 Given my classic leanings, and lack of sales in China, the 787-10 is not a major fixture in my collection, then again with only 98 aircraft in service it isn't exactly a major fixture in airline fleets either. That hasn't stopped there being 103 400 scale releases for the type, but with only 10 operators worldwide there has obviously been a fair amount of repetition. That is however more than double the number of releases since I last reviewed a 787-10, in 2021. With the pandemic out of the way the 10 is sure to see a lot more service in the coming years, and get a lot more releases in the scale as well. Nowadays, there are 4 787-10 moulds competing in 400 scale and the latest is the Aviation400 version, which we'll take a look at here. Each review is to split into three key areas:
MOULD  The 787-10 is the last of the three Dreamliner variants to get a mould from Aviation400, with their first announcements in May 2024. They have now announced 13 787-10s, with 7 of them having been released. This United example was announced in September and released a month or two afterwards.  The most obvious difference between this Aviation400 mould and the competition (which comes from Gemini Jets / JC Wings, NG Models and Phoenix) is that it, along with all other AV400 widebodies, comes with magnetic detachable landing gear. Aviation400 are well known for adding extras like this onto their moulds. Whether you see these as excellent value adds, or pointless gimmicks will dictate your overall view of this mould.  As with other 787 variants competition between the moulds is strong and you could plausibly argue that any of the JC Wings, NG Models or Aviation400 moulds are best. The Phoenix remains the weakest overall, but has recently been improved to the point where it shouldn't be ignored as an option.  My detailed comparison for the 787-9 dates from 2022, so it rather out of date, but the basic findings remain solid and apply equally to the longer series 10. The fundamentals of the fuselage barrels (cockpit, nosecone, tailcone, wingjoin and fuselage underside) are good to excellent across the board.  Famously, Aviation400 fits beacon lights to its widebody moulds as an added feature the others don't have. They don't determine my purchase, but I do quite like them on the 787. To find differences between the moulds it is in the undercarriage, engine pylons and fans, wings and stabs you need to look closely at.  The AV400 has a slightly chunkier nosegear than the NG version, and a slightly larger nosgear door, but both have a slightly tighter wing to fuselage join than the JC Wings effort. They both also have a slightly better shaped vertical stabiliser.  The shape of the lower margin of the maingear doors isn't 100% accurate and is inferior to that of the NG mould, however the gear trucks themselves are correctly wider than on the NG.  AV400 is a big fan of hollow core engines and those present on their 787s are good. The blades could be slightly wider (as on the NG version) but are thicker than on the JC Wings mould and a compromise to give the desired see through effect.  The four aerials / drain masts are well sized and the model comes with two domes on the roofline. Looking at the United Airlines releases from NG Models and Gemini Jets they appear only to have the larger forward dome in relief, so the presence of both on this version is a significant plus.  The magnetic gear works well and fits cleanly and strongly. They aren't necessarily a feature that I need myself, but they look good and are effective, giving the option to display the model gears up on the free stand that is provided.  As I have said before, when it comes to 787 there is no wrong choice, at least when selecting between the AV400, JC Wings / Gemini and NG Models moulds. Any of the three could be claimed to be the best and all have minor imperfections and conversely also perfections missing in the others. Three great moulds and three safe purchases, but if you like the magnetic gear and extra fuselage detailing the AV400 version is the one for you. SCORE - 9 PAINT & LIVERY  This aircraft was delivered new to United on December 19, 2018 wearing the modified Unicon livery with the wavy line. As of now it still wears this scheme and hasn't been repainted into the United Blue livery of 2019. While I like the latter the gold in this scheme looks great on the big Dreamliner.  There are obviously plenty of photos of this frame online (JetPhotos has a good sample here) from which to compare against the model. The gold and blue colouring fits nicely, with the gold being really vibrant. The old Continental globe tail logo looks excellent and is sized very well (something Aeroclassics could take some lessons on).  The position of the wavy pinstripe and grey belly mirror the real thing, and the simple block titling matches too. Details on the nosegear doors, Dreamliner titles and Star Alliance logo are all present. However, it looks from photos like the forward SatNav dome ought to be grey to me. SCORE - 9 PRINTING & QUALITY CONTROL  Printwork on Aviation400 models isn't as subtle as on some brands, but this isn't necessarily a criticism. There is a lot of detail printwork and it is very nicely done in my opinion. The only criticism I can level is that the radome should be slightly larger.  As with the Air Tanzania series 8 I recently reviewed I'd also like the fanblades to be less silvery, but it is hardly a major. On the plus side printing on the hub spinner is great.  What has impressed me with Aviation400 since they added the magnetic gear is how I haven't seen any issues with this complicated addition. The gear up and down components are great and hold well with the magnets. Overall, quality of the model is very high. The portside engine may be ever so slightly lower than the starboard side, but it is nowhere near as pronounced as on the Air Tanzania and not very noticeable. SCORE - 9 SUMMARY  In my opinion, Aviation400 is a great brand that is producing some excellent models, providing real competition and a distinctly different alternative to JC Wings, NG Models, Phoenix etc. I can't really fault their ethos of adding extras as usually it pays off, creating a model that looks great and displays excellently (especially on the provided stand). Competition is extremely strong when it comes to 787s, but Aviation400 have shown that they can compete in this market and this United example is a good idea of what you're getting with Aviation400. FINAL SCORE - 27/30 
1 Comment
Nagy Krisztián
6/12/2024 08:51:47 am
Nice review :-) Can't wait to get mine. Hope AV400 releases WB Abu Dhabi Etihad 787-10 shortly. Leave a Reply. |
AuthorI'm Richard Stretton an aviation enthusiast and major collector of 400 scale models. On this page I take a detailed look at new releases. This site is free. Please donate to keep it going.
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