Eduard Hawker Typhoon 1b (Late) Updates 1:48

[Mike]

Hawker Typhoon 1b Updates (for Italeri/Hasegawa)
1:48 Eduard

Italeri have re-released Hasegawa's well tooled bubble-top Typhoon under their own brand as a D-Day striped late model, and Eduard have sensibly re-released their Photo-Etch sets for it to take advantage of renewed demand for upgrades. All sets arrive in Eduard's flat pack with card backing, and the Zoom! set is presented in a short pack of a similar type.

Typhoon 1b Bubbletop Set (49684)

This set covers both the interior and exterior of the aircraft, and is presented on two frets of PE, one in bare brass measuring 10.5cm x 7cm, the other plated and pre-painted, measuring 7cm x 4.7cm. It starts with the cockpit, first requiring the removal of a small section of coaming from the front of the cockpit opening, before installing various small parts to the sidewalls, as well as replacing the rudder pedals, and adding throttle quadrants to the tubular inner framework. The main instrument panel is replaced by a lamination of layers of pre-painted PE to give a more realistic finish than most of us could manage, and this rests between the two side frames. The pilot's seat is replaced totally by a multi-part PE seat with a pre-painted quilted pad in the back, and a full set of crew belts in pre-painted PE. The head armour is also replaced with more detailed parts that offer a scale representation of the real thing. A curved bracket is placed over the coaming area to support the gun-sight, and behind the pilot's head the rear decking is detailed with a single part that is folded and curved to match the contour of the fuselage it sits upon. It also portrays the sliding mechanism of the canopy that runs down the centre line behind the pilot.

Moving to the outside of the aircraft, the big chin-scoop is a prime candidate for updating, which requires a little surgery to the radiator core to remove the projecting cylinders from the main bath. Once removed they are skinned with PE mesh, and the hole filed to match the PE parts. A scrap diagram shows how the next parts fit together, which comprise a cylinder rolled from one piece of PE, attached to a choice of two circular front grilles, and sliding through the smaller aperture in the rear face. A little fiddly, but the improvement to the finished article should be well worthwhile, and this is then finished off with the rear cooling door being replaced by a folded PE part. The wheel bays are then decked out with additional panels on the bare sidewalls, and a simulation of the lattice-work front wall that is blank on the kit. A PE brake hose is added to each gear leg, parts are laminated to the gear bay doors, and the probe under the port wing is given a base-plate, while the rockets are given more realistic shackles, ignition wires and exhaust detail parts.

Zoom! Set (FE684)
If you don't fancy working with both the sheets above, but want to titivate your cockpit (fnerk!), you would do well to pick out this Zoom! set instead, which includes just the pre-painted fret as detailed above.

Landing Flaps (48824)

Measuring 9.2cm x 8.2cm and etched in bare brass, this set allows the modeller to drop the flaps on their model to add a little visual interest to the underside. I always shied away from them as they look difficult to the casual eye, but once the lower wing is adapted to remove the flap area, and the upper wing edge thinned down to accommodate the set, it is relatively straight forward, and quickly completed. With the wings glued together, the inner skin is added to the thinned upper surface, and the flaps are folded to shape, which involves folding over the wedge-shaped ribs into the grooves in the flap, gluing them down, and adding a piece of 1.2mm plastic rod along the curved rear edge of the ribs. Repeat four times, and that's it done. The instructions helpfully show the correct 7^o angle from the wing lower, which is best achieved by marking out and cutting out a template if you don't trust your "by eye" measurements.

Review sample courtesy of

[BerndM]

Looking good, this prepainted pe sets are very nice, well superior to my paint work ( )

[HOUSTON]

Mike,

A very comprehensive review of the kit..

it covers everything and I appreciate it.

thank you

Nice looking kit by the sounds of it. .Lets hope so anyhow.