Search

Home
 
 Where to buy Ventura Decals and Books
 
 Ventura products
 
 RNZAF Historial
 
 Historical
 Canada
 France
 German
 RAF
 Royal Navy
 RAAF
 P-51 Mustang
 Spitfire / Seafire
 US Air Force
 US Navy
 
 Detail photos
 American types
 Australian types
 British types
 German types
 Spanish types
 
 Aviation art
 
 Motorcycle pages
 Links to other sites
 
 Reviews
 American
 British
 French
 German
 Japanese
 Russian
 South African
 
 Aviation site links

Reviews : German Last Updated: Aug 21st, 2020 - 13:06:35

Siemens Schuckert D-III/IV. Toko. 1/72
By Clarence Wentzel. IPMS USA
Apr 16, 2006, 16:19

Email this article
 Printer friendly page
Appearing at the very end of WW1, the Siemens Schuckert D-III and D-IV fighters threatened to regain air superiority for the German air service. However, problems with powerplant reliability and Germany's deteriorating situation at the end of the conflict limited production to a very small number of airframes. It saw very limited service use. Yet, its negligible contribution to the German war effort not withstanding, this aircraft has long been a popular subject with modelers. A number of Siemens Schuckert kits were produced over the years, nearly all of them from low-volume and sometimes low-quality, cottage-industry enterprises.

A fine new kit from the Ukrainian manufacturing concern Toko thus fills a long-felt void. It is simply the finest kit yet made of a Siemens Schuckert in 1/72 scale. The pieces are crisply and delicately molded in a hard, light-grey styrene. The wings and tail surfaces are remarkably thin with very subtly molded ribs. Some very fine texturing is meant to simulate fabric, but a coat of paint or layer of lozenge decals will completely obscure this feature.

While Toko have supplied a beautifully executed piece of injection molding, there are accuracy problems. The kit's rendition of the Siemens-Halls engine features anemic cylinders, a poorly shaped crankcase, and crude cooling fin detail on its cylinders. Most modelers will want to substitute an Aeroclub white-metal version. The kit includes two full sets of wings, one for the D-III and one for the D-IV. The ailerons of the D-III version have undersized balance surfaces. The D-III's upper and the lower wing spans are both nearly 2 millimeters too long, and the upper wing chord is nearly 1.5 millimeters too narrow. Happily, the D-IV wings are dimensionally correct, at least when compared with Dick Bennett's drawings, though the wing cut out over the cockpit is slightly oversized. For a D-IV, the tailplane is correct in all dimensions. The elevator chord is about 2.5 mm too narrow for a D-III. While these outages do not sound terribly large, you have to remember that they represent nearly 25% of the D-III elevator chord. Alternate fin and rudder assemblies are provided for the two versions, and some minor outline adjustments may be necessary depending on the aircraft you are modeling. The propeller blades look overly delicate and overly slender. The separate, vented spinner is only about 2/3s the diameter it should be and projects too far in front of the prop hub. The vents are merely scribed nubs. An alternate, plain spinner is suitable for some D-IVs. It is roughly correct dimensionally but should probably be sanded slightly to reduce its depth. The spinners fit quite snugly on the prop hub, attesting to the excellent engineering of the model. The Spandau guns are decidedly undernourished and will need replacement.

The lozenge decals that are included are quite another matter. Panels of lozenge pattern are provided which are meant to cover the fabric surfaces of specific particular parts (such as the lower wing) with a single decal piece. There are two problems with how Toko's decal printer executed this decal. First, the colors used are the same in the lozenge pattern for both top and bottom surfaces, the printer did not account for the fact that four different colors are found in the polygons between the top and bottom surface fabrics. The decals show 4-color lozenge fabric in panels laid chordwise across the wing. This is incorrect in two respects, photos show that all SSW D-IIIs and IVs were covered with 5-color fabric and that on the wings, this fabric was laid span wise across the wings. Also, the pattern on the ailerons should not be continuous with the wing fabric pattern, as the decals are rendered. The ailerons were covered separately and definite disruptions in the camouflage pattern are always evident. Having such a comprehensive set of lozenge decals is a nice inclusion for this kit, it is truly unfortunate that they are such a disaster and are best placed in the circular file.

The kit also includes some very nice touches. A nicely molded seat, rudder bar and control stick are provided. The fuselage is cleanly molded with delicately scribed panel lines. The pilot's headrest is molded in place (you will have to remove it to model some airplanes-check your references). The lower wings are molded as a single piece, together with part of the fuselage. This necessitates careful assembly but ensures that the lower wing is well aligned. The lower wing fairing for the D-III is molded on the fuselage halves, by the way. To build a D-IV, you have to remove said fairing. The interplane and cabane struts are well-molded and quite useable(the landing gear struts may have to be replaced as they appear a little spindly, even in 1/72 scale). The wheels are beautiful, though their inner surfaces are marred by a thick flange around the hole for the axle. Careful sanding is required to produce an accurate looking wheel. The cowling is finely executed and incorporates the distinctive, engine bearing supports. These will need to be thinned a bit to give a better scale appearance. The two, non-lozenge decal sheets provided are splendidly printed and in excellent register. The national insignia and stencils are particularly crisply rendered.

Overall, the Toko kit has the potential for making a splendid model of both the D-III and D-IV fighters. Given the dimensional discrepancies in this kit, modeling the D-IV is easier since the parts for this version require the fewest corrections. But there is nothing insurmountable about the D-III, even so. A modeler with average skills will enjoy constructing this kit, but perhaps better than average skills will be required to fully rig it on completion. It is wonderful to see such a well-engineered model of a WW I fighter, and this reviewer hopes that future WW1 kits are soon forthcoming from Toko.

Highly recommended.



© Copyright 2004-2015; VenturaPublications.com and contributors.

Top of Page

German
Latest Headlines
Stummel Habicht Glider - 1/72nd scale (CMR Models)
Hûtter H17 Glider - 1/72nd scale (CMR Models)
CMR-185 Arado Ar 66C - 1/72nd scale (CMR Models)
Fw 190A-3 and A-5 differences
Focke Wulf Fw 190A. 1/24 Airfix
Ju 87 Stuka in Foreign Service. Mushroom Model Publications
Tamiya He162 1/48th Preview
Siemens Schuckert D-III/IV. Toko. 1/72
Junkers D.1. Roden kit 041. 1/72nd
Fokker D.VIIF (Late Model). Roden kit 31. 1/72nd