Model Forum / General / Models / September 2005

Are you confusing the Trumpeter FW200 kit with the Ju290?  Completely
different aircraft.

kww

Well... here's something I posted back in 2000:

While checking the 2001 catalogs the other day at a local hobby
shop, I gladly found out that one of the major companies (I can't
remember right now which, but you get the idea: Revell-Monogram,
Italeri, Dragon/DML, Hasegawa, Tamiya) is anouncing the release
of a 1/48 Ju 290/390 kit for the new year/century/millennium!
Yes, that's right, the "Great Dessauers" finally at a reasonable
price ($50- or $60-something).

From what I could see in the pictures, the kit comes with 5
trees of injection-moulded, clear grey plastic, plus a clear
tree with the cockpit, windows, turrets, etc., plus some PE parts.
They seem to have opted for something similar to DML's Ju 88G-1/G-10
kit, with some cutting and glueing you can turn the basic fuselage
into the elongated one, and with the wings it's even easier
since you only have to add the innermost sections if you want
the Ju 390 (since they have their own landing gears, you don't
have to worry about the model collapsing; and of course, you have
the whole 6 engines and propellers on the kit, so if you build
only the Ju 290 version, you'll have several pieces for your
spares box). The kit features a semi-functional "Trapoklappe",
so you may build it resting on the tail wheel or with the ramp open
(allowing interior detail to be seen). My guess is it couldn't be
fully functional because of the weight, the tail would try to "sit
down" making the ramp close. They could have solved it by providing
a noseweight, but maybe they intended to release an A-7 version
(the one with the "bulbous", clear nose with an extra MG); or maybe
not, after all, the Ju 290/390 _was_ a tailsitter. Don't ask me
how they handled the different windows (rectangular versus round),
i don't remember and I'd have to take another look at the catalog
photos of the part trees; maybe they did separate fuselage walls,
floor and roof like in the ProModeler Ju 52/3m, or maybe the windows
required some cutting work too...

The kit seems to come with two decal sets, one for the Ju 390
V2 and one for a Ju 290A-5 of FAGr 5. They both are to be built
with the Hohentwiel radar array on the nose. I just wish they
had made a decal set for a KG 200 one... I would then line it
up with the B-17 and B-24 in KG 200 markings (incidentally, does
anybody know of aftermrket decal sets for those in 1/48?). Well,
sure some aftermarket company will release one. And I'm betting
they will also release conversion kits for the A-7 (if the
manufacturers themselves don't have it already planned, as with
the Tamiya Do 335A-12), including the bulbous nose and some
guided missiles/glide bombs, the A-8 and A-9, and maybe even the
Ju 290Z (hey, it would be very simple, the additional center
section dosen't even carry an additional engine like the one in
the He 111Z does!).

Now I'll be waiting until one of the local shops gets some of
these, I only hope the price increase due to import, customs,
taxes, etc., doesn't rocket to sky heights... Man, it IS a
huge kit, my guess is it's like the B-29... the dimensions are
in the same ballpark, plus/minus an inch or two. (The Ju 290A-5
had a wingspan of 42,00m, length of 28,64m and height of 6,83m;
the Ju 390 V2, a wingspan of 0,32m and length of 33,60m; and
the B-29, a wingspan of 43,05m, length of 30,18m and height of
9,02m)

They also mentioned a later release of the Ju 90, I think it was
for next April...

Now, a cultural note:

Around these latitudes, December 28th is called "Innocents' Day",
and commemorates the slaughter of the children ordered by Herod
when he learned Christ had been born. It is typical of this day
to play pranks on unsupecting people, to see if they qualify as
"innocents". In other words, this day fulfills the role that
in some other places is given to the so-called "April Fools'
Day". In yet other words, none of what I wrote further up
is true (though I wish it were, and if you believed it, you
must agree it isn't all that improbable).
So, take this without getting angry, and Feliz Día de los Inocentes!