A bit of a latecomer to aerial combat in World War I, French aircraft manufacturer SPAD designed a robust single-gun pursuit with the Model VII in 1916. SPAD followed up in 1917 with the two-gun Model XIII driven by a higher-powered 220 horsepower Hispano-Suiza engine. It is widely considered one of the premier Allied fighters.
Roden’s SPAD XIII kit models the early version with the bigger engine, two-gun armament, and rounded wing tips. The kit has optional windscreens and engine panels that hint at future releases.
Though the kit includes a full engine and cockpit, the moldings aren’t as precise as many new kits, especially for thin, round, mismatched parts. You may want to replace those with styrene rod or tube. Minor imperfections mar some parts, including sink marks on the propeller hub will need to be filled.
The cockpit decking includes instruments with molded needles. What I believe is a fuel filler pipe (Part 26D) is way too tall to fit under the fuselage decking. Cut it in half and test-fit it before gluing it in place.
After filling ejector-pin marks on the under-engine fairing and forward cockpit wall, the cockpit built up into a snug unit. It attached to the lower wing center section, which included internal details. Glue the wingtips first, because they need significant trimming, alignment, filling, and sanding; the same is true for the upper wing.
The engine mounting was imprecise, so I left it off the cockpit assembly until later.
In Step 9, I installed the engine upper side panels, but left off the guns, gunsight, windscreen, and fuel-line fairing until the end of the build. Not called out, parts D12 and D24 are optional unshrouded fuel lines that were often seen on the real thing. No locator holes are present in the upper wing to attach the fuel line, so I removed the mounting pegs. No holes are provided to mount the tubular gunsight; I cut off the pegs and mounted it flush and aligned by eye.
To fit the fuselage sides around the cockpit required careful twisting and bending. I first applied cement to the wing root and allowed it to dry before gluing the lower rear fuselage together. Then I added the cockpit deck assembly. With the lower center section (Part 8C) and lower nose in place, I dropped in the engine, leaving it loose so the propeller shaft could find its own alignment as I added the radiator and cowl.
Be gentle cleaning up the elevator because it is fragile. I finished the rudder and attached it late in the build. Be aware, the decal for the rudder is too narrow.
I painted the airframe’s fabric sections with Tamiya Deck Tan (No. XF-55) , then misted on thin, slightly yellow shade. For the metal panels, I applied Tamiya Dark Yellow (No. XF-60) mixed with a little deck tan.
The decals went down fine, but the white is a bit translucent and the red outer rings on the French roundels have a ghost ring of darker red. After weathering and a flat coat, I installed the inboard struts and fuel-line fairing, which provides a stable platform for adding the remaining struts.
I rigged the biplane with fine EZ Line. Find a good rigging diagram, because the one in the kit ignores the double flying wires and the control and bracing lines on the tailplane. Also ignored are the bracing wires from the front cabane struts to the engine cowling. (These were replaced by actual struts in later SPAD XIIIs). The incomplete diagram is disappointing since the kit includes the molded rigging points.
I assembled the landing gear after painting and rigging was complete. I had to thin the axles and trim the holes in the gear legs as the axles were out of round.
I spent slightly less than 30 hours on Roden’s SPA XIII. Treat it like a short run kit with plenty of planning, test-fitting, and building effort, and you’ll be rewarded with an accurate replica. It is not the easiest of builds and should be approached with caution unless you’re an experienced modeler.