Air Canada | Bombardier CRJ-100ER | C-FWJT | 3D Design Deck

3D Design Deck have come a long way since they started up and have found an excellent niche producing smaller regional types, in both 200 and 400 scales, that have often been ignored by the diecast brands. Despite their small size regional jets appear to be highly sought after, especially in the USA, and now with a CRJ-100/200 mould there is a great opportunity for 3DDD to wrestle that market away from Gemini and JC Wings.

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Each review is to split into three key areas:

• The model mould
• The paint and livery reproduction
• Printing and quality control

Each section can get a maximum score of 10 for a maximum combined score of 30

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This review is sponsored by Northeast Diecast. Check out their store for an excellent range of hard to find 200 and 400 scale collection sale models and get 15% off!

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MOULD

The Bombardier CRJ-100/200 is one of the smallest types available in 400 scale and in many ways better suited to 200 scale, where there are several excellent offerings available. However it is vital for model airports and for a representative collection. For nearly 20 years if you wanted a regional jet then JC Wings and Gemini Jets were the brands to look out for as nobody else had the moulds. 

In its formative years JC had gone on a big mould development spree for smaller regional types, such as the Saab 340, Shorts 360, DHC-8, HS748, Fokker 50 and ATR-42, but the two main early RJ moulds, for the ERJ-145 and CRJ-200, actually originally belonged to Gemini and pre-date their production agreement with JC. ​

That also means that they are both old and not up to the quality of the newer JC Wings regional props. Nonetheless, they have been all that has been available since 2005. 3D Design Deck's own CRJ-200 mould only appeared in March 2025. With only 4 Gemini CRJ-200s since 2020 there's plenty of room for a new mould.

For those not familiar with 3D Design Deck's products (which have featured twice in reviews before) this is NOT a die-cast model but a 3D printed model, so technically there is no mould as of such, however I'll continue to use the term for sake of ease.

These 3D printed models are incredibly light, but that actually gives them a robustness die-cast models don't have. You can drop this CRJ and it won't break. In terms of detailing on the mould 3D printing offers near the same level as die-cast, but with the added bonus that the design can be refined more easily over time.

As such a small type the CRJ has proven challenging to model in 400 scale. I would say the 3DDD version is a little better than the Gemini / JC version in most areas, but certainly not all.

I much prefer the forward fuselage and nosegear on the 3DDD version, especially the tyres. The winglets are more tapered and the tailcone better shaped also. The 3DDD also doesn't have the incorrect hot rod nose-down stance that the Gemini mould often exhibits and the engines don't have the seamline running along their sides either.

On the underbelly the recesses for the maingear are present, unlike on the Gemini mould. Less successful is the design of the wing join. Both moulds use a cradle fit, but the seam on the 3DDD is much more obvious. I'm also not convinced by the aerial shape (although it looks better on the official release shots).

There are some limitations evident with this CRJ mould, but it is at least as good as, and I think better, than the competing Gemini offering. As is often the case with very small moulds macro-photography exaggerates things somewhat too. 

SCORE - 7

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PAINT & LIVERY

Air Canada was one of few, if not the only, mainline airline to fly CRJs itself rather than passing them to a regional affiliate. They took delivery of their first series 100ER in September 1994 and flew the type into 2006 when they passed to Jazz. C-FWJT arrived in February 1996 and saw a decade of service prior to switching over.

The basic colours on this model are fine, albeit slightly washed out. The fuselage base also appears a little off-white rather than the bright white of the real thing.

Small details such as the tiny 119 fleet number are present and impressively readable under magnification, but the leaf veining on the tail is not obvious and the dark blue line of the lower tail margin is very uneven. Lastly, I'd say the font of the registration isn't quite right. To be fair most of these criticisms aren't especially noticeable with the naked eye.

SCORE - 7

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PRINTING & QUALITY CONTROL

One thing I have been very impressed by with 3DDD has been how quickly they have been able to improve their printing (undertaken with a UV printer) to the point where it is nearly as good as Tampo printing.

The model comes crammed with detail printwork, especially on the wings and fuselage roof. This stands up easily to macro-photography. 

From a QC perspective there is only a single issue. The exhaust of the portside engine angles downwards slightly. Something worth mentioning also is that the foam inner packaging seems to produce a lot of micro-fibres on the model. A quick blast with a can of compressed air sorts that out.

Lastly, it is also worth mentioning that multi-purchases from the 3D Design Deck store get free gifts and because I purchased 3 models I received these 3D printed coaches for free.

SCORE - 9

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CONCLUSION

This is a fine little CRJ and I look forward to seeing others being made. So far 3DDD have announced 7 CRJ models in total and with their smaller production runs (this was model 16 of 100) there's plenty of viable schemes. I am really pleased with the quality and definition of these 3D printed models, especially given the small size of 3D Design Deck themselves. There is massive scope for regional aircraft and liveries that are not seen as feasible to be made in diecast. I applaud 3D Design Deck's care and ingenuity in bringing this sort of model to market.

FINAL SCORE - 23/30