One of those things I will remember from childhood is the Saturday evenings and Sunday afternoons spent making various Airfix models, so when the lovely people from Airfix got in contact and asked if you would like to review some of their kits to mark the release of the new movie Dunkirk, which is out today, I jumped at the chance.
We were sent four kits in total, a Spitfire and a Messerschmitt starter set and also two of their quickbuild kits of the same planes, which are aimed at aged 5 plus. The starter sets we have reviewed and the quickbuild kits we have recorded vlogs for which show us building them.
In this post I will be reviewing a Spitfire Starter Set and a Messerschmitt Bf109E-3 Starter Set.
The sets themselves are in the classic Airfix Red box with a picture of the plane on the front and above are the paints, brush and glue to complete the build of this iconic plane.
Within the box is the traditional plastic flat pack kit that everyone who has ever built a kit will be familiar with, also in the box are the decals to finish off the plane once painted.
The instructions are almost identical to what I remember from childhood which meant that I was soon in the building stage and well within my element.
Although I have done a number of these kits over the years, I was amazed at how quickly the plane took shape from this flat pack kit to a full Spitfire shaped plane. All ready to paint in the familiar Royal Airforce Spitfire Colours.
As for the Messerschmitt I found it slightly more complicated however it wasn’t anything that wasn’t easily over come with a re-read of the instructions.
The decals simple to attach, although I did learn that less water is better then too much after I flooded the table I was working on.
If you have an older child, 8 Years plus, that has a love of all things plane then I would thoroughly recommend these kits as a great easy kit to get started with!
Pros:
- Kit includes everything you need.
- Easy to follow instructions
- Nice starter plane to build.
Cons:
- Although the kit includes a paint brush, when it comes to painting the details and also the pilot you could do with a finer brush if you don’t want to loose the details
- I found that the glue had a tendency to flow too fast and therefore, leak all over the plane when put together. A different nozzle would solve this.
I personally love the Spitfire design and look, over the Messerschmitts however when you place them side by side you can seriously imagine them flying through the sky in a dogfight over who was in control. You can also image just how brave those pilots were on both sides.
As Airfix sent these kits to us to mark the release of the new movie Dunkirk it only seems right that when you make these kits you also take a minute to not only marvel at the design feats that they were but also to those many, many young men who gave their lives on both sides.
a family’s journey 