woody37 Posted March 1, 2014 Share Posted March 1, 2014 Lancaster B.II - Etch & Canopy Masks for the Airfix Kit Eduard 1:72 With the release last year of the excellent B.II radial engine Lancaster from Airfix, Eduard have come up trumps with some improvement accessories to improve both the exterior and interior of the kit. Four sets are being reviewed here, exterior, interior, dedicated flap replacements and the budget Zoom set that focusses on the cockpit interior. Also included is the canopy mask set which for me at least is as integral to model building as glue and paint these days! Lancaster B.II Landing Flaps (Set 72578) Whilst the Airfix kit is already blessed with an open flap option, the limitations of injection moulding mean that there is some scope for improvement in terms of scale finesse. This comprehensive set from Eduard provides that solution. Obviously, to use this set, filing of the existing detail is necessary as well as levelling the surface to apply the etch to. Some plastic or brass rod of 0.8mm and 0.3mm diameter is also required in the instructions but not supplied. As the flaps are the same as the B.I/III, there is no reason why they can't be used on the other Airfix Lancaster variants too. More information can be seen in the online instructions provided by Eduard - HERE Lancaster B.II Exterior (Set 72566) The exterior gets a well thought out selection of improvements. The landing gear bays and doors get some intricate additions and both the main and tail wheel legs are treated to the etch touch including brake lines. The radial engines in the Airfix kit are a little lacking in detail in my opinion, so the attention of them is well deserved. They are routed from the rear of the cylinders. I've seen pictures of some framework in front of the Hercules engines on the Halifax that WEM have in their B.III etch set, however I'm not sure whether this was also present on the Lancaster B.II. Some other improvements include the upper fuselage escape hatches, trim tab control rods and oil cooler mesh faces. For more information, see HERE Lancaster B.II Interior (Set 73492) Again, Eduard have found some creative ways to add detail where it matters, this time inside the aircraft. The cockpit area gets a complete makeover, with a highly detailed pilots seat and wealth of controls and panels that are on show under that greenhouse! This attention to detail goes back into the navigators and wireless operators area too. Further areas of focus include the bomb aimers location with more panels and some enhancements to the front and rear turrets. The panels are provided on pre-painted self adhesive etch to aid assembly into the aircraft. Some kit detail will need to be removed from the surfaces before assembly of these parts. for more information, see HERE Lancaster B.II Interior Zoom (Set SS492) The zoom set is a budget alternative to the interior set above. It provides the pre-painted self adhesive etch fret shown above hence primarily focusses on the panels inside the cockpit and bomb aimer locations including throttle quadrants. For more information, see HERE Lancaster B.II Flexible Paint Masks (CX372) If you hate masking like I do, you will welcome this set, especially given the wealth of clear parts on the Lancaster. Two sheets of pre-cut parts are provided in the pack and include wheel masks too. As the transparencies on the B.II are common with the B.I/III, they can be used on any of the airfix kits. Conclusion There is no doubt that Airfix have released a great kit in its own right, however these sets do allow you to take it to another level by utilising the benefits that etch can provide over the injection moulded parts. Obviously, some of the parts and the preparation needed to fit them requires a higher skill level, but if you are a fan of the B.II, then they are certainly something to consider when you build one. Review sample courtesy of Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted March 2, 2014 Share Posted March 2, 2014 To those who use the exterior set, do not use the spark plug leads. The leads an a Bristol Hercules came from the rear of the engine, not from a ring around the gear casing, as per American practice. I would post an image here, but for some reason, I can no longer post here from Photobucket. Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woody37 Posted March 3, 2014 Author Share Posted March 3, 2014 Thanks for informing me of that Chris. Come to think of it, aren't there some frames around the front of the Herc engine? I fitted some WEM ones to a Halifax, so these might be better suited. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 I would post an image or two but for some reason, I can't post pics from Photobucket. Everything was fine until last week. Still haven't figured it out but have been working and haven't had the time to delve into it. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woody37 Posted March 4, 2014 Author Share Posted March 4, 2014 Might be worth deleting your cookies, see if that helps Neil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Thanks, Neil. Now, if I can just remember how to do that. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 Still no joy after deleting cookies. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woody37 Posted March 8, 2014 Author Share Posted March 8, 2014 Strange. that's about as far as I can advise when it comes to IT stuff! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted March 9, 2014 Share Posted March 9, 2014 Testing Photobucket again ; 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted March 9, 2014 Share Posted March 9, 2014 Problem solved. Here's that image of a Bristol Hercules showing the spark plug leads coming from the rear of the engine. Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woody37 Posted March 20, 2014 Author Share Posted March 20, 2014 Thanks Chris, I'll update the review Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Swindell Posted March 20, 2014 Share Posted March 20, 2014 To those who use the exterior set, do not use the spark plug leads. The leads an a Bristol Hercules came from the rear of the engine, not from a ring around the gear casing, as per American practice.Chris You're quite correct on the routing of the spark plug leads, as are Eduard, who show them fitted to the rear of the engines in the instruction leaflet linked to the set above. You won't see much of them if you do fit them though... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woody37 Posted March 22, 2014 Author Share Posted March 22, 2014 Dave, I've just rechecked the instructions and you are right, I misinterpreted them when doing the review. I know from pictures that the Halifax had a framework in front of the engines, does anyone know whether the Lancaster had the same arrangement? Here's the WEM set on the Airfix Halifax to explain what I mean: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted March 22, 2014 Share Posted March 22, 2014 Yes, the Hercules on Lanc II's had a strut arrangement but not like in your photo. There was just three ( maybe four ) struts from the gear casing out to the collector ring. There are difficult to see in photos as the prop blades get in the way and there aren't that many photos of Lanc II's with good views of the engine front. Maybe this drawing will help: Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woody37 Posted March 24, 2014 Author Share Posted March 24, 2014 Chris, this picture shows what I mean, these are behind the ones you show above: http://www.bombercommandmuseum.ca/engine_bristolhercules.html Here's a picture of the Elvington one both lots of framework in view: http://plane-crazy.k-hosting.co.uk/Aircraft/WW2-Planes/Halifax/Halifax03.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 Both of your pictures show post-war Hercules with the exhaust pipes routed to the rear of the engine, not forward into the collector ring as per wartime engines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 Here are two frontal views of Hercules engines that show the collector ring bracket fairly clearly. It's hard to find good clear views of this detail. And another view of the rear end of a Hercules showing the spark plug leads. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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