{"product_id":"21st-century-toys-22106-messerschmitt-bf-109g-14-1-32-plastic-model-aircraft-kit","title":"21st Century Toys 22106 Messerschmitt Bf 109G-14 — 1:32 Plastic model aircraft kit","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe kit number and identification are well documented: Large Scale Planes lists 21st Century Toys 22106 as a 1:32 injection-moulded Bf 109G-14 from 2006, while the UPC 0638748222011 is recorded against the same product.\n\u003cbr\u003eThe manufacturer\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e21st Century Toys was an American company best known for its inexpensive WWII military toys and models, particularly its Ultimate Soldier ranges. In the mid-2000s it expanded into inexpensive 1:32 plastic aircraft kits, selling them through mass-market retailers as well as hobby outlets.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe 1:32 aircraft kits were deliberately affordable compared with mainstream large-scale kits. Contemporary discussion from 2007 records the Bf 109G-14 appearing in Walmart stores for under US$10, which helps explain why these kits were originally aimed at a much broader market than today's collector market.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe 22106 belongs to the company's 2006 group of 1:32 aircraft kits, alongside the Bf 109F-2\/F-4 22103, F4U-1A\/D 22104 and Ju 87B\/R 22105.\n\u003cbr\u003eKit contents and characteristics\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Bf 109G-14 is one of the more interesting kits in the 21st Century Toys range because it is a relatively inexpensive representation of a very complicated late-war variant.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe kit is an unassembled injection-moulded plastic model, rather than one of the company's pre-built aircraft. It uses a mixture of conventional glue construction and screws to secure major components.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe 21st Century Toys kits can initially look like snap-together models, but contemporary builders specifically note that they are proper assembly kits. Screws were used to hold the fuselage and wings together, while the model still required normal assembly and finishing.\n\u003cbr\u003eMajor features\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe documented kit characteristics include:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    1:32 scale\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Injection-moulded plastic\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Skill level 2 \/ relatively straightforward construction\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Detailed cockpit\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Pilot figure\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Engine\/cowling components\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Retractable landing gear\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Separate control surfaces\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Undercarriage components\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Screw-fastened major assemblies\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Decals for the aircraft represented by the boxing\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    2006 tooling\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe kit was manufactured in China, as recorded in current UK marketplace specifications.\n\u003cbr\u003eCockpit\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe cockpit is one of the stronger aspects of the 21st Century Toys Bf 109 family.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA detailed build article on the related 1:32 Bf 109F notes that the cockpit was better detailed than many contemporary inexpensive 1:32 alternatives, and the G-series kit shares much of the same design philosophy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe pilot figure is also supplied with the kit. As with other 21st Century Toys aircraft, the figure was intended to make the model accessible to builders who weren't necessarily interested in painting figures from scratch.\n\u003cbr\u003eScrews and construction\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe biggest giveaway that this comes from 21st Century Toys' toy-model background is the use of screws.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eMajor assemblies were designed to be mechanically secured, after which the screw heads could be concealed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFor a modeller building the kit as a serious scale model, the screw locations therefore require attention. Filling and sanding these areas can substantially improve the finished appearance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis is characteristic of the whole 21st Century Toys 1:32 range rather than a defect unique to the G-14. Contemporary builders described the screw plugs as one of the main compromises of these otherwise surprisingly capable kits.\n\u003cbr\u003eAccuracy and tooling\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe kit should be viewed in the context of its very low original retail price.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt isn't comparable in refinement to a modern 1:32 Hasegawa, Revell, Trumpeter or Zoukei-Mura kit. Surface engraving is relatively heavy, some details are simplified and there are areas where a serious modeller may want to make corrections.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA useful feature of the 21st Century Toys Bf 109 family is that the tooling shares enough characteristics between versions that experienced modellers have used components from the F and G kits to produce additional Bf 109 variants. One detailed build describes using the kits as an inexpensive starting point for modifications and notes that the basic kit is quite enjoyable despite its simplified details.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis makes 22106 particularly interesting to modellers who enjoy improving older or inexpensive kits rather than simply building them straight from the box.\n\u003cbr\u003eThe Bf 109G-14\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe G-14 was one of the later production versions of the Messerschmitt Bf 109G.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt was introduced during 1944, as Germany attempted to simplify production while incorporating features developed for the earlier G-5\/G-6 and later versions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe G-14 could use the Daimler-Benz DB 605A engine and was produced in a variety of configurations depending upon factory and equipment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eVisually, the G-14 can be confused with other late Bf 109G variants because production aircraft differed in details such as:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    canopy style;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    engine cowling;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    supercharger intake;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    tail configuration;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    armament;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    radio equipment;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    wheel bulges;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    camouflage.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis variation is important when assessing the accuracy of an individual 22106 build, because a particular aircraft photograph may show details that aren't identical to another G-14.\n\u003cbr\u003eThe full-size aircraft\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Messerschmitt Bf 109 was designed in the mid-1930s by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser and became the principal German single-seat fighter of the Second World War.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt first saw combat with the Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War, before becoming one of the Luftwaffe's principal fighters.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe G-series represented the major wartime development of the design.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBy the time the G-14 appeared, the Bf 109 was facing increasingly capable Allied fighters and was being used in a difficult defensive war over Germany and occupied Europe.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe G-14 therefore wasn't a revolutionary new aircraft; it was a late development intended to keep an established airframe competitive while making production and equipment standardisation easier.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe type remained in production into the final year of the war.\n\u003cbr\u003eG-14 production and variations\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe G-14 was manufactured by several German and associated factories, resulting in considerable variation between individual aircraft.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSome aircraft had the familiar Erla Haube clear-view canopy, while others retained the older framed canopy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAircraft could also have different:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    camouflage schemes;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    armament arrangements;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    tail wheels;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    rudder styles;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    radio equipment;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    engine cowling details.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis is particularly relevant to the 22106 kit because the box's specific decal options should be checked against the aircraft's actual configuration rather than assuming every G-14 looked identical.\n\u003cbr\u003ePerformance\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDepending upon engine, configuration and production standard, the Bf 109G family could reach speeds in the region of 650–680 km\/h.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe aircraft was approximately:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Length: 8.95 m\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Wingspan: 9.92 m\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Crew: 1\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Engine: Daimler-Benz DB 605 family\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Role: single-seat fighter\/interceptor\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAt 1:32 scale, the model is approximately 28 cm long with a wingspan of around 31 cm.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThat makes it a substantial but manageable display model and one reason the 21st Century Toys kits remain attractive to collectors.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"21st century toys","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57509849334140,"sku":"21st-22106","price":22.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0432\/8584\/0033\/files\/4DAD06E1-5878-476C-A516-2B877277BDD8.jpg?v=1790575095","url":"https:\/\/sussex-model-centre.co.uk\/products\/21st-century-toys-22106-messerschmitt-bf-109g-14-1-32-plastic-model-aircraft-kit","provider":"Sussex Model Centre","version":"1.0","type":"link"}