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FLYING KIWIS 1:72 F4U-1 CORSAIR |
Reviewer:
Peter Hobbins (rec.models.scale)
Kit Review submitted:
29 January 2003
As a young lad in the 1970s, I remember a wonderful TV program called “Baa Baa Black Sheep”, based on the life of ‘Pappy’ Boyington and his squadron of ‘black sheep’. The stars of the show were these strange bent-winged planes that I later learned were Corsairs, and of course I had to have a model of one (I think it was the Frog kit that I scored – thanks Dad!) Most modellers will know about the F4U Corsair and its protracted development prior to becoming a war-winner, but perhaps not everyone knows that the Royal New Zealand Air Force also operated several squadrons of Corsairs during WWII. These were mainly used in the ground support role during the Pacific island-hopping campaign (often working in conjunction with target-spotting CAC Boomerangs), and being a long way from servicing centres tended to get very dirty and battered. Most were retired after the war, but one squadron went to Japan as part of the British Commonwealth Occupation Forces while some soldiered on in New Zealand for a few years before being replaced by P-51D Mustangs.
Flying Kiwis is a small NZ-based concern who make RNZAF decal sheets, with a byline in repackaging older mould kits with said decals. These are really only intended for domestic sale as the packaging consists of a plastic bag with a header card for hanging on a rack. In this case the bag contained the sprues for the old Hasegawa F4U-1, plus a vivid green instruction sheet and a set of Kiwi decals. The whole lot retails for about NZ$10 (i.e. about US$5) which is quite good value.
Being the old Hasegawa kit, the parts are moulded in medium grey plastic with raised panel lines. The one-piece canopy is nice and clear, but not bagged separately. The instructions are pretty basic, but this is fine as it’s a simple kit. Colours in the Tamiya range – or mixtures thereof – are given; I believe this is based on the limited availability of other paint ranges in NZ. The decal sheet contains markings for one machine, but this is not the one listed on the instruction sheet – my issue had an inserted slip to show the revised markings.
I decided to build this kit ‘out of the box’ as a nice break from more complicated projects, and it’s perfectly suited to this. The quality of Hasegawa’s mouldings and engineering – even for an old kit – is superb, with many parts actually ‘clicking’ into place. It was hard to avoid removing the raised panel lines, but I forced myself to live with them and they really don’t look that bad.
The cockpit is straightforward, with a few decals for the instrument panels and consoles; very little of it is seen once the canopy is in place anyways. However, I would recommend painting the inside of the lower wing as it may be visible through the canopy – there is no bulkhead forward of the instrument panel. The engine also goes together easily; in fact, one of the few things I changed was to thin down the cowl flaps to something a bit more scale.
The wings are moulded as a single lower piece – which helps keep the all-important angles correct – and have wheel wells moulded integrally. The upper halves contain the flaps and ailerons, which leaves nice thin trailing edges but does make for a tricky join line on account of the raised lines and various flap guide rails, etc. Probably the most work I had to spend on this kit was filling and smoothing the gap at the wing tips where the wing halves joined – hardly a major problem! The undercart slots into place and the doors attach nicely, although as with any Corsair kit those thin tailwheel doors are a bit fiddly to get in place.
The wings mate to the fuselage very neatly – just a tad of scraping to get it perfect – and the tailplanes literally slot in and barely need glue. Likewise the canopy literally clicks in – in fact, it’s hard to get out again so be sure you’re ready to glue it in place before testing it!
The only modifications required for a RNZAF aircraft – as spelled out in the instructions – are to remove the tailhook (these birds never landed on carriers) and fill in the step cutout on the starboard inner wing. Some strands of dental floss were used for the aerial wires – the only part of the kit not out of the box!
RNZAF Corsairs were delivered in standard US Navy colours (usually three-tone blue/white), but were often repainted when they finally made it back for a major service. Various schemes then began appearing, some using the elusive colour known variously and unofficially as ‘Pacific blue’ or ‘ocean blue’. This hue seems to be based on a tint of RAF PRU blue but its exact shade is hard to determine. I mixed a batch of paint by eye – referring to a restored Corsair that flew for a while in an ocean blue/white scheme – but don’t feel I captured the murky greyness properly. I then faded the life out of it to resemble a hard-working F4U and give it some character – an important consideration when no extra details have been added to the model.
© Peter Hobbins 2003
The decals settled pretty well, although I tore one as they are very thin. The colours look right and the white is opaque enough to cover blue; the only spot I needed to touch up was the very edges of the thin yellow ring around the fuselage roundel. After decalling and a clear coat, more weathering was added and the kit was done.
This is an inexpensive kit which builds up easily into one of the more obscure Corsairs you’ll see. With absolutely minor exceptions it goes together beautifully and can be a sanity saver when it seems all one ever does is putty, saw, scrape and sand on more complicated projects. Availability is likely to be the major obstacle; I scored mine in a swap with a kiwi mate (thanks Meece!), but some of the online NZ hobby stores also stock this range. Get one if you can!
© Peter Hobbins 2003
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Italeri 1/72 F4U-5N Corsair (Mark B) : (John Lacey)
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