REVELL Y-WING STARFIGHTER - A TEMPTING KIT FOR SCI-FI FANS

Report by David Jefferis

Star Wars was only the second sci-fi movie I saw in which the special effects (SFX) were thoroughly believable - no jerkiness to the action, no visible wires holding up the spacecraft, no rubbish alien makeup to chortle at. And the actors romped along in their roles, and could truly act! Since then of course, there has been a never-ending cascade of collectibles for fans to drool over or purchase, and the franchise is still going strong, with new TV series for a younger audience.

Star Wars Y-Wing tactical strike starfighter
New stuff aside, one of our all-time faves here at SMN is the handsome Rebel Alliance Y-Wing, designed by Colin Cantwell of the SFX company Industrial Light & Magic, and first introduced in 1977’s Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. The design was fresh then, and remains so today. There are various kits and collectibles available, ranging from pocket-sized up to a substantial 1:48 scale. But the one shown here sits nicely in the middle of the size range, and is the Revell Easykit version. No scale is mentioned on the box, but taking the length of the full-size (though fictional) spacecraft as being 16m (52.5 ft), then Revell’s neat little model scales out to approximately 1:76 scale.

British 00 gauge spacecraft
Now 1:76 is a slightly odd size, common only to the world of British 00 gauge model trains, itself a weirdness on a planet in which every other country has H0 or 1:87 as its most popular model rail scale. However that’s another story, and if the Brits like being out of step with everyone else, so be it. The good thing is that - allowing for a bit of artistic license - the Revell Y-Wing sits pretty well with another standard, the more logical (albeit non-Metric) 1:72 international model aircraft scale.

Easykit fit and finish
Is this Easykit kit any good? Well, yes actually - in fact, it’s one of the best of its kind, with no major fit problems to slow construction. The rear-mounted ion engine vane supports were a little warped straight from the box, but responded reasonably well to some tender loving care. The only real downer is the pre-painted finish - maybe it’s just this reviewer, but pale-gold fuel lines outlined against off-white body panels somehow manage to look a bit feeble. This Y-Wing aches for a repaint, with extra detailing and weathering to give it the battle-weary look of a well-worn fighting machine.

Incidentally, the photos above are missing one small item, the R2 maintenance droid that should slot into the upper surface. Mea culpa folks - the tiny R2 fell into a dark corner of the SMN Construction Shack, never to be seen again.

Summation
The verdict on the Revell Y-Wing? For sci-fi fans, it’s well worth a look, especially as it can sit reasonably well with standard model scales. Note though that Revell supply no undercarriage legs - if you want your Y-Wing sitting on the ground, you will have to scratch-build a set.
    
ps. In case you’re wondering, my very first Believable Movie was the classic 2001 A Space Odyssey, directed by Stanley Kubrick.

There’s lots more information on Star Wars here.

There are Y-Wings of various kinds including later designs here.

GREAT OFFERS FOR HORNBY CLUB MEMBERS IN 2010

Own-brand clubs are a powerful marketing tool that can cement brand loyalty among users like few other things. But let’s not be too cynical here - virtually all such clubs go out of their way to offer value to their members, and the Hornby Club is no exception. For 00-gauge rail fans it’s almost a no-brainer, as Hornby offers a number of useful items, such as:

* A welcome pack, including membership card, stockist list and service dealer list.
* The Collector - a bi-monthly enthusiasts magazine, and the Collector Plus twice a year.
* Exclusive competitions in every issue
* 10% Discount from selected Hornby stockists, as well as Hornby.com
* Fully-working Hornby locomotive, exclusive to club members (while stocks last)

All of which is a pretty good deal. The free loco is a 0-4-0 saddle tank, while there is also a good discount offered on a Limited Edition 4-4-0 Class T9 LSWR locomotive, an express passenger design by Dugald Drummond, introduced in 1899. Sixty-six of them were built over a three-year period, and Hornby's video shows the attractive lines of the T9 in closeup. The 00 gauge model looks pretty good, especially if you look at the care taken with the detail in the open cab.

The pictures show, top to bottom:
1 Saddle tank 0-4-0, supplied with membership.
2 T9 4-4-0, available at discount to members.

Visit the Hornby Club here.

Other Hornby rail equipment is available here.

PRE-CHRISTMAS SALE FROM HORNBY

00 gauge (1:76 scale) train enthusiasts might like to visit the Hornby website, where there are some mouthwatering bargains to be had. SMN’s choice is the ‘Running light’ pack, with a 4-6-2 West Country class loco and tender, two coaches plus a brake van. The quartet comes priced at a mouthwatering one-third off normal, which has to be good for the pocket.

Hornby trains have come on a storm in recent years, and these models are no exception, with fine detail and good slow-speed running from the locomotive. There are many other items in the sale, including lots of buildings and some N gauge (1:148 scale) products.

Incidentally, there’s a downloadable supermarket interior available as a pdf here.

Check out the Hornby bargains here.

HORNBY WINS OLYMPIC GOLD

London is the scene for the 2012 Olympics, and Hornby has just received a three-year licence to produce models and collectibles linked to the event.

The souvenir market is expected to be a money-spinner in the run-up to, and during the Games, so it’s certainly an important development for Hornby. Chief executive Frank Martin declared that it is a “great honour” for the company.

Products in the 2012 pipeline are likely to appeal to serious collectors and souvenir hunters alike. Hornby will produce Corgi versions of London taxis and buses, and collectible figurines, which should be on sale by the end of this year. Following on in 2011 will be Hornby Olympic-badged electric trains, an Airfix kit of the Olympic Stadium, and Scalextric version of the Velodrome.

So we’re likely to see miniature 2012 logos (main variations shown above) decorating the Hornby model souvenir-world over the next few years. It’s a pity the logo’s not the most elegant Olympic badge ever designed (it scored poorly in news polls when unveiled) but we’ll all be seeing a lot more of it, that’s for sure.

And talking of Hornby, its YouTube channel is growing nicely. The 00 (1:76) gauge Class 43 locomotive shown here is a recent addition, and very good it looks too, even if (like me) you ache for Brit trains to be produced to an international common scale.

Visit Hornby here.

TAKE A TRIP TO YOUTUBE TO SEE THE HORNBY HOBBIES CHANNEL

There’s a good spot on the internet for 00 gauge rail fans, and for Hornby enthusiasts in particular. Hornby Hobbies now has its own YouTube channel, with a selection of fascinating videos for all to watch.

I particularly like Hornby’s clean presentation of new-product items, which shows them turning slowly against a plain white background - very neat, very cool. The video above shows a pre-production Class 395 Javelin, running on Hornby's showroom layout.

The YouTube channel is here.