Academy TBM-3" USS Bunker Hill Airplane Model Building Kit, Navy

Love the way it looks now that it’s done and painted to my liking. It’s a fun build however it do a have a few flaws & lots of positives.Cons:Instructions are brief and not too detailed. There are times when you have to really think through a step to figure it out. The pictures are not the best either, can be confusing.Take your time! The details on the crew compartments are amazing! You see every details of the interior but take your time! The two fuselage parts will need to come together and if done hastily it would be offset.The pros: great detail, price, and the finished product is very nice!

It was fun to build, but the instructions were kind of a pain, I’m no expert builder at these models, but I have built a bunch of Lego models before. And also one of the light covers that go on the wing tips, one side is shorter than the other. That’s my only disappointment.

There is a lot of detail in this model...But I would NOT recommend this one for the newer modelers...A LOT of trimming and puttying...I actually like that part of model building, overcoming obstacles...The main obstacle with this model is the absolutely WORST instructions I have EVER seen...Trying to decipher and match parts was a real daunting task...But the finished product is fine....

I believe this is a re-boxing from the Accurate Miniatures, at least from what I've heard. You never know what you are going to get with these kits that you have no experience with. I took a chance and bought because of the great price on Amazon, it was cheaper than anything even on Ebay.Anyway, about the kit. I was very surprised when I opened the box. The plastic has perfect engraved lines on all the pieces and it looks very accurate to the naked eye. This kit is on my list to be built but I couldn't help myself and took the larger parts off the tree for test fitting. Everything fit perfect and all the panel lines lined up when taped together. I have a lot of model building experience and I can tell you that this is a great kit. I also test fit the clear parts and they fit great even better than a lot of high end kits. It's so nice that it has moved up on my list of future builds. Because of it's engineering and fit, I don't think you will need a lot of experience to make this into a nice model.

Fine in detail,good model

A very good build

The model itself has great details and lots of appeal in aesthetics category, however, the instructions are comical. How they think someone could follow the instructions is beyond me. I had to google YouTube videos to see other people building since there is so much missing info, missing alignment visuals, and overall clear step by step procedures. 1 star for instructions, 4 for overall model build and details

This is the Academy version of the TBM-3 Avenger. They also make a USN TBF-1C Avenger 'Battle of Leyte Gulf' version. The difference is what weapon load, and decals each comes with, otherwise they are the same model. I have both so here is the difference as follows.TBM-3 "bunker hill" comes with 4 500LB, 1 100Lb, 1 2000LB bomb loads, and 8 wing rockets. The decals are for 2 different versions for the U.S.S. Bunker Hill and the U.S.S Essex.USN TBF-1C Avenger 'Battle of Leyte Gulf' comes with 4 bombs, 2 incendiary bombs, and 1 torpedo. The decals are for the U.S.S. Hornet, Intrepid, Lexington, Enterprise, and decals for the north Atlantic U.S.S. Bogue (submarine hunter). There also is a version for George H. W. Bush plane that he flew as a LTJG in WWII.I bought the TBM-3 and was disappointed that it did not come with a torpedo after all this is a Torpedo bomber. So, I got the USN TBF-1C Avenger 'Battle of Leyte Gulf' version. Having built both I can tell you they are the same mold, and the only difference is as stated above.As stated in other reviews the instructions are somewhat lacking and I had to go to the Internet for a better guideline. The fit and finish is good and there is not much flashing. The paint codes provide in the instruction are in my opinion off. I use Vallejo paints and the suggested colors were more grey than blue. I mixed my paints to better match photos of actual aircraft I found on the internet and on the box cover art. The tri-color paint is not as hard as I thought it would be. They were also completely painted in a glossy deep sea blue color later in the war. In the North Atlantic they had a grey and white color scheme.As a reference point the difference between a TBM and TBF is only the manufacturer of the plane. TBF was made by Gruman and the TBM by General Motors.Not a bad model but due to the instruction being so vague not for someone new to this hobby. Doable if you don't mind researching the internet for help and guidelines.Edit: added pictures to show bombs of TBM version. Not finished yet on model, still have more weathering effects to add.