ITALERI (MPM/SPECIAL HOBBY) 1:72 LOCKHEED HUDSON MK.IV/V
'INBOX Review'

 

Reviewer: Johan De Wolf (rec.models.scale)   

Kit Details

History

If there is one unsung hero for the battle of the Atlantic it must be the Hudson. 

It started life as the Lockheed model 14 super Electra airliner, but was militarised to meet requirements by the British for an emergency coastal patrol/reconnaissance aircraft to replace the woefully inadequate Avro Anson. The first Hudsons were underpowered and had difficulty getting airborne with a full fuel and weapons load. Despite this fact they gave sterling service throughout WW II, flying long range patrols over the Atlantic. Later models powered by the more powerful Twin Wasp were less tricky to fly. 

Having entered service in 1939 the Hudson was the first RAF aircraft to shoot down a Luftwaffe machine (a Do-18) in WW II. Yes that’s right...  it was a mere Hudson that drew first blood, not a Spitfire or Hurricane!. The Hudson was also the first aircraft to sink a U-boat with rockets. Although best known for its sea patrols the Hudson was also used for agent dropping and spy missions over occupied Europe. The Hudson was used only in limited numbers by the USAAF (A28/29) and USN (PBO-1), but for both services became the first aircraft to sink a submarine. 

The Hudson saw widespread use with the RCAF, RAAF, RNZAF too and almost 3000 where built. At the end of the war Hudsons had been credited with 25 sunk U-boats. Not bad for what was basically a bombed up airliner.

The Kit

It has been a long wait but here it finally is: the MPM Hudson. Yes you read it right this is an MPM kit in an Italeri box. It will build into an Mk.IV or V. It contains all the parts for the earlier versions too except for the cowlings. So if you want to do an Mk.I or II you will need to buy the MPM box (#72518). It is said that MPM is planning to do 7 different boxings catering for all the versions and users of the Hudson. I doubt if any other versions will appear in an Italeri box though. 

So what is in the box?... There is only one bag with 3 big and 2 smaller sprues in light grey plastic, and one in crystal clear plastic (please please please Italeri pack the clear parts separately!!). It’s the harder MPM plastic rather than the soft Italeri kind. There for the details are fine and crisp. Still there is a little flash here and there and some parts show sink marks, also there are some ejector pin marks on the inside of the fuselage. The decal sheet by Zanchetti is sharply printed and in register. As usual they are rather matt and could be prone to silvering. The large instruction sheet offers a short history, a parts location diagram, 9 clear construction drawings and 5 complete colour schemes.

Accuracy

Span and length are both within an mm of the true figure. Surface detail looks to be very accurate. The model looks every bit as plump as the original, and the dorsal turret has also been captured very well. The only criticism I have is on the carburetor intake. It is correct for a Mk.IV but for a Mk.V it is too short.  For a Mk.V it should be about 1.5mm longer towards the front.

Construction 

The instructions for the interior have been divided over 9 sub diagrams, and this already indicates the amount of detail that will go into it. In total 42 parts, excluding cabin windows and turret, will be used. I would have liked to see long range fuel tanks for the main cabin as well but I guess that will be something the aftermarket will have to provide. 

The fuselage door is molded closed but a separate door has been provided should you wish to cut it out and position it open. Fuselage windows are supplied as separate items. They don’t have a rim and there a no notches on the fuselage walls to hold them, so I guess it will be a tricky job to get them to sit right. It is probably best to install them before closing the fuselage even though it will complicate painting. 

The wheel wells are boxed in by a front bulkhead/ceiling. Detailing is sufficient as nothing much can be seen through the narrow opening. According to the drawings the main gear legs must be installed before joining the wing halves. This increases the chance of damage. Looking at the parts I think it must be possible to install them at a later stage. 

The wings are butt joined to the fuselage, but the correct angle is guaranteed by a short spar. In fact most parts are without locating pins, but as fit is very good I don’t find this to be a problem. Engines + cowlings consist of about 10 parts each, again nicely detailed for this scale. The main landing gear is made up of 7 parts per unit and looks very nice. 

Finally the transparencies, turret and a host of external details are added. Oddly enough there are lenses for the landing lights on the clear sprue, but they are not mentioned anywhere in the instructions and their position on the wing is indicated by an engraved circle. However it’s easy enough to drill out this circle and place the lens instead.

Painting and Decals

Throughout construction painting details given. Colours are given in general terms, and of, course Modell Master numbers. Five 4-view drawings give the complete camouflage schemes for the decaling options. These options are:

-          An Mk.V of 500 sqn RAF Coastal Command ‘43/’44 in dark sea grey/dark slate grey over white (Z, AM741).

-          An Mk.V RCAF Coastal Command April ’43 in dark sea grey/dark slate grey over sky type S (RR-B, AM679).

-          An Mk.IV RAAF #1 sqn, Malaysia ’41 in dark green/dark earth over aluminium (US-K, A-16-25).

-          An Mk.IV RAAF #6 sqn, Milne Bay ’43 in dark green/dark earth over medium sea grey (FX-F, A16-123).

-          An Mk.V RAF 48 sqn Coastal Command ’41 in dark green/ocean grey over medium sea grey (OY-X, AM667).

Conclusion

It has been a long wait, but it has been worth it. We finally have an accurate and up to date kit of the Hudson that will build, with little effort, into a great replica. The old Airfix kit can now safely be left to the kit collectors.  If you are not particular to a specific Hudson version, go for the Italeri box. Besides the Mk.I/II cowlings and the decals the MPM box holds exactly the same as the Italeri kit (no extra resin or etched parts) but it is over 10 euro more expensive!  I think it is safe to assume that besides the Mk.I/II MPM will also release a kit for the Model 14 super Electra, the A-28 and A-29.

References

 

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