By Pat Amaral - images & text © 2005

Scale: 1/87 - about 12"/ 305mm long when assembled

Parts: 32 resin

Instructions: Multipage assembly guide with photos and text; adequate to the purpose.

Decals: None.

Molding Quality: 7 - see text

Detail: 8 - there's plenty

Accuracy: 9+ - Looks like it's all there

MSRP: $100.00 USD (~$118.96 CAN/ € 80.27 EUR) available from Starship Modeler

Overall Rating: 8 - Nicely executed but there are some problems.

Image: Some of the many scribed details

Image: One of two minor voids

Image: An example of the orange peel texture present on my kit

Image: First page of the kit's instructions

Until recently, the only kit of the Infiltrator has been an AMT/ERTL issued pre-painted mini “snap” kit that was about 3” in length (approximately 1/350 scale). There was also a model rocket produced by Estes. Now, Patrick Tomlinson (pattern maker) and Controlled Energy Designs (casting) have developed a resin kit of the Infiltrator using the Estes rocket as starting point. I picked up one of these new kits at WonderFest 2005 and that is the subject of this article.

What You Get

The kit comes in a large-ish cardboard box with a photo of the completed model on the top. Upon opening the box I was concerned to find the only packing materials were a small sheet of bubble wrap and a small handful of packing peanuts. I was concerned because the bulk of the model is approximately 18 ounces of solid resin and the remaining kit parts were together in a single zip-lock baggie. That monster piece of resin has a lot of room to rattle around and smash the other pieces to resin dust. Apparently, my concerns were unfounded though because once I inspected all of the parts, I discovered than none appeared to be damaged.

All of the parts are crisply cast in a pale blue resin except for one piece, which came in dark blue (from a different batch I would assume). The urethane resin used has an almost styrene consistency; not at all brittle. My sample is bubble free with the exception of two small but prominent voids on the main body, which should be easily filled. The main body also sports a few minor blemishes but they'll be hidden once assembly is complete.

There is a fairly prominent mold parting line that runs all the way around the main body piece. This will need quite a bit of cleanup, as will the edges of just about all the parts. This of course isn’t out of the ordinary for a resin kit of this size. The kit has a lot of scribed panel lines, which will also need some sanding and cleaning out, especially on the inside of the four wing pieces as well as the rear of the sphere.

The biggest flaw in my sample is an odd, orange-peel-like “texture” which I’ve never seen before. This “texture” covers the entire surface of the main body piece. I’m assuming it’s not supposed to be there as none of the other pieces exhibit this feature. I’m not yet sure how I'll try to eradicate the problem. It would require some rigorous sanding which would likely cause the details and panel lines to suffer. I’ve thought of trying one of the special primers like Mr. Surfacer but I’m not convinced how effective that would be.

I’ve written a lot of negative things so far about this model kit but I want to be clear that I think it’s a very nice kit overall. As I said before, the parts are crisply cast and after cleanup, the kit should assemble easily. I was told by the kit’s manufacturer that the landing gear will not support the model on it’s own. This isn’t surprising as the main piece weighs in at a beefy 14 ounces. The instructions allude to this and suggest that part of the landing gear should be replaced with brass rod, which will rectify the problem. Even though the landing gear looks good, I think I’ll build mine as an in-flight display because I like the looks of the ship with the wings fully deployed.

Instructions

The instructions are pretty straightforward. There are five photocopied pages displaying photos of the different assembly steps. Each photo is accompanied by well-written descriptions of what needs to happen at each step in the process. As with any kit, I highly recommend fully studying the instructions and even rehearse each step a time or two before actual assembly takes place. I noticed a couple spots that can be easily messed up if you’re not paying attention. Good images of the Infiltrator are hard to come by so not having a painting guide in the kit can pose a challenge. The best images of the models used in the film (both CG and physical models were used) that I’ve been able to find were on the Star Wars Episode I Insider’s Guide CD-ROM. A quick Froogle.com search turned up a couple deals so this Disc is still out there.

Conclusion

I’m happy the Infiltrator is available. Is it a prefect kit? Probably not but it’s not bad. There are a few challenges to overcome in cleaning the kit up and getting it ready for assembly and paint. That’s not new for seasoned builders of resin kits. As for price? This is the most I’ve ever spent on one kit but I’ve always wanted a good-sized Infiltrator. I knew I would never scratchbuild one so I think this kit, my sample’s flaws not withstanding, is worth it.

Highly recommended for anyone who has some experience building resin kits.