Airfix P-51D Mustang & Messerschmitt Bf.109F-4 Dogfight Double (A50193) 1:72

[Mike]

P-51D Mustang & Messerschmitt Bf.109F-4 Dogfight Double (A50193)

1:72 Airfix

 

 

This is a reboxing of two recent toolings from Airfix’s growing Starter Set range that includes two simplified kits plus stands, nine thumb-pots of Humbrol acrylic paint, a 5ml tube of cement, and a #0 and #4 Humbrol paint brush with clear plastic tubes protecting the synthetic bristles.  This range is intended to cater to the novice, whether they’re young, old or anywhere in between, or an experienced modeller that wants to build something simple for a change that is sometimes referred to as a “palette cleanser”. 

 

 

Starter Set instructions differ slightly from the standard offering, as they include yellow markings as suggestions for where to apply the glue between parts, and each step of the instructions has a sprue diagram in the corner that points out the location of the parts used, cutting down on the time spent hunting for parts that can affect even the most experienced modeller, draining away valuable modelling time hunting for that elusive part.  The kits arrive in an end-opening box and aside from the consumables already mentioned in one bag, there are two kits in their own bags, the instruction booklet that is shared and has profiles at the rear of each section, plus the decal sheet that is also shared between them.

 

The stands are made from a silhouette-shaped base that mimics the shadow of the kit and has a curved support, plugging the model into the top once complete.  There are engraved Airfix logos at each wingtip that could be painted a contrasting colour if you’re feeling adventurous, or you could paint the entire stand a dark shade to resemble the shadow of the aircraft flying low over the ground.

 

 

North American P-51D Mustang

The North American P-51 Mustang is one of the most famous and easily-recognisable of Allied types to have served during WWII. It was originally designed to a British requirement for a low-altitude fighter, and because it was designed around the Alison V-1710 engine, it had limited performance at higher altitudes. This shortcoming was famously addressed by the marriage of North American’s airframe to Rolls Royce’s legendary Merlin engine.  Once so equipped, the Mustang was able to take on Luftwaffe fighters on equal or better terms up to 15,000 feet.  In common with later Spitfires, the D model of the Mustang employed a cut-down rear fuselage and a bubble canopy, giving pilots superb all-round vision, but soon requiring a fillet to the tail fin to return some of the lost stability.   Other improvements included adding extra .50cal machine guns to the wings, giving the pilot three guns per wing with a commensurate increase in firepower. Over 8,000 P-51Ds were produced before it was superseded by the next variant, more than any other Mustang type.

 

The outstanding feature of the aircraft was its range, which enabled Mustangs to escort bombers all the way to Berlin and back, reducing bomber losses, and diminishing the number of enemy fighters available to fight them off with every successive mission. This prompted the famous quote from Reichmarshall Herman Göring: "When I saw Mustangs over Berlin, I knew the jig was up." In German, of course.  Its successor, the P-51H had a lengthened fuselage with additional fuel tank in the new space, a more powerful Merlin engine with broader props to use the 2,270hp of raw power, all thanks to the weight savings found during development of the intervening unsuccessful variants, although it didn’t see service during WWII.  This was the airframe that became the basis of the F-82 Twin Mustang, which is another story entirely.

 

The kit comprises three sprues of grey styrene, plus a clear sprue, sharing the instructions and decals with the 109, as mentioned.  Detail is perfect for a Starter Kit, having good external detail, with engraved panel lines and raised features such as underwing pylons and gun barrels in the leading edges of the wings.  There is also a simple cockpit and crew figure to add detail to the model, plus the option to build it with gear up or down.

 

 

 

 

 

Construction begins with the cockpit, which is a long part which receives the seat and the pilot, trapping it between the fuselage halves after some interior painting.  The wings are moulded as a single lower and linked upper layer, having main gear bay roof details moulded into the underside of the upper, and noting that the inner bay doors are moulded closed in the lower wing, as these were generally closed on landing, sometimes sagging as the hydraulic pressure bled away after switch-off and disembarkation of the pilot.  The fuselage fits in the gap between the upper wings, adding elevators to slots either side of the tail that is moulded into both fuselage halves, with the rudder moulded into the starboard side.  Two single-part exhaust stub runs are slotted into the nose, then if you are mounting your model on the stand, you can close the main gear bays with two separate door parts, inserting the tail wheel into the rear bay.  To pose the model on the ground, the two gear struts have single-part wheels located on keyed pegs at the lower end, adding the flared bay doors to the exterior face.  The key in the wheels will ensure that the small flat-spot on the tyre will align with the ground when the model is finished.  A pair of two-part drop-tanks are included, mounting under the wings on the short pylons that are moulded into the undersides.

 

The Mustang’s four-bladed prop is moulded as a single part that is trapped between the spinner and back-plate parts, using a pin to secure it to the nose insert before plugging that into the front of the fuselage, and if you are careful with the glue the prop should remain mobile.  The canopy is a single part and fits over the cockpit cut-out, with a short antenna slotted into the spine behind it, completing the model.

 

 

Messerschmitt Bf.109F-4

With almost 34,000 examples manufactured over a 10-year period, the Messerschmitt Bf.109 is one of the most widely produced aircraft in history and saw active service in every theatre in which German armed forces were engaged.  Initially designed in the mid-1930s, the Bf.109 shared a similar general arrangement with the Spitfire, employing monocoque construction and a V12 engine, albeit an inverted V with fuel injection rather than the carburettor used in the Spitfire.  Initially designed as a lightweight interceptor, like many German types during WWII, the Bf.109 evolved beyond its original brief into a bomber escort, fighter bomber, night fighter, ground-attack and reconnaissance platform.

 

The -E variant, or Emil as it was more affectionately known was the first major revision of the original design, including an uprated engine and the attendant strengthening of the airframe that was required. It first saw service in the Legion Condor fighting in the Spanish Civil War on the side of Nationalist forces of Military Dictator Franco, and then in the Battle of Britain where it came up against its nemeses the Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Hurricane during the critical fight for the survival of the RAF and Great Britain, which was key to halting Operation Sea lion/Seelöwe, the invasion of Britain by the Nazis.  The -F, or Freidrich as it was colloquially known was another revision that was initially based around a new more powerful Daimler-Benz DB 601E engine, but also experimented with changes to the wing planform, shortening the tips, but adding back a semi-elliptical tip when the test flights showed off the negative effects the wingspan reduction had created.  The new tips became the standard going forward, and other aerodynamic refinements were made to improve performance, including expansion of the radiators and the intake for the supercharger on the port side of the cowling.  The end result was considered to be the best handling 109 by its pilots, although its successor the Gustav was faster and more heavily armed.  Almost 2,000 of the F-4 were manufactured, with 20mm cannon in the cowling, and later examples capable of carrying additional cannons in panniers under the wings.

 

Inside the bag are three sprues of grey styrene, and a small clear sprue, the instruction booklet and decal sheet shared between the two kits.  Detail is good, bearing in mind the simplified nature of the kit, extending to the cockpit, gear bays, nicely moulded wheels and a pilot figure with his hands on his laps.

 

 

 

 

 

Construction begins with the cockpit, fitting the pilot into the tub, noting that there isn’t a control column present in case you feel like adding one.  The cockpit is glued into the starboard fuselage half, choosing either a retracted tail-wheel or using the same part in a vertical orientation for wheels down.  A horizontal insert carries the exhaust stacks on each side, with an arrow ensuring that it is inserted the correct way around, and the exhausts project from the slots in the sides of the cowling.  With that the fuselage can be closed, and after the glue has cured the wings are made from upper and lower full-span parts, slotting the fuselage in between them and adding the elevators to slots either side of the tail.  The supercharger intake is fitted to a recess in the port nose cowling, then the model is inverted to add the twin radiator housings beneath the wings, and the oil-cooler intake under the nose.

 

While the model is inverted, the main gear legs with moulded-in bay doors are inserted into the bay after adding wheels to each axle, or the slimmed-down retracted versions are glued into the recess with a section of the tyre visible past the captive gear bay doors.  Righting the model permits fitting of the one-part canopy, which has a small hole near the rear for an aerial mast, creating the prop from three blades that are moulded as one, spinner and back-plate, plus a peg that pushes through a circular plug that glues into the front of the model, taking care with the adhesive if you want the prop to spin once the model is complete.

 

 

Markings

Each kit has one decal option on a shared sheet, with the profiles at the end of the corresponding build steps.  From the box you can build the following:

 

 

 

Decals are by Cartograf, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas.

 

 

Conclusion

The Starter Set range is intended for a wide audience, with the possible exception of the ‘serious modeller’, but they already have more detailed kits of both types from Airfix and others, so they can’t complain, and we need more modellers in our hobby.

 

Highly recommended.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of

 

 

[Jeepboy]

Thank you for a great revie and for the very sensible conclusion 😊