Dora Wings L-20A/U-6A Beaver (DW48059) 1:48

**Mike** · January 7

L-20A/U-6A Beaver (DW48059)

1:48 Dora Wings via Albion Alloys

The Beaver was a creation of De Havilland Canada (DHC) that was designed for use in Post War Canada as a Short Take-Off and Landing (STOL) “bush plane” that could be flown into rugged areas of the country, and quickly adapted to land on skis or floats as the need arose. It first flew in 1947, and entered service in the following year, initially in Canada, but soon found favour with other operators such as the military, who used it as a utility aircraft. The US bought a substantial fleet of almost 1,000 airframes that were initially designated as L-20A, but were re-named U-6A in 1962, with a small number of almost identical L-20Bs becoming U-6Bs at the same time. They served in all arms of the US military, with Army, Air Force and Navy, the latter having a pair that remain in service at time of writing, used as training airframes for glider-towing and other techniques appropriate to light-weight prop-engined types.

There were fewer than 2,000 airframes built by DHC before the production line was closed, and although propositions have been made to recommence production of this well-regarded type using new engines and other modern equipment and materials, nothing has yet come to fruition, and the fleet is reducing through attrition despite the efforts of repair and renovation specialists such as Kenmore Air, who can return an airframe to zero-hours if you have deep enough pockets. The original Wasp Junior engine has been out of production for many years, and spares are naturally becoming harder to source, which has led some owners to consider a turboprop alternative that offers more power, wider availability of fuel, and lighter empty weight, but with a commensurately higher initial outlay. Many retired US airframes were restored and put on the civil register where they found a ready source of customers for their many talents, from sky-diving to scientific endeavours, with no sign of them being retired or replaced by a more capable aircraft.

The Kit

This new tool from Dora Wings (how do they do it?) is the first boxing from them of this delightful aircraft, and arrives in their now-familiar top-opening box with glossy over-printing on the subject of the box art, which adds an air of quality to the package. Inside the box are ten sprues in grey styrene, a large clear sprue, an extensive Photo-Etch (PE) brass fret, a sheet of pre-cut vinyl masks, two decal sheets, and an A5 instruction booklet that is printed in colour on glossy paper, with decaling profiles on the rearmost pages, and a paint chart on the rear cover that uses letter codes that are seen throughout the instructions, with codes for Mr. Hobby, Tamiya, AMMO, Hatak, Lifecolor, and generic colour names to assist you with picking your colours. Whenever we receive a Dora Wings kit, we know we’re in for a treat of detail and comprehensive instructions that hold our hands during the build process, including almost everything you need to build a compelling replica of your chosen subject. The sprues are full of parts with excellent levels of detail that includes finely engraved panel lines and rivets where appropriate, in addition to raised and recessed features inside and out that should please anyone looking over the sprues.

Construction begins with the instrument panel, which is built from a flat styrene backdrop onto which three decals are applied, followed by three PE parts with the dials cut out, which is probably best glued in place after painting by using clear varnish that will also give the dial decals a sheen akin to glass. An alternative panel with engraved detail is also included, although it isn’t mentioned on the instruction page, but it can be used with the decals instead if you don’t enjoy working with PE. Extra PE levers are added in the next step along with a coaming, mounting the completed assembly on the cockpit floor along with two types of rudder pedals, the more substantial two-part units on the left side. A pivoting control column with simple yoke at the top is inserted into the centre in front of the panel, fitting a two-part lever further aft on the port side. Two seat base frames are each made from four parts, adding a cylinder under the pilot’s base, then fixing the L-shaped seat on top, and installing PE four-point belts for both crew, locating the legs in four holes each that are moulded into the floor. The rear seats are of the bench-type, supported by a triple-box frame with angled legs, fitting the seat cushion and back-rest from one part each, and inserting twin lap-belts into slots in the back of the cushions. They are installed in the next row on a set of raised adjuster rails, adding a two-seat canvas row behind that’s made from three parts with no belts, then bracketing the cockpit with a front and aft bulkhead to complete the assembly, which is then glued onto the fuselage floor, adding the sides after inserting small triangular parts on both sides at around head height. Sections of head-lining are fitted over the crew compartment at the front, choosing either one with roof-light cut-outs or without, depending on your decal option, attaching the fuselage sides beforehand. The fuselage roof is fitted over a short length of spar, adding a separate clear windscreen with integral nose cowling at the front, plus four roof-lights, and a two-part engine firewall that closes the fuselage. Crew doors and main cabin doors are both clear parts, with a smaller window further aft in the fuselage, repeating the layout on both sides. The elevators are made from a single upper surface, adding two lower skins, then the flying surfaces that are each two parts with ribbing moulded into them. They can be posed deflected if you wish, with rounded leading edges, and are mated with the fuselage later in the build, along with the tail fin and rudder panel, both made from two halves, the latter ribbed to match the elevators.

Typically of Dora Wings kits, the engine is supplied as a well-detailed model in itself, starting with the intake spider, which has a central boss and nine separate L-shaped tubes, fitting an accessory pack to the rear, then gluing the growing assembly to the rear of the piston bank, which has a reduction bell-housing with integral push-rods applied to the front, and a thick exhaust collector ring at the rear, fitting it to the central ring in the nose after making the main landing gear struts from three parts each, plus two small wedge-steps near the top. The engine cowling is made from two halves with an optional intake at the bottom and matching cowling lip with the front of the intake moulded-in, or if not fitting the intake, a smooth cowling lip is used instead, slipping your choice of cowling over the engine, and adding a two-part D-intake to the cut-out near the top of the intake-less cowling. There is a choice of installations for the antenna and other equipment on the fuselage roof, the instructions advising you to refer to the painting profiles to decide which parts are appropriate to your decal choice.

Unlike it’s namesake, this Beaver has wings that are separate assemblies made from upper and lower surfaces, with separate flaps and elevators made from two parts each, and a landing light installed flush with the leading edge of the port wing, adding small clear lights below and at the ends of the wingtips, then fitting the completed wings to the sides of the fuselage, and bracing them with a single strut beneath each one, with square pegs holding them in place at each end. The flying surfaces have five actuators fixed in slots along their lower lengths, adding a combined actuator/horn balance in the centre of the elevators, a pitot probe in the port wing, and a tubular crew step on each side beneath the cabin doors, each one made from three parts. While the model is still inverted, an exhaust with hollow tip insert at the end is fitted under the cowling, and a two-port cooler is mounted under the fuselage with a PE mesh fixed inside. The tail-wheel is made from two parts and fitted to a yoke mounted on a lightened strut, with three PE parts and a support, plus a T-shaped assembly in front that is made from PE and styrene parts. The main gear wheels are moulded in two halves, with a brake-hub, and a styrene washer in the centre so they can be left to rotate, with a stub axle holding them in place on the struts and optional PE hubs fitted to the outer face, again depending on your decal option. A tiny formation light is inserted into the tip of the tail fairing, and the final choice of two-bladed prop is made, sharing the same blade and axle parts, but choosing either a three-part boss or two-part spinner fairing to finish the assembly.

Markings

There are four decal options on the sheet, all wearing US Stars & Bars, but with differing colour schemes that depict three USAF and one Army bird. From the box you can build one of the following:

L-20A Beaver (52-6138), 81st TFW, RAF Bentwaters, 1960
L-20A Beaver (55-0681), US Army #1583, L-20 No.584, Command A-7, Dusseldorf-Lohausen, Germany, 1962
L-20A beaver (51-6487), USAF #1064, Command AF-1, 5th Air Force, Seoul, 1953
U-6A Beaver (52-6092), 539th FIS, McGuire AFB, New Jersey, 1965

Decals are by Dora Wings’ usual partner, DecoGraph, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas.

Conclusion

A well-detailed model of this long-serving and much-loved light aircraft that got to see the world in the service of many Air Forces, Navies and civil operators. The build should proceed without pitfalls, and the detail will look good under a coat of paint with your choice of decals. It’s going to be the hi-viz orange one though, isn’t it?

Very highly recommended.

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