Among the great many surprises at
the IPMS Philippines-Bert Anido 40th Anniversary National Competition was a Test
Shot of Trumpeter's 1/32 scale Fairey Swordfish! I was holding my breath for a
Devastator or Helldiver to join their Dauntless and Avenger but I guess the the
British large-scale modellers need their own share as well and what better
aircraft to honor the Royal Navy than the Stringbag! It may have been
anachronistic compared to other torpedo-bombers but it's list of victims include
the Littorio, Conte di Cavour, Caio Duilio and other Italian cruisers and
destroyers (virtually half the Italian Fleet at Taranto Harbour). At least one
German U-boat and destroyer were sunk while seven others were sunk by the HMS
Warspite while being directed by a Swordfish not to mention its participation in
the sinking of the Bismarck, for arguably one of the finest records of any
torpedo bomber that served in World War II.
Here is a sprue-to-sprue description.
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Sprue A: This is a clear casting
and includes the fuselage halves, top decking with the Lewis gun stowage,
bottom decking where the arrestor hook retracts into, radio and what are
probably spare Lewis gun drum magazines. Compared to earlier clear fuselages,
this has a lot less non-scale parts visible in it. There are only a few
alignment lugs which are really indispensable because of the numerous cockpit
parts while providing exquisite surface detail inside and out. Grommets
and cowling fasteners are very finely molded and catenaries line-up perfectly
with the stringers inside the fuselage.
Sprue B: This contains the interplane struts
and it is obvious that every effort has been made to simplify the modelers'
alignment chores. The inner wing struts for example, are molded joined by the
wing root ribs. The outer struts are connected to each other via a wing rib and
though sanding between the struts and the adjacent surface detail might be hard,
the advantages provided by the positive alignment will prove helpful later on
during assembly and rigging. I would recommend attaching these parts to the wing
with a section of the sprue still attached to act as spreaders for the lower
ends of the struts (see photo). Other parts on the sprue include the stub wing
braces with nicely molded fairings, the brackets for bracing the stowed wing
against the tail, tailhook and the torpedo sight bars.
Sprue C: This provides more struts. This time, for
the landing gear, tailplane and cabane structure. Again, to ease alignment,
the tailplane struts are all connected to a small section of the aft fuselage
and the pyramid structure that serves as the center cabane, join in a hefty
box structure that fits in a just- as- hefty box in the wing center section .
To strengthen and align the wing to center section joints, a wing spar is
provided. Other parts make up the wing details like the radio mast, pitot
heads and the flap control hand wheel which the pilot can reach above his
windshield!
Sprue D: This contains a beautifully molded
Pegasus engine replica, its accessories and all intake manifolds. Brackets
that hold the cowling to the engine are here in plastic rather than
photo-etched metal and that should ease assembly besides looking better in
this big scale. The propeller blades' outline might be questionable.
Sprue E: What a great cockpit this is going to be!
Because of the clear fuselage (I guess), Trumpeter has provided a lot more of
the Warren Truss fuselage structure than is visible through the cockpit
openings which opens up the possibilities of fully-rigged controls and open
fuselage covering for those so inclined! On the downside, the Vickers gun is a
poor representation though the Lewis is ok.
Sprue F: This provides the massive upper
wing halves. The catenaries are nicely contoured and rib tapes are simulated
on each rib and false rib position. I just wish that the ailerons and leading
edge slats were moulded separately.
Sprue G: This sprue provides the upper halves of
the lower wings , upper and lower halves of the center section, lower halves
of the horizontal stabilizers, elevator and rudder halves. Surface treatment
is the same as the upper wing and all the control horns are present. They're
somewhat thick but filing them down won't be a problem (besides, had Trumpeter
molded them any thinner, they might not survive in the box) .
Sprue H: This one gives us the bottom surfaces of
the lower wings with cutouts for the landing lights.
Sprue P: Present here are parts for 1
torpedo and its mounting crutches. Though weapon of choice for the Swordfish,
I hope aftermarket manufacturers will provide replicas of 250 lb. Bombs,
depth charges and 60 lb. anti-shipping rocket projectiles, launch rails and
mounting plates.
Sprue K: This is another clear moulding that
provides various windows, lights, the instrument panel and a very thoughtfully
designed windshield which includes a section of the top decking to avoid any
glue smears marring the very clearly moulded front panel.
Sprue L: This small one contains the Townend
exhaust collector ring, oil-cooler and the exhaust tube.
Rubber tires are provided for main and tail wheel
assemblies while a Photo-etched fret provides flying and landing wires, mounting
holes for which are moulded as very fine slots in the wings leading to negative
trapezoidal spaces which will hold the bent ends of the rigging securely.
To all the British Swordfish fans out
there, Let us build these Stringbags so Britania may rule the 1/32 scale
waves once more!
IPMS Philippines- Bert Anido would like to thank
Trumpeter's Yue Gao and Jackson Xiao for hand-carrying the test-shots and
gracing our event.
Greetings from IPMS Philippines Bert Anido
Mel
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