Kit Review- Special Hobby 1/72 Kittyhawk Mk.III (Long Fuselage P-40K)

[Dave W]

Special Hobby 1/72 Kittyhawk Mk.III (Long Fuselage P-40K)



Reviewed by Zac Yates

Scale: 1/72
Item #: SH 72380              
Price: €16.90 direct from Special Hobby. https://www.specialhobby.eu/en/our-own-production/special-hobby/kittyhawk-mk-iii-p-40-k-long-fuselage-1-72.html?cur=1

Also available through quality hobby retailers worldwide.

Contents: three grey and one clear sprues; four decal options.

Background:
The Curtiss P-40 series – known as Warhawk to the United States and in the Commonwealth forces as the Tomahawk (P-40B and C, distinctive by their long “shark” noses) and Kittyhawk (D-N models) - was a development of the radial engined P-36/Hawk 75 using the Allison V-1710 V12 engine (the P-40F and L variants used the Packard Merlin).
Although never in the same league as contemporaries like the Spitfire or later P-51D due to its lack of a two-speed supercharger, limiting it to lower altitude operations, the P-40 series more than held its own against Axis aircraft in North Africa, the Pacific and the Russian front. Wikipedia states more than 200 Allied pilots became aces on the type and at least twenty became “double aces” while flying the P-40.

Special Hobby’s model
Upon receiving this kit for review I realised I had built the same model last year after my wife got it for me as a birthday present! So I’m in the happy position of being able to add my own thoughts on how it goes together, rather than simply relaying what it looks like in the box.

All sprues and the decals come in a bag, the decals in their own similarly-sealed bag and the clear sprue thoughtfully placed in a zip-lock bag. The glossy instructions covering 12 steps are mostly black and white, aside from showing the colours interior parts should be painted (all colour callouts are for the Gunze brand). The Parts List helpfully shows which parts are not to be used for this kit, such as different propellers, exhaust stacks, wheel and seat options – all good fodder for one’s spares box.





The surface detail is very nice on all parts with recessed panel lines and very delicate recessed rivets in some places, however the fabric-covered control surfaces have somewhat stark raised detail to represent tapes but the effect is lessened if one brush-paints. The rudder is moulded separately and the vertical stabiliser is moulded to the port fuselage half – this join is along a panel line but from experience I can advise there will be an awkward-to-fill gap along the root. The elevators are moulded as one piece with their respective horizontal stabilisers.




The cockpit is handsomely equipped with decals for the seat belts and instrument panel (which has delicate raised detail) and nicely detailed sidewalls which closely match the real deal. As on the 1/1 example the cockpit “floor” (also nicely detailed with control runs, piping and fuel gauges) is the upper surface of the single-piece top wing half. The canopy can be posed with the sliding portion open and one does not need to resort to aftermarket parts for the cockpit to “pop” thanks to the moulded detail.



There are a few options to consider while building this kit: opened or closed canopy as mentioned previously, open or closed cowl gills, and a choice of two different drop tanks or a bomb for the centreline (although the instructions provide no suggestion as to which loadout suits which markings option). The first and fourth marking options use the dorsal radio mast (part B40) and fortunately the instructions make this point clear in the final step. The small mounting hole for the mast is moulded open (as are the four centreline store mounting holes) so will need to be filled if one of the other two aircraft is to be modelled. After previously building this kit the mast itself looks too short.






Markings:
The kit features four marking options:
1.   Kittyhawk Mk.III NZ3060 of 2 (Fighter) Operational Training Unit, Royal New Zealand Air Force based at Ohakea. This aircraft is depicted in “Foliage Green” with “Grey-green” undersides and features four victory markings: three Japanese and one Union Jack! The latter represents an air-to-air collision with Kittyhawk Mk.IA NZ3021 on 14 June 1944 in which the other aircraft was destroyed! This is the box art aircraft and is how I finished my original copy of this kit as seen in the attached photo.
2.   Kittyhawk Mk.III A29-189/AM-A of 75 Squadron Royal Australian Air Force at Milne Bay, New Guinea in 1943. This aircraft wears Dark Earth and Dark Green over Sky Blue camouflage.
3.   Kittyhawk Mk.III FR450/OK-M of Sgt Robert Rowe, 450 (RAAF) Squadron Royal Air Force, Tunisia 1943. In the classic desert scheme of Middle Stone and Dark Earth over Azure Blue, the instructions explain that Sgt Rowe was shot down on 22 March 1943 and made it back to his unit on foot – earning a place in the “450 Sqn Desert Harassers Boomerang Club”! The instructions advise the serial FR450 is “likely”, so check your sources.
4.   P-40K (Kittyhawk Mk.III) 06 of II. Grupo Monoposto Monomotor, Força Aérea Brasiliera at Recife, Brazil 1943. This machine wears Olive Drab over Neutral Gray, with one cowling panel and the spinner (reportedly from another aircraft) depicted in Aluminium and wearing spectacular noseart of a gangster parrot wielding a Tommy Gun.






The decals proudly wear the Cartograf logo and live up to what we’ve come to expect – thin, with solid (and seemingly accurate) colours. Seat belts are also provided on this sheet, as are the white theatre ID stripes for the RNZAF aircraft. Fortunately the white is nicely opaque. There are a bunch of stencils provided and there is a separate page of placement instructions for these.


Summary:
This is a gorgeous-looking kit in the box and I can recall no issues with fit – a real “shake and bake” kit. It’s great value for money and a must-have for any P-40 fan as it is vastly superior to Academy’s offering with none of the shape or accuracy issues that latter model suffers from. Special Hobby has done several other “short nose” variants in this scale and if they are to this standard then they will be bought on sight. I feel very fortunate to have the chance to build this kit again as I enjoyed it so much the first time around.
Verdict:
Highly recommended.



(Review sample kindly supplied by Special Hobby. Please support the businesses that support your Forum.)

[KiwiZac]

It wasn't until the review was posted that I realised I had posted an RFI of my previous build of this kit on the forum here!