British Aerospace BAE-146 / Avro RJ Moulds - Gemini vs Jet-X
The BAE 146 has always seemed like an odd aircraft to me. In some ways a
trendsetter whilst in other ways anachronistic. After all it was a regional jet
decades before regional jets existed (only the F28 was a viable contemporary)
whilst its noise profile and STOL performance made it perfect for noise
conscious environments and city airports (well before London city was even built
let alone certified for jet ops). On the other hand the high wing configuration
and short undercarriage didn't lend it much beauty whilst having four engines
must have surely hurt its competitiveness even without their unreliability.
Still somehow it overcame any issues to sell 387 aircraft (that's combined 146
and Avro RJ sales) making it Britain's most successful jet airliner programme.
The type even managed to continue selling into the 90s and operated some of the
first true regional jet ops with US commuters like Air Wisconsin, ASA and
Mesaba. Today the RJ versions still operate in Europe and Australia in decent
numbers though I never quite understood why even the mooted but cancelled Avro
RJ-X still had four engines under the wings!
One of the factors that no doubt aided the 146 was the choice of three size options all available quite early in the type's history. In 1:400 there have been a surprising diversity of 146 models made with 135 examples being produced. Nineteen come from Gemini which has a series 200 / RJ-85 mould, however the majority (116) come from Jet-X who made their own moulds covering all three body length versions (-100/RJ-70, -200/RJ-85, -300/RJ-100)
It seems that the mould for both Gemini and Jet-X is in storage as all production was between 2006 and 2010. I'm not even sure Jet-X is still in business! The detailed breakdown is as follows (note with Jet-X there is often quite a lot of versions from the same airlines):
BAE 146
Gemini - 14 BAE 146-200s
Jet-X - 96
- 19 146-100s - Air China (2), British European/AF (3), QantasLink (2), UAExp (3), RAF (2), BAE (2), PSA (2)
- 61 146-200s - AF (7), AA/OC (7), Ansett (8), Presidential/CO Express (7), PSA/US (5). UAExp (4)
- 16 146-300s - Ansett (3), UAExp (3), Qantas (3), FlyBe (2), TNT (2), AusAEx (2)
RJ70-100
Gemini - 5 RJ-100 (their Swiss release is supposed to be a RJ-100 but uses the RJ-85 mould)
Jet-X - 20
- 2 RJ-70
- 8 RJ-85 - BAE (2), Lufthansa (2), Alitalia (2)
- 10 RJ-100 - BA Citiexpress (5), Swiss (3)
I have eight BAE 146s in my collection and here are some photos comparing three from Jet-X with three from Gemini. First the Gemini's:
One of the factors that no doubt aided the 146 was the choice of three size options all available quite early in the type's history. In 1:400 there have been a surprising diversity of 146 models made with 135 examples being produced. Nineteen come from Gemini which has a series 200 / RJ-85 mould, however the majority (116) come from Jet-X who made their own moulds covering all three body length versions (-100/RJ-70, -200/RJ-85, -300/RJ-100)
It seems that the mould for both Gemini and Jet-X is in storage as all production was between 2006 and 2010. I'm not even sure Jet-X is still in business! The detailed breakdown is as follows (note with Jet-X there is often quite a lot of versions from the same airlines):
BAE 146
Gemini - 14 BAE 146-200s
Jet-X - 96
- 19 146-100s - Air China (2), British European/AF (3), QantasLink (2), UAExp (3), RAF (2), BAE (2), PSA (2)
- 61 146-200s - AF (7), AA/OC (7), Ansett (8), Presidential/CO Express (7), PSA/US (5). UAExp (4)
- 16 146-300s - Ansett (3), UAExp (3), Qantas (3), FlyBe (2), TNT (2), AusAEx (2)
RJ70-100
Gemini - 5 RJ-100 (their Swiss release is supposed to be a RJ-100 but uses the RJ-85 mould)
Jet-X - 20
- 2 RJ-70
- 8 RJ-85 - BAE (2), Lufthansa (2), Alitalia (2)
- 10 RJ-100 - BA Citiexpress (5), Swiss (3)
I have eight BAE 146s in my collection and here are some photos comparing three from Jet-X with three from Gemini. First the Gemini's:
Gemini Jets BAE-146s
Gemini Jets BAE-146s
Gemini Jets BAE-146s
And the Jet-X's (the JEA is a series 100):
Jet-X BAE-146s
Jet-X BAE-146s
Jet-X BAE-146s
Both the moulds are good however the Gemini version is better. Why you ask - let
me elaborate:
Nose and cockpit: Gemini's nose shape and cockpit printing is superb. Jet-X get the nose right but they have the annoying habit of often mucking up the cockpit printing (regularly an issue on their DC-9s too). The windows often appear too large and the central windows seem to slip down the nosecone too far on many releases. Also the Jet-X nosegear seems a tiny but too far forward and their nosegear strut is very simple.
Nose and cockpit: Gemini's nose shape and cockpit printing is superb. Jet-X get the nose right but they have the annoying habit of often mucking up the cockpit printing (regularly an issue on their DC-9s too). The windows often appear too large and the central windows seem to slip down the nosecone too far on many releases. Also the Jet-X nosegear seems a tiny but too far forward and their nosegear strut is very simple.
BAE-146 Mould Comparison (GJ left JX Right)
BAE-146 Mould Comparison (GJ left JX Right)
Engines & Pylons: The Jet-X fanblades are simple whilst the pylons look like they hang a bit low.
Seams: The Jet-X has the better tail seam but its wing seam joins are
much more obvious than the Gemini.
Wings & Stabilisers: The Gemini has a lot more detail in terms of flaps, ailerons etc
Still I am quite happy with all the Jet-X birds in my collection (and will probably pickup an Ansett NZ example in the future) and if you need a short or long 146 you have to go Jet-X.