Spitfire succession solution – Tony reviews Barracuda Studios new resin Spitfire XIX parts (+ a fair few other marques) in three scales.

Our resident spitfire fan (there is a long line of them) Tony Prince reviews  Barracuda Studios latest set of resin (and clear plastic)  improvements for three scales of spitfire. Wheels, exhausts, props and canopies get a look in in this review. Tony has provided some pictures from his archives showing the real thing to help us better see the quality of these sets..

Barracuda Studios resin for the Spitfire in 1/32^nd, 1/48^th and 1/72^nd scales

Included this review are:

BR72107 Spitfire 3 Slot Wheels - Circumferential Tread

BR48097 Spitfire 3 Slot Wheels - Circumferential Tread

BR32104 Spitfire 3 Slot Wheels - Circumferential Tread

BR48093 Spitfire Mk XIX 5 Blade Prop – Tapered

BR48092 Spitfire Mk. XIX Tubular Exhausts

BR48096 Spitfire Mk. XIX Vacform Canopy

 

All of these kits come in a clear bag and ours came in a safe box over the seas from the USA  - everything arrived quite safely. The resin is cast quite well with no bubbles and not any real extra resin to remove except the small casting blocks on each one. I was very impressed with the resin on hand but i knew that Tony knew a lot more about Spitfires (having built more than he could probably like to count - and there is one of them below) than i did so i will hand you over to Tony at this point:

 Tony decided to review all the Spitfire wheels in a group, then the Spitfire exhausts & conclude with the propeller set. So, in scale order we have reviewed these in turn here.

BR72107 Spitfire 3 Slot Wheels - Circumferential Tread

1/72^nd scale

2 parts in cream resin

Price: $4.50 - Link

Set BR 72107 Spitfire 3 slot wheels with circumferential tread in 1:72 scale. These come in a resealable plastic bag with card header & provide a pair of beautifully moulded resin wheels. Clean, sharp castings with finely detailed hubs with nice, deep relief right down to the tyre valves, back plate & even ‘Dunlop’ on the side wall. Yes, if you have a good magnifying glass, it’s all there! I took the opportunity to apply a light wash to one of the wheels to pop out the detail on the wheel hubs & tread: magnificent!

This set contains a pair of super detailed resin 3 slot wheels with ribbed tyres as fitted to many post-war variants, including the Spitfire XIV, XVI, XVIII,XIX, 22/24, as well as some Seafire 45 and 46 and Spiteful/Seafangs. These wheels are fitted to many post-war foreign Spits as well as many warbirds of all marks.

You can see the tread here in this shot

 

BR48097 Spitfire 3 Slot Wheels - Circumferential Tread

1/48^th scale

2 parts in cream resin

Price: $5.95 - Link

This set contains a pair of super detailed resin 3 slot wheels with ribbed tires as fitted to many post-war variants, including the Spitfire XIV, XVI, XVIII,XIX, 22/24, as well as some Seafire 45 and 46 and Spiteful/Seafangs. These wheels are fitted to many post-war foreign Spits as well as many warbirds of all marks. Made from careful measurements and photos taken of full size wheels. Can be fitted to most Spitfire kits.

Set BR 48097 , as the other wheels in this set, but in 1:48 scale. The same comments apply here too with excellent detail throughout. Wheel slots are fine & sharp with the wheel interior quite visible right down to the internal nuts & tyre valve on the outside & a finely slotted back plate on the inner side. 

The circumferential tread is beautifully cast too with even grooves which will respond well to weathering. Once again, ‘Dunlop’ is clearly visible and (I think) some tyre size detail as well.

BR32104 Spitfire 3 Slot Wheels - Circumferential Tread
1/32^nd scale

2 wheels in cream resin
Price: $6.95 - Link

This large scale set of Spitfire wheels from Barracuda Cast  contains a pair detailed resin 3 slot wheels with ribbed tires as fitted to many post-war variants, including the Spitfire XIV, XVI, XVIII,XIX, 22/24, as well as some Seafire 45 and 46 and Spiteful/Seafangs. These wheels are fitted to many post-war foreign Spits as well as many warbirds of all marks. Made from careful measurements and photos taken of full size wheels. Can be fitted to many Spitfire kits.

Set No. BR 32104 repeats the above wheel sets but with even more visible detail & no real need for a magnifying glass either. This set is just plain gorgeous. Sidewall detail, valves, interior details, wheel hubs both sides & sharp tread grooves too. All I need now is a late mark 1:32 Spitfire to put them on!

Coated with a wash to better show you the detail cast in these wheels.

BarracudaCast has provided more Spitfire castings, this time more specifically for the Airfix Mk.XIX, although of course these may be used on many other suitable late versions.

BR48093 Spitfire Mk XIX 5 Blade Prop – Tapered
1/48^th scale
7 parts in cream resin
Price: $7.95 - Link

This set contains parts to make a super detailed 10’4” diameter prop w tapered blades, as fitted to many Spitfire Mk. XIXs, XIVs and XVIIIs. There were 2 styles of blades, a wide blade and a later tapered blade seen on most Spit XIXs in service. Designed for the gorgeous Airfix Spitfire XIX, but can be adapted to other kits.

Nearly all web pictures of Mk XIXs show the B of B examples which have broad tip chisel ended propellers. The original equipment was as per the samples for review. (I learned a lot!)

Dealing with the prop blades first, this is set No. BR 48093 in 1:48 scale & provides six (you get a spare). Doing a bit of research on this subject I found several apparently different prop blades on late model Spits.

Some had a fairly broad chisel shaped tip & others seemed slimmer & more pointed. Further study showed that this set is spot on for the Mk XIX & that all 5 bladed Griffon engined variants did not have the same diameter propeller. This one is 10’4”. I also found that all war time & early post war pictures I could find of XIXs seemed to show this propeller. Preserved examples are another thing altogether & seem to be fitted with broad chisel tip blades.

Included in the set is a beautifully cast propeller hub with locking grooves to match corresponding lugs on the prop blades & a ready-made hole for the prop shaft. My only problem here is whether or not to exchange my Airfix props for these or to file them to the correct shape & save the newies for another Spitfire!

BR48092 Spitfire Mk. XIX Tubular Exhausts

Designed by Roy Sutherland

1/48^th scale

2 parts in cream resin

Price: $4.25 - Link

This set contains a pair of super detailed, accurate hollowed out exhaust stacks as fitted to most Mk. XIXs, XVIIIs, and late XIVs. Designed for the Airfix Spit XIX.

There’s more to tempt you here: set No BR 48092: A set of sharply cast tubular exhausts for the Airfix Mk.XIX (although they would suit any late Griffon Spit). Again, much, much better than trying to drill out solid plastic mouldings & easier on the fingers too. These have thin walls & a delicate cuff at the end of each pipe. A straight forward replacement for the plastic.

BR48096 Spitfire Mk. XIX Vacform Canopy

1/48^th scale

Price: $3.95 - Link

Lastly, for the Spitfire XIX enthusiast, there’s a beautiful vac form canopy with three sections; windscreen, canopy & aft transparency. This set contains one sparkling, crystal clear, vacformed pressurized canopy with separate hood and frameless PR type windscreen. Designed for the beautiful Airfix Spit XIX.

This is set No. BR 48096. I don’t know about you, but I do have some reservations about Airfix’s solution to the problem of posing an open canopy using necessarily over scale mouldings. It's very clever & I’ve done it twice but there is an element of distortion when viewing the area behind the pilot’s seat due to the curvature of the canopy mid-section. 

This is the answer: the parts are thin, accurate & clear & even if you decide to use just the two rear parts, will go a long way towards making your XIX just that little bit better.

All the above items are highly recommended

Tony Prince.

Thanks To Barracuda Studios for sending them out for us to review. They are available at the links in this review.