Ed VanBrabant
Mon Aug 26 20:08:15 2002
Are the Academy and Hobbycraft early P-40’s the same kit? Whether they are or not, pluses and minuses of each? I’ve seen some posts about the angle of the wing on the HC kit, what is the fix? All help is appreciated!

Fred Lang
Mon Aug 26 20:19:29 2002
I asked this question recently of the experts on Hyperscale, and the answers I received may still be available if you do an archive search. The upshot of the discussion was that the fuselage of the Hobbycraft/Academy kit is not deep enough under the cockpit, and the wing root is mounted too high and a bit forward. This is apparent if viewed against an accurate scale drawing of a B/C Tomahawk. If absolute accuracy is your thing, then either prepare for a lot of work, (also in the archives) or wait until Accurate Models releases an “accurate” P-40 B/C sometime next year. (Possibly, I think?)

StanPearce
Mon Aug 26 20:44:41 2002
Look, they both look sort of like P-40’s, either one you build, someone on the other sides is going to tell you the other would have been better…
Outline wise, the old Monogram is better…with “Gasp!” raised panel lines! but you need to box in the wheel wells, flap area, and the detail is soft showing the age…
The Hobbycraft has some profile issues, probably not worth fixing (if exact outline is your bag, then rescribe the old monogram, its less work)…But has slightly better details, and restrained panel lines…
Both kits need a bit of TLC, and are certainly not up to the current ‘wunderkit’ standards..
But IMHO, both build to be respectable looking P-40s.
PS. Do us a favour, build one and put extraordinary amount of work in it correcting it…that should quickly guarantee the rest of us a new release of a P-40 B/C from the wunderkit makers (it always happens that way) probably just as you finish your laborious task…
We will be thankful of your efforts.

Scott
Mon Aug 26 21:03:01 2002
Wing fix – I know that there is one, but many of us think that it is probably more work than it is worth. It involves basically cutting out the wing and repositioning it.
Now I have not yet built this kit, but have seen it built up before and to my old eyes, it isn’t that big a deal. I’m sure someone else will be able to direct you to the discussion on how to fix the wing angle.

Stu Hurley
Tue Aug 27 06:54:41 2002
Yes they are the same kit. One of the main faults which I noticed is the cross section of the cowling under the windscreen, which leads to the screen being totally the wrong shape. Also the wing roots, the undercarriage fairings, canopy frames and many panel lines are wrong. They are fixable with a lot of work though. The exhaust pipes and wheels need to go in the bin though.

Chuck Nimsk
Mon Aug 26 21:59:24 2002
It seems to be you have the following options:
Buy either kit, I would probably go for the Academy as the instructions are marginally better, and build it having fun doing so.
Wait for Accurate Models or perhaps AmTech to put one out that is accurate and up to today’s standards.
Don’t build either one.
In my opinion, buy one , build it, have fun, paint it, look at it and enjoy the hobby. It looks like a P-40B/C to the naked eye for most people. Then, next year sometime, buy and build one of the wonderkits and enjoy that too. Give the Academy/Hobbycraft to one of your, or the neighbor’s kids and let them play with it and have fun. They won’t care if the kit isn’t right. And while your at it, teach them a little about the aircraft, what it did, the people who flew it etc. That would be doing a service for all of us.

Derek Pennington
Mon Aug 26 21:52:38 2002
There is a correction article by Rick Barnds in the Hyperscale Features & Galleries section which shows how to fix the Hobbycraft kit.

source: Hyperscale
(thanks to Brett Green for permission)