McDonnell Douglas MD-11 Moulds in 1:400 Scale
|
Updated: April 2024
|
|
The MD-11 was the product of a cash strapped McDonnell Douglas attempting to upgrade its passably successful DC-10 and get a headstart on Boeing's 777 and upstart Airbuses' A330/340 in the next generation widebody stakes. The result was a disappointment both in terms of performance and sales. In addition the aircraft has gained itself a poor reputation for handling on landing, which has led to fairly regular 'incidents'. Nevertheless, despite this the aircraft is quite beautiful and redeemed itself somewhat by proving its worth as a superior freighter. In fact you could argue the freighter version saved the type and certainly it was only due to this that Boeing kept the line open after it took over MDD, and that production got to 200 units.
Gemini Jets MD-11s
In passenger service airlines like launch customer American Airlines were never satisfied with its failure to match performance guarantees. They sold their fleet after only 5 years and several other airlines kept DC-10s in their fleet longer than the replacement MD-11s! Other airlines, like Singapore, just cancelled their orders. In the end being a trijet at the dawn of ETOPs services would have proven insurmountable even without the performance problems but even so as of October 2021 there were still 116 of the 200 frames in service. By March 2024 this had dropped to just 79 aircraft.
MD-11 in 1:400 Scale
In 1:400 the MD-11 has been well represented with 242 models, as of May 2024, however although it appears initially that there has been plenty of competition the vast majority of production has been focused on 3 moulds, 2 of which have been updated and split out in the table below. One of the others has barely been used, another is newish but not really competitive and the latest is still at the sample stage.
Additionally it is worth recognising that the fundamental base moulds for almost everything made date from between 1998 and 2003 so even when updated do have the hallmarks of early period 400 scale models. There has also been a lot of mould sharing between brands, which illustrates some of the changing relationships between manufacturers.
Additionally it is worth recognising that the fundamental base moulds for almost everything made date from between 1998 and 2003 so even when updated do have the hallmarks of early period 400 scale models. There has also been a lot of mould sharing between brands, which illustrates some of the changing relationships between manufacturers.
NOTE: I'm not going to review the Aero Le Plane mould. They only made 2 models, I know nothing about them, have never had the mould in hand and it doesn't look great anyway.
MD-11 Variants
Below is a side view of an MD-11 of one of its biggest supporters - KLM. This aircraft has the later very pointy GE engine exhaust cones but the original no 2 engine intake and original flap track fairings:
Just as with its smaller brother the DC-10 the MD-11 had a whole host of upgrades added as production continued, with many of the changes being retrofitted to earlier build frames. All the detailed information can be found in David Hingtgen's awesome guide - Ultimate DC-10/MD-11 Guide. Suffice to say this review isn't going into this kind of detail especially as the model manufacturers almost never do themselves. The most obvious difference is the engine exhausts.
MD-11s either came with General Electric or Pratt & Whitney engines (GE CF6-80C2-D1Fs, or PW4460/PW4462s respectively). As in the DC-10 the P&W engines have less pointy exhausts:
MD-11s either came with General Electric or Pratt & Whitney engines (GE CF6-80C2-D1Fs, or PW4460/PW4462s respectively). As in the DC-10 the P&W engines have less pointy exhausts:
|
|
|
Above: Early GE exhausts and later pointier GE exhaust Above: PW engine exhaust
Moulds (in date order)
Dragon Wings (1998-2009)
This must be one of the earliest 1/400 scale moulds but that doesn't mean it isn't a corker. Dragon's widebodies were always better than its narrowbodies and the MD-11 mould is better than their good DC-10. In fact it holds up surprisingly well even by today's standards, assuming two things:
Between 1998 and 2000 the model's had the original undetailed simple stalk style maingear, which looks poor and very dated. After 2000 new maingear was added, which looks a lot better and has gear doors.
- they printed the cockpit windows properly (earlier ones are often too small)
- it has the latter style of maingear
Between 1998 and 2000 the model's had the original undetailed simple stalk style maingear, which looks poor and very dated. After 2000 new maingear was added, which looks a lot better and has gear doors.
Simple stalk maingear
|
Improved maingear
|
The usual Dragon problems (simple undercarriage, clear tail join) are present but so are the usual Dragon strengths (no wing join seam, strong detailing on wings). Several other things stand out. Most noticeably that the two small ADF fairings on the roofline at the wing are raised (see above in the Martinair shot) and the flap track fairings are very well shaped. For me the thing that lets the side down a bit is the nosegear. As you can see above in the real thing the gear leg should be pointing forward a bit. With Dragon's gear it doesn't and it is also a bit short. It's not the end of the world by far but it does sometimes make the nose look a little too long, which it isn't. Anyway it's a very good mould all round.
As you can see below Dragon has also made both GE (with the earlier less pointy exhaust) and PW versions of the mould:
As you can see below Dragon has also made both GE (with the earlier less pointy exhaust) and PW versions of the mould:
Gemini Jets Original (2000-2009)
This early Gemini mould has been widely used, is decent and has been updated (see later entry). It matches the Dragon Wings mould in terms of general shape and has a better middle engine fit. It does lack some of the finer detailing that the Dragon has and the underwing flap track fairings are a bit too round but these are minor points. Whereas the Dragon has raised roofline ADF bumps this mould does not. There is also a wing join seam, albeit a small one and earlier models also have a second seam near the horizontal stabilisers (typical for several early Gemini moulds). This second seam was removed in 2002-2003 as part of the Gemini Jets II changes (see the early history of Gemini for more on this). The biggest improvement over the Dragon mould is the undercarriage, especially the nosegear. It is longer and slants forward as it should.
As with Dragon Gemini have produced both engine versions. In the below shots the China Eastern was made for Aeroclassics.
As with Dragon Gemini have produced both engine versions. In the below shots the China Eastern was made for Aeroclassics.
Phoenix Original (2003-2008)
It can at times be hard to distinguish this mould from the early Gemini but there are a selection of detail differences. It shares the same wing seam with the Gemini but the detailing on the tail and wings is a lot stronger, and the underwing flap track fairings are better shaped - similar to the Dragon. The stand hole underneath is also in a different position (round and further forward on the Gemini, oval and further back on the Phoenix). The Phoenix mould also, like the Dragon, reproduces the two ADF bumps on the roofline. The engine pylons aren't great and hang the engines a little too low. Lastly unlike both the other moulds the middle engine exhaust fairing is a one piece unit and not split into two.
Gemini Jets Updated - JC Wings Mods (2009 - In Use)
In 2009 Gemini updated their original mould with rolling gear. Not only do the gear roll but the gear legs are much more detailed than before. The result was an improvement to the mould. As Gemini Jets are nowadays made by JC Wings in their factories JC also began to use the mould and further updated it in 2014 by adding aerials. The modifications definitely improved the mould, although sometimes the nosegear can seem too short. It also still has the classic wing seam and two piece tail unit.
Phoenix Updated (2013 - In Use)
As with Gemini Phoenix also updated their mould with rolling gear, however it wasn't as subtly done. The biggest criticism has been that the nosegear leg is too long, often giving models something of a nose high attitude. Like the Gemini mould it still retains the wing seam and although the no 2 engine exhaust is better the engine pylons haven't been improved.
Finally in 2024 Phoenix has modified the nosegear so that it is correctly a little shorter.
JetHut (2023)
This mould originated as part of the set developed for the deAgostini JAL Collection publication and several versions were made in JAL colours for the magazine. I have written quite a bit about this publication and the models that have come with it at the site already:
The moulds are limited and not designed to compete with standard 400 scale models. Even though they are quite recent they lack modern features like seamless moulds, rolling gear, aerials etc. I reveiwed a JAL MD-11 at the site here:
JetHut has also started producing models using some of its moulds independently. These are mainly aimed at the Chinese market and include a China Eastern MD-11:
Panda Models (2024)
The first all new standard quality MD-11 mould since 2003 was announced in late April 2024 at the Beijing Hobby Expo and comes from Panda Models. Images are in short supply at the moment but at least two engine variants are clearly available. The mould is still at the sample stage as of May 2024.
|
|
NG Models (2024)??
NG Models has hinted that they will produce an MD-11 also in 2024 but there is nothing concrete to date other than a social media reply.