Product ReviewsAirfix JAMES BOND 007 AUTOGYRO 1/24 Scale Plastic Model Kit UNBUILT 1996

“A Rare Gem for Hobbyists from the Early James Bond Movies”

For model collectors and hobbyists, the James Bond autogyro rare model plastic kit of "Little Nellie" from the movie “You Only Live Twice” is a gem. It was first issued by Airfix in 1967 and much later re-boxed by the same company in a second issue in 1996. Both releases were produced from the same molds. My eBAY purchase was the 1996 version which I was fortunate to get for a low price compared with other sellers elsewhere. I would, however, not rate the modeling skill as “2” as listed on the kit box. As many hobbyists who have built early Airfix products are aware, the instructions and sprue numbering leave much to be desired! The fact that the parts on the sprues are not numbered, and that there are no plan views of the sprues with part numbers in the instructions make an easy build coordinating the parts with the plans very difficult. In addition, the assembly diagrams sometime obscure the location of small parts, particularly in placing them behind other, larger parts. Because of the “erector set” nature of the small parts, wheel struts, and weapons assemblies surrounding the airframe, and the autogyro tower behind the pilot, painting of the model is a nightmare! Most of the parts have to be painted before assembly. Even at 1:24 scale these parts are small and fragile. In researching the aircraft, I found it very useful to make frame grabs from a DVD of the movie, especially at the beginning of its assembly on site and during “Q’s” explanation of its various features to James Bond (for readers with the DVD, the section for viewing "Little Nellie" assembly starts at ca. 49 min into the film). With careful planning of the model assembly and painting, however, the net result can be a valuable addition to a hobbyist’s collection of rare models. I gave this review 5 stars because of the rarity of the kit and the low price that I paid. (Airfix, by the way, no longer suffers from the inclusion of poorly prepared instructions. Their much more detailed plans of today’s kits are in fact a model of the way kit companies should produce instructions!).Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: cash2convert

Little Nellie is great

Very cool subject

Bond at his best

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: grubermoe3nnt