Eduard Bf109E-1 Weekend Edition 1:48

[woody37]

Eduard Bf109E-1 Weekend Edition

1:48 Eduard

 

 

 

We’ve reviewed several of Eduards Bf109E’s here on Britmodeller so the base kit is probably one that you’ve become familiar with if not in person, then in internet review sections at least. I reviewed the E-4 Profipack last September which was my first introduction to the series and I was mightily impressed.

In the constant fight for the skies, the 109 went through many evolutionary improvements, the E series or more affectionately known Emil being designed based on the lessons learned fighting for the Condor Legion in the Spanish civil war. Infact a few saw service in that era although towards the final stages. The Emil received a much more powerful power plant in the shape of a Daimler Benz DB601 giving nearly 40% more power than its predecessor in the earlier models. The first models were the E-1 and E-3, the only difference between them being that the E-1 had Mg-17 machine guns in the wings, the E-3 having 20mm Mg FF cannon. The E-1/3 were the main fighter aircraft operated by the Luftwaffe until shortly before the Battle of Britain when the E-4 began to replace them. Settling on canon in the wings, a number of other improvements resulted such as improved cockpit armour and a more ‘squared off’ canopy.

 

The kit

Again, because we’ve done several reviews on the 109E series produced by Eduard, one can have a tendency to skip information out, however I’m sure not everyone has come across the kits and that’s the way I must approach the review. Eduard have developed a pattern of providing two formats of their kits. The first is the Profipack version which normally includes an extensive decal sheet, usually with 4 or 5 options, an etch fret and paint masks. The second is the budget series known as the Weekend editions. You still get the same great plastic kit, but usually a single option decal sheet and no etch or masks. That is what we have here.

 

My first observation is the fact that rather than the normal beige plastic, the four sprues of this kit are moulded in a medium grey colour which is great for taking review pictures !!! Obviously, you get a different set of instructions because there’s no etch to consider. Whilst the Profipack ones are printed in colour on gloss paper, the Weekend edition instructions come on standard paper in black and white. Construction starts with the cockpit. Now whilst the kit lacks the etch of its Profipack brother, the injection moulded detail in the cockpit is not something to be sniffed at. Finesse of the detail is superb with plenty of small details to keep you out of mischief. Trying to produce trim wheels that look scale accurate in 1/72 in injection moulded plastic is difficult, but Eduard have done as a good a job as we’re likely to see. The front panel is a little less traditional in that it’s produced in two parts, upper and lower. The lower part fits to the cockpit tub, bit the upper part fits to the nose section behind the engine and the two sub assemblies come together afterwards. The seat looks a little plain in comparison with the rest of the kit in general and lacks seatbelts, so unless you have an etch kit to use in your collection, making some from your scratch build materials is necessary if having a bare seat concerns you.

 

 

 

 

 

The engine is another source of finesse, however it also presents a challenge which I’ll pick up later. There’s considerable detail within the engine and nose gun arrangement that allow you to leave the cowlings off to reveal it all. With the assembly built, it fits between the fuselage halves in the usual manner along with the cockpit tub. The Mg-17’s are beautifully moulded and with the right painting skills will look quite exquisite sat above that chunk of Db601. The exhausts are individually formed again showing off what Eduard have managed to do with their moulding process. The ends of the exhausts are slightly and cleverly hollowed and there’s weld lines along each one, so don’t assume this is flash and sand it off ! Now if you choose to have the cowlings closed, you still need to use the engine block as the exhausts are fitted to it. This is where the challenge comes in. You need to fit the engine / exhaust assembly before fitting the cowlings, but that then makes painting a bit of a challenge. The fit of the exhausts in the cowling opening is very snug, so there’s very little room to mask the exhausts if you paint them before fitting. I’d be interested to hear how people have dealt with this challenge as to the best way of dealing with it. I suspect fitting the individual parts through the opening after painting will be too fiddly.

 

With the fuselage zipped up, next is the wings. As with the fuselage, the detail on the wing surfaces is simply stunning. Very restrained panel lines are supplemented by ultra-fine rivets, quite literally leading the market in this respect. A great feature of the kit is all separate surfaces, flaps, ailerons, rudder and elevators are all individual and nicely moulded. The fabric surfaces have a nice sag effect, however I appreciate that this produces mixed opinions. If it bother you, a few extra layers of primer or similar with a light sand afterwards should tame it down somewhat.

 

 

 

 

 

With the flying surfaces attached, attention turns to the smaller bits. The wheels have separate hubs that fit from either site of the tyre in two halves. The detail in these is excellent and give the option to pre-paint the parts before fitting eliminating the usual hassle of getting a neat demarcation line around the tyres. The canopy has a rear armoured glass panel that care will be needed to fit without getting glue marks on your canopy. Some reserved dabs of PVA might be the best option. The clarity of the transparencies is superb, very little distortion. For some reaon, three of the clear parts had detached from the sprue upon inspection of the kit. Construction finishes with the fitting of balance tabs , prop and mast.

 

 

The decals

I have to say, this is my only real disappointment with the kit. Having been spoilt with the Profipack a few months ago, I appreciate that it’s good business practice to differentiate them with the Weekend editions, but none of the stencils are included in the Weekend edition (unless mine are missing). You get one decal option as listed below which I can understand, but as the artwork on the box clearly shows the stencils on the aircraft, it’s disappointing that they are omitted from the kit.

 

The decal sheet provided whist very simple, do look to be of good quality, rich print and very sharp. The markings are provided to represent Bf109E-1 6./JG 52 based at Husum, Germany in 1940. Paint scheme is the infamous yellow nose / rudder of the period with usual RLM 70/71 upper and RLM 65 lower mottled along the sides.

 

 

Conclusion

This is a great kit in most respects. The detail and quality is superb for the very reasonable retail price that the weekend editions sell for. The profipack does spoil you with the etch and very useful paint masks, so if you are looking to get an Eduard 109 kit, you should weight up the pro’s and con’s of each before making your decision. Whist the decal sheet is somewhat disappointing, I cannot commend highly enough on the quality of the plastic, I couldn’t find any flash and you really have to look hard to find anything that resembles a sink mark. Built up kits indicate that the lines are pretty accurate with no major issues.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of

[cheeley]

Strange about the stencils. I was going to say that there must have been a mistake in packing the review box, but a quick look at the website shows that there is only the one sheet of decals - so no extra stencils???

 

From the Eduard site:

 

Chris

[dfqweofekwpeweiop4]

There's no stencils in any of the Bf109E-1 Weekend kits. I checked the ones we have in stock. I think Eduard are releasing a set of 109 stencils separatley.

 

thanks

Mike