Eduard Junkers Ju 52 - Eduard (4424) 1:144 scale

[bootneck]

Junkers Ju 52

Eduard 1:144

 

 

The Junkers Ju 52/3M (3M standing for three motors) was a German tri-engine monoplane although the prototype, and first production aircraft, were single engined and designed as cargo/passenger aircraft for civillian service. The first flights were in 1930 followed by the tri-engined version in 1932. The airframe construction was unusual in that the fuselage skin was made up of corrugated aluminium sheeting which caused more airflow drag than a comparable smooth canvas or metal skinned aircraft. The fuselages strength was however very robust and this attracted the military chiefs, especially at a time when the Germany was secretly building its military strength, to consider this aircraft for military purposes.

When the military requirements had been identified, Junkers produced many variants of the Ju 52/3M, including bomber (carrying 3 bomb racks internally); cargo and troop transport versions. Further developments evolved including floatplane and ski versions plus, as wartime needs dictated, a minesweeper version which entailed the fitting of a large round magnetic coil below the fuselage.

Each aircraft could be fitted with a machine gun which was situated on an open dorsal turret for self defence, plus some variants had another gun position situated above the cockpit

The Kit

This kit appears to be a re-released, injection moulded, tooling and re-boxed in Eduards Super44 series; meaning that it has enhanced decals and a set of masks as compared to the original kit of c2003.

There are three, well stocked, sprues in a dark tan colour which contain the fuselage, wings and all associated peripherals; plus a single clear sprue containing ten clear cockpit/window elements, although only seven are required for this kit.

The first sprue comprises mainly the fuselage; the construction of which is well thought out as it is in three pieces (more on this later); the wheels and their struts. Interestingly, there are also parts to make the ski version however no mention is included in the details for building and the items have been greyed out on the instruction sheet; presumably as these are from the earlier release and this kit does not have the relevant decals for this type.

As I mentioned previously, the fuselage is produced in three pieces and I find this to good planning by Eduard, mainly because of the corrugated effect embossed on the plastic. The two sides are joined together, as standard for most aircraft kits, however this would normally leave an unsightly join-line right down the spine of the model. This join would be virtually impossible to sand smooth without removing some of the exquisitely fine corrugations and hatch markings. Eduard has designed the tooling so that an upper deck/spine piece sits on top of the two joined sides and this eliminates the need to remove any unsighty join line along the spine. There will, of course, still be join lines but they will be where the fuselage roof bends around to meet the sides. As the corrugations are laterally placed along the fuselage the join should blend in quite well in these areas.

The second sprue holds two upper wing sections; tailfin and rudder; engine cowlings, motors and props; exhausts and other minutae. The corrugated representations on the wings is really nice and finely detailed although I suspect, even with this micro-fine detail, decalling may require a little bit more patience than with a typical aircraft wings decals. Having the Micro-sol ready may be a worthy recommendation here. The tailfin and rudder assembly, although a single unit, is virtually two items held together by two representative rudder struts. The vertical gap, between the tailfin and the rudder, is only 0.25mm (I needed the Optivisor to check that!) and, looking at photos of the real thing, does appear to be accurate. This gap would normally have proved to be a problem, when applying decals over that area, however Eduard has resolved that with split decals; more on that in the decals section.

The third sprue has a one-piece lower wing assembly; ailerons; plus the cabin and bulkhead parts. Here again, Eduard has developed the lower wing pieces belly section to extend back toward the tailwheel opening. This means that the problem of a join line along the underbelly is eradicated by the fitting of this part along the under-spine join.

The clear sprue contains the cockpit canopy; a windshield for the upper turret position; plus windows for the cabin area. These windows are really small, with some panes being only 1mm x 2mm. Again, Eduard has covered that situation (pun intended) by providing a comprehensive set of masks and these are further described in the masks section.

Decals

The decals are Eduards own and produced in house. The marks do not show any evidence of colour bleed and the register looks spot on. Each component decal has an identifying reference number which is cross linked to match their placing as documented in the full colour instructions.

Looking at various images of Ju-52's, which I've seen on the net, the swastika can be position in a number of places on the tailfin/rudder unit; either at the front, rear or even split over the two, depending on which theatre or squadron depicted. The split version has been provided for as Eduard has designed two of the swastikas to be split. This means that one piece can be set on the tailfin and the other half on the rudder. There is another, full, set of swastikas on the decal sheet, these are placed on a corner of the sheet with a dotted demarcation line. I understand that the full versions would be removed for the European market.

Masks

The kit is supplied with a set of masks, the sheet they come on measures only 6.3cm x 4.2cm (2 ½ x 1½ ) but it contains 34 individual masks! Sixteen of the masks are for the canopy alone; with fourteen more for the cabin area windows and the remaining four are for the wheel hubs. A comprehensive diagram denotes the placing of the masks in preparation for spraying. The masking instruction page, in the image below, shows the amount of detail the masking set up covers.

Instructions and colours booklet

This booklet is a small, A5 format, colour printed set of instructions combined with colour detailing sheets for six different aircraft.

The instructions are produced in the standard exploded view; where parts go, format. The instructions detail is clear and concise with a reference box highlighting which part can be used for either variant of the kit.

Conclusion

Eduard are to be commended for thinking through the design how the fuselage could be joined without any unsightly join line down the spine of the model. The layout of the build process appears to be straight forward yet comprehensive in producing a finished model with minimum join lines to fill.

Eduard are not content just to provide for the average 1:144 scale modeller, by producing nicely detailed kits like these; but they also cater for the more advanced modeller by producing their own super-detailed sets as aftermarket items. As I have mentioned earlier, not everyone wants to super detail the cockpits etc., of their models so the kit on it's own should happily satisfy the majority of us kit builders who purchase this model; and this method helps to keep the price down. Should anyone wish to go a step further to enhance the model then they have that choice by purchasing Eduard's own aftermarket photo-etch sets.

I am really pleased with this kit and hope that Eduard continue to produce such well detailed models in 1:144 scale. I understand that a civilian version of this kit is due out soon and that should also be a welcome addition to the Ju 52 family.
Highly recommended
 

Review sample courtesy of

[Viking]

Oh crap, there's another one I must add to the 'wants list'. (Cracking review Mike , I like the way Eduard have broken down the fuselage, it should help enourmously with hiding the joins. )

Cheers

John

[bootneck]

There's a civvy version due out any time now.

I think Rich will get it as he's into civil airliner stuff but you could discuss it with Mike and Rich and perhaps you could do it?

cheers

Mike