that lived in the air. They said that whoever challanged him would die. He lived behind a barrier through which they said no man could ever pass. They called it..., the sound barrier..

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by Panther F » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:10 am

Wow! You are the man dude!! I love the Tri-Motor (have one built in 1/77 scale) and would love to take the plunge, but ... 500 smackers? :mrgreen:


Looks good! Let me know if you ever need someone to baby sit it for you. :lol:












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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by PanzerArm » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:28 am

That's the plane Indy, Short-Round and that blond chick jump out of in Temple of Doom!


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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by pickelhaube » Fri Feb 03, 2012 11:57 am

This plane is beautiful.

But I tell you I think I would rather have the Ju-52 in the red wing early war transport.
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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by Coreyeagle48 » Fri Feb 03, 2012 1:31 pm

Pickelhaube:

A local store sells the Authentic Models line and they happened to have one of the JU-52's on display. I was not at all impressed with it compared to the Trimotor. For what they charge for the JU-52, I think they really skimped on some of the details. I just was not impressed with it. But that's my opinion.

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by Panther F » Fri Feb 03, 2012 3:44 pm

PanzerArm wrote:That's the plane Indy, Short-Round and that blond chick jump out of in Temple of Doom!


-Kevin
You're so right! I just about forgot that scene!

http://indianajones.wikia.com/wiki/Ford ... r_Airplane

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by Coreyeagle48 » Fri Feb 03, 2012 6:45 pm

Greetings

The plane used in the Indiana Jones movie was an authentic Trimotor owned by Kermit Weeks in FL. The plane is now in his museum and you can see it there. It is as I understand it in flyable condition and can be rented out to do filmwork for movies and things.

In some scenes a model was subsituted for the actual airplane. But that plane is a real Trimotor still in flyable condition.

The Trimotor used in Public Enemies recently belongs to the EAA and tours the country over the summer. You can go for a ride in it at its many stops.

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Re: Authentic Models 1/24 Ford Tri Motor Review NEW PICS ADD

Post by plasticboy » Fri Feb 03, 2012 7:28 pm

Beautiful plane! The plane looks like made by real aluminum, not cheap!
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