Model Builder International Pilot Issue Model Builder International Pilot Issue | Page 6

RBIRD
FAA WA
DREW HATCH

The Trumpeter Corsair: You name the problem,
this kit seems to have it, including inaccurate
shapes, bad fit, those horrible Trumpeter etched
hinges, and the list goes on and on. After hearing
all the gripes about this kit I was not excited about
building it. After a couple of years those gripes
seemed to die off and the model started to show
its way to the contest table. A friend took this kit
on and finished it, and after talking to him about
all the issues I had heard about, he assured me it
was nowhere near as bad as we, or the so-called
experts, thought. So in turn this kit came out to
play on my bench. I had gathered a few detail
sets and extras for it while it waited it’s turn to
be built.
Taking an evening to study the instructions,
I prepared my plan of attack. The engine was
tedious and would take a lot of time, so I decided
to start there. Once the engine was done I would
feel like I had accomplished something, and thus
could keep the good feeling going. The engine
itself was a very straightforward assembly. The
issue with Trumpeter kits is the need for parts
cleanup. Mold seams and large sprue attachment
points make this a tedious task. Practically every
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part requires 2-5 minutes of cleanup. Multiply that
by 355 parts and you are spending nearly 20 hours
cleaning up parts. This is before you’ve assembled
anything or sanded any seams. There’s no instant
gratification to be found in this one...

Drew used detail sets
from Black Box and Eduard
to dress up the Corsair.