Trumpeter 1/48 Sea Fury FB.11

[thx6667]

Oh that does look beautiful! Can't wait to get me one of thems!

[Stephen]

Oh that does look beautiful! Can't wait to get me one of thems!

What he said!

Stephen

[Homebee]

She's Kleared!

V.P.

Edited July 3, 2008 by Homebee

[Roland Pulfrew]

Damn!! This is one of my favourite aircraft and I could never find the Hobbycraft version so had consigned this one to the wish list. Now Hannants have them in stock I may have to have a rethink, particularly having seen Homebee's build so far!!

Edited May 19, 2008 by Roland Pulfrew

[TCinLA]

Having written the original in-box review several people have referred to, allow me to update that from experience building the kit.

For starters, the WIP here shows the kit has basic promise. As the pictures show, the rivet detail under a couple coats of paint is no more annoying than the 1/48 Wyvern is. (either that or I have now "lived downwind of the rendering factory" long enough that my sense of smell on this issue is dead)

Second, the overall airframe shapes and airfoil sections are right.

However, the spinner is way too pointed. The solution here is some cyanacrylate inside, a session with Mr. Razor Saw to take off about 1/16 inch from the tip, and ten minutes with your neighboring friends The Sanding Sticks to blunt it down. The prop blades are also pretty awful, but from a foot away most of your audience (who probably can't really tell a Sea Fury from a P-40) won't notice. But it would be nice if someone did a corrected spinner and prop.

Additionally, the cut-down fuselage aft of the cockpit under the canopy is wrong. But here a bit of time with some 10-thou sheet styrene and scissors to cut it to shape, a rat tail file to curve it properly, glue it in position and add some Mr. Surfacer will solve things. This has the additional benefit of making the too-shallow cockpit look less shallow, thank you Brits for painting your cockpits black since nothing in there coincides with a Sea Fury cockpit, but if you close up the canopy 99.9999% of those who look at it won't be able to tell.

If you don't stick the landing gear all the way into the gear bay hole, it won't be "too short" but you will want to strengthen that joint with cyanoacrylate.

Forget the underwing stores, the drop tanks are hopeless and the rockets only look OK if the wings are spread and you don't let anyone pick up the model and turn if over.

Good news - comparing it dimensionally with the 100% accurate Fisher 1/32 kit reveals the dimensions are OK.

More good news: the Falcon/Squadron vac canopy is a drop fit on this kit, which leads me to opine that if you have the Cooper Details/Meteor corrected spinner and prop, corrected cockpit, corrected wheel well and corrected landing gear, it will probably all be right on this kit and will fit with only a nodding swill-a-sip-of-lager acquaintance with Mr. Medium-grit Sanding Stick.

Further good news: Aeromaster did some nice 1/48 Sea Fury sheets and if you were smart enough to buy them back then they will work fine here.

So, for any enterprising idiot out there wanting to turn a small fortune into bankruptcy by "giving modelers what they want" in aftermarket sets was to do a new spinner/prop, cockpit, wheel well and landing gear, you can make this into a very nice 1/48 Sea Fury.

However, if you really really really like the Sea Fury, pop the US$195 (which is really cheap now for you non-Americans, since Little Georgie Porgie Pudd'n 'n' Pie has put the world's reserve currency into the toilet along with everything else he ever touched) and get the Fisher Sea Fury. Paul is still producing the single-seater, with an improved wing, and the T.20 looks great.

HTH

[Edgar]

For those who want to keep things "in house" (or country,) Aeroclub supply a set of prop blades, as set V007, already. One (small) item, missed by everyone, so far; if you have the u/c down, the small footstep/door, below the cockpit coaming, should always be open, since it opened as the u/c dropped. There was an instruction, in the pilot's notes, not to attempt to shut the door, since the u/c might retract! Similarly, if the footstep, under the wingroot, is in place, the handhold, immediately above, should be open.

Edgar

[AnonymousAA72]

For those who want to keep things "in house" (or country,) Aeroclub supply a set of prop blades, as set V007, already. One (small) item, missed by everyone, so far; if you have the u/c down, the small footstep/door, below the cockpit coaming, should always be open, since it opened as the u/c dropped. There was an instruction, in the pilot's notes, not to attempt to shut the door, since the u/c might retract! Similarly, if the footstep, under the wingroot, is in place, the handhold, immediately above, should be open.

Edgar

Thanks for that Edgar - I'm about to start mine and I'll incorporate those details..

[eng]

Wow that is lovely!

Eng

[Jennings Heilig]

As the pictures show, the rivet detail under a couple coats of paint is no more annoying than the 1/48 Wyvern is

Which is about 439% too annoying in my view. You simply can't see rivets on a Sea Fury from more than 2' away (1/2" from the model). Yes, it's probably better than the HC kit, but not by all that much, and (in my book, after having purchased one against my better judgement) most especially not for the pretty coin they want for it.

J

[Homebee]

After weeks, she's back on the working table. And now the landing gears...

V.P.

[AnonymousDFB1]

Okay missed this one, she is a bit good.

[pacificmustang]

Im liking that Homebee, have got two myself and I believe that White Ensign mOdels may be doing a update/correction set for it which which sounds great

keep the updates coming. I really like your weathering, loks really grungy without being OTT

Regards

Bruce

[Graham T]

Just caught up on this thread & she looks very, very nice. My only "gripe" with the look of the Trumpeter kit is the canopy which to me looks too short & too high......still gonna buy one though!