New Airfix Hurricane Mk.1 Boxart

[Admiral Puff]

Well - any more word on this? Does Telford look a possibility? I'd be disappointed to have travelled half way around the world without being able to take a few home with me ...

[Enzo the Magnificent]

Here's an interesting link regarding the aircraft featured in the kit.

http://www.doverwarmemorialproject.org.uk/Information/Articles/Incidents/Flames.htm

Did the fabric-winged airxraft have their wings replaced with metal ones?

[Test Graham]

Many did. Those already transferred to training units probably didn't. There is a story than one such aircraft had one metal and one fabric wing - seems like a bit of a bar story to me but there's nothng physical to stop it happening.

By mid-May the arrival of a fabric-winged aircraft in France was seen as a sign that the bottom of the barrel was being scraped for replacements. (See 12 Days In May, by Brian Cull.) That didn't mean that those already in the squadrons were necessarily withdrawn before the normal process of replacement.

[Enzo the Magnificent]

Thanks, Graham.

I can see a future project taking shape here. L1584 with a fabric wing from the Airfix kit and L1584 with a metal wing at the time of its demise.

[tonyot]

I`ve built a pre production test shot of this model and it is truly brilliant,....well up there with the Typhoon. It provides different props for 2 bladed Watts or 3 bladed De Havilland, original rudder or the later standard larger type with the ventral fuselage strake, 2 different exhaust types, unarmoured or armoured rear cockpit bulkhead and with a bit of extra sanding the canopy can be positioned open!! The wheel well is fully detailed and the fabric reproduction is superb.

I cannot say much more but it is another Airfix stunner and should prove very popular,...I`ll be buying lots more and I hope that Airfix follow it up with a metal winged version plus a 48th scale kit as well,

Cheers

Tony O

[Test Graham]

Excellent news, confirming the good impression from the CAD views. Given that the canopy of the Hurricane changes shape as it opens, I'm a little doubtful about your comments there. This is an area impossible to get right in 1/72 scale, so it will be interesting to see how Airfix have approached it this time. Just one question - you mention rear armour but is there also alternative windscreens for armoured and unarmoured types? Wishful thinking perhaps - or something for the metal-winged option? That'd do nicely enough.

[tonyot]

Sorry Graham I forgot to mention the original unarmoured windscreen and the early style external armoured type,...but the later armoured type usually associated with the Hurricane isn`t included,....which is to be expected really. Both the early pole type and later style antenna masts are included too.

I know what you mean about the Hurricane canopy bending to shape along its runners on the full sized machine but in 72nd scale it is asking a bit much,....basically what I meant was that it has separate canopy and windscreen and that the canopy can be mounted open with a tiny amount of sanding which doesn`t affect the look of the finished model.

Cheers,

Tony O

PS- I must just add,......just take care when constructing the wing tips,.... as the tips of the lower wing half extend beyond the upper wing halves in order to represent the correct design of the Hurricane wing,.....so don`t sand the lower part of the wing tips away!!

Edited October 17, 2013 by tonyot

[Procopius]

Hopefully for 2014, we'll see a Battle of Britain style metal-winged Hurri.

[Test Graham]

Cheers Tony, good news about the windscreen. Also good for Airfix that they've spotted the way the wing uppersurface goes down towards the tip (the opposite of the P-40) - although after your description I'll wait to see just how it works. Not long now. Now you've mentioned it I'll go back over all my unfinished Hurricanes to see which ones require some severe filing at the tips! Most if not all, I suspect.

To say a little more about the canopy: it does widen as it slides back but also overlaps the rear fairing when closed. Previous kits have either missed this out or introduced a step-down of the fairing to avoid the canopy sitting too high.

[GrzeM]

Good news about the Hurricane!

BTW, should we expect aftermarket parts for the cannon-armed prototype flown by Smith? Anybody knows, what it looked like? Any photos aor drawings?

[Test Graham]

See Testing Years, but the same photo is in at least one Hurricane book.

[Procopius]

Is this the underwing gondola mounting as tested briefly in the Battle of Britain? I know there are photos of that in the Mason book.

[Test Graham]

I'd assumed so - I did a quick flick through Mason before posting the vaguer comment but missed it.

[Denford]

Cheers Tony, good news about the windscreen. Also good for Airfix that they've spotted the way the wing uppersurface goes down towards the tip (the opposite of the P-40) - although after your description I'll wait to see just how it works. Not long now. Now you've mentioned it I'll go back over all my unfinished Hurricanes to see which ones require some severe filing at the tips! Most if not all, I suspect.

To say a little more about the canopy: it does widen as it slides back but also overlaps the rear fairing when closed. Previous kits have either missed this out or introduced a step-down of the fairing to avoid the canopy sitting too high.

In short, Airfix has the details that other kits lack.

[Test Graham]

Certainly it has detail that earlier Airfix Hurricanes lacked. It also has options that earlier Mk.I kits lacked - although in balance the Sword/AZ kit came with three different propellers,not just two, IIRC. There's certainly enough now known about the new kit to generate even more enthusiasm about its arrival.

As always, experience suggests caution before going overboard, lacking feedback from a wider number of informed modellers. But so far it looks very good.