Hellcat F6F-5 Late - Eduard 1:48 ProfiPACK Edition

[Julien]

Hellcat F6F-5 Late
Eduard 1:48 ProfiPACK Edition

The Grumman Hellcat is famed not for it's beauty, but for it's performance. Admittedly, the opposition over the Pacific grew weaker as more inexperienced Japanese pilots were pressed in to service, but a claimed kill ratio of 19:1 is a pretty impressive score. It was pushed into service as a stop gap between the Wildcat and the F4U which was under development at the time, but it's rugged and well armoured airframe mated to a powerful engine was a winning combination. The aircraft was regarded as being quite easy to fly, however of the 2400 Hellcats lost during WWII, only 270 were lost in aerial combat compared 1300 lost during training or ferry flights. For those 270 combat losses Hellcats would account for 5156 enemy planes destroyed. This amounted to over half of all USN/USMC claimed kills.

The kit
This is another variant release of the reputable Eduard Hellcat. It's regarded as the most detailed and accurate 1:48 Hellcat on the market with plenty of finely moulded detail parts and beautifully restrained recessed panel lines and riveting. A big bonus over the Hasegawa kit is that the canopy can be positioned in the open position from the box and the cowling shape is more accurate. We reviewed the original release HERE back in 2012 with the Hellcat Mk.II that served with the Fleet air Arm, so I'm not going to spend too much time talking through the build, I'll let the pictures do the talking and focus more on the differences provided in this boxing. Firstly, the sprues contained in the pack. These contain two types of engine cowling. The instructions indicate which cowling is used for "LATE", so it's important to choose the correct one. As well as a wealth of plastic the modeller is treated to two photo-etched frets, resin wheels, and a set of canopy/wheel masks.

Both the F6F-3 & F6F-5 canopies are on the clear sprue. The parts are beautifully clear and thin so distortion is minimal. There are two canopies included, one is for the open position, the other for the closed location, so take care to use the correct parts depending how you want to model your aircraft.

Taking a closer look at the detail on the plastic sprues, you can see the quality of the moulding. Separate control surfaces are provided however, these are located by tabs in a neutral position. If you want to fit them in an off centre position, the tabs will need removing and possibly the mating edges rounding off for correct location.

An addition to this boxing over the others is the inclusion of a new sprue containing 5-inch Forward Firing Aircraft Rocket (FFAR), and High Velocity Aircraft (HVAR) Rockets.

One of the criticisms of the Weekend Edition boxing is the lack of later wider style wheels on the plastic sprues. This issue is addressed in the profipack edition with the inclusion of the beautiful Brassin resin wheels which have separate hubs. Paint masks are also included on the masking sheet.

Two frets of etch are included. One fret is the pre-painted type predominantly for the cockpit interior including panels and seatbelts whilst the other provides bomb fins, plug leads for the engine front and a few other details.

Decals
A superb set of decals is included with this boxing for late war markings applied to the aircraft. Symbols were used during this time period to help identify the parent carrier. However it was found they were hard to remember and to describe of the radio. These were known as "G" Symbols and were sprayed on using templates, sometimes not very carefully! All of these schemes by this point are all over dark blue. Register of the colours looks excellent and the inks vivid and sharp. Density maybe an issue with the white markings over the blue, but you would hope not. There are enough stencils included without them becoming excessive. Schemes included are:

• VF-12 or VBF-12, USS Randolph, May, 1945
• LCDR T. Hugh Winters, Jr., VF-19, USS Lexington, late October, 1944
• VF-29, USS Cabot, January March, 1945
• White 115, Death and Destruction, BuNo 72534, ENS Donald McPherson, Bill Kingston, Jr., and Lyttleton Ward, VF-83, USS Essex, May 5th, 1945

Conclusion
This is an excellent kit of the late war version of the Hellcat with late war markings. The kit should appeal to experienced builders looking for a good kit, but should not be too daunting for those less experienced wanting a step up to include some resin and PE parts. Highly recommended.

Review sample courtesy of