Having been in a bit of a modeling slump over the last month, it took a week's holidays to cure! My brother has been slaving away at one of Testors YF-22 Kits for some time, and when I spotted a new 1/48th scale kit on the shelf I got one to taunt him with. Although I am not personally crazy over the F-22, I figured what the heck and dove right in.

Opening the box reveals a nicely molded kit with very fine detail lines. Many internal weapons are provided, and options for open or closed panels are also interesting features. I was most impressed with the clarity and excellently cast canopy. This is definitely one of the best non vacform canopies that I have seen. This can be a detriment to the model though as the cockpit is rather sparse. Looking through research material for interior pictures may be futile, not many have been published. Italeri must have also encountered this difficulty. The ejection seat is done very well, and the instrument panel decal is accurate. Room is certainly available for improvements with a resin tub, but I was not going to wait.

Construction of the kit goes fast as the parts fit very tight and line up well. I did not require any putty on the basic fuselage and tail assemblies. The only problem that arose for me was a fingerprint. Holding the top wing panel and the fuse top requires several well-positioned fingers. Applying liquid glue and capillary action quickly led to a cold sensation on my thumb. Several expletives later, I found that the plastic had not been effected too badly. A thin coat of Mr. Surfacer and light sanding removed the signature! Research also did not show many pictures with the weapons bays open, so I chose to glue them shut. Test fitting will definitely help to solve several fit problems and will show the builder that the instructions have flipped the parts numbers for the side doors. They are not the same shapes and can lead to some frustration. I had the top and bottom halves glued together before closing the doors, but it would be much easier to set the panels while accessible from both sides. Expect some putty work to level out the exterior surfaces though.

Minimal sanding will be required to remove traces of glue around the entire top / bottom seam and do not be afraid to round out some of the edges as this was done between the real versions. YF-22 hard edges - F-22A smoothed out. The intake fairings will cause your next bit of trouble, as they do not completely touch the top of the fuse on the inner edge. This sounds like a mouthful, but the fairing is about 1/8th inch short. A bit of gap filling super glue and liquid putty can hide this in no time. The outer edge where it joins into the top fuse half will need a touch of super glue and sanding to blend the shapes. The gear doors can also be glued in the open position before painting. Although they are held in place by small posts, they can withstand the odd bump!

Painting the F-22 will be limited only by the builder's imagination. There are only 2 real Raptors and both have different schemes. These prototypes also have many touch-up paint marks. I used several shades of grey over the light scheme to reflect the picture shown on this months World Air power World Wide's cover. Decals go on very well and respond to the various setting solutions. I am impressed with the final product and the ease with which it was completed.