Mould Snapshot | Boeing 777-200 | De Agostini / JAL Collection

The 777 has been a major component of the JAL fleet for over two decades now and anyone making large number of modern-era 400 scale models is bound to have a triple-seven to their name. So it is little surprise that the DeAgostini JAL Collection has several 777s in its catalogue. The series 200 was one of the first moulds released in the JAL Collection and I recall when I first saw it being rather unimpressed. As always in this review I'll focus on the mould to see if my initial thoughts were correct.

The 777-200 has featured three times in the magazine to date - in issues 3, 7 and 16. These have been in the colours of Japan Air System, the 90s Tsurumaru and the Arc of the Sun.

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BOEING 777-200 IN 400 SCALE

There isn't any shortage of 777-200 moulds in 400 scale although in the past 7 years there has only been one new one produced (the excellent JC Wings version now in use). The fairest comparison for this mould are the older 'classic' moulds from Dragon and Gemini:

The 2001 Gemini Jets mould

The 2000 Dragon Wings mould

For a more detailed look at 777-200 moulds in 400 scale please see my mould review of the type:

Boeing 777-200 Mould Review

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JAL COLLECTION BOEING 777-200

Kentaro Iemoto from Tokyo, Japan, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

This is without a doubt one of the worst moulds in the JAL Collection series but rather unusually that isn't due to the usual failings of their models. The majority of the JAL Collection moulds I've reviewed so far get a lot of the basic details correct but with this 777-200 I think they have failed. 

The biggest issue for me is the shape of the nose and cockpit region. The look isn't helped by the cockpit printing however the angle down from the cockpit is all wrong and the nosecone too pointed. The nose doesn't really look like a 777.

The mould is, as usual, cradle mount but the seam line here is a lot less discrete than on other JAL Collection moulds and rather clunky both before and after the wing. At the end of the fuselage the diagnostic squared off tailcone is too rounded for my tastes.

Interestingly the tailplane and horizontal stabs on this mould are metal, whereas on most moulds in the collection they are plastic. They are all fine.

Moving to the undercarriage and it is ok in terms of detailing but appears to me to be too short. The tyres are well sized for a change but the nosegear door size isn't accurate - it is too short.

This mould is one of the JAL Collection I struggle to recommend at all. It is inferior to every other 777 ever made in 400 scale and holds up very poorly even to ancient Dragon Wings efforts (the Dragon 777 was one of their better moulds). 

From a scoring perspective I'll knock off the following:

Nose shape -2
Landing gear height -1
​Nosegear doors -0.5
Tailcone shape -0.5
​Seamline -1
Engines -1

The end result is a score of only 4 and that is before you might detract points for more modern details missing such as rolling gear, aerials, free rudder etc. This model could just about be recommended for children but otherwise I'd pass on this one.

​As a footnote the unusual wing seam and all metal tailplane does suggest to me that this was perhaps one of the first JAL Collection moulds made, which might explain its lower quality. Certainly they have 777-300 and 300ER moulds and, although I don't own them, judging by the images I have seen they appear much superior.

​SCORE - 4

Below: This 777-300ER appears to have a substantially better nose region, wing seam and engine nacelle length.​

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