MODELING THE HAWKER HURRICANE, by Brian Baker

MODELING THE HAWKER HURRICANE IN 1/72 SCALE

The Hawker Hurricane was one of the most famous fighter aircraft every developed, and although eclipsed by its stablemate, the Supermarine Spitfire, it earned its fame during the Battle of Britain, and carried on after 1940 in a variety of roles, including fighter, close support aircraft using both bombs and rockets, and reconnaissance. In addition to its use by the Royal Air Force and Navy, the type was exported to Belgium, Turkey, Poland, Finland, Portugal, Iran, India, Ireland, the Netherlands East Indies, Romania, France, Yugoslavia, Egypt, and the Soviet Union. Captured examples were flown by the Italians, Germans, and Japanese. They were even flown in U.S. markings by the Royal Navy during the North African “Torch” landings in 1942. For a detailed history of the type, refer to one of the many sources of information available listed below.

SOURCE MATERIAL

The history of the Hurricane has been related in numerous publications over the years. Some of the publications I have are as follows:

Caruna, Richard J. Hawker Hurricane. Athens, Greece: Periscopo Publications, 2008. Excellent coverage, interior photos and color, plus 1/72 scale drawings. Paperback.

Mason, Francis K. The Hawker Hurricane Described. Kookaburra Publications. Dandenong, Australia: Date unknown, but probably mid sixties. Paperback . brief but lots of information and photos.

Camouflage and Markings. Hawker Hurricane, RAF Northern Europe, 1936-45. London: Dulcimus Books, Date unknown. Series deals mainly with markings. Good information.

Shores, Christopher, and Richard Ward. Hawker Hurricane Mk. I/IV in Royal Air Force and Foreign Service. London: Osprey-Arco Publishing Co. 1971. Lots of color and text. Many good photos.

Mason, Francis K. The Hawker Hurricane I. Surrey, England: Profile Publications, early sixties. Standard Profile pamphlet with text, color, and photos. Dated but still useful.

Mason, Francis K. The Hawker Hurricane IIC. Surrey, England: Profile Publications, early sixties. As above for MK. IIC version.

Moyes, Phillip J.R. Hawker Hurricane I. Oxford, England: Aerodata International, 1978. Good photos and 1/72 scale drawings. Lots of color and technical data.

Scutts, Jerry. Hurricane in Action. Aircraft No. 72. Carrollton, TX: Squadron/Signal Publications, 1986. Standard “In Action” publication, with good photos, drawings, color, and technical details. Very useful for modelers.

MacKay, Ron. Hurricane. Walk Around Number 14. Carrollton, TX: Squadron/Signal Publications, 1998. Many good interior and detail photos, many in color. Some of the color photos are of restored warbirds, while others were taken during the war. Very useful.

There are many other books and on-line sites that have useful information about the Hurricane, so it is not a problem obtaining documentation on this aircraft. A few specific bits of information might be hard to find, but, on the whole, the plane is well recorded in history.

INTRODUCTION

This series will cover the 1/72 scale Hawker Hurricane kits that have appeared over the years. From the late thirties, when the Frog Penguin series of plastic kits was produced, a plastic model of the Hurricane has always been available if you knew where to look. During World War II, black plastic identification models of the Hurricane were produced by the British and Americans, and no doubt the Germans also. These were used for recognition training, and were reasonably accurate. In fact, it was the recognition model that formed the basis for the upsurge in a/72 scale modeling that occurred after the war, as plans were available for these models, and many of us got our start using military produced drawings and templates to make accurate wooden models before the large scale availability of plastic kits.

The Frog Penguin kits, numbered 48P and 048P, were produced at the beginning of the war. Many of these went straight to the RAF, where they were used for training. In the U.S., a number of companies manufactured black plastic identification models for the same purpose, and these were to be found at military bases throughout the world. A Navy program allowed high school woodworking students to make wooden scale models from Navy- supplied plans and templates, and these were also painted black and shipped off to military installations. It gave the kids a chance to be involved in the war effort, and produced a lot of air-minded kids.

Postwar, until about 1950, Frog produced the Penguin series of kits. These were phased out, and shortly thereafter, the plastic modeling boom began. Frog produced a Hurricane Mk. IIC (F171, F188, and F188F) while Airfix, a new competitor, began producing a Hurricane IV RP, which was surprisingly accurate for its day. The rivet detail was overdone, as was the custom of the day, and the surface detail would make an aerodynamicist shudder and the drag it would have produced on the areal airplane.

In the early sixties, Revell, got into the act, producing a series of World War I and II aircraft which included a Hurricane I. This kit had some accuracy issues, but for its day, it was state-of-the-art. It was still available up until about 1990, but serious modelers would not consider it by then, as much better kits were available.

Meanwhile, overseas, a number of new companies were producing kits. Keilkraft, a British firm, produced only two aircraft kits in 1/72 scale, a Sopwith Camel and a Hurricane. Although the plans state that they give credit to Hawker Aircraft for supplying information for the kit, there is minimal detail and some dimensional errors. I bought one years ago, but have never built it. Another firm, Aoshima, produced a 1/782 scale Hurricane in the middle sixties. I recall seeing the kit years ago and was not impressed enough to buy it.

In the early seventies, the British firm Matchbox introduced a series of 1/72 scale plastic kits. They produced some excellent kits for the time, some of which are still good today. Their Hawker Fury biplane was a little gem, as were the Siskin and Fairey Seafox. Their Hurricane, a Mk. II with parts for a Mk.IID version, was not quite as good. The panel lines were very much overdone, as was the surface detail, and the interior was pretty bare. However, it looked like a Hurricane, and that is the point.

In the late seventies, the French Firm Heller, which had previously concentrated on French aircraft, began branching out with such types as the Gladiator, Tempest, Spitfire, and Hurricane Mk. IIC. It was a good kit at the time, and still can be made into a nice model. It has been reissued many times, and may still be available. The Polish firm Smer has reissued it in recent years. Another firm, Sanwa-Tokyo Plamo, issued a Hurricane IIC kit about this time, but I have no information on it. It might be a rebox of another kit.

In the late eighties, Hasegawa’s first Hurricanes were issued. Their kit was excellently done, with realistic detail and accurate outlines. Over the years, they have reissued the kit with different parts and new decals at least eight times, with both Mk. I and Mk. II types represented. They are still state-of –the-art today, although aftermarket parts have become available for them. These are still available from on-line dealers and from local hobby shops in a variety of versions and markings.

The first genuinely different kit came from Sword, who produced a pretty decent kit of a fabric-wing Mk. I with the two bladed Watts propeller. This appeared in the late nineties, and is probably still available. About the same time, Revell-Germany issued a series of new Hurricane kits, replacing the outdated 1960’s kit, and these kits depicted the Mk. IIB and the Sea Hurricane Mk. IIC.

A Czech firm, Omega Models, has produced a fairly extensive line of resin kits. I have not seen their Hurricane kits, but I have the LWF V biplane resin kit, and it looks pretty good. Omega currently produces no less than nine different variations of the Hurricane, mostly unbuilt projects or types built in prototype form only. Some of these would have been extensive conversions if done from scratch. I have not seen any of these, so I cannot comment on their accuracy, but they apparently are complete kits, not merely add-on conversions. Any help on these would be appreciated.

A recent arrival in the Hurricane stable is the Korean Academy kit of the Mk. IIC. This kit is copyrighted 1997, and has a considerably amount of detail. And finally, the Chinese Hobby Boss Hurricane IIC has appeared, marketed by Squadron. It again is a MK. IIC, and is dated 2005. It is a quick-build kit, and makes up into a credible Mk. IIC.

DOCUMENTATION

Please keep in mind that most reviewers check a kit’s outline for “accuracy” by referring to specific sets of drawings in that particular scale. There is certainly no shortage of drawings of the Hurricane in any scale, and some of them differ. Therefore, I have not made any value judgments concerning accuracy in outline unless the problem is very obvious. To say that a kit is inaccurate because it doesn’t conform to the particular set of drawings I happen to be looking at would be patently unfair. If the kit “looks” like a Hurricane, that is enough. I’ve seen a couple in the flesh, and have a pretty good idea what they look like.

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FROG PENGUIN KITS

These kits are extremely rare today, and are most prized for their historic value. By 1939, Frog had produced a Hurricane Mk. 1. By 1941, production of plastic models for the civilian market had ceased, but Frog continued manufacturing identification models for the armed forces. Frog continued to advertise their models in wartime periodicals, but the 1942 issue of “Aircraft of the Fighting Powers”, which provided data and 1/72 scale three view drawings of contemporary aircraft, did not include a Frog advertisement. These kits were numbered 48P and 048P. Possibly, the 048P were postwar kits.

After the war, Frog resumed production of the Penguin series, and presumably the Hurricane, but discontinued the series in the late forties, only to reintroduce 1/72 scale model production in the early fifties. New molds were used for these kits.

RECOGNITION MODELS

During the war, various American firms produced 1/72 scale black plastic recognition models for the military. In addition, high schools were given packets of information, consisting of three view drawings and templates on manila-type card. These were intended for students in woodworking classes to construct accurate wooden models of the various types of military aircraft. The models were painted black and distributed to military bases, and were used for recognition training. They were in all respects identical to the black plastic models being produced. A copy of the template for the Hurricane is included.

THE FROG HURRICANE MK. II

The Frog Hurricane was produced from the mid fifties up until at least the eighties, and has appeared under the labels of AMT, Bienengraber, Dutch master, Farmtex, Hema, Humbrol, Intech, Lotnia, Minicraft, Minix, Novo, Novoexport, Remus, Roly Toys, and Tashigrushka in addition to the Frog label. Coded DF171, F188, and F188F, the model was a Mk. IIC, and included bomb racks and underwing rocket racks for the RP version. The example I have is part of an AMT “Famous Fighters Series” of three models in one box, including Frog’s Fokker D.XXI and Macchi C.202. These were marketed in the U.S. in the sixties and seventies. There are subdued but raised panel lines, and all control surfaces are separate. In its day, it was considered to be a pretty good kit, but today, it is, of course, obsolete. My example was built in the late sixties, and I keep it only to show how much better things have progressed over the years.

THE AIRFIX HURRICANE MK. IV RP (OLD MOLD)

This was Airfix’s first Hurricane kit, originally numbered 92, but subsequently issued as 02042, 272, 903044, and 903182. The numbers on my example are Code No. 02042-0, and Cat. No. 272. It was a Series 2 kit, which was a price range. Although the Box says Hurricane Mk. IV RP, the instructions say that a Mk. I, Mk. IIB or a Mk. IV can be built. Decals are provided for three aircraft: RF-C, a Battle of Britain Mk. I of No. 303 Squadron; AE-K, and AE-K, a Mk. IIB of No. 402 Squadron; and FJ-C, a Mk. IV RP of a squadron not identified but from the colors, apparently based in England. The kit is reasonably accurate considering its age, but the fuselage and nose shape are definitely a Mk. II or later version. Rivets and surface details are overdone, and there is no real cockpit or wheel well detail. This kit is also obsolete. Airfix did not date its products at the time, so it is impossible to state precisely when the kit was first produced, but my guess would be late fifties through mid sixties. Strangely enough, the kit is still available, and is listed in Squadron’s current catalog as a Mk. I/II.

THE AIRFIX HURRICANE MK. I (NEW MOLD)

Airfix produced new molds for their Hurricane kit in 1978, although the Humbrol version that I have is copyrighted 1986, and it was coded 02067 and possibly other numbers. It was now a Mk. I, with much better surface detail although still lacking in cockpit interior and wheel well detail. It has the Rotol prop, which appears to be quite accurate, and can be used to do any of the earlier versions except the fabric wing model. An aftermarket producer, Guano, produced a two bladed Watts prop for this kit, and I believe that some early metal wing aircraft had this prop, although most had either the thin bladed DeHavilland prop or the wider chord Rotol. This kit has rudimentary cockpit detail in a seat and an instrument panel, but has subdued but raised panel lines and raised rivets. It is still available from some sources, and can still be made up into an acceptable model. Besides, it is very inexpensive compared to more modern issues.

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