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Why hide light under a bushel basket. Crossposted to reviews. (and a well done
review it is!)
In lugnet.org.ca.rtltoronto, Calum Tsang wrote:
> 4403
> SYSTEM / Designer
> Air Blazers
>
> Ages 8+, 698 Pcs. (C)2003. 127 page manual:
> 3 models, 46 primary (5+6+6+11+4+5+8+8+3+7+6+3+14+2+3+4+2+4=101
> secondary) steps in main model
>
> Price Range: $50 USD
>
> RATINGS (Scale: Must-Have Excellent Very-Good Good Fair Poor)
> Set: EXCELLENT / Models: MUST-HAVE / Playability: EXCELLENT
> DECALS? None
>
> SPECIAL FEATURES/COMPATIBILITY
>
> None.
>
>
> SET DESCRIPTION
>
> Set 4403 Air Blazers is a large red helicopter with white and black
> accents. It's modelled after a sleek modern helicopter, sort of like the
> Agusta 109 or Bell 222, and is done in a Model Team like style, although
> it probaby less detailed than previous Model Team sets. The set makes
> extensive use of new Lego curved shapes, while at the same time brings
> back old favourites like 75 degree slopes and double convex corners.
>
> Also included in the lavish manual common to many 2003 sets are extra
> model instructions, for a small jet plane and a biplane.
>
> Though it's not obvious from the box or pictures, the model includes two
> mechanical functions: The first is retractable tricycle landing
> gear. The second is a rotor spinning feature which is very novel in that
> you squeeze the rear fuselage panels with your thumb and index fingers,
> which activates a linkage inside that spins the main rotor. However, the
> tail rotor doesn't spin in turn.
>
> SPECIAL ELEMENTS
>
> Like other sets in the new line, there are very few pieces which are
> new. The majority are found in other sets. Of particular note:
>
> -2x Jack Stone jet engine nacelles in grey
> -16x 1x2x2 and 2/3rd Rounded Top Windows in red
>
> IMPRESSION
>
> 2003 has been a banner year for Lego enthusiasts and hopefully the public
> appreciates the new line of sets as much as I do. In particular, large,
> detailed and colourful sets like 4404 Land Busters were some of the few
> sets I've wanted to buy just looking at the pictures leaked early in
> 2002. I didn't really plan to buy 4403 based on the photos published, but
> found myself really liking the model once I saw it in my hands at the
> Hobby Show where Lego critic Allan Bedford had brought one out to show.
>
> Luckily, I received a 4403 as a gift and I'm glad I got one, it's a great
> model. First, the model is huge. How large? It's so big, it can be
> barely parked on top of my 17" monitor. From the tip of it's tail
> rotor to the extent of its main rotor, it's nearly two feet long. Much of
> the size is the span of it's rotor and tail, but the even its cardboard
> box feels very dense and packed of bricks.
>
> 4403 Air Blazers is of the same vein as 4404: Perhaps less
> detailed, but certainly full of great pieces, good building and high
> value. There's a tinge of that Model Team tradition of using unusual
> pieces to represent a detail: No less than sixteen rounded Castle windows
> are used to form the port and starboard fairings on the side of the
> fuselage.
>
> The retracts and rotor function are cool enough to be a Technic
> set on its own, and the colour scheme is sharp, almost reminiscent of
> Coast Guard helos. The nose of the aircraft is a little wide and somewhat
> boatlike, but this is probably due to the use of 1x6 curved and inverted
> slopes. All in all, this is a well designed set.
>
> Set Rating
> EXCELLENT
>
> Broken apart, the set has plenty of useful pieces, including basic bricks,
> slopes and plates.
>
> Model Rating
> MUST-HAVE
>
> Looks like a great desk model and is similar to 4404 Land Busters and
> Model Team sets.
>
> Playability Rating
> EXCELLENT
>
> The rotor function is neat.
>
> Likes/Dislikes
>
> Other than the shape of the nose, I like this set.
>
>
> Scale
> Smaller than Technic figure scale, larger than minifigure scale. Will set
> neither properly.
>
> Errors
>
> None found.
>
> Extra Elements
>
> There are a lot of extra elements left over from the main model including
> some large red wings. These are for the other models, and are much
> appreciated. Lego has gone out of the way to support maximum construction
> fun out of this set and it shows from the extra pieces to the additional
> instructions.
>
> CONCLUSION
>
> I would very much so buy this set for myself and I recommended it to Lego
> enthusiasts who like building.
>
> REVIEWER INFORMATION
> Review Written: December 2003
> By: Calum Tsang, tsangc@mie.utoronto.ca
> Age 26 Favorite Lines/Themes: Town, Trains, Technic, Boats.
>
>
> I like building, especially large Technic or Model Team models.
>
> COPYRIGHT
>
> This review is Copyright 2003, by the author as named above. The
> author grants publication rights for all uses, public and private,
> with the following exceptions: all information in the document must
> be published in full; any for-profit use requires express written
> permission by the author for publication in full or in part.
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Message has 1 Reply:
 | | Re: 4403 Air Blazers Review
|
| (...) Thanks, I was going to crosspost it originally but the late night got to me and I forgot to put it in the newsgroup header. Calum (21 years ago, 2-Dec-03, to lugnet.reviews)
|
Message is in Reply To:
| | 4403 Air Blazers Review
|
| 4403 SYSTEM / Designer Air Blazers Ages 8+, 698 Pcs. (C)2003. 127 page manual: 3 models, 46 primary (5+6+6+11+4+5+8+8+3+...+4+2+4=101 secondary) steps in main model Price Range: $50 USD RATINGS (Scale: Must-Have Excellent Very-Good Good Fair Poor) (...) (21 years ago, 2-Dec-03, to lugnet.org.ca.rtltoronto)
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