Hi everyone!
Some of you may remember a year or so ago I posted a WIP thread called “Tribute to a Simple Time”, where I tackled the venerable old 1/72 Airfix Albatros DVa from 1957. The aim was a simple and fun build, to rekindle that nostalgic feeling from many years ago when one didn’t really care for accuracy. The WIP thread was here:
https://forum.ww1aircraftmodels.com/index.php?topic=11345.0
Well, I’ve decided that I’ll continue this theme with another Airfix WW1 stalwart, the 1/72 DH4. This kit was first released in 1967 (10 years after the Albatros), making the moulds 54 years old. The kit was only re-released a few times, the last (from what I can tell) being the Vintage Aircraft Special Edition boxing from 1987 (which is the date on my kit's instructions). For whatever reason (sales, probably?), the kit was never re-released in any newer boxings. Here she is in her in-box glory:
So, like the Albatros, I’ll be adding some details but otherwise keeping this build relatively simple. The Airfix kit is typical 1960s fare – minimal cockpit (two seats and two pilots), grossly exaggerated ribs on the flying surfaces, and struts held in place by gates that slot into the upper wing. These will all need attention. That being said, the old Airfix kit still has a couple of nice surprises. The radiator has some nice grille detail, and there are some nice little details on the fuselage exterior here and there.
Most surprisingly though, and unlike most of the Airfix WW1 kits of this era, the DH4 is actually generally accurate in outline. I compared the kit to the plans in the Flying Machine Press Great War Aircraft in Profile #5 “De Havilland Aircraft of World War 1, Volume 1: D.H.1 – D.H.4” by Colin Owers, and all of the major components scale pretty well correctly. The wings are thin in chord by about 1mm, and the tips aren’t quite the right shape, but they have the correct number of ribs. Stabilisers and vertical tail / rudder aren’t too bad either. The fuselage is the right length and depth, cockpits are in the right spots, and the nose, though shallow by about 1mm, is generally good in dimension. The tail is about 1mm too far aft. All of this I can live with.
The cowling shape is set up for a Rolls Royce Eagle engined aircraft, or potentially a US built Liberty DH4, but either option will require adjustments of the cowling louvers (as the kits lovers and fairings aren’t quite right for either aircraft).
In all, the kit will form the basis of a generally accurate DH4, with a few modifications.
Though I am yet to start, and intend on going a bit slow on this build, I am enthusiastic about getting stuck into this one. Wish me luck as I delve into another time capsule…! 😊
Cheers,
BC
