Fw.190A-7 Profipack

[Mike]

Fw.190A-7 Profipack

1:48 Eduard (8172)

The Focke Wulf Fw.190 had a troublesome start before it reached production, suffering from many teething problems that gave the RLM pause for thought before it was eventually accepted into Luftwaffe service in 1941. When first encountered by the RAF in their previously superior Mk.V Spitfires, it gave them quite a shock, and signalled a leapfrog of air-to-air superiority by the Nazi war machine that wasn’t countered until the Mk.IX Spitfire arrived on scene in 1942 with its new 2-stage supercharged Merlin 61 engine.

The A-7 was an upgraded A-5 with increased armament in the shape of two MG131s in the nose cowling, with a pair of tell-tail bulges to accommodate these bigger weapons. It also saw a variety of other upgrades such as a new gunsight, strengthened landing gear struts to cope with the extra weight and the increasingly poor runway conditions. Over 700 were accepted into service before it was superceded by the A-8 in early 1944.

The kit comes in the usual boxing, with the Profipack marking indicating that it is the more luxurious release that comes with extras that I’ll detail later. The box top painting of a lone 190 darting through a formation of B-17s is rather nice, and shows off the sleek lines of the pugnacious Wurger (Shrike). Within it are some neatly packaged sprues, with two sprues per bag, and each pairing socketed together using a neat friction fit peg and hole system. This virtually eliminates chaffing during transit, and along with Eduard’s re-sealable bags are a couple of tricks that the other manufacturers would do well to adopt. Given the relatively small size of the aircraft, there are six sprues of olive green styrene, a clear sprue, a bag of pre-cut kabuki tape masking material, a bag containing two sheets of Photo-Etched (PE) metal, one of which is pre-painted, and two sheets of decals, one containing markings, the other stencils and walkway markings. The package is finished off by Eduard’s usual handsome instruction booklet, which is printed on glossy paper in full colour. It’s almost a shame to throw into the recycling after the build!

First impressions are good. Very finely recessed panel lines and riveting, with crisp raised detail and a high part count, which indicates that simplification of shapes to economise on parts hasn’t been high on the agenda. Due to the modular nature of their 190 range, there are a number of parts that aren’t needed in this early mark, and these are identified in the inside cover of the instruction booklet.

As is usual, especially with single engine fighters, construction begins with the cockpit area, complete with its long turtle-deck behind the pilot. Masters of choice, Eduard give the modeller the option to build up the side consoles using either detailed styrene parts, of by using the supplied pre-painted PE parts. If choosing the former, a set of decals are supplied for application over the plastic parts, which will need some setting solution to aid them settling down over the raised detail. The part count is high, and detail is excellent – even down to the document box that sits down by the pilot’s right knee, which is supplied as an unpainted PE part, with a separate securing strap also in PE. The instrument panel is built up in two halves, with the upper section added in once the cockpit is installed and the gun bay bulkhead is there to provide a backstop. It would be wise to pre-prepare this section so that it is painted and weathered in sympathy with the rest of the cockpit. The pilot’s seat sits close the floor of the cockpit, and a set of pre-painted PE harnesses are included to busy up that area, as well as a pair of rudder pedals to replace the kit parts if you feel the urge. A few small parts are added to the section of sidewall that will be seen within the cockpit, so don’t forget to paint these areas while you’re doing the rest of the cockpit.

The nose gun bay is next up, and magazines, feeds and the important MG131s are installed. They don’t have hollow barrels, but you drilling them out with a micro-bit is quick and painless, or you could go for some Master replacement barrels if you’re going all out for detail. The gun bay, cockpit and tail wheel are then sandwiched between the fuselage halves, awaiting the engine while you build up the wings and wheel bays.

The rear wall of the main gear bays is formed from one piece, which has a secondary task of spar, ensuring the correct dihedral is maintained during and after the build. A number of stringers are added to the bays, with cut-outs to accommodate the retracted wheels and struts. The upper wing halves have some detail moulded in, and a large central insert with a dimpled finish is inserted before the wings are added to the fuselage, and the wing-root mounted MG151s are added, passing through the wheel bay and exiting the wing root. Again, the barrels will need reaming out for added realism, and the full length of the breaches aren’t provided, as the area behind the rear bulkhead is cradled in the opening bay that attaches to the upper parts of the wing. This can be modelled open or closed, and alternative parts are used for each option, so pay attention at this point. After opening up a small hole in the port wing leading edge, the wings are joined and then offered up to the underside of the fuselage, and the separate ailerons can be added at whatever angle you see fit, remembering that each one must oppose the other, and as my friend Chris is always reminding me, remembering aileron differential which deflects the up-aileron more than the down to reduce instances of wing-tip stall.

The upper part of the instrument panel and its coaming are then installed, presumably because they are safer from damage at that point? The Revi 16B gunsight and laminated PE panel are added prior to fitting, along with an additional raised ring attached to the middle of the panel.

The next major assembly is the 14 cylinder BMW801 D-2, which is part of the reason for the high part count. The two rows of seven cylinders are very well moulded, and interlock into the correct position by use of a keyed tab. Push rods, gearbox and exhaust manifold are attached, as well as the 12-bladed cooling fan at the front of the engine. The next part is really rather clever, as Eduard have included a styrene part that slips onto the back of the engine (unglued) and acts as a support and guide for the installation of the exhaust. Once they’re all correctly installed, it should slip off and be replaced by the rear of the engine.

Installation of the engine relies on a trio of V-shaped engine mounts that attach to a hexagonal ring, which fits to the back of the engine. Careful alignment is key, and scrap diagrams are included to ensure the top mounts are located correctly.

The lower engine cowling is moulded attached to the fuselage, and the upper cowling builds up from three separate parts, which could go wrong if you mess up the alignment. It may be wise to build the parts up either on the model, or place them in situ before they set up, to ensure they fit. The cowling ring and its armoured oil cooler insert are both complete with no seams to clean up, and they attach to the front of the cowling one after another. Installing the cowling permanently involves adding three hoses/supports running between the rear of the cowling and the front of the firewall, which could be a bit fiddly with the nose guns installed. The large rearward-hinging cover to the nose gun-bay is fitted later, with two different parts for open and closed. The same is true of the wing root bay covers, and optional appliqué armour to the outer cockpit sides are added from the PE fret for one marking choice.

The vertical tail is sensibly moulded with the fuselage, with a separate rudder and the tail planes provided as single parts. You’ll need your razor saw if you want to depict the elevators deflected, but as they are slim parts, it shouldn’t be too tricky.

The 190’s long, wide wide track and rugged landing gear was a feature insisted on by Kurt Tank, and is well represented with the long thick struts, and long oleos, which have separate scissor links for extra detail. The large skinny wheels are supplied as single parts, so only a fine seam is there to scrape away with your blade, and you have a choice of smooth or radial tread patterns, depending on your reference or preference. A scrap diagram shows the correct 8^o angle of the wheels to the struts, and another shows the correct location of the retraction strut on the main leg. The long gear bay covers, with their strengthening plates are well done, and attach close to the main legs.

With the main construction completed, the superbly clear canopy is added, with a choice of parts for open or closed poses. Additional armoured glass inserts can be added to the sides of the main canopy, although I’d be hard pushed to recommend a way of achieving this without clouding the joint with glue. Perhaps using Klear as a glue may be the way to go? The head-armour and roll-over protection parts attach to the inside of the canopy, as does a single PE grab handle to the port inside edge, while if choosing one of the marking options, a more pronounced frame on the windscreen is made by applying a pair of triangular PE parts to the sides. Again, using Klear as a glue would be recommended here.

The prop is a single part, with the three blades moulded into the central boss, which is covered by the spinner. A PE piano hinge is supplied for the closed wing root gun bay doors, and three louvers are optional parts for the sides of the cowling – although when they would or wouldn’t be used isn’t made clear.

The decals are Czech made and up to Eduard’s usual standards, and from the box, one of four options can be built, with the same basic RLM75/76 upper surfaces and RLM76 on the underside:

• W.Nr.430352 2./JG1, Dortmund Airfield, Germany, Jan 1944 – Black & white cowling, red tail band
  
• W.Nr.340001, Oblt. Waldemar Radener, CO of 7./JG26, Cambrai-Sud Air Base, France, May 1944 – Yellow rudder and extended mottling to the fuselage sides
  
• W.Nr.431007 Heinz Bar, CO of II./JG1, Stormede Air Base, Germany, April 1944 – Spiral spinner, red tail band, extended mottle on fuselage sides and white rudder
  
• W.Nr.642962, Maj. Hans-Gunther Von Kornatzki, CO of Sturmstaffel 1, Salzwedel Air Base, Germany, Feb 1944 – black & white tail band, overpainted appliqué armour on the cockpit sides
  

Decal clarity is good, as is register, and colour density appears good, even on the white crosses and cowling banding. A pair of Swastikas are supplied on the edge of the sheet, with broken versions further in for those territories where their use is frowned upon. The stencil sheet is of the same quality, with every stencil crisp and fully legible.

Conclusion

Eduard have made themselves the master of the 1:48 Fw.190, and this kit is no exception. It bristles with detail, and construction is straight forward for the most part. The addition of the usual Profipack refinements is a godsend, making for an Out of Box build that will really stand out if built with care and patience.

The decal choices all share same basic camouflage, as well as the yellow undersides to their cowlings, but there is enough difference in terms of finish to provide most modellers with an interesting subject from the box. Personally, I’m rather tempted by the black and white striped cowling aircraft on the box art.

Highly recommended.

Review sample courtesy of

[jacksdad]

I recieved my one (so far!!) from Mike & John at MJW last week and its brilliant.

Yes it can bite you on the bum if your not careful, but in 1/48 this is THE kit to get of the 190.

And yes I will be buying more.

Steve

[Julien]

With the main construction completed, the superbly clear canopy is added, with a choice of parts for open or closed poses. Additional armoured glass inserts can be added to the sides of the main canopy, although I’d be hard pushed to recommend a way of achieving this without clouding the joint with glue. Perhaps using Klear as a glue may be the way to go?

Mike, you could clamp the part to the canopy and then run in a little kleer through capillary action. As there is no stress on the parts this should work.

These Eduard 190's look great kits.

Julien

[Basosz]

This looks brilliant. Might just have to get this one to complement the 32nd Hasegawa currently on the bench. I have the Eduard 72nd Hellcat and I keep looking in the box for a bit of mental stimulation. This looks even better and if the Hellcat's price is anything to go by, this will be cheap too!

[Antoine]

Thanks for the review.

Mike, you could clamp the part to the canopy and then run in a little kleer through capillary action. As there is no stress on the parts this should work.

Right, Julien.

Klir (Future) can do the trick, too.

[oldhouse]

Nice choice !! like the Focke Wulf 190 very much !! Peter