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Vought F4U Corsair Kit Build #6


Mike

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Vought F4U Corsair Kit Build #6

9788366673243

Kagero via Casemate UK

 

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The Corsair was designed as a carrier-based fighter that was powered by the immense grunt of the R2800 Double-Wasp engine by Pratt & Whitney, the same engine used by the Hellcat and B-29 bombers.  The prop it carried was so large that it needed an anhedral on the inner-wing to clear the deck, and dihedral on the outer to compensate, giving it that familiar gull-wing shape from the front.  During the design process the cockpit was moved further aft that also gave it the racy side profile, but also made deck-handling and landings a little difficult due to the overhang at the front, which led pilots to adopt a slightly crab-like approach until ready to trap-on, which afforded them a better view of the approach to the carrier.

 

Despite it being one of the fastest piston-engined aircraft at the time, having a fast climb-rate and being agile in combat, it was not as popular with pilots as the more ordinary Hellcats, which had ruggedness on their side too.  Nevertheless, it was a great fighter and capable bomber that was used both by the US, the British and some other countries well into the 50s, lingering in service until the 60s with the French.  There were teething problems during development and into service, and weight was a consideration, leading to some squadrons that became land-based removing some of the carrier-specific equipment to give them a slight edge.  The original canopy was heavily framed, and this was soon replaced by a blown Malcolm-style hood that reduced framing to a minimum, giving the pilot a better view that improved situational awareness in battle.

 

 

The Book

This is the sixth edition of a new range from Kagero, the descriptive Kit Build series, which doesn’t need much more explanation unless you don’t have a good grasp of the English language.  It is printed in full colour in a card cover, which are sometimes referred to as a “bookazine” these days.  The text is written in English on the left and Polish on the right, which translates to English on top, Polish on the bottom for most of the captions.  It has 66 matt-finished pages within, and is bursting with colour on every one.  There are three builds within the book, two of the 1:72 Tamiya F4U-1 Birdcage Corsair by Richard Kovalčík and Marcin Ciepierski, the other another Tamiya kit in 1:48 of the F4U-4 by Karoly Bera, the latter a repaint of an earlier build by the author.

 

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The first 1:72 Corsair is a Tamiya kit built as a care-worn and truly filthy airframe of VMF-213, which was flown by 1st Lieutenant Wilbur J Thomas, in a well-scuffed two-tone blue-grey over light grey scheme, with a few upgrades in the shape of Eduard PE and some scratch-building.  21 pages of step-by-step instructions, the various techniques employed to give the surface of the model the appearance of wear, explained in both words and pictures, showing just how to achieve very realistic wear effects.  The second 1:72 kit is also Tamiya, but a little cleaner by a short head.  The builder uses a Yahu instrument panel, a resin engine, and some scratch-building again.  This build takes place over 16 pages, and depicts a less sun-bleached version of the same camouflage scheme used on the earlier build, with just a little wear on the inner wings and filth from the engine exhausts.  The decals used depict the mount of Lieutenant Wilbur "Gus" Thomas nicknamed Gus's Gopher, from VMF-213 stationed at Guadalcanal air base in July 1943.

 

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The 1:48 Tamiya kit is a repaint as mentioned earlier, re-depicted as a worn and faded airframe that has been in the sunny climes of the Pacific Theatre, affecting the tri-tonal dark blue, mid-blue and white camouflage.  This one undergoes a full riveting, after which the primary focus it on the painting of course, which takes several steps including severe chipping around the leading edge of the inner wing panel.  The underside is similarly horribly dirty, with splashed and dribbled fuel streaks everywhere.  This one is depicted as Big Hog, but all the photos I could find online had this as an F4U-1, which confused me.  I’m confused.

 

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All three models are built to a very high standard with variable amounts of aftermarket and scratch-building used to further improve the detail of the models.  Each build finishes with a number of pages devoted to high quality photos of the completed models, some of which are extreme close-ups.  The final 4 pages are devoted to side and top/underside  profiles of various US airframes, and as a little bonus, an A4 print of the cover art without the lettering etc. is included for your delight and possible framing.

 

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Conclusion

As long as you’re willing to spend some time and energy on making and painting your models, this book should give any modeller with a little experience a guide to a raft of new techniques to try or adapt to their way of doing things.

 

Highly recommended.

 

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Review sample courtesy of

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