Moebius Models

1/32 Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea Flying Sub

Kit Number: 817

Reviewed by  Rick Bellanger, IPMS# 35220

MSRP: $74.99 Website: www.moebiusmodels.com Growing up in the 60's I always liked the TV Show "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea". Watching the Sea View cruise underwater with all the bubbles coming out of it, it just couldn't get any better. When I was offered the opportunity to do a review on one of the TV Shows subjects I couldn't resist. I do Aircraft and I do Ships, what better combination than a Flying Submarine. I'm not going to go through the history of the Flying Sub; this is all provided in great detail in the instruction sheet. The model does come well packaged with all the parts in plastic bags. The subs hull shells are well protected and hold everything together in the box. Let me tell you when you unpack the kit, good luck getting it all back the same way in the kit box. It's that good of a fit.

You get a two-piece hull, upper and lower, a windshield frame, a rear hatch bulkhead plus an upper and lower Docking Ring. This makes up the major hull assembly.. There are also several other sprue's for the interior parts. These contain the beams and bulkheads and cockpit details. There was very little if any flash on any parts and the clear parts are very clear and I found no scratches. Please read and understand the instruction sheet before you start your model building experience. There are several paragraphs that refer to assembly notes and painting the model. There is also an extensive painting color chart that list the pieces by their number and what recommended color to paint these. The paint reference numbers are given for Testors Enamels, Model Masters and Acrylic colors. As stated in the instructions these are references only and it's up to you decide. I varied on a few colors due to the paint I had on hand. As to the instruction, they are adequate but are a little vague in some of the parts location. The photography is excellent and the drawings are very well done. Part numbers are called out making them very easy to find. I started my assembly by prepainting the interior parts. I treated it as if I was building a cockpit for an airplane. Pay attention to the section on painting the deck. You will have to mask the hexagons and paint those in separate steps. The instructions provide the information in greater detail to accomplish this. One thing you must decide is how you wish to display the Flying Sub once completed. A very nice clear stand is provided which I think adds a lot of drama to the sub seeing it kind of flying. A couple of crew members in the seats would have helped a lot. Another decision will be to either leave the Upper Docking Ring removable or not. You will have to remove a couple of locating tabs (the instruction sheet explains all this) that is easily accomplished with a set of sprue cutters. This allows access to the interior once the hull is glued together. I would highly suggest you do this. One thing I added was some placards and instrument decals from my scrap box for the cockpit area. This adds a little more detail and life to the interior. I also dipped the windshield parts in Future to bring out their clarity.

The biggest fault I could find with this model is the lack of decals. With such a nice display base I thought a nice sticker would be appropriate and there is even a nice triangle space for one on the stand. I left mine blank, maybe someday I will find something to go there. I painted the subs hulls before gluing them together. I cheated and used a can of Krylon Gloss Yellow. Works great and the color was right on. Gluing the upper and lower halves together created no problem and the fit was outstanding. I used no filler or putty on any of the model. Study the box art, you will need it to paint the striping on the exterior of the hull. I used drafting tape to mask the lines. I also used Gunship Grey to paint the front of the Sub as it shows on the box art. I'm sure that there will be several after market products produced for this kit that will only enhance it. I saw on the Cult Man's Web site a masking kit for the exterior striping already available. So the stuff is coming. All in all, I had fun building the Sub. Assembly was easy, the fit of the parts was very good and everything fell together. Painting was also fun. There are a lot of colors and with proper planning everything can be painted in stages. I would recommend this model to someone with a little experience due to the vagueness of some of the parts location and the size of the model 14". Thank you to IPMS USA and Moebius Models for providing the kit for me to build and review.