HURRICANE Mk.I

I have built the Airfix offering in this scale more than once so when I was given the chance to do this one, a comparison between the two was inevitable. The Trumpeter kit has a more accurate shape around the headrest, fuel tanks in the wings, clear engine covers, separate flight control surfaces and a small photo-etched fret. The parts count is actually the same in both kits but the level of detail in some areas is actually better in the older Airfix kit. The engine in the Trumpeter is ok but it's pretty basic. The engine in the Airfix kit is very detailed and has a plate inside to allow for an electric motor if desired. The cockpits of both kits are well detailed and fit with no issues. The wheel wells of both kits are multipiece affairs that have good detail and again they fit well and both have scale size landing gear legs which I would replace with metal ones. The gun bays on the Trumpeter are a bit on the basic side but they fit good and I added a few extra bits to the guns. The Airfix gun bays will need careful assembly to ensure a good fit. The fuel tanks in the wing of the Trumpeter kit are not visible after assembly but if you are doing an aircraft undergoing maintenance they could be used. Surface detail on both models is good but I'll give the Airfix a slight edge because it has raised rivets and fasteners where the real plane had them. I'm all for recessed panel lines and joints where they existed on the full scale item but the fact is many aircraft even today have them and like it or not they were on planes like the Wildcat, Flying Fortress, Catalina and others. It all comes down to which kit you want to work with. I don't recommend either one of them for rank beginners but someone who has built a few kits shouldn't have too much difficulty.