1/72 Airfix Gloster Gladiator Sprue Pictures from Wonderland Models

[Wonderland Models]

The new tool 1/72 Gloster Gladiator from Airfix is due into stock tomorrow. We received an advance copy so we have uploaded some sprue shots for you. The kit comes in two sprues, plus one for the clear parts.

http://www.wonderlandmodels.com/products/airfix-172-gloster-gladiator-mki/

There are 2 sprues of parts  - sprue A. The kit only comes with the 2-bladed propeller




And logically enough Sprue B. This has options for weighted and non-weighted tyres.




The clear parts include options for open and closed canpoies and there are 2 different windscreen designs. Decal options are for the Shuttleworth Collection's aircraft in the markings of K7985 73 Squadron and aircraft 26 of the Irish Air Corps in 1940.







One nice touch in the instructions is the inclusion of a rigging diagram.

Edited May 30, 2013 by Wonderland Models

[Selwyn]

Looks really good and really well detailed, and all for less than £8. (Are you listening Hasegawa!)

Interesting feature on the interplane struts. when looking at the instructions.

Although its not too clear on the scans, it looks like the inner frame between the struts on the sprue makes sure you get them all correctly aligned and at the correct angle when gluing to the bottom wings, this allows you to get the Top wing on correctly, and when its all dried in place you just chop them out!(see step 24 on the instructions) looks like a good idea!

Selwyn

Edited May 30, 2013 by Selwyn

[Max Headroom]

Mmmm! I'll deffo do the Irish option. Something a bit 'different'.

Looking at the undercarriage does the leg slot positively into the fuselage recess?

Trevor

[Dave Fleming]

Interestingly, the Gladiator with skis (presumably with an extra sprue) is being shown on the Airfix website at the same price:

http://www.airfix.com/airfix-products/new-for-2013/aircraft-172-scale/a02063-gloster-gladiator-plus-skis-172-a02063/?searchguid=2013530165845&resultspage=&sortorder=

[alex]

also like the idea with the inner struts fixed to the front fuselage cover. With these four struts perfectly aligned it shouldn't be a problem to attach the interplane struts without the bracket, as the wing is already aligned by the inner struts. I feel that cutting the braces away may be a bit tricky... The Matchbox AW Siskin uses the same principle, and the alignment of the two wings was very easy!

well done, Airfix!

[Nick Millman]

Looks really good and really well detailed, and all for less than £8. (Are you listening Hasegawa!)

Interesting feature on the interplane struts. when looking at the instructions.

Although its not too clear on the scans, it looks like the inner frame between the struts on the sprue makes sure you get them all correctly aligned and at the correct angle when gluing to the bottom wings, this allows you to get the Top wing on correctly, and when its all dried in place you just chop them out!(see step 24 on the instructions) looks like a good idea!

Selwyn

It would be a good idea if the sprue gates were not stronger and thicker than the struts! Not looking forward to cutting them off or cleaning the struts up in situ. So far the fine parts have needed a great deal of care when detaching from the sprues and a lot of clean up. It is not always obvious where the sprue ends and the part starts! I came within a whisker of permanently damaging the near scale canopy post in trying to detach the cockpit rear bulkhead and then trying to clean up the resultant bur. The sprue pics above show the challenge very clearly. The cockpit assembly is also not as positive as expected but looks excellent once it is together and painted. Cutting out the cockpit access door was not easy either and the fuselage split as I was doing it. Fortunately the open door is a separate part and I suggest the unwanted plastic is nibbled away carefully rather than attempting to cut it out along the panel lines as no concession appears to have been made in the thickness of the plastic where it is designed to be cut.

I recommend patience, great care and a very sharp knife when detaching and preparing the smaller parts for assembly. And don't forget to install the fuselage guns before offering the cockpit assembly up to the fuselage - Step 5. It's obvious really but after the access door alarums I still managed to miss it!

Nick

[Misterfriend]

The gladiator having internally sprung wheels it's nice that they've included different wheels for in-flight or on the ground. Can't wait to get my hands on one of these.

Let's hope Pheon release their 1/48 decal sheet in 1/72 for it.

[Learstang]

I'll definitely be buying one. No telling what markings I'll be using, as I wish to do a camouflaged WWII version and I may nick the Irish decals to do an Irish Hind (although they do look a bit small for a Hind). I do have a desire to build a Soviet Gladiator (yes, the Soviets used them - "absorbed" Latvian Gladiators) - certainly no shortage of Soviet stars on my part.

Regards,

Jason

[Old Man]

Great to see the canopy options, Sir!

Very useful for building a full range of Gladiator subjects.

[Old Man]

I'll definitely be buying one. No telling what markings I'll be using, as I wish to do a camouflaged WWII version and I may nick the Irish decals to do an Irish Hind (although they do look a bit small for a Hind). I do have a desire to build a Soviet Gladiator (yes, the Soviets used them - "absorbed" Latvian Gladiators) - certainly no shortage of Soviet stars on my part.

Regards,

Jason

My first will be a 33 Sqdn example in Palestine, and the next a Chinese 28th sqdn machine.

I may bite the bullet and order from Hannants for this....

[Jon Kunac-Tabinor]

The gladiator having internally sprung wheels it's nice that they've included different wheels for in-flight or on the ground. Can't wait to get my hands on one of these.

Let's hope Pheon release their 1/48 decal sheet in 1/72 for it.

Hi, saw the model in Boswells today, in Oxford. Not my scale so passed, but having just built a 48th Glad for Pheon - I saw this thread. I think its safe to say that the Pheon sheets will be released in 1/72nd.

It does look like a lovely little model though.Nice to see a decent rigging diagram as well - in sections which is a nice touch as it helps clarify things no end. Just a note here - no turnbuckles required - your late 30s biplanes had moved on a tad!! Plus I'd mix silver with a little white or pale grey to give you the overall pale aluminiun paint that Glads were finished in. Humbrol No 11 will be just too "silver".

I notice that the other boxing has Pattle's 1940 camouflaged Egypt based aeroplane as its decal option.

Perhaps it would scale up to 1/48th too?

Jonners

[Jon Kunac-Tabinor]

My first will be a 33 Sqdn example in Palestine, and the next a Chinese 28th sqdn machine.

I may bite the bullet and order from Hannants for this....

There were some pics recently of Chinese Glads with aluminium painted wings and the dark green fuselages, rather than overal dark green. If I can remember where I saw them, I'll post...

Jonners

[grahamwalker]

Wonder if a Sea Gladiator is on the cards?

[Old Man]

There were some pics recently of Chinese Glads with aluminium painted wings and the dark green fuselages, rather than overal dark green. If I can remember where I saw them, I'll post...

Jonners

I would be very curious to see that, Sir.

It would be new information, to put it mildly.

[Jon Kunac-Tabinor]

I would be very curious to see that, Sir.

It would be new information, to put it mildly.

yeah - I know and I'm struggling to think where i saw them. Im away for the weekend from tomorrow but let me get back to you.

jonners

[Max Headroom]

I thought the only photo was a blurred one of an example being erected in a graveyard. IIRC Scale Aircraft Models had it in their Aircraft Profile many moons ago.

Trevor

[SPAD64]

I'm disapointed by decals option.

[Spitfire31]

I'm disapointed by decals option.

So, which is more important - a really good kit with (you think) hackneyed decals or a mediocre kit with eight Cartograf markings alternatives?

There will be so many 3rd party decal alternatives that posting a complaint about the kit markings, as your only comment on the new Gladiator is... well, I'll refrain from commenting.

Joachim

[Nick Millman]

The first deliveries to Ireland had green fuselages and aluminium wings but I've never seen that scheme suggested for the Chinese Gladiators in any of the documented sources. It is an interesting possibility. There are at least four known photos of Gladiators in Chinese service and two were reproduced in Andrew Thomas' 'Gladiator Aces' for Osprey but none of them are especially clear. The one showing an aircraft being wheeled out after assembly does show a "light" coloured leading edge on the lower wing that might be interpreted as aluminium but all the Chinese sources have them painted initially in overall dark green. One photograph (see links below) shows an aircraft with "light" coloured struts and undercarriage legs which have been interpreted as the under surface light blue in a later two-tone scheme. Personally I doubt there was much time to re-paint them once they entered service but there are two distinct differences in the way the four-digit aircraft numbers are displayed - with either large white numbers on the fuselage sides or small numbers on the fin.

A single colour painting showing Chin Shui-Tin in Gladiator 2809 ramming an A5M with his undercarriage on 3rd August 1938 over Liang Chia-tien, Hupei, depicts a dark green scheme with standard blue/white sun insignia on both wings, blue/white rudder stripes, large white fuselage numbers and a red spinner. Major Chin claimed 5 destroyed and 3 damaged in the Gladiator. Wong Sun-Shui also had claims for 5 destroyed and 2 damaged in the Gladiator. Both pilots were American citizens with Cantonese parents who were taught to fly privately in the USA and then volunteered to join the Cantonese Air Force. The Cantonese Air Force was absorbed into the (Nationalist) Chinese Air Force in July 1936. More about Chinese gladiators here:-

http://surfcity.kund.dalnet.se/gladiator_china.htm

and here:-

http://cwlam2000.0catch.com/caf34.htm

There are decals available for various Chinese Gladiators from Bestfong and previously from Kora with a resin spinner-less prop. The new Airfix kit usefully has a separate spinner as some Chinese Gladiators were flown without it.

Definitely worth modelling as the Gladiator's combat debut was in Chinese service and their story is a fascinating one that I shall be featuring at my blog shortly.

Nick

[Work In Progress]

I'm disapointed by decals option.

How and why?

[SPAD64]

How and why?

firstly It's a good news this new gladiator, cheaper and more available than sword one.

for the decal option , I believe that the first one is the same than the old matchbox .I'll hope more exotic... maybe in future box.But I'll catch one when I'll find it in France .

Ludo

[Work In Progress]

I think it's highly unrealistic to expect Airfix to put out a new mainstream kit without markings that the target market can relate to.

Given that this -

- is the Gladiator that will be seen by most people who see one at an airshow, and one of only two airworthy in the world, the choice of kit markings is obviously a good one to encourage sales of the kit to the general public

What does it matter whether the Matchbox kit had similar markings? There's a slew of after-market options available for the small minority of Airfix buyers who want "more exotic" options, and even within the kit box there is an exotic option in the form of the Irish one.

[Marcel]

IIRC this is the first Irish AF decal option in a 1/72 mainstream Gladiator kit (I am tempted):

"Old " Airfix: RAF

Matchbox: RAF & SwAF

Frog: RAF & Norwegian AF

Heller: RAF & Swedish F16 volunteer regiment in Finland

Heller for Sweden: SwAF

Heller for Finland: FAF

Encore: RAF, SwAF, Norwegian (with insignia red and blue swapped), Lithuanian, Latvian, Chinese

Revell (ex-Matchbox): RAF & RAAF

Sword: RAF

Did I miss anything?

[SPAD64]

nevermind

I'll wait for a Mk II

[hwallen1410]

A decent Gladiator for less than £8, what is there to moan about.

Keep it up Airfix.....