Another unusual aircraft from Fantastic Plastic.

Black Sun Models BV-38 is one of the best engineered and well executed garage kit I've seen in a long time, with fine detail, delicate panel scribing and well considered parts breakdown. The pattern maker designed this kit to be as trouble-free as possible and the casting is nearly flawless. As a garage kit hobbyist, I think I can easily be spoiled by the quality of the production and service. This is state-of-the-art as far as garage kits go; a far cry from the bubbly, sticky approximations that was common to the craft only a few years ago.

A couple of notes to the instruction sheet: In step 3, the builder is directed to attach the engine exhausts (parts # 21) on the inboard side of each nacelle, curling down and in. I've done a frame-by-frame review of the entire sequence and it's clear in several shots that the exhaust pipes curl out. Also, in the shot where the planes wing tip tears open the fuel truck, I can clearly see the underside of the wing is marked with a cross, not a swastika. So in regards to the Decals portion of the instruction sheet, use the swastikas on the tops of the wings and use the crosses beneath.

It only took 27 years for a decent sized model of this unique and memorable movie vehicle to become a model kit. Now, if only someone were to make one in styrene, maybe in 1/32 or even 1/24?

My review copy was purchased from Starship Modeler.