Bristol Beaufighter Mk.IF - 1:32 Revell

[Julien]

Bristol Beaufighter Mk.IF

1:32 Revell

The Bristol Beaufighter (Or Type 156) was developed by The Bristol Aeroplane Company from their earlier Beaufort Torpedo Bomber following a suggestion from the Air ministry following delays to the Westland Whirlwind aircraft. The name Beaufighter being an amalgamation of the words Beaufort and Fighter. Unlike the Beaufort the Beaufighter was to prove to be an aircraft which would have a long career and provide service to the RAF throughout the war in many different theatres.

Using the new Hercules engines instead of the Beaufort's Taurus engine would give the new "fighter" much better performance. Since the Beaufighter was to be a conversion of an existing design, development and acceptance was far quicker than that for a new design. The differences between the two aircraft were actually minor. The wings, control surfaces, landing gear and rear fuselage were identical. The Beauforts bomb bay was omitted with four 20mm cannon being mounted in this area.

At only 335 mph the aircraft was slower than frontline fighters at the time but in times of need it was available. A favourable development at the same time was that the new Air Intercept radars were coming off the production line. With its cannons in the lower fuselage the Beaufighter had no problems mounting the new radar in its nose. Even fully loaded the aircraft was able to catch the German bombers of the time, and the Beaufighter Night Fighter was born. As the faster radar equipped Mosquito aircraft came on stream the Beaufighter was taken ;off the Nightfighter role and used very effectively in the anti-shipping, ground attack and long range interdiction roles. Using a combination of rocket and torpedo armed aircraft they were very effective in the anti-shipping role.

The Beaufighter would serve in all theatres of the war. Production was even moved to Australia following successful use in the pacific. During WWII the aircraft was used by the British and American forces. Post war Portugal, Turkey and the Dominican Republic used the aircraft. In addition it was briefly used by Israel following their clandestine purchase in 1948. The last RAF variants were used as Target Tugs and finally retired in 1960. Overall 5564 were built in the UK by Bristol and Fairey; with 365 being built also in Australia.

The Kit
Using the wayback machine this tooling now dates back to 1974. The moulds seem to have held up very well. The kit arrives with nine sprues of grey plastic (its obvious they have been broken up to fit the new size box revell are using), and one clear sprue. There is no flash evident on the parts. As a kit of this age would suggest detail is sparse and the panel lines are raised.

Construction shockingly enough does not start with the cockpit, but the engines. Two banks of cylinders are assembled (two parts to each bank)along with an inner hub. The hub is attached to the propeller in the next step. Both of these procedures being completed twice. Construction can then proceed to the cockpit! The cockpit tub is fairly simple. A one piece tub is backed with the pilots bulkhead with a representation of the entry doors on it. A seat is provided along with a control column. Rudder pedals are moulded into the tub. If needed a pilot figure is supplied for use. Next step is the construction of the seating area for the rear gunner. A floor part is attached to two sides and the front and rear bulkheads. A seat is provided as is another figure. All the control panels for both areas are provided as decals.

Next step is construction of the four part tail wheel. Once this is done the tail wheel along with both cockpits are placed into the right fuselage. The fuselage halves can then be buttoned up. The next step is then the wings. The upper wings are two part whereas the lower ones are three parts. There is a centre section combining the under fuselage part with two outer wing panels.

Once the wings are one the tail planes, rudder and cockpit transparencies are added. Clear parts for the navigation lights, and landing light are added, along with the grill for the oil cooler.

Construction then moves on to the main landing gear. Two part wheels are added to the main double strut with the retraction struts added to the rear. There is no detail at all in the wheel wells. Gear doors are also added at this stage.

Once the gear is on the modeller moves onto the engines. Cowlings are added along with the actual engines complete in the first step. The exhaust collector rings and exhaust parts can now be added. If the modeller is making the night fighter version then the various antenna are added.

Canopy
The canopy is clear but a little thick which shows the age of the kit a little. The rear blister could certainly do with a good polish.

Decals
Decals are provided for two aircraft. They are printed in Italy for Revell and up to the now usual standard. They are in register and colour density looks good.

• No.252 Sqn RAF, Abu Sueir, Egypt May 1941
• No.406 Sqn RAF, Coltishall, England, August 1941

Conclusion
It maybe an older kit but its the only game in town for 1.32 Beaufighter. Despite its age it should make up to be a good looking model. recommended.

Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers.

For further information visit

[Steve86]

Thanks for the review Julien, I did this kit many years ago as a night fighter and that too turned out a good looking model.

[sroubos]

It's amazing to see how far molding technology has improved. The amount of detail on this kit would now be considered sparse on a 1/72 or even a 1/144 model. Even comparing it to the 15 (?) year old Hasegawa 1/72 kit the difference is night and day.

I'm a 1/72 guy but this kit would require a lot of after market resin and a lot of rescribing to make it presentable for me. The whole point of that scale is the amount of detail you can show and on this kit, there is not much to show off.

I'm sure though there are people with the patience to turn it into a spectacular model!

[Radleigh]

Hmmm, how much work to turn this into a TF MkX?

[Rodders154]

I dont care how lacking in detail the model is I love it.

Rodders

[Cees Broere]

Hmmm, how much work to turn this into a TF MkX?

Radleigh,

It can be done but it is hard work. Mine is nearly finished. You can find it in the works in progress section.

Cheers

Cees

[kwaterous]

A couple of things;

The bulkhead that goes on the back of the cockpit is actually the one with a door cut out(the instructions are wrong)

Fit can be tricky in the fuselage, lining up the (tiny) locating pins is hard.

Also, as far as I know, the only aftermarket available is resin exhausts, a combined pe and conversion set, and a set if decals.

K