Boeing 747-8I/8F in 1:400 Scale by NG Models
PART 1: MOULDS, OPTIONS & THE 748I SAMPLE
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Modified: March 2023
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It is incredible, and a sign of their impressive capabilities, that having been 5 months since the last new NG Models sample (the 200 scale AG600M Kunlong) it has seemed like something of a drought! This has now been sated with the appearance of the anticipated new samples for the Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental and Freighter. I think it was early last year that NG teased with an image of the Tu-154 mould and 747-8s but nothing had been seen since that time of the final Jumbos. I guess it is understandable given how much NG Models has been producing that they aren't just throwing everything out into the marketplace all at once, although some seem to be of the opinion they are.
Certainly, they do nowadays have to juggle a rather large group of moulds, which is a challenge even with their large release sets. It is rare nowadays for all models to get released in the month after the announcement, but at this point the delays are not large. Is this a problem? I don't think so. From conversations I've had with retailers the models still seem to be selling and it is not NG's problem if you can't afford everything you want they make. In my opinion there are huge wishlist backlogs and thousands of collectors to appease so the size of the release sets is a red herring. Nonetheless, it'll be interesting to see how the 747-8 slips into the production schedule and when the first model is announced.
Obviously in the 1:1 version the 747-8 has hardly been a world-beater from a sales perspective, coming as it does at the end of the four engine jet era. The passenger version was always going to be the junior partner with the freighter being the primary version from a Boeing perspective, but even so, sales of 155 aircraft combined (107 freighters and 48 passenger versions) must surely be massively underwhelming for the Boeing sales team.
It hardly seems like a coincidence that shortly after the delivery of the last 747-8F that NG have sent me the samples but I'd like to think that the majority of collectors are really more interested in the fabled 747 classics. I've even seen some saying well done NG for doing the 8s first so they perfect the nose and details for the more important earlier series. I sadly don't think NG see it like that. Their limited usage of the 747SP doesn't seem to inspire confidence that NG see the 747-100-400 or classics in general as a priority. Hopefully I'm wrong and the series 8s are the precursor to a wonderful line of Jumbos. That's in the future though and for now it is the turn of the final 747s in the spotlight.
EXISTING MOULDS
The Gemini Jets / JC Wings 747-8I
I haven't given the 747-8 a lot of coverage at Yesterday's Airlines to date, but the type has been represented well in the scale mainly by Gemini Jets / JC Wings and Phoenix. There are several other moulds that have been used of which the 2010/2011 Dragon Wings and 2008 Herpa/Hogan moulds are probably the most important. There was even a 747-8I released by Aeroclassics as a one-off and my understanding is the mould was never Aeroclassics' itself but some random version from the production mists of China.
Certainly it is nowadays the Gemini / JC Wings and Phoenix versions that get the most usage and mostly unsurprisingly the freighter variants. Both moulds are generally well thought of although the JC Wings 747-8F version gets a lot of stick for the hump form of the aircraft. The Phoenix version should probably get more stick than it does for the vertical stabiliser join and wing/fuselage join.
JC Wings Boeing 747-8F
Gemini Jets / JC Wings have aso cornered the market in interactive 747s with their freighters, which compensates somewhat for the hump form. I'm a big fan of these models and it is not an area that NG are trying to compete in. I've covered the interactive series here:
Currently I only own 5 747-8s myself all from Gemini Jets or JC Wings, so using the same moulds. Two are passenger versions, two freighters and one an interactive freighter.
RELEASE OPTIONS
With such a limited pool of customers it is hardly surprising that in 400 scale literally everything has been made already, which does make the type a somewhat unusual choice given there could easily be no more than a handful of new full schemes ever worn by it. Having said that obviously some releases are hard to find and there are a couple of models (such as the Air Belgium / Hongyuan Group) that have been announced but not yet released.
I have seen some calls for some fantasy model releases wearing retro schemes and obviously NG did produce their first A350 (Easyjet) and 777-300 (Cathay) in fantasy colours. Personally if that happens I would like to see some of the original 747-100 delivery schemes especially BOAC Speedbird and the Pan Am delivery colours (small titles, unslanted flag). Both are iconic schemes that hark back to the start of the 747 at a time when the end has come for new production. I know JC Wings made a Pan Am 748 but it was in the post 1976 colours.
Richard Vandervord, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Jon Proctor (GFDL 1.2 or GFDL 1.2 ), via Wikimedia Commons
The New NG Models 748I Mould In Detail
NG Models have provided me with a pair of samples representing the 8I and the 8F. Both come with printed windowlines, cockpits and cargo doors. In this review I'll look at just the 7478I.
NOSE, COCKPIT & HUMP
When the 747SP came out there was a lot of chatter about the noseform so there is much anticipation about the nose on this 747-8. Obviously the should be the same so let's take a closer look.
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Kiefer. from Frankfurt, Germany, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
The first thing I'll say is not about the nose shape but the windows. They are clearly wrong. The right number are present but the 14 ahead of the L1 door finish too close to the nosecone and also aren't printed level. Basically it seems like the entire window and doorline needs to be moved one window back and straightened. Removing the windows, as above, makes it easier to look at the nose itself.
With the two images overlaid I think you get a good look at the noseform - however please bear in mind that the aircraft in the two images are not exactly at the same angle, which is what accounts for the underside of the real thing looking a little fuller. It does however seem to confirm that the printed position of the windowline is too far forward.
Overall I would say the nose shape is good but somewhat ironically when I compare it to that of the NG 747SP I can't see a great deal of difference either! I do think the 748 nosecone is slightly higher and that fits with the improved shape others have suggested for the SP. Could the nosecone be slightly more rounded and is the forehead not quite curved enough? Quite possibly but they don't significantly impact the look in my opinion.
It doesn't help that the nosegear on the 748 samples is shorter than on the SPs but this may very well be just a fit issue as the gear doors look shorter too, so I'd bet they've been recessed into the fuselage too much.
It doesn't help that the nosegear on the 748 samples is shorter than on the SPs but this may very well be just a fit issue as the gear doors look shorter too, so I'd bet they've been recessed into the fuselage too much.
The windowline printing really does make things look a bit odd at the nose but should be an easy fix. Pleasingly the form of the long hump appears excellent.
WINGROOT & MAINGEAR
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The wingroot is very finely sculpted and the wings join tightly to the fuselage in a very similar manner to the Gemini / JC mould. It ought to be similar because both match the real thing almost perfectly. On the underside the belly intakes are moulded in and the maingear looks good. It makes an interesting comparison to the Phoenix mould, which has a cumbersome unrealistic and heavily rounded wingroot join to the fuselage.
It is worth noting that the gear trucks do not pivot as they do in other brands. This something NG have stopped doing on new moulds.
It is worth noting that the gear trucks do not pivot as they do in other brands. This something NG have stopped doing on new moulds.
ENGINES & PYLONS
Ground clearance of the engines is good and the shape of the nacelles from the side presents no issues.
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The rear of the engine has the trademark chevrons on both the nacelle and second stage and they both look good. The shape of the engine pylons is an area that works nicely. They are correctly angular under the wing and show the splayed out rear portion that connects up to the engine rear section.
As you can see above NG continues retreating away from hollow core engines in favour of more realistic fans. In these engines each blade is separate and they do look very nice except they all appear to curve the wrong way!
WINGS
The wings have lots of good detail and are very similar to those of the Gemini / JC mould. Both have the same height at the wingtips but as noted by DAC user Cambrose224 it appears NG have correctly identified and replicated the slight change in angle of the leading edge after the outboard engine. This angle change appears to be missing on both the JC Wings and Phoenix moulds. Another difference is that the inner flap track fairings on the NG protrude beyond the wing trailing edge slightly less.
From the front you can see the wings angle upwards but the tips are slightly lower than on the JC Wings mould and don't have the extreme wingflex I have seen on some JC efforts or older moulds.
TAIL & REAR FUSELAGE
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Once again the tail looks very similar to the JC Wings effort, at least as the rear and join, and substantially better than the Phoenix, which has their common clumsy way too small connection point to the roofline and massive gap much wider than the rudder. Where this tail is superior to the JC effort is that it has a more restrained realistic curve along its leading edge whereas the JC version has a much stronger curving profile.
I'm liking the tailcone and APU exhaust less. The NG sample's is rather asymmetric and formless. This could do with a little rework in my opinion. |
Summary
Overall I'd say this looks like a very nice 747. I'm sure there'll be much discussion around the nose but I think I like what I'm seeing here and I'd probably say it is better than on the competition. Could the forehead curve be less strong and nosegear slightly longer? Probably yes for both.
The rest of the mould compares quite closely with the Gemini Jets / JC Wings version, which is a complement as that is a decent mould. The three main areas where attention is needed for me are:
- The windowline - it is too far forward and not straight at the nose
- The direction of the engine fanblades
- Tidy up the APU exhaust
The 747-8 is unlikely ever to be a major component of my collection, especially the passenger version, but this is overall I think slightly better than the Gemini / JC Wings offering and definitely better than the Phoenix.
