Valerons Airfix 1/72 Mosquito B.XVI

[Valeron]

Something strange going on here.

The undercarriage is labelled sprue E and F in the instructions but I have two sprues labelled E. Hopefully they are identical. Have you noticed this Jim?

Also I'm surprised that Airfix don't provide a navigator figure as well as the pilot. I'm even more surprised that my pilot (part G22) is missing from the sprue. I've double checked all sprues and this seems to be the only missing part. I assumed this got knocked off when I was washing and labelling the sprues. I'll deal with this missing crew problem later,

[adt70hk]

Hope that's not a duplicate.....

[Valeron]

Hope that's not a duplicate.....

Both of my Sprue E's are identical. This may be because they are both for the other wing but I need to at the instruction further to see if this is going to be a problem or not.

[Valeron]

On a more positive note, I've fully assembled the cockpit, applied basic colours and fixed the instrument panel decal. I need to apply washes, paint more detail etc before closing the cockpit in the hull.

For now though I'll now put this aside and bring the undercarriage up to the same level, then deal with the detail and washes at the same time.

[adt70hk]

I don't think they will be....I have this in the stash..... I'll try to have a look later....

[Jim R]

Hi Mike
All looking good.
Sprues E and F are very similar and some parts are the same but I think they are in effect a mirror of each other. Parts 16 and 17 and the undercarriage legs, 36 and 37, may be problems. There may be other issues.
Jim

[Valeron]

Hi Mike
All looking good.
Sprues E and F are very similar and some parts are the same but I think they are in effect a mirror of each other. Parts 16 and 17 and the undercarriage legs, 36 and 37, may be problems. There may be other issues.
Jim

Thanks. I'll see about contacting Airfix and see what they say about giving me a proper F Sprue

[Jim R]

Airfix are usually pretty good with their customer service.

[Valeron]

I've messaged Airfix spares. I've received an automated email saying because of Covid disruptions they have a sizeable backlog and will still to respond within the usual 28 days. I certainly hope they do respond well before 28 days but not much I can do about that for now.

[Jim R]

These two photos may help you decide what's what.



A lot is the same but consider part 2 - it's reversed. There are a few others as well unfortunately.

[Valeron]

These two photos may help you decide what's what.
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A lot is the same but consider part 2 - it's reversed. There are a few others as well unfortunately.

Thanks. I'm going to have to study that photo and see where I stand. I'm going to continue with the build anyway and put the parts together and if Airfix don't come back to me I'll decide what to do then.

[Valeron]

I'd like to give a shout out for Airfix's customer service.

Regardless of their automated email mentioning 28 days, I received an email late yesterday asking for more details - Address, box serial no., Where and when purchased, proof of purchase (which I couldn't find).

This morning I received an email saying the replacement sprue was in the post.

Now that is amazing service, especially in this day and age when after sales service can be somewhat lacking.

And a lesson I've learnt. Always check the contents of the box upon initial purchase and don't put it in the stash before you've done it. I guess I'm lucky that the kit is a brand new tooling and recently released so Airfix will have plenty of spares. This night not have been the case if it had been in my stash for a few years

[Valeron]

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Cockpit finished and fuselage closed.

No where near up to Jim's first class effort but I'll get better as I build more.

[Geoffers]

Looking good :thumb2:

Glad you’ve sorted the sprue problem out, Airfix do have a very good customer service department.

Geoff.

[Mark1]

Progressing nicely.