Wingnut Wings | #30006: Fighting Fokkers Part 1
Reviewed by Kevin Futter
By now most modellers will be aware of New Zealand firm Wingnut Wings (WnW) and their magnificent range of World War One kits in 1/32 scale. What is perhaps less known is that they also have a small range of aftermarket decal packages available. This range was extended in fabulous style in late 2012 with the release of not one, but four separate packages for their Fokker D.VII kits. In this review we take a look at 30006: Fighting Fokkers part 1, for the Fokker D.VII (Fok) kit.
The image at the top of the page shows the accompanying four-page booklet, which is presented in the same style as the instruction booklets in their kits. The front cover features profiles of the five markings options included, with each profile doubling as a decal placement guide for the fuselage markings.
The five aircraft covered are:
- Fokker D.VII "MK", Ludwig Reimann, Jasta 78b, Late 1918 (2 victories)
- Fokker D.VII 373/18, Heinrich Piel, Jasta 13b, June 1918 (2 victories)
- Fokker D.VII 382/18, Georg von Hantelmann (25 victories) & Kurt Wüstoff (27 victories), Jasta 15, June 1918
- Fokker D.VII 402/18, Max Holtzem, Jasta 16b, Mid 1918 (2 victories)
- Fokker D.VII 244/18, Lothar von Richthofen (Jasta 11, 40 victories) & Aloys Heldmann (Jasta 10, 15 victories), June-July 1918
The inside and rear pages of the booklet contain the painting and placement guides for the wings and tailplanes of each aircraft, plus some historical notes about each one. Photos of the actual aircraft are included in each case, rounding out a thoughtfully designed and thoroughly researched document that I suspect most people will keep long after the decals have been used.
The decals themselves consist of two sheets, one roughly half the size of the other. The smaller of the two contains mostly national markings and stencils, while the larger one contains the specialised markings for the individual aircraft depicted, as well as some more national markings.
Printing of both sheets is by Cartograph, and they are glossy, crisp and in perfect register. All but the tiniest of the stencils is legible under the appropriate level of magnification. To the naked eye they look a tad thick on the backing paper, but not as thick as, say, Tamiya's kit decals. I for one am sure they'll be fine if applied with the requisite care.
Conclusion
I can do nothing but highly recommend this package to anyone who is looking for something other than the options Wingnut Wings has included in the kit itself. In a sense, they expand those options from five to ten, and given the rampant popularity of these models, that's a very good thing indeed!
Thanks to Wingnut Wings for the review sample.
This review was published on Monday, March 04 2013; Last modified on Wednesday, May 18 2016