Once again, the very lame suggestion that you read some of the other P-40 reviews to get a bit of background on this particular aircraft. Heck, there is even a full build review using this kit!

THE KIT

It is hard to believe, but this 40 year old mold is still the most accurate early P-40 done in 1/48 (2004). It is fervently hoped that a new kit will be on the way in the next year or so as the quarter scale battalions are sure in need of one. Not to say that the Hobbycraft kit is horrendous, it just isn't the most accurate.           

Molded in dark green plastic to help us with painting, this kit is nearly devoid of all those neat little 'working' features that seemed common with Monogram kits of the era. About all you got, aside from rolling wheels and a rotating prop, were the flaps that could be moved up and down. Not much play factor in that one. Some will tell you that this was when Monogram realized that there were adult modelers who liked these things. That could be as this one at least has an interior of sorts with sidewall detail. It also has the slot in the back of the seat for the pilot figure, so that kinda takes a bit away from it. One big difference from earlier kits is that this one has the option of having the canopy open. Still no boxed in wheel wells and with the flaps down you can see right into the cockpit, but an improvement. You can also build it with the gear retracted but there is no display stand.

Instructions are still the pictures with a written construction sequence and an exploded view of the kit. Colors are generic as was the norm. Three decal options are supplied. One is the Flying Tigers plane and colors given are OD and  light earth (tan) uppers. No underside color is given but one suspects that it would be light grey. The other is a US Army plane with a light grey underside. No upper surface color is given (perhaps bare plastic?). The other is a British plane in Sand and Medium Brown over lavender-grey or light blue! Decals with my kit are a bit on the yellowish side, but there are tons of aftermarket sheets around for this version. Besides, most folks do a Flying Tiger when doing an early P-40            

CONCLUSIONS

Despite being older than most of the modelers around, the Monogram P-40 still builds into a very nice model. I've seen them aplenty over the years and they still look great. If you are in San Diego and visit the Aerospace Museum, my Monogram P-40B should still be there in one of the displays.