For a long time it seemed Phoenix was content to just churn out the same old Asian models on weak moulds ad infinitum, while more active newer brands stole their marketshare. That is no longer the case. In the past year Phoenix have shown commendable agility, and have pivoted towards a wider diversity, of often classic models. They have also updated several moulds and now they are going to be making a type all new to 400 scale - the Ilyushin Il-96-400.
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For those that follow my work you'll know I often have cause to criticise Phoenix Models but that doesn't mean that they don't make fine models and that I don't buy any, although I admit in recent years the numbers have dwindled. This recent Black Friday did give me an opportunity to pick-up a trio of their older releases using one of their better castings - the Airbus A320. Let's take a look...
 In part 1 I began to look at the 4 extant 787-9 moulds and gradually work through the features of each assigning scores. At the halfway point the JC Wings mould was out in front by a small margin. After concentrating on the nose, landing gear and engines in part 1 in this part we turn to the wings, and rest of the fuselage.
 As of November 2018 there have been 142 Boeing 787-9s made in 1:400 scale by 5 manufacturers and given the popularity of the type, the publicity around Dreamliners in general and the selection of popular special schemes being used on the type it is surely one of the most hotly contested aircraft types in this scale. Of course the spur for this post is the arrival of a new 787-9 mould from NG Models. How does that alter the equation?
 The A350 is rapidly making its mark in the aviation industry and therefore also in 1:400 scale. However unlike its rival the Boeing 787 the moulds used in 1:400 differ from each other significantly and have caused some disagreement about which is the most accurate. A lot of that disagreement centres around the shape of the nose. Now that Aviation400 have joined the scene it seems timely to let the moulds fight it out to see which is best.
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I'm Richard Stretton, an aviation enthusiast and major collector of 400 scale model aircraft. This blog discusses ongoing events in the world of 400 scale. This site is free. Please donate to keep it going.
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