Kittyhawk

Kittyhawk 1/48 Su-35

/ Bruces Scale Models / Leave a comment
  • Built: 2017
  • Aftermarket Used: A.M.U.R Reaver afterburners
  • Decals: Kit

This was another review I completed for The Modelling News
You can read the articles here, which covers construction and finishing of the model

Overall, I enjoyed building the model, and think it ranks as one of kittyhawks better models to date, only let down by the lack of drooped nozzles and being able to make a late version Flanker OOB. Well, that and the normal KH issues like poor instructions and could-be-better moulding . 

Really though, I thought KH might have started to overcome a few of these things by now.  That KH instructions continue to mis number parts or show them incorrectly is incredibly frustrating, and seems to just illustrate (excuse the pun) a lack of listening to customer feedback
  I cant comment on the accuracy, but nothing really glaring stood out to me.
Since I have completed this kit, Great Wall Hobbies have released theirs, and were I ever to do another, this is the kit I would choose, being superior in all facets, but I wont do another as one Su-35 in the cabinet is enough for me.
  This was also the first time I completely painted a model using Mr Color laquers, and I will certainly be using them again.  I have to say, the finished model looks quite striking in the cabinet due to its size and that colour scheme. 

Kittyhawk 1/32 P-39 Bell Airacobra Mk1

/ Bruces Scale Models / Leave a comment

Year Purchased: 2016
Date Completed: 2017
​Aftermarket used
Eduard  Cockpit interior set, and exterior set ,exhausts
HGW Seatbelts RAF eraly style Sutton Harness
Mastercaster early style wheels and fishtail exhausts for Mk1
Master Model  .50in and .303 gun barrels with no flash hider
Maketar Masks  RAF and RAAF airacobra for Special Hobby kit

I have always loved the Airacobra in Royal Air Force markings, so when Kittyhawk announced their kit, thoughts turned to modifying it to represent a Mk 1 Airacobra as briefly used by 601 SQN
Research revealed there weren’t too many visible differences between the kit version and the one I wanted to model.  Fishtail exhausts, wheels, armament and a smaller diameter propeller being the main ones.  Mastercaster did wheels and exhausts for a Mk1.  Although made to fit the Special Hobby kit, they were easily adaptable to the KH kit.  Master of Poland supplied the gun barrels for wings and fuselage, the nose cannon being made from brass tubing.  I had planned to have the nose gun bay open, and had even gone as far as to replace the kit 37mm cannon with a 20mm hispano robbed from a HobbyBoss Spitfire, but in the end was not happy that I had portrayed the interior correctly, so reluctantly glued the panels shut.  The aerial mast was scratchbuilt from plastic strip, and the pitot tube came from a Trumpeter P-47
Overall I found the kit a reasonable build, although there were a couple of areas where fit was less than stellar, the wingroots being the main culprit.  This was due to the recess for the inner walls of the wheelbays not being deep enough.  The problem was solved by fitting the wings to the fuselage minus the wheelwell inner walls.  These were fitted after the wings were glued on.  To enable this, you need to cut the tabs off the wheelwell front and rear walls that the inner walls locate onto.  Do this and you will be rewarded with a join that just needs a smear of filler to hide.  It remains one of my favourite builds.

Bell P-39 Airacobra Mk1 601 SQN. Royal Air Force. Duxford 1941

Back To Top

Kittyhawk 1/48 Super Etendard

/ Bruces Scale Models / Leave a comment
  • Built: 2017
  • Aftermarket Used: Dedicated Eduard PE set
  • Decals: Kit

The Kittyhawk Super Etendard Modernise was another build done for The Modelling News.  

www.themodellingnews.com/2017/01/build-guide-review-pt-ii-bruce-finishes.html#more

The only addition was an Eduard Zoom Set to help the cockpit. It was finished with Gunze paints and the decals from the kit. It went together pretty well with a minimum of filler, however if you are one of those modellers that don’t enjoy the construction phase, Kittyhawk kits aren’t for you.  Just about all the parts need refining with flash and ejector pins needing removing before assembly.  That said, I still enjoyed building this kit.  However should you wish to build an early Argentinian jet used during The Falklands War, you are best getting the Kinetic kit, as that includes the proper bullet fairing on the tail.

 

Hasegawa 1/48 P-40E Kittyhawk

/ Bruces Scale Models / Leave a comment
  • Built:   2016
  •   Ultracast P-40 seat
  •   Ultracast P-40 Block tread wheels
  •   Ultracast P-40 Tubular exhausts

Decals:            Combination of Cutting Edge Pyn Up and Aussie decals

​Hasegawa’s P-40 series seems to be one of those kits modellers either love or hate 
 Flick through any of the fora and you will find modellers that rate it as a horrible fitting kit through to other modellers that have had no fit problems at all.  It does require care in assembly – like any kit – but I found mine went together reasonably well with only a small amount of iller needed around the gun ports and fuselage.  To be honest, I found the Cutting Edge decals a real disappointment, thick and reluctant to conform to recessed details.  The nose art decals, although very thin, were not sharply printed.  I dare say though printing technology has improved since these decals were first released.

Curtiss P-40 E-CE Kittyhawk