The smaller parts are well detailed and should look fine with a little clean-up of the mould lines. Care will be needed when removing some of the more delicate items such as the engine pushrods from their sprues.
The main instrument panel has fine raised detail and there are transfers supplied for the instrument faces. Note that these transfers are not just for the instrument faces themselves, but also the raised bezel detail around the instrument faces which may or may not be helpful. I’ll find out when I build the kit!
The clear parts look very good with the greenhouse canopy being thin, well moulded, and free from distortion. There are two covers provided for the gunner’s station on the sprue with only is used in this kit hinting that maybe other versions might appear in the future such as those in service with the R.A.F.?
The clear fret also holds some of the usual items such as the identification lights and gunsight.
The sharp eyed may notice from the photos that the windows on the canopy have rounded corners which might have made them ‘a challenge’ to mask. Fear not as Dora Wings has provided a set of vinyl canopy masks in the kit which will make this job much easier!
There are two etched brass frets which are very comprehensive, holding items such as the seat belts and much of the interior detail including an alternative to the injection moulded instrument panel. Some of these items, such as the fins for the bombs, will need to be carefully folded and this may put off some modellers who (like me!) have an aversion to etched brass.
The dive brakes are also presented as etched parts which will mean that they will probably be very delicate. The model will need careful handling especially if they are fitted in the open position.
Markings are provided for four aircraft, all from the R.A.A.F. All have similar schemes with R.A.F. Dark Green and Dark Earth on the upper surfaces and a colour referred to as R.A.A.F. Sky Blue on the undersides.
The use of R.A.F. colours on the upper surfaces may seem odd (Australian aircraft usually being painted using a darker green known as foliage green). However, I assume the good folks at Dora Wings have done their homework here. The aircraft originally intended for R.A.F use would presumably have been painted in America in the factory using American equivalents of R.A.F. colours. Some of these aircraft were apparently diverted to the R.A.A.F. Because of this the use of R.A.F. colours on Australian aircraft seems to me to be logical.
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The transfer sheets look well printed and in good register with a separate sheet being provided for the smaller stencils.
The instructions are clear, and the construction sequence seems to me to be sensible and logical. However, extra care may be needed due to the number of photo-etched items used. You may wish to leave some of these (such as the sights for the observer’s guns) to the end of the build to avoid damage.
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Conclusion
This is a very welcome kit of a comparatively little-known aircraft that has probably been on many modellers’ wish lists for a long time. The Vultee Vengeance can hardly be said to be a graceful or attractive aircraft but then again, like the contemporary and extremely ugly Ju. 87, I think that’s going to make it into an interesting model!
From the size of some of the parts it seems as if this will build up into a surprisingly large model (ok the photo below is not exactly staggering in its technical and illustrative brilliance – but you get the idea).
I have not yet started to build this kit so cannot comment on how the parts fit together, but it seems to me as if a great deal of care and attention has been put into this package by Dora Wings. It is probably not one for the beginner due to the number of photo-etched brass parts involved, the amount of folding required and the fact that there are no plastic alternatives for these parts (apart from the instrument panel). However, I think that it should pose few problems for anyone who has had a few limited run kits from the likes of Special Hobby or Classic Airframes under their belts.
Given the current awful war in Ukraine I think that it is amazing that a Ukrainian company such as Dora Wings is still functioning at all let alone able to bring out a multi-media kit like this and I look forward to building it shortly!