Nigel, as you ticked off the 1:32 scale WWII USN Trumpeter kits, one included in your list was actually an Infinity Models product...the SB2C Helldiver. That kit took me MONTHS to construct, what with all the kit add-ons that Infinity marketed with the kit. Instructions on some were not clear and had to be noodled through to get them right, but in the end made up to be quite an impressive kit. Otherwise, all the other aircraft types you mentioned were indeed Trumpeter issues. I do have a shelf with all of them displayed. The Devastator will be a welcome addition from an historical perspective. I'm in the midst of constructing the major components awaiting the aftermarket folks to catch up, especially Quinta for the cockpit. Thanks for all you do!
I agree. The second scheme is definitely not Midway era. If you look at John Ford's film, "Torpedo Squadron Eight" you get a good but brief view of their Devastators en route to the battle before June 4. Ford was on Midway at the time of the battle, but he happened to have a film crew stationed aboard Hornet as she traveled to Point Luck to ambush Nagumo. The color is somewhat faded but you clearly can see the red/white rudders and the red dot in the national insignia were basically gone, but in one shot you can still see it on a wing underside. The film is very brief, but you can see all the Torpedo Eight crews In Memoriam, including Waldron, the squadron commander, and George Gay, the sole survivor of Torpedo Eight. Good reference for this kit, albeit brief. RU-vid has several versions, one seems remastered.
Ahoy Sir Nigel Superb Inbox Review Happy You Recieved yours Had No Idea This kit Was Ancient I amagine There were Set Backs due to Information and Enginering To Complete This Kit. By now Every After Market Company Has Phot Etch and Resin Parts By Now A Beautiful Kit It Is Great video again Buddy Model On Frankie
Dear Nigel, I came by news about this kit and nearly bought it several times! I liked your review (as always) and may yet but this at some point in the future! Regards, Z
I know I am getting this kit on Sunday, birthday present, been waiting for this as long as the rest of us and thought it would never see the light of day. Already ordered Gold Medal decal set that includes Midway planes, Vt-3, VT-6 and VT-8. Also ordered Legend productions new Pilot and gunner combo set for pacific aircraft. Looks like it was designed more for the Dauntless but I am sure I can make it work in the TBD. I will be following along when you build this. Thanks Nigel for the review.
Hi Nigel fantastic review great looking model I’m just finishing Trumpeter ME109G2 and what a great kit this has been to build,i used no after market,all Trumpeter,do you remember years ago all the big wigs in modelling used to run Trumpeter kits down something all full,again brilliant review all the best mate.
Thx for the review - I think the Douglas engineers did a great job at designing & manufacturing a dedicated torpedo bomber in the Mid-1930s when Bi-Planes were still being used by many airforces...If only the torpedos it was tasked with carrying actually performed in battle it would have been an effective aircraft for the US NAVY...
Just as s note...the color markings you like is actually from the battle of Coral Sea. To make it Midway you will need to overpaint the red and white tail making sure it slightly shows through. dsmeb
Nigel, regarding the 2 opening doors that reveal the window under the forward fuselage....it can't be for torpedo aiming. That is done by the pilot, looking directly forward through his telescopic sight at the targeted ship, not down at the water below. I think the underside window must be for aiming from above at a higher altitude when doing level bombing, which could also be done by the Devastator, so I believe those 2 doors would only be opened during a level bombing run. I might be wrong though, so some further research may be advised to make sure about it.
Early prewar interiors were left in natural metal, not zinc chromate. There are a lot of good interior photos of prewar aircraft in David Doyle’s book, all showing nm interior. Frankie Day makes a lot of mistakes in what he says.
Now that looks like a really nice kit Nigel. The original Battle of Midway film from the 1970's is one of my favourite films. The recent remake was pretty good too. Wasn't it the torpedo Sqn of Devastators that attacked the Japanese Carrier Fleet without fighter cover? Most or all of the Sqn got shot down I think. I have the Robert Ballard book from when he went looking for the Midway wrecks. Very interesting reading.
Exactly correct Andrew. Some say it's the worst plane ever made, because it was so poor at Midway. But... they went in with torpedoes that didn't work and no fighter cover.
@@NigelsModellingBench : It may have been announced in 2004, but looking at the kit parts, that looks to be new moldings; very intricate detailing and using clever injector-pin techniques to disguise them! Doesn't look like a kit from 20 years ago, even though some were pretty good, this just looks to have a fidelity that looks 'current'.... 😉
And just to add, that I agree Nigel, with your points from the latest catch-up video..... I dislike this new RU-vid naming convention! My channel name is 'stevesstuff'; no '@' symbols, and where the '1450' came from, I have NO idea!! Stupid RU-vid.... I guess "if it ain't broke, break it!".... 😠
So far I have, all in 1/32 scale.. Wildcat, Hellcat, Avenger, Corsair, Dauntless, Devastator, Helldiver, Kingfisher and Bearcat. We need a nice 1/32 Hellcat !!
Also a few added pointers. The Trumpeter instructions call out the prop to be silver with black rearward faces. That might have been correct for the pre-war scheme, but the Torpedo Squadron Eight video shows them to be black in the In Memoriam section. Also the tip striping is another issue. It's hard to see but in Waldron's and Gray's Memoriam, it may be that the blue portion of the striping was painted over black. Film quality makes it hard to determine. Or it may have varied aircraft to aircraft. It is probable that the crews were filmed in front of the same aircraft. Also, in the video, the torpedo plainly has a dark metallic body with a light gray warhead. Last pointer: be extra extra careful snipping the push rods from their surrounding sprue support. They are EXTREMELY thin and as I snipped, three on the opposite side from where I was cutting wound up breaking off and staying with the sprue. Eventually glued them back on but still....
Top notch review as always nige. Looks a lovely kit 👍Ordered mine 2day along with a dauntless sbd 5 😊 just wondering does the devastator use the same wheels as the dauntless? They do look the same in pics?
Just another comment. Rear gunner had 30 calibre single gun. At Midway VT-8 from Hornet all had twin 30s “burrowed “ from Dauntless bombing and scouting squadrons supplies.
Nigel+ i have the color intermediate blue the color used on U.S Navy aircraft its a testor color i have it in the small bottles and in the spray can its model Master paints i manage to get some of there paints before they discontinued them but its a dam good match i have to get this kit Nigel this is the only kit in 1/32 scale of this subject i do have there other kits of the U.S . Navy planes in 1/32 scale as well i love there avenger kit in 1/32 scale have you done a revew on that kit
looks a nice kit, lets hope it goes together alright. Must admit i do like folded wings on a model, but thats because they do not take up so much room. Will you wait from resin parts pe before you build
Nice review, Nige, thank you. Looks like a nice rendition of a (to my eyes) singularly unattractive aircraft. The finished kit should be quite impressive. The Avro Anson of the same era also had protruding wheels when the undercarriage was raised. I am led to believe that this was because retractable gear was a new thing and pilots used to fixed wheel setups could "forget" to lower it.
