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airfix Fw-190A8 72nd scale undercarriage


Rodders

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Hi All,

i'm hoping to start the airfix Fw190A8 in 72nd scale but i think the size of the undercarriage looks wrong. it looks extended so wanted to ask how to reduce the size as there is also a brace and i don't know if it will fit when the strut is cut down.

Has anyone ever done it. are there any problems in doing it,

cheers,

rodders.

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Don’t have the kit in front of me so may be missing something, but it seems like the solution would be to cut a section out of the main strut, somewhere past the attachment point of the bracing strut. Cutting the main strut anywhere above the brace would require cutting the brace as well, or moving its attachment point, to retain the Fw 190’s very distinctive inwardly-canted strut angle.

 

You will also need to adjust the length of the cover panel, but that could be done just at the top end.

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1/72 Fw 190 kits generally don't do you any favors in locating the gear struts (the generally excellent Eduard kits being perhaps the worst)! Seems like the solution would be a positive multi-point attachment (as in the lovely new Tamiya Bf 109G-6), but they all leave us to trust the old Mk I Eyeball, LOL

 

A few years ago I built a group of Hasegawa 1/72 Fw 190's with some friends. One of the fellows built a brilliant alignment jig, based on AL Bentley's famous drawings, which we shared to assure the models all agreed on that visually critical point!

Edited by MDriskill
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The issue is that the main legs are molded as if there is no weight on them. In the image below, the marked bit needs to be shortened and the scissor link needs to be modified to fit the shortened strut. This is a common fault with a lot of Fw190 kits.

 

48916382951_537da8325e.jpg

 

 

 

Chris

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Looking at my photos of the one at Cosford it seems to have locks on the struts as if to prevent them sagging. Maybe this confused Airfix?

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I build many FW-190 in 1/72 (Italeri, Revell, Airfix and Eduard) and airfix have worst wheels (looks as printed into soap). But i'am a builder, not modeller :) But overall i'm not compared all kits... Maybe make Eduard metal legs for their Butcher Bird. Look for it !

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7 hours ago, rossm said:

Looking at my photos of the one at Cosford it seems to have locks on the struts as if to prevent them sagging. Maybe this confused Airfix?

When comparing these photos the oleo leg length differs a bit, but not immensely imho..

spacer.png

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On 10/17/2019 at 8:06 AM, MDriskill said:

1/72 Fw 190 kits generally don't do you any favors in locating the gear struts at the correct angles (the generally excellent Eduard kits being perhaps the worst)! Seems like the solution would be a positive multi-point attachment (as in the lovely new Tamiya Bf 109G-6...or the ancient Monogram 1/48 Fw 190 from the 190’s!), but they all leave us to trust the old Mk I Eyeball, LOL

 

A few years ago I built a group of Hasegawa 1/72 Fw 190's with some friends. One of the fellows built a brilliant alignment jig, based on AL Bentley's famous drawings, which we shared to assure the models all agreed on that visually critical point.

 

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I presume this is the recent Airfix Fw190A-8 rather than the older one.  I'd be interested in knowing where the two differ - the original kit was closely based on A L Bentley's drawings and was generally considered highly accurate and a rather nice model.

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