AeroCraft Sea Fury Engine & Cowling Resin Upgrades (for Airfix)

[Mike]

Sea Fury Engine & Cowling Resin Upgrades (for Airfix)

1:48 AeroCraft

 

As we all probably know, Ali (formerly of AtoZee) couldn't keep away from improving kits, and he's been back for a while now doing good work here and there.  This pair of sets are intended for the new Airfix kit, which seems to have a slight issue in the width and fastener placement OOB.  There are two sets, one just to improve the cowling, the other to give the modeller the chance to open up the cowling and display the closely packed cylinder heads of the massive Centaurus engine.  AeroCraft sets don't come with masses of packaging that you'll end up throwing away, using ziplok bags to keep costs and use of our planet's valuable resources to a minimum.  The downside is, we don't have a box top picture!  If you order online they will be dispatched in study parcels to ensure they reach you intact, and due to the lack of extra card and plastic, they're much more likely to fit in your kit box until you're ready to use them.   

 

As usual with resin, take the precaution of wearing a mask when cutting or sanding resin, as the tiny particles are harmful to your health if breathed in.  Washing the parts in warm water will also improve the adhesion of paint, as there may still be some moulding release agent on the parts when you receive them.

 

 

Sea Fury Cowling

This is a single resin part that replaces the kit cowling, correcting the fastener location issue, and improving the fit with the kit cowling ring.  It should be easy to remove from its catsing block, as the location is translucent, so can be removed with a knife blade and tidied up from there.

 

 

 

Detailed Engine

This set replaces the cowling area, but leaves the kit cowling ring, and adds the closely packed detail of the Centaurus engine and opened cowling panels into the bargain.  It has been 3D mastered with assistance from Steve Long, who is a regular on the forums, and has access to the real thing in his hangar.  The set we have for review differs from the photos on their site, as Ali has merged the two engine parts into one casting.  This inserts into the rear cowling part, with the kit cowling ring at the front.  Then the top and bottom fixed cowling panels are placed across the gap, and used as the hinge-points for the four inspection panels that are also provided along with a set of 12 fasteners to add to the cut-outs in the panels.  Casting is good, but on my sample there are a few tiny bubbles below the surface, but unless you go digging at them, that won't be a problem.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of

[JasonC]

31 minutes ago, Mike said:

... the massive Hercules engine.

 

 

Centaurus!

[Julien]

2 hours ago, JasonC said:

 

Centaurus!

Wrong Bristol Grommit. All sorted now.

[JasonC]

Not quite all. 😉