Airfix 1:72 Grumman Widgeon

The Airfix kit of the Grumman Widgeon in 1:72nd scale is a nice little kit of an interesting amphibian. Used operationally by both the British, her Commonwealth and the Americans it gives a wealth of possible subjects.

The two in this kit are one Fleet Air Arm subject and one American coast guard. The American Coast Guard subject is yellow and silver so a striking subject. However the idea of American aircraft wearing other national markings has always intrigued me. So it’s no surprise that I picked the Fleet Air Arm subject to model.

Now as I’ve mentioned earlier the Airfix kit moulds are old and worn. They have misalignment issues (Or the tool setter was having an off day) and as a result the landing/beaching gear has serious weakness issues.

The cockpit is rudimentary with just tabs to sit a blob of a pilot figure in. No other interior is provided and none is really needed as the canopy is so thick it’s hard to pick out any detail. The canopy to, has a serious fit problem as well. More on this issue later.

Building starts with the fuselage and is just a matter of side windows and the pilot blob, which I’ve discarded and chosen not to use. Masking the windows and painting everything interior green is a breeze I use Blu tack as it’s easy to use and removes very easily.
The fuselage halves don’t align very well and the locating pins need removal to aid in proper alignment. Then the fuselage must be held in place with rubber bands or tape of some sort, while it dries, time to move to the next step which consists of attaching the tail planes and canopy.

The canopy I left off and just attached the tail planes, it was at this point I realised that the fuselage and tail were warped as the tail planes did not sit at ninety degrees! A little hot water allowed me to bend the tail and hold it in place till it hardened. Just be careful with how hot the water is as it can make the plastic to soft.

The wings come next and the trailing edges are too thick so I placed them on sand paper and gave them a good sanding to make the edges a lot thinner. The wing halves were cemented together and then glued to the fuselage, after removing two lines of rivets that interfered with the wing fuselage join.


It was here at the next step that I decided to take a break as there were major fit issues with the engine nacelles. Remedying these faults would be a long and arduous task best left for when I am fresh and alert. It would take a little time to sort out the best approach possible to resolve these issues.

Till next time enjoy and have a happy time building your models and projects.
Cheers,
NzFlyBoy

by

Avid WW2 aviation enthusiast and modeller. Been making model kits since age nine and I now model mostly ww2 model airplanes. (my wife is an understanding one!)

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