Airfix 1/72 Jet Provost T3

[Eric Mc]

Another welcome release on its way -


http://www.airfix.com/uk-en/news/workbench/jet_pro...

[Yertis]

I like the weighted tyres, all kits should have this feature.

The Whitley looks good too, a bit of rivalry for Frog at last.

[Eric Mc]

The Whitley is already out. The version they are highlighting today is the second boxing which will feature a radar equipped Coastal Command and a faired in turret transport version.

[Brigand]

I do like these small trainer aircraft, I wonder if they'll do a Strikemaster version as well?

[Eric Mc]

I guess that they may not. Airfix did a T5/Strikemaster in the mid 1970s which is still quite a nice little kit. Their current policy is to look at their very old toolings which are well past their best and crude by modern standards and replace them. Airfix released a very simple Provost T3 in the early 1960s and this new T3 will be a direct replacement for that ancient old kit.

Matchbox also released a Strikemaster around that time.

Recently, Sword released a modern tooling of the T5/Strikemaster which by all accounts is very nice.

[lufbramatt]

Eric- the old t3 was actually retooled into the strikemaster, so the older kit doesn't exist as a mould any more. Same thing with the na39 buccaneer and the later s2 kit. The gnat and t11 vampire have gone really well, hopefully this will continue that trend :-)

[Eric Mc]

The T5/Strikemaster was so nice compared to the T3, I wonder how much of the original T3 tooling was actually used?

[perdu]

Eric Mc said:

The T5/Strikemaster was so nice compared to the T3, I wonder how much of the original T3 tooling was actually used?

I suspect not a lot, maybe just used the moulding budget on the new one

I have postulated that Airfix removed the JP3 moulds as a public service to give the nice one a free run

I don't remember anything on the old ones that carried over to the nice one

But I did still like the old one, built several over the years

I still have many remnants of transfer sheets from them in my spares folder

[lufbramatt]

Probably not much of the actual kit part insert was used, but more the runner/mould base/ejection system of the mould, as the parts would have been a similar shape. There's a lot more to an injection mould than just the cavities that form the parts.

[Eric Mc]

A bit like using the same engine block but completely replacing the cylinders, liners and pistons?