Boulton Paul's Turret Fighter - done!

[Faust]

When I was learning about WWII planes, a long time ago, I was fascinated with several aircraft that just seemed strange compared to what I’d seen before. One, of course, was the Boulton Paul Defiant; it was a part-Hurricane/part-Spitfire concoction WITH A TURRET!! I grew up with the 80’s GI Joes, so I had a Rattler, which was a VTOL A-10 ripoff with a turret on it. So it didn’t look  out of place because I wasn’t used to turrets, it looked out of place because I didn’t realize anyone had ever done that!

I, of course, wanted a kit of it, but the only kit at the time was the old Airfix one, and even 25 years ago I knew that kit was a piece of, well, “history”, shall we say. I’ve had to wait a long time for a decent, affordable Defiant in 1/72, but now that Airfix’s new kit is here, I can say it was worth it! Check out my completed Defiant, and be amazed at how far Airfix actually has come from the old days!

https://adamrehorn.wordpress.com/model-kits/planes/airfix-172-boulton-paul-defiant-mk-i/
 

[bisc63]

Just checked out your write-up; very well done. I, too, have always been a little enamored of these fighters with turrets. They just look SO formidable, don't they? As for Airfix, the only ones available to me as a child were the ones licensed to MPC to produce in the USA. As an adult, I have "discovered" both old and new gems from Airfix, and have a generally very positive view of all I've encountered. I was very impressed with the level of detail, for example, on the old 1/72 B-26 Marauder; so much so I bought two off ebay right away. I recently picked up a new tool 1/72 Folland Gnat, and like it very much. Now I want one in 1/48, but at the moment it is commanding high prices!

Looking forward to your next build!

[64Comet404]

Great job on the Defiant. I still have the bits from an original bagged Airfix kit which did not fit together at all. I have the cockpit finished in the newly-tooled version, and hope to get back to work on it over the winter months.