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
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