Airfix 1/72 Short Stirling B.I/B.III

AIRFIX 1:72 SHORT STIRLING B.I/B.III
'INBOX Review'

Reviewer: Christopher Amano-Langtree (rec.models.scale)

Kit Info: Airfix 07002 – Short Stirling – 1/72 scale Series 7.

The Kit: The Stirling comes in a large box with a heavy card base and a card top. The illustration is the same as the original model from many years ago. Also given on the side are the date of issue (1992) and the dimensions of the finished item. The paints needed are mentioned (all Humbrol) and the two versions that can be built from this kit. On opening the box you can see why it is so big, the kit does fill the available space.

The Parts: Inside the box are the parts of which there are 273 moulded in a light grey plastic with two extensive sprues of clear parts. As I remember these parts were black in the original kit so the colour change is welcome. None of the parts, decals or instructions were bagged but nothing was detached and there was no scratching on the transparencies. As befits a kit of this age there is some flash but not too much and it has survived surprisingly well.

The Instructions: These consist of an A4 booklet with a potted history of the aircraft occupying the first 2½ pages in several languages. There follows an explanation of the symbols used and then the assembly instructions in the usual exploded diagram stage. Once again when I first built this kit the instructions were written out in longhand so this is a considerable improvement. It is also important to note that the instrument panel for the kit is printed in stage 1 and would need to be cut out and glued to the plastic part. This is the same as the original as well. There are 28 stages which are clearly labelled and would seem to present no problems.

Accuracy: I seem to recall that Airfix had access to an original set of plans when they designed this kit. It looks accurate and I haven’t heard any comments which say differently.

Detail: The detail is fine raised lines and rivets. These surprisingly are very fine and could if you were feeling lazy be left. Another feature is the canopy framing is represented by fine engraved lines which makes a change. However, I would recommend replacing this with the Falcon version. Ditto for the turrets which are probably the worst part of the kit. The cylinder heads on the Hercules engines are totally lacking in any detail at all though the engines themselves do come in two parts. These can be replaced by the Engines and Things Hercules but retaining the Airfix exhausts and cowls. As mentioned before the instrument panel needs cutting out from the instruction sheet. One thing that also needs to be dealt with are the sink marks which I suppose reflect the age of the kit but there are quite a few of these. The cockpit has two seats, control columns, the panel and a navigators station but will benefit from considerably more detail. There are several good pages on the web with extensive photos of the cockpit which provides plenty of information on the interior (The Stirling Bomber Page, The Stirling Cockpit Project).

Versions: Two versions can be built from this kit, the Mk1 and Mk111. These differed in the engine details and the mid upper turret. Airfix provide parts for both versions and instructions on the differences. They also provide parts to model the bomb bay open or closed. A real bonus with this kit is the provision of a model of a Fordson* tractor with several bomb trolleys. These are little gems though needing a bit of cleaning up. The bombs are moulded with their locating holes closed should you wish to locate them on the trolleys. Decals are provided for two aircraft, a Mk1 of No7 Squadron RAF, the first to operate the Stirling and a Mk3 of 199 Squadron. They are in good register and the letters for No7 Squadron are of different sizes. The red of the roundels appears to light though and the fin flashes are not 100% in register so these will probably need to be replaced.

* Addendum from Heather Kavanagh - I wanted to just point out that the tractor is actually a David Brown, not Fordson as stated. The DB was the Air Ministry spec tractor, IIRC.

Impressions: This is the only Stirling kit available and I can’t envisage anyone bringing out another soon – it is a big aircraft. That being said despite its age (and most of its problems are to do with age) it will build into a very nice model. The complicated undercarriage is very nicely captured and the inclusion of the tractor and trolleys is really nice. Some filler will be needed but a dry run indicates a fairly good fit of parts after all these years. Certainly a kit worth buying.

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