Special Hobby 1/72 DH.100 Vampire FB.6 ‘Pinocchio Nose’
Reviewed by Zac Yates
Scale: 1/72
Item #: SH 72391
Price: €19.00 direct from Special Hobby. Also available through quality hobby retailers worldwide.
Contents: four styrene sprues (three grey and one clear); resin parts; four decal options; one PE fret.Background:The De Havilland Vampire was the second jet fighter in Royal Air Force service, just missing operations in World War Two by a matter of months, and went on to be a success with widespread foreign service in addition to the RAF – so many countries used the type that the full list warrants a dedicated page on Wikipedia!
One noteworthy operator was the Flugwaffe, Switzerland’s air arm, which operated the type from 1946 until 1990. You read that right: the Swiss didn’t retire their last examples of this wooden-fuselage, 1941-designed jet until the last decade of the 20th century. Many surviving airworthy examples of the type are from Swiss stock, meaning many modern enthusiasts’ first encounter with the pioneer jet were with Swiss aircraft.
Initially four Vampire F.1s were delivered to Switzerland in 1946 (the survivors being retired in 1961), and in 1949 an order was placed for De Havilland to supply the Mk.6 variant. The same year a licence-build agreement was signed which resulted in several Swiss firms building 100 Mk.6s using British-built Dh Goblin engines. These single seaters served as frontline fighters with the Flugwaffe until 1974, with others used for target towing and training purposes until 1990.
Special Hobby’s modelSince 2014 Special Hobby has been issuing single-seat Vampires in 1/72 with some regularity, this 2019-dated kit being the seventh of (so far) nine boxings using three basic sprues. This commonality means a lot of surplus parts for your spares box – 23 to be precise! Thirteen steps guide the modeller through the build with helpful tags explaining which markings options require which parts, likewise the different seats are shown as “before 1960” and “1960 and later”. Nose weight is recommended but no amount is given.
The parts and decals come in a sealed plastic bag, with the clear and resin parts and decals (with PE) in their own individual bags. Finely engraved panel lines and delicate raised detail abound, however there is some flash on the review sample to contend with including inside the jet intakes. Given the number of boxings these moulds have been used for this isn’t overly surprising and fortunately the flash does not encroach on any terribly difficult areas.
Given its widespread use the Vampire is a well-documented type and this kit appears to be accurate in outline and detail. This reviewer cannot recall reading any critiques of the kit’s accuracy and, comparing the parts to photographs of the real deal, it looks pretty spot-on.
The distinctive nose exclusive to updated Swiss Vampires (and Venoms), the eponymous Pinocchio, is on Sprue E which also includes a smaller nose gear cover and two-part ejection seat.
The other new parts for this boxing are resin: two-part underwing drop tanks and their pylons, and the unguided rockets and their impossibly-thin rails…these look like they will snap as soon as a razor saw approaches them for clean-up, so extreme care will be needed here. Likewise, the rocket fins are very small PE parts that will need thin adhesive so as not to clog up the holes on these.
The clear parts are thin and include separate wingtips and an alternative round nose – this, the rounded wingtips and a heavily-framed sliding canopy are marked as not for use in the instructions.
Instructions and Markings:
The kit features four marking options, all aircraft of the Flugwaffe (Swiss Air Force):
1. J-1082, Zielfliegerkorps 5 (Aerial Target Corps) at Sion. This is the box art aircraft with striking dayglo orange and black stripes, and the instructions note the dayglo was later painted bright red so the modeller has a choice to make!
2. J-1156, Emmen, 1984. This is an all-over silver aircraft with a prominent shark’s mouth decoration on the nose.
3. J-1154, 2 Sqn, Dubendorf, 1980s. This is also all-over silver and without any particular special decoration.
4. J-1010, 2 Sqn, Dubendorf, 1964. This is another all-silver, plain aircraft but is the odd one out as it features the early rounded nose rather than the Pinocchio.
The decals themselves look to be thin and in register, with most of the stencils remarkably readable considering their diminutive size. There’s no apparent maker’s mark to suggest they were printed by anyone other than Special Hobby.
Summary:Special Hobby’s range of single-seat 1/72 Vampires are, in this reviewer’s opinion, the best available today in terms of detail and accuracy. This boxing is a valuable addition to that range given the length of Swiss service and the attractive colour schemes offered by the target tug aircraft. While some of the resin parts need to be approached with caution due to their delicate nature, anyone with some experience should enjoy the challenge.
Verdict:Highly recommended.
Review sample kindly supplied by Special Hobby. Please support the businesses that support your Forum.
