Scale aviation modeller international

Royal Aircraft Factory BE2c

Airfix 1/72 Royal Aircraft Factory BE2c by Bruce Leyland-Jones

O

f all those responsible for

the new kits emerging from

Hornby-Airfix these days,

those responsible for the biplanes

particularly deserve a well-placed

pat on the back and a pint or two.

After the superlative Tiger Moth

and a glorious Gladiator, their

BE2c is a little wonder to behold.

It’s always a good sign of a

kit’s quality when a modeller

immediately wants to build

another, and when this kit was

first released in 2016, I was quick

to grab one and build it, and I

wanted to build another right away.

Unfortunatly, decals for the BE2c

aren’t in ready supply, so I had to

wait until late last year to get hold

of an alternative set of markings.

A bonus was that these came in

Airfix’ latest reissue of the original

model, so I also got another kit!

Although a re-issue, the kit

is showing no signs of tooling

wear and tear as yet, with a

complete absence of flash and

only the faintest of seam lines

to clean up from the parts (this

is quite unlike the later issues of

the Tiger Moth, which had more

Flash than the Justice League).

The plastic is still of that soft

type, so care is required when

cutting and sanding, but this also

facilitates easier handling of the

fine details, such as the struts

and underwing landing skids.

Included in the box are all the

parts from the previous issue,

including the strut-mounted

rocket armament for Lt. Leefe

Robinson’s Zeppelin-busting

aircraft. It was the chequerboard

decals that caught my eye though,

and a colourful BE2c was soon to

join my previous colourful Pups.

A LITTLE HISTORY

By 1916, Turnhouse Aerodrome

had become one of Britain’s

quieter stations and, whilst still

providing air cover for Scotland’s

capital, it proved ideal for training

purposes. It was for this reason

that the subject of this review

received its distinctive black and

white chequerboard scheme, it

being to aid airborne recognition.

So, to begin the build, you’ll

never guess where I started...

CONSTRUCTION AND

PAINTING

Internal detail might not be up to

the standards of Wingnut Wings,

but it is more than adequate for

this scale and seems to take into

account what can actually be seen

when the build is completed. This

is evidenced by the inclusion of

instrument dial decals for the rear

cockpit, but none for the front,

which disappears from view when

the upper wing is attached.

All that said, and with two

previous builds under my belt, I

felt it well worth taking the time

to add a little extra detail. To this

end, I used very fine masking

tape, painted to represent the

internal stringers, and a pair

of the excellent Eduard pre-

painted steel RFC harnesses.

The cabane struts were also

added at this stage. The clever

engineering makes for a trouble-

free attachment and ensures

that all end up pointing in the

direction they are supposed

to. Given that the upper wing

will depend upon these for its

placement, this is A Good Thing.

Colour callouts use the Humbrol

paint range and the instructions

give clear guidance as to what

should be painted with what.

Whilst the interior paint was

drying, I turned my attention to

the struts and the fixing of these

to the upper wing. The kit comes

with some handy and extremely

useful little jigs that are designed

to hold the struts at the correct

angle. My struts were glued

with superglue gel, which sets

slower than the thinner blends.

This enabled the struts’ angles

to be adjusted by the jigs before

a drop of Zipkicker accelerator

was applied, setting my struts at

exactly the right angle. A simple

but marvellous piece of kit design.

Putting the wing assembly

to one side, I was pleased to find

that my interior additions did not

prevent the fuselage halves from

joining up, and I was able to add

the tail without any difficulties.

I did, however, score the

elevators so that I could droop

them and give my model that

resting look. With tail in place, the

model got a couple of coats of white

paint and was put aside to dry.

The engine on a BE2c is quite

exposed, and Airfix have provided

a nice little miniature of this area.

Painting instructions are basic, so

I resorted once more to my own

researches and used a number

of metallic shades. The engine

assembly is designed to be added

to the model at a later stage, so

this too was put to one side.

DECALS

With my white fuselage now

safely dry, it was time to try out

those decals. Thanks to a new

partnership with Cartograph, gone

are the days when out-of-register

decals were a common feature of

an Airfix kit. The new decals are

not only in register, but also have

very little excess carrier film.

Further, they are flexible enough

to adhere to uneven surfaces and

not prone to tearing or breaking

up when carelessly handled. They

don’t want to stretch, or to fold

over upon themselves and the glue

works as it should, not sticking like

muck to a blanket at the slightest

contact, as they did in the past.

With all these traits in mind,

applying the relatively complex

decals was trouble free. The

62 • MAY 2018 • SCALE AVIATION MODELLER INTERNATIONAL

KIT REVIEWS

060-63-Reviews-0518.indd 62 13/04/2018 14:11