Eduard 1/48 New-Tool Fw190-A4 by Jay Blakemore

O

rnithologically speaking,

the Würger is a carnivorous

bird that hangs its dead

prey on twigs, branches, and

even barbed wire, in a bid to

tear the cadavers into edible

chunks. Partially eaten prey is

often left hanging to be eaten

later, and it is this macabre

culinary trait that has led to

the birds being commonly

known as Butcher Birds.

When the Fw190 first appeared

in the skies above England and

France in the summer of 1941, it was

met with some consternation by the

RAF pilots who opposed it. The new

aircraft was fast, manoeuvrable,

easily outperformed the latest

mark of Spitfire, and quickly earned

its blood-chilling sobriquet.

Eduard’s new quarter-scale

Focke-Wulf, on the other hand,

received a very different reception

when the Czech manufacturer

announced its imminent arrival

in early 2016. Eduard have, of

course, had a collection of 1/

scale Würgers in their inventory

since 2006, and despite them being

praised as the best kits of the type

in any scale, those past offerings

did suffer from overly complex

engineering that resulted in a less

than trouble-free build experience.

This prompted Eduard to post

a list of additional construction

tips on their website to warn

unwary modellers of the pitfalls

of approaching those kits without

a thorough understanding of

the instructions. It was perhaps

inevitable then that following on

from their recent, all-new 1/

scale series of Fw190s, Eduard

would also replace their ageing

original quarter-scale toolings.

FIRST SERVING

I was somewhat surprised that

the initial release to appear in

ITEMS USED

EDUARD PROFIPAK: 82142. FW190A-

EDUARD: 648352. FW190A-4 ENGINE

EDUARD: 648352. FW190A-4 FUSELAGE

GUNS

EDUARD: 648356. FW190A WINGROOT

GU N BAYS

EDUARD: 48937. FW190A EXTERIOR

EDUARD: 648379. BRONZE

UNDERCARRIAGE LEGS

WÜRGER

14 • MAY 2018 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL

BY SACCO DE VRIES

FW190-A

BY JAY BLAKEMORE

1/

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