Guillow's 1903 Wright Brother Flyer Laser Cut Model Kit, Small

I have been building airplane models for many years, but it’s been a while since I have built small stick and tissue models. I have mostly built larger RC flying models. I did, however, start with the stick and tissue ones.This is a great kit. I love the laser parts. It sure beats cutting out the parts with a razor blade. (guess that dates me) Plus all the ribs are the same and if you follow the directions you don’t have those few hanging differently than the others.If you have never built a wooden kit like this, it will be very difficult, and I would suggest not beginning with this one. You have to be very gentle as the pieces are small and delicate. If you are experienced, I have a hint. Build the bottom wing first. That way you can develop a technique and see what you are getting into, and it will make the top wing go easier. It would be better for the bottom to have a few mistakes than the top wing. That’s the one that shows.Another hint, use CA glue for the ribs. As for me, there is no way I could align the ribs and keep them in place while white glue dries.I’m still in the process of building, but as far as the kit. it was what I had hoped and expected, reminiscent of the old time kits I began with, but with the benefit of modern technology.You have to glue, wait for it to dry. You have to cut stock wood for some parts, (yes, in addition to the laser cut parts). You have to sand parts, and it’s even to the point of having to carve out the props yourself. For these reasons I give it a 5 star. (and to be sure you understand, the glue, hobby knives, sandpaper, or any other material used in building is NOT included.)This is a good project, but I say again, you will be disappointed if this is your first kit of this kind, as it requires a bit of patience, and some knowledge of building these kits, plus how to repair the parts you are sure to break.Most flying kits today are not kits at all. The wings and fuselage are already built all you do is assemble the already built parts. This is not that.If you don’t have experience, please don’t buy this then give it a 1 star because you can’t put it together. That is not the fault of the kit. And don’t buy it for your 6 year old for a dad/son project, and give it a one star because it’s too difficult for a 6 year old.Yes, balsa breaks easily, yes the parts are small, Yes, you have to put an effort into it and it takes time.But if you are nostalgic for the old time models and actually building, this is as good as it gets.As an add on. I wish J Simon had written his review before I began building. I ran into the same problem and had already glued the fuselage together before installing the elevator. Fortunately I had read elsewhere about the rigging.I’m still keeping the 5 star rating, however, because of the challenge.If I had wanted easy, I would have bought one of the models already finished.

The Guillow’s Wright Flyer is a delightful display model of the iconic 1903 first powered airplane. Below are my pro and cons. This model is not for the beginner. In fact, I’d recommend it for only experienced balsa model builders. The parts are small and delicate. I used medium thickness CA glue, which provides relatively quick and lasting bonds.Pro: The parts are laser cut, which results in very detailed parts that are relatively easy to separate from their sheets. There is plenty of extra stock, so you can easily make a part that you may have broken during construction. There is also plenty of thread for the rigging and tissue for covering the wings, rudders, and elevators.Con: The instructions are minimalist. Main components such as the wings, rudders, elevators, and fuselage are given step by step instructions, but the final completion of the Flyer is merged onto a couple of photographic panels. One step while building the fuselage calls for gluing a brace (labeled F4) which then prevents the elevators from being installed on the fuselage! I had to cut F4 to install the elevator and then glue F4 back together. So, install the elevator on the fuselage before gluing the F4 braces. The instructions also suggest rigging the wings too early in the build. I rigged the wings before the propeller mounts, and when it was time to install the propeller mounts I had to cut the rigging. I’d suggest you install the motor, propeller mounts, and drive chains before rigging the wings.Take your time and have lots of patience. Often you'll have to be patient while parts fully bond before going forward. In all, this was a fun, challenging model that looks great on display.

Most of the negative reviews for this model seem to have a common theme, the builder has no patience! If you have no patience DO NOT buy this kit. I found the laser cut parts to be just fine. Put Saran Wrap over the drawing, build the pieces as the drawing calls for and everything goes together as intended. It is a wonderful little show piece.

This is a fairly complicated model. Lots of material included for build. Tools needed are the usual except you will need a small sewing needle with an eye just big enough to fit supplied thread (for rigging cables). The instructions are what they are and recognizance and skill is needed. I also used a pair of curved lab tweezers and 2 pairs of mini needle nose pliers just to help with rigging; which must be planned so you don't get in your own way. I also doped the tissue surfaces white as the historic images show the coverings to be white silk or linen. Note; if you want to paint this model for historic value then do it before you assemble the parts. Overall a therapeutic project to be sure. I have benign emergent tremor and other maladies...helped tremendously!

This is a fun item to build. It has a lot of delicate parts and many pieces that you need to make from stock wood. It is educational because the build is just the way a real airplane wing is made. The fuselage is way different from today's fuselage construction, but it is informative as to the first flight. All in all it is fun to build for something to do in spare time and it will hang from the ceiling of my workshop.

My problem - the kit was much more complicated than I expected and was too much for a novice 11 year old, with my help, to complete.Your problems - I know the kit was to scale but the wing struts were much too thin at the notch where they fit over the spars, and many broke. There were too many cut-to-size components. Also, the instructions could have been much more detailed, with more specific steps. Since the balsa parts were all laser cut, it would have been easy to put part codes by each of them to make selecting them for the proper position easier.All in all, it was a kit for a skilled model-maker, not a novice.

Nice display model, devil in the details, not for the beginner, little parts very fragile break easily, takes a lot of time and effort to do a good job.

Great product

There are a number of issues with this model. First and foremost it is very very fragile. A lot of the parts are very thin balsa and just a slight bump will break them. The instructions are vague in many areas and require quite a bit of interpretation.

Fairly good model.

Muy bonito articulo muy coleccionable

excellent