 Of
all the major plastic kit manufacturers, it was a surprise to see that
Revell was the one to break the drought of Le Mans subjects.
It's
hard to believe that the last plastic injection 1/24 scale prototype sportscar
was
Tamiya's Toyota GT-One in 2000. Since then we've been
entertained
by the resin offerings, which are craftsman's dreams typically, but
often
break the bank. Therefore it was refreshing to purchase
Revell's
Audi R10 for the paltry sum of $15.99 (Towerhobbies.com). But
how
good would it be? |
| The kit consists
of 105 pieces broken down into 7 sprues cast in gray and 1 sprue cast
in
clear plastic. Four black rubber tires are also in the kit as
well
as the decal sheet. Detail is average in the depiction of the
engine
bay area, but its a good starting off point for sure and superior when
compared to the standard curbside offerings from the resin market. |
| The Revell kit depicts
the Audi R10 in its Le Mans 2006 winning configuration. The
sole
detail that determines this is the molded in low downforce louver
package
in the nose wheel arches as well as the lack of dive planes.
Overall
the kit is faithful to the R10 and the shape seems accurate with no
issues
that I could find. Casting detail is somewhat soft but not
horrible
by any stretch. The molded in fastener detail (around the
front louvers
and pedal access hatch in the top of the monocoque foot box) is way
over
done with the hole diameter too large and additionally too
deep.
These can easily be filled and either skipped over or redone.
The
near spec ACO underfloor is accurately depicted though the strakes are
much too thick. And there are some sink marks in this area as
the
rear lower suspension arms are cast into the floor. It's nice
to see
that they front diffuser is accurately portrayed allowing one a better
idea of the "non-wing" wing that Audi created with the way the splitter
and diffuser top side come to a common trailing edge. All
that's
missing there is the gurney on the trailing edge! At the
rear, the
wing adjustment slot details in the endplate are rather blobbish and
soft
and in need of sharpening up. Fortunately the photo etch sets
available
(see below) both seem to address this. |
| I
intentionally haven't done much comparison
to see how accurate the kit's engine bay is. From the gut I'd
say
its probably a fairly general rendition of the main engine bay volumes
but I wouldn't think it even close from a nut and bolt stand
point.
Details are soft, enough said. |
| In the intervening
months since the Revell kit's release, the after market crowd has
produced
a couple of PE details sets. Both Studio 27 ($13.00 @
mshobbies.com)
and Dexter Models ($15.00 @ stradasports.com) have photo etch
offerings.
In the mean time Dexter Models is also working on a transkit containing
the large louver set and dive planes used by the R10 in the American Le
Mans Series, though there has been no annoucement of a
release date
as of yet. |
