Kit: No. 8131
Scale: 1/48
Manufacturer: Eduard Model Accessories, 420 476118668 www.eduard.cz
Price: $39.95
Comments: Multimedia, 194 parts (84 injection-molded, 110 photoetched metal), precut masks, decals
Pros: Excellent moldings and photoetched parts, separate fuselage halves for two versions, excellent instructions, good decals
Cons: Aligning cabane struts, unexplained flecks in decals
The Fokker D.VII was considered by many to be the best fighter aircraft of World War I. It has been produced in 1/48 scale a number of times, and now Eduard has joined in with the mid- and late-production OAW (Ostdeutsch Albatros Werke) versions and their colorful marking schemes.
This kit represents a departure for Eduard – producing a single kit of this version, rather than both a standard kit and a ProfiPack kit with bonus photoetched parts. This one has everything. Perhaps the most impressive item in the package is the 24-page, glossy, color instruction manual. It gives excellent computer- generated assembly views and drawings of the cockpit interior. The four marking schemes represented on the rdecals are shown in color four-views with rsketches and short bios of the pilots.
The plastic parts are crisply molded with good detail and minimal mold parting rlines. Eduard supplies separate fuselage halves for the two versions, as well as the different radiators. Control surfaces are separate, both wings are halved, and the struts are accurately thin. The photoetched metal fret is textured and colored where needed. Seat belts, perforated machine-gun jackets, instruments with attached bezels, a wood-grain instrument panel, and a host of other details are included.
Six separate decal sheets provide top and bottom four-color lozenge decals with the choice of blue or pink rib tapes. Lozenge decals are even given for the fuselage’s interior. The new yellow-tape masks are supplied for wheel panels and tail margins. Marking schemes include Jasta 23 and Jasta 13 late-production machines, and Jasta 35b and Jasta 58 mid-production machines.
The highly detailed interior is easy to build because of excellent instructions and fit. The stitching down the center bottom of the fuselage is cleverly represented by a plastic-strip insert. I primed the assembled wings (minus ailerons), stabilizer, and fuselage with Polly Scale neutral gray before applying all the lozenge decals, which went on well. The tedious part of this project is applying all the rib-tape decals. No setting solutions were needed, and I waited 24 hours for the lozenge to dry before applying the tape decals.
The one-piece white fuselage decal with the red-spoked wheel fit well on the fuselage but the wheel was tipped, so I applied the alternate wheel decals. A slight flecking on the lozenge decals is curious. Was this supposed to represent a real feature of the printed fabric, or was it a problem with the decal printing?
It is better to delay installing the exhaust stack until the nose is painted. I had to fashion masks and paint the mauve-and-green lozenge pattern on the nose.
I built all the subassemblies, then made a foam-core jig to ease final assembly. The interplane struts were added first, followed by the cabanes. I found the front cabane tripods hit the upper wing about 1mm lateral to the designated points. Before adding the upper wing, I reamed out the lower sockets for the rear cabanes. I used fine brass wire for the control cables and stainless steel wire to brace the landing gear.
The model is right on compared with Windsock Data Profile drawings. I spent about 40 hours on the model. Experienced builders will enjoy the project, but it might be a little too complicated for beginners. It’s hard to fault Eduard’s kit, and it’s certainly the best D.VII in any scale. The accuracy, fit, features, and that terrific instruction booklet make it worth every minute and every penny.
– Dr. Bill Funcke