Box art versus kit decals

[SteveM]

I've not noticed this on the older kits, is it mainly with the newer laser cut kits? Outdated photos of the decal sheets?
It's not a big deal if you don't expect to be able to easily make a model like the box art, but one tends to have the expectation of building what is shown in the cover of the box.

[David Lewis]

With model kits in general, from all manufacturers, you can find mix and match contents along with varying degrees of coordination between the pictures/specs on the box. The reason is to save money. The inventory of decals, boxes, plans and kit parts do not all run out at the same time, kits get revised, vendors go out of business, tooling gets lost, worn or damaged. Old runs are then commingled with new in order to use up what they already have.

Secondly, the artist who paints the picture may not have had the actual model to work from. The kit design and the box art are sometimes developed separately or in parallel in order to meet a deadline. During Guillow's heyday, the style was for pictures on model kit boxes to be exciting, dramatized artists impressions anyway.

[kittyfritters]

With civil aircraft, if you check the FAA N-umber registry and civil registries in other countries you will find that if the model is not of a specific historic aircraft the license numbers are for different types of aircraft than represented in the kit. Kit makers do this deliberately so that the box art and decals never accurately represent a specific, real, aircraft to avoid lawsuits from the aircraft's owner. Really!!!

[Scott]

I was disappointed to find that the the Bird Dog kit didn't in-
clude all the decals necessary to portray the USAF version as
seen on the box.

[Bill Gaylord]

With civil aircraft, if you check the FAA N-umber registry and civil registries in other countries you will find that if the model is not of a specific historic aircraft the license numbers are for different types of aircraft than represented in the kit. Kit makers do this deliberately so that the box art and decals never accurately represent a specific, real, aircraft to avoid lawsuits from the aircraft's owner. Really!!!

That would make sense. They probably have some actual agreement with the aircraft owner when they do model a specific plane, even if it's civilian. I researched the C172 after detailing in the box scheme and discovered that it was registered to a company that dumped cremated ash over a scenic landscape. It's likely someone at minimum knew the owners and had the opportunity to document the plane for the scheme with approval. The recent Horizon Hobby C150 was modeled after a plane that was in a company worker's family, which could partially have been chosen to avoid problems.

Guillows warbirds don't seem to be modeled after famous aircraft specimens. The FW190 for example was flown by Heinz Orlowski, but was not famous like White 1. Searching for it only turns up a few tidbits. The other WWII warbird box arts appear to be plan Janes also.

At the top of the Letterman list however, are the clowns on Ebay who think that they are enhancing an incomplete kit that is not even a Guillows kit, by including miscellaneous Guillows decals with the pile of garbage.