Trumpeter | 02416: 1/24 Hawker Hurricane Mk IIC/Trop
Reviewed by Randy Bumgardner
Introduction
Hot on the heels of their earlier release of the Huuricane Mk.I, comes Trumpeter's release of the Mk.IIC/Trop. If you haven't read my previous review of the Mk.I, you may want to refer to it. This kit contains the same basic sprues as the Mk.I release; the only differences being where you would expect them: the wings, the armament, and the propellor and spinner.
"Guns, guns, we need guns..."
Of course, the most noticeable difference is in the wing. Specifically, the part of the wing that is concerned with shooting things. The Mk.IIC was armed with four Hispano-Suiza 20mm cannons. The wings have been modified to depict the correct armament panels on the upper surfaces, and the cartridge chutes on the lower wing surfaces have been changed as well. The leading edge inserts are also added for the 200mm cannons. In addition, because this is the Mk.IIC/Trop version, the Volkes dust filter is included to put the "Trop" in Tropicalized.
The Hispano-Suiza 20mm cannons were drum fed guns, with each drum containing approximately 90 rounds. Trumpeter provides the correct panels for the upper wing to represent the gun bulges due to the ammunition drums.
Trumpeter also provides the modeler with both "flavors" of cannon barrel: the Hispano-Suiza No.1 Mk.I 200mm cannon shown below on the left side of the sprue, and the Hispano-Suiza No.2 Mk.I 20mm cannon shown on the right. The modeler has a choice of which to add as appropriate to the particular airframe they are building.
"Size does matter..."
So, all seems well and good - we've got two new large scale Hurricanes to choose from and they look like gangbusters. When Hawker was designing the Mk.II series, one of their design goals was to improve the Hurricane's performance. Well, one way to do that is get a bigger motor, which Hawker did. They installed the Merlin XX, which was rated at 1280h.p. for takeoff power, and which also needed 100 octane fuel. The other thing the Merlin XX brought to the table was it's size - it's larger than the previous Merlin III. This size difference increased the length of the Hurricane's nose by about 4 inches. Trumpeter managed to include that extra 4 inches in the fuselage length. However, Trumpeter didn't retool new sprues for the engine. In both kits they are the same - which means that you get to put a Merlin III into your Mk.IIC/Trop. On the bright side, if you close up the engine access panels, no one will know...
"Like a brightly colored bird..."
The decals, which are typical offerings from Trumpeter to date, are nicely thin and perfectly in register but are the wrong color. Like their previous release of the Hurricane Mk.I, The reds are too bright, the blues too dark, and the codes are in white. Markings provided are for a 294 Squadron aircraft from 1942 and a 213 Squadron aircraft from 1944.
All in all, it's a great kit. Decals notwithstanding, the fit and detail of the kit is some of the best Trumpeter has done. So, if you want a large scale tropicalized Hurricane, this is the kit for you.
Review copy courtesy of Stevens International.
Additional Images
© Randy Bumgardner 2007
This review was published on Saturday, July 02 2011; Last modified on Wednesday, May 18 2016