Warbirds | Spitfire Universal C Wing
Reviewed by Mark Proulx
Warbirds Productions is a small resin casting company based in the UK. They supply a number of resin aftermarket products for the Hasegawa Spitfire Vb in 1/32nd scale. It is owned and operated by well known Spitfire researcher, Vasko Barbic.
As many of you may be aware, there were four standard wing types used on the Supermarine Spitfire. This is an out of the box review of one of those wings; Warbirds Productions Spitfire Universal "C" Wing, kit No. 3211, in 1/32nd scale.
The kit consists of left and right solid cast resin units and instructions for completing the required changes to the Hasegawa kit. This requires surgery to the single piece wing underside found in the kit, as the outboard sections need to be removed. Careful attention must be given to ensuring the proper 6 degree wing dihedral when reattaching the new wings to the center section.
The replacement wings are finished with very fine scribed surface detail. There were a few pinholes found within my samples, but these should be easy to clean up. The trailing edges appear to be to scale as they are extremely thin, straight, and may be susceptible to damage if the wing is handled incorrectly. The topsides are correctly detailed for the Universal "C" Wing. Leading edge fuel tank panel lines and filler caps are scribed but the instructions have you eliminate this option. Holes will need to be drilled into the leading edge of the wing to accept the armament. Deep recesses surround the ailerons which are molded on the wings, making them easily discernible.
The undersides are virtually a mirror image of the topside, with the same scribing quality. Four shell ejection slots and blisters are molded on to the underside of the wing. The wheel wells are completely detailed with all interior ribs clearly visible. Warbirds uses similar landing gear attachments as Hasegawa. This should make for easy installation of the gear assemblies into the wing.
Radiators, upper wing gun blisters and cannons are not included with this set. These items are included with Vasko's Spitfire Conversion Sets. Additionally, wingtips are not included with the conversion, as there is a choice to be found within the kit.
Trying to make sense of Spitfire wings has always been somewhat problematic. Warbirds Productions Spitfire Wings provide some help as they are highly accurate and well researched. They offer valuable assistance to the modeller who is striving for accuracy in a Spitfire project. Vasko's attention to detail is readily apparent when viewing these resin cast wings. I highly recommend this set and other fine products from Warbird Productions to anyone wanting to modify their Hasegawa Spitfire.
At the time of this review, no website is available.
See our review Of Warbirds Productions Seafire III/XV/XVII Wing.
© Mark Proulx
This review was published on Saturday, July 02 2011; Last modified on Wednesday, May 18 2016