Kit: No. 04387
Scale: 1/72
Manufacturer: Revell Germany, www.revell.de
Price: $35.35
Comments: Injection molded, 248 parts, decals for four German aircraft
Pros: Excellent molding and fit; detailed interior and engines; optional parts
Cons: Vague instructions about use of optional parts; conflicting painting directions
Revell Germany’s new Fw 200 has 248 parts molded in light gray and clear plastic. Finely engraved panel lines detail the external surfaces, with nice representation of the fabric panels found on the Condor’s outer wings and control surfaces. Interior detail is included for the flight deck, radio and navigator’s positions, and the waist-gun positions.
The kit depicts late-war versions of the Fw 200, including two Henschel Hs 293 guided missiles and their mounting equipment. Unused parts, including bomb racks and bombs, hint that other versions may be forthcoming. The 14-page, 58-step instruction sheet has exploded-view drawings and paint callouts.
There are two complete sets of clear parts. Note: although both sets bear the same numbers, the ventral gondola differs between the two. These parts are well molded and easy to mask.
Markings denote four Luftwaffe aircraft – three from Kampfgeschwader 40, the fourth in delivery markings. As usual for Revell Germany and other European kits, the decals do not include swastikas.
Parts fit well throughout, but the instructions are confusing in places, indicating alternate parts but not specifying which parts go with which aircraft. Good references are essential.
The interior almost seemed to fall together. Decals are provided for the control panels, but I chose to paint and drybrush the nicely molded detail. The seats have molded-on seat belts. The fuselage windows attach from the inside, complicating masking and painting.
The fuselage closed easily around the completed interior, requiring just a dab of super glue to make the seam disappear. The positions for the front turret and the rear gunner are separate inserts, providing the option of leaving them loose to show off the interior details. I deviated from the instructions here, gluing the interior parts for the weapons stations into place but leaving the guns and glass off for easier painting. The inserts needed filing to fit.
The ventral gondola is molded in clear plastic, with separate front and rear sections as well as inserts for the bomb bay; I left the rear gun off, masking and painting it separately to ease painting. These parts fit well on the fuselage; I used super glue to fair them (as well as the cockpit windows) into the airframe. All four variants of the aircraft accounted for in the kit carry the distinctive high-top front turret.
The wings went together well, but a couple of the extensions for the engines needed sanding to match up – the biggest fit problem on the entire model.
The engines are masterfully engineered. Each comprises nine parts and includes open cowl-flap detail with the option of open panels. I could have used an extra hand gluing the engines. But once they’re together, they’re solid.
The four-part Hs 293 missiles fit well and include antennas among other details.
Revell’s painting directions call for RLM 72 and 73 upper surfaces over RLM 76. My references showed maritime aircraft carried RLM 65 undersides; I went with that, using Model Master Acryl.
With painting complete, I attached the final parts, including props, missiles, turrets, landing gear, and the nose-mounted Hohentwiel radar antennae. Like the engines, the landing gear is fiddly – seven parts in each leg, not including wheels – but so well engineered it goes together perfectly, touching down with all four wheels the first time. The radar antennae are over-scale but demand dexterity.
The finished model captures the look of the Fw 200 in correct scale – the length is dead-on, while the span is only a couple scale inches short.
It took me about 35 hours to build my Condor – slightly longer than normal due to the complexity of some of the steps and the complicated masking and painting involved. Nevertheless, this was one of the most enjoyable models I’ve built recently. The few challenges are easily overcome, and the quality of the engineering and the finished model is outstanding.
– Aaron Skinner