Hasegawa Fw190A-8/R2

[Wumm 959]

Well, the kit's not made of resin itself, but a good portion of the contents will be...

Standard Hasegawa kit, with added Eduard BMW801 radial engine, Eagle Editions Cockpit and wheels, Henri Daehne spinner and propeller set, and possibly some other assorted parts from the Aires D-9 super set. I had always wondered why no-one had bothered with an engine set for this kit, so now I guess we'll see if the Eduard motor will fit (my initial measurements say it will).

Work has commenced with the wing panel inserts for the gun covers, and about a half-hour's worth of rivets in the same area.

[JeroenPeters 3,501]

Liking this already!!

 

Coolest Fw190A version there is.

[James H 2,670]

.....and he's off!

The BMW does fit the Revell kit superbly, as Paolo Portuesi did a build on FB, so I hope all goes well for the Hasegawa.

[Wumm 959]

4 hours ago, James H said:

The BMW does fit the Revell kit superbly, as Paolo Portuesi did a build on FB, so I hope all goes well for the Hasegawa.

Saw that, great build...

The cowl panels will be left open, length-wise at the business end the Hasegawa and Revell kits agree, but there's a millimetre width difference at the top of the firewall... the Hasegawa is slightly wider here and the error runs the length of the fuselage down to the tail. It's hardly noticeable (I've never seen it mentioned elsewhere in the decade or more the kit's been out) but you'll see it if the Eduard cowls are buttoned up on the Hasegawa. 

But still, to put that gorgeous Eduard motor in and close it up would be criminal. 

S

[Wumm 959]

Anyone else hate adding rivets...?

 

So it's on to the resin components. This is the Eduard engine crankcase, removed from it's casting block and with a couple of ancillary parts also added. Painted with an undercoat of Tamiya AS12 spray Silver, it looks very bright at the minute but this will be the base for an overcoat of half Tamiya acrylic Black paint and half Black watercolour pencil mix, which will hopefully buff off to show highlights of Silver underneath. 

 

Shown in the top photo is the equivalent Hasegawa part, and the difference in detail that the resin allows is pretty amazing.

 

S

[Mikester 1,831]

Wow, that is quite a difference.  Kind of make the Hasegawa part look like a blob by comparison!

[James H 2,670]

I'll be taking notes for when it comes my time to build the engine on my 190. You are trailblazing this for us....taking one for the team.  

[Wumm 959]

So, I got ahold of the Aires set No.2039 Wheelbay for Hasegawa kit, expecting it to be a simple drop-in replacement for the kit supplied parts. Once again, lovely detail here; much better than the kit part, and without the hassle of filling the latter's numerous sink holes.

However... once inserted, it becomes clear that the main resin part is short by a couple of millimeters at both ends. I make it 3.33% of the total part length, not sure if this is an acceptable shrinkage percentage but I wouldn't expect so.

Furthermore, it's clear that the mounts for the inner wing MG151's don't line up with the gun positions moulded into the kit wing parts. So if used as-is, either the existing holes will have to be filled with new ones drilled into the wing leading edge, otherwise the gun barrels will splay noticably outwards.

The Aires main part also requires a lot of cleanup on the reverse side, otherwise it won't fit under the top surface of the kit's wings.

Not sure if I'll be using these parts now afterall. Hmmm...

 

 

 

[DocRob 1,242]

Hi Wumm, to my eye that is to much shrinkage for a part specially made for your kit.

It's hard to tell on the pictures, but it seems to me that cutting the wells in the middle and insert some strips of evergreen could solve the problem of the gun alignment and shortage of the resin part (or mayby better two cuts, where the main pour casts are).

Cheers Rob

[Wumm 959]

Yeah, that's what I thought about shrinkage as well Doc. Especially as it doesn't seem proportional across the whole length; only the end sections seem short, because the resin part as moulded follows the curvature of the leading edge section of the kit parts. The cross braces that contain the wheel uplocks are also in the correct place.

I took one of the wheel bay parts from the Aires D-9 set (mentioned in post #1) and placed it against the A series resin bay for comparison. This piece is also 2mm short at the end!

It's not my imagination, the curves of the bay and the braces all line up where they're supposed to... but the part is still short in the same place.

Cutting the bay and adding a 2mm shim adjacent to the mis-alligned gun mount now becomes problematic, as it will affect the curvature of the front of the bay, and won't sit properly in the mating surface between the kit wing halves without further adjustment. 

To my eyes, it appears to have been deliberately made 2mm short at both ends, as this seems consistent with the parts from the D-9 set.

Steve

[Mikester 1,831]

Airies can be so damn frustrating!  Beautiful detail that doesn't fit!

[Wumm 959]

Well kind of Mike...

It does actually fit where it's supposed to, all the mating surfaces line up and make contact inside the lower wing. An acceptable solution would be to add two small window boxes at the strut ends to fill up the see-through blanks, and to fill and re-drill the inner cannon holes so that the gun barrels run parallel to the centreline. 

But not on this build though... as I'm going to be adding the Eduard motor set the top side of the wheel will be well visible, and the amount of resin to be removed is just one last hurdle too many to clear.

The Aires D-9 resin firewall is exact for height according to the position of the kit wheel well. So that's the path I'm following for this build, the Aires bay can go to another kit in the stash.

S

[JeroenPeters 3,501]

Aires... yes. Lovely detail. Fit can be frustrating. 

[Wumm 959]

Added to the various Aires and Eduard sets going into this build, will be the Eagle Editions resin cockpit #EC51-32 specific to this kit. This set includes a resin tub, sidewalls and instrument panels; along with brass etched cockpit rear deck, rudder pedals and seatbelt details

Two seats are provided; one each with moulded-on seatbelts, and one without. For this build I've chosen the moulded-on option.

After a coat of Tamiya fine primer and two coats of Tamiya TS-67 IJN Gray (which is my preferred choice for RLM 66), the seatbelts and cushion were painted in Tamiya acrylics, with the shadows and highlights picked out using Artist's watercolour pencils.

The separate etch and belt approach is probably the more aesthetic option; but once squared away in the cockpit it will only visible through an inch-wide gap, so I'm going to call it fit for purpose.

[Wumm 959]

Speaking of cockpits...

Interior details of the Hasegawa cockpit sidewalls have been removed, to be replaced by resin panels provided in the Eagle Editions cockpit set. At this point I also cut away the instrument coaming section, as the E/E set gives you a replacement cover with the top instrument panel moulded in-situ.

Also gone is the gun deck area forward of the coaming. The Aires D9 set provides a resin alternative that matches up with the details on the firewall. The underside of the kit parts had a ridge that the E/E cockpit tub fits into, so another way of bolstering the tub to the interior will need to be found to ensure the proper alignment.

More to follow as time permits.

[Wumm 959]

Assembly of the Eduard motor has begun tentatively. The cylinders are provided as separate parts, eight each of handed fronts and rears (leaving one spare per bank, as the BMW801 is a 14 cylinder motor) which attach to rectangular pegs on the motor parts. The cylinders themselves have lovely detail, and the correctly offset vents atop the heads for cooling.

Before the cylinders go on, the motor part must be cut from it's pour stub, and once done the assembly pegs won't be seen as they are positioned towards the centre of the motor. The instructions are a little vague about where to remove the cylinders from their pour plugs, but a quick measurement against the pegs will show the correct height. The motor assembles over a telescopic shaft that grows larger from front to rear, so attention must be paid that the cylinders attach to their correct motor parts so that the exhaust ports always face towards the rear.

S

[DocRob 1,242]

Now I'm completely in, as I have the same Brassin engine for my Revell F8. One word of warning by the way, some years ago I built the Brassin P&W 2800 for a Birdcage Corsair and experienced that it is very important to get the cylinders as near to the center engine casing as possible. Even tenth of millimeters are deadly here, if you want to close the cowlings. 

Cheers Rob

[Wumm 959]

Thanks very much for the advice Doc...

I had made quick measurements of the motor, and found that it is a couple of millimetres too small for 1/32 scale (much like the Revell kit's IM motor). It's likely this way to ensure it fits under the cowl, and it's not really noticable because the whole assembly is so busy.

Eduard have provided brass templates for each cylinder bank, with recessed notches for the back of the vent baffles to slot into. This should ensure the correct height for the cylinder heads.

Actually, since I'll be using the Hasegawa wheel well at the rear of the motor, I'm more concerned about the length than the girth. 

 

[Wumm 959]

Once removed from the pour stubs, all of the cylinder heads fit snugly onto their corresponding tabs without the need for any trimming. However cutting the excess resin from the motor part was tedious; and involved a small hacksaw, hobby knife, file and sandpaper to achieve a flush surface. A quick test fitting with all 7 heads of the first bank placed on the brass template, reveals the fidelity of the cast resin parts and the care Eduard have put into the engineering of this set.

After a second test fit, the glueing process begins with the first cylinder allowed to set with the other 6 sitting firmly in their notches in the template. The CA glue is applied sparingly, the part aligned and left to set on a hard, flat surface. As the mating surface is at the rear, care must be taken that excess glue doesn't set to your worktop! For simplification of the alignment process, and ease of painting and weathering, I chose to add the pushrods later. Once the first cylinder sets firm, this process is repeated with the rest, until all 7 are done.

 

[DocRob 1,242]

Thanks for showing and a good idea to include a template by Eduard. Checked my box after you first mentioned it and obviously found the templates too .
Is it just an optical trick, that detail level of the cooling ribs differs on the cylinders. I checked my box and found no differences at all, but noticed that I got 10 front row cylinders (R57) and only 6 (R59) for the backside, not the first issue I had with Brassin stuff. I didn't check if this is a real problem, but will do soon.

Cheers Rob

 

[Wumm 959]

8 hours ago, DocRob said:

...but noticed that I got 10 front row cylinders (R57) and only 6 (R59) for the backside, not the first issue I had with Brassin stuff. I didn't check if this is a real problem, but will do soon.

Unfortunately yes, I think it's going to be a problem.

The cylinders are arranged so that the pushrods and valves point away from the centre of the motor, however the spark plugs always face forwards and the exhausts of course to the rear. So if you attach one meant for the front row to the rear bank using the notch and peg provided, it's going to be skew-wiff.

I would see if you can get a replacement from Eduard. If not, everyone who builds one of these will have one spare, so that's also an option. Or as a last resort, cut off the motor pegs and put the two extra fronts on backwards at the bottom of the rear bank.

[DocRob 1,242]

Thanks Wumm, I will contact Eduard about this and hope for the best.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob 1,242]

I contacted Eduard via email about the missing cylinder and got response within an hour. They promise to send the missing part within 10 days. That's what I call a really good and fast service .

Cheers Rob

[Wumm 959]

That's fantastic customer service there from Eduard.

On 1/7/2019 at 12:05 AM, DocRob said:

Is it just an optical trick, that detail level of the cooling ribs differs on the cylinders.

The baffles atop the cyclinders are handed on the BMW801 C, D, F, Q and T series motors (the M series Bomber motors are different). This is a function of the close nature of the Fighter cowl, and the cooling air generated by the motor fan behind the spinner. Eduard have re-created this detail on their cylinder heads. Note the subtle difference between the front cylinder on the left, when compared to the reversed rear cylinder at right.

The motor fan spins clockwise as viewed by the Pilot, and runs independently of the crankshaft. Cooling air circulates around the inside of the cowl, and pressure from the fan forces it back out through the oil cooler within the nose ring. Counter-intuitively, the later Fw190 motors run cooler while airborne with the exhaust louvers behind the motor closed.

If you use the oil breather pipes on the cyclinders as a level, you can see the difference in height and shape between the vents atop the front and rear banks on this early F600 power egg.