21st Century 1:48 Bf 109 Review & Pics

Rowsdower · Post by **Rowsdower** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 12:50 pm

I spotted a few of the 1:48 Bf 109's at WM the other day. IAfter scrutinizing each one for about ten minutes I picked up a #17 Bf 109K-4. My careful examination of all the planes they had payed off because this on is flawless.

Fit and finish are great, no glue marks or fingerprints and all the joints are well sealed. The wing fits well with no gap. Cockpit glass is perfect and both sets of landing gear fit perfectly. The camo scheme looks very nice and the paint job in general has no runs or touch-ups.

It comes with two sets of landing gear, one retracted and one lowered, two outer wheel cover doors, two tailwheels, a drop tank and an optional open canopy.

Overall the quality and detail are really exceptional. With a little do it yourself weathering and correct tail insignia which I plan to add, it rivals a home built kit. And the size is great for those of us who don't have a lot of room. Just remember to check out the boxes at the store as well as you can, your mileage may vary.

Now I just hope we will see a 1:48 Spitfire in the near future.

hworth18 · Post by **hworth18** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 1:00 pm

I agree.. glad to see you found a good example..

Rowsdower · Post by **Rowsdower** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 1:12 pm

Yeah while the 109 is perfect, my white tail P-40 had problems with the canopy and wing gap. Just like any 1:18 or 1:32 plane, quality is a gamble. I hope to find an Aleutian Tigers P-40 next but those seem to be hard to come by.

krieglok · Post by **krieglok** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 3:52 pm

I have picked up two versions of the Mustangs and two versions of the Me-109s here in NJ. I have yet to see the P-40. They are nice models and very well done. I only wish they had pilots. It would be cool if 21st did a line of bombers in this scale. I haven`t the room for 1:18 B25s. 1:48 would be more suitable for play-n-display...

TJ

tmanthegreat · Post by **tmanthegreat** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 5:05 pm

I have that same Bf-109K, as well as the silver "Princess" P-51B/C. No P-40s yet...

Anyways, I agree that the 1:48 planes are of exceptional quality! I snatched a couple 1:48 scale pilots out of a couple old kits of mine and put them in the cockpits of the 21c planes for a bit more realistic look. My only complaint with the planes is simply that they gave us an early-model Mustang to go with a late-model Bf-109

Rowsdower · Post by **Rowsdower** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 6:03 pm

tmanthegreat wrote:My only complaint with the planes is simply that they gave us an early-model Mustang to go with a late-model Bf-109

I thought that myself! And yes a pilot figure would be nice. Some larger aircraft like the P-61 Black Widow and the Mosquito would work well in 1:48.

The P-40 is a great model as well. I really like the later models so it's great to see something other than a B model for a change. I knew the P-40 was a sizeable plane and that on the version I have the rear fuselage was stretched but the thing dwarfs the 109!

tmanthegreat · Post by **tmanthegreat** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 6:21 pm

Wow! That P-40 also looks great!

Fox Tare-28 · Post by **Fox Tare-28** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 7:05 pm

Awesome find Rowsdower. I saw your 109K and a few G6's at Wal-Mart a few days ago, but I didn't pick them up I (I was focused on looking for 32X planes) I can see how these planes would be a nice compromise for those with small spaces and not enough time or patience to build a kit (I fall into this catagory).

On a different note, I went into San Fran today and picked up a 32X Zero (Flight Leader paint scheme).

The owner also showed me that infamous boxed set of all the SS troops in their parade dress.

Rowsdower · Post by **Rowsdower** » Sat Apr 28, 2007 7:17 pm

Fox Tare-28 wrote:The owner also showed me that infamous boxed set of all the SS troops in their parade dress.

Yeah I keep looking at that set on Small Joes. Pretty cool if you got the money to burn. I'm glad I could provoke some interest in the 1:48 planes. At first I scoffed at them myself but your right, they are a good alternative for those of us with limited space, plus theres no way I could build a kit these days. I wish I would have picked up the P-51C that was laying around for awhile.

If I ever get a chance I'm going to weather the two and "fix" the tail on the 109 since I have decals. Of course I also want to weather my DAK PZIII and many others...oh well maybe next year!