AMT/ERTL
Batskiboat

This is a model kit of the futuristic hydrofoil type boat that was featured in the movie Batman Returns. It is a snap-together kit, requiring no glue and aimed at the beginning modeler of 8 years of age on up.

The kit comes in a tray and lid type box. The boxart shows the Batskiboat tooling along at high speed in a illustration that looks like a frame out of a comic book. Side panels have photos of the model made up and a listing of the kit’s features: removable6615_ cockpit roof with separate smoke tinted windshield, detailed interior includes high-tech seat with headrest and shoulder restraints, separate throttle control and instrumentation, aerodynamic body styling includes hydrofoils and vertical tailfin, 18 easy snap-together parts and complete assembly instructions, molded in black with bright chrome parts.

Inside the box is a large sealed cello bag holding 5 trees of jet black parts, a loose smoked windshield part and a loose tree of chrome plated parts. There are no decals in the kit. The instructions and an additional instruction correction sheet complete the kit’s contents.

The instructions consist of a large sheet that accordion folds out into 6 pages. This then folded over again 4 times to fit the box. The pages are a large 7 ½” x 17 ¼” format.

There is also a card in the box to subscribe to Ertl’s Blueprinter newsletter. I don’t think this newsletter exists anymore. Anyway, years ago, it was always just full of car model stuff and next to nil of anything else, so didn’t interest me in the least bit.

Page 1 of the instructions begins with a black and white illustration of the Batskiboat making a run down what looks like the exit water channel from the Bat Cave. This is followed by “Important – read before you start instructions”. Then some recommended tools and Ertl’s address & phone number to contact with any problems with the kit.

Pages 2 through 6 have 8 assembly steps. Colors are called out in each step for anything that needs to be painted at that time.

There is no Batman figure in the kit. This is a shame, being as it is his boat.

The correction sheet tells us to sand and whittle on the headrest part of the seat to get it to fit.

There are no parts tree illustrations in the instructions. The trees are numbered and you have to find things by their shape, as the trees are not alphabetized either.

The first large jet black part is the top of the Batskiboat.

The second large jet black part is the bottom of the boat.

A medium sized jet black tree holds the 2 hydrofoils with their bat wings, the instrument panel, shoulder-restraint part and after-burner part. (this last part had broken off the tree. Thanks goodness for the cello bag or it would surely have gotten lost) (5 parts)

The next medium sized jet black tree holds the cockpit tub and the canopy framing (2 parts)

The last medium sized jet black tree holds the tail bat-fin, the pilot seat and the cowl (3 parts)

The chrome plated parts tree holds: the right and left-hand cockpit controls, the exhaust nozzle and the 2 air intake parts (5 parts)

The final part is the single smoked windshield part.

Although a snap-together kit, this has some pretty decent detail. Some modelers may go wild and want to add more to the cockpit. It almost begs to be displaced in some liquid gel medium water, tooling along at high speed.

The kit is out of production now. I only found one site on the internet, in Japan, that lists it in stock – for a heck of a lot more bucks than I paid for mine back in the early 90’s (the kit was released in 1992). I recommend the kit to all Batman fans. It is definitely a fast build and go ahead and glue it together if you prefer. No scale is mentioned anywhere in the box, however the Batskiboat has a hull that is exactly a foot long.

I bought my kit, years ago, at the Ertl factory discount store in Dyresville, Iowa, which is 52 miles from my home. Sadly, most of what Ertl has in that store – model kit wise – are car and truck kits. Gone are the tank and aircraft kits I used to get there…sigh.