1/48 Eduard Focke Wulf

Fw 190A-8

by Rafi Ben-Shahar

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Being a Wurger Bird fan and having read the glorifying reviews, I was quick to purchase the new 1/48 Eduard offering.  Although the final result is pleasing, building the kit was a far cry from my usual enjoyment that I get out of the ubiquitous Dragon kit.  While the surface detail is fine and the fit between the wings and fuselage is good, the rest can easily turn into a nightmare.  The biggest mistake that I made was to try and materialize the supposedly potential of the model by fully exposing the engine.  As it turned out, the engine details resemble more the old Arii kits than showing the fruits of modern plastic injection technology.  The upper gun area is also sparsely detailed although the cowling is supposed to be left in the open position.  In addition, the fit between parts around the bulkhead is incredibly tight and you would probably need to GLUE the parts and dismantle your carefully prepared array repeatedly until you get it right.  Finally, it seems that the fin base is too thick and the position of the nicely detailed wheel bay is probably slightly off the mark.  I do not think that Tamiya and Dragon got these elements wrong.

Click on images below to see larger images

  

  

In conclusion, if you already bought the Eduard kit, your best approach would be to fondle the box and gaze at the nicely engraved panel lines and rivets.  This kit is purely for Wurger Bird nuts who crave for building challenges.  Bottom line, the Fw 190 variants have been successful modeling subjects thanks to the incredible diversity in camouflage patterns and field adaptations, but not because of the building experience. The Eduard kit is very effective in demonstrating the notion.

Rafi 

Photos and text © by Rafi Ben-Shahar