Hurricane 2c

Hawker Hurricane Mk.I kit from the last year must have been a financial success, because Arma Hobby prepared only one completely new set (not counting the repacks here of course) and quickly return to the topic, releasing another version of this British fighter. I’m talking about 1:72 Mk.IIc kit, which will be examined below.

Disclaimer

The review sample was kindly provided by the manufacturer. Thanks, Arma Hobby.

Not today

I won't even try to list here previous 1:72 scale kits of this Hurricane variant. There are just too many of them. However this does not mean that there is no room for a new model. Available sets have its issues and the new "Hurri", even at the level of the previous mk.I, may stir things up a bit.

First one

Similarly to the previous model (it was Yakowlew fighter, reviewed here not so long ago) the manufacturer first offered us the "Expert" edition, catalogue number 70035. Packed in a standard, side opening box with a nice illustration on the top. This time drawn by Piotr Forkasiewicz.

Inside we find one light grey plastic sprue, a transparent one, manual, decals, masks and a small sheet of photo-etched details.

The last two items wont be included in standard editions, which will be available later on.

Plastic

Plastic elements are based on the previous design of the mark I kit (reviewed here as well). In addition to the differences caused by the new aircraft variant, the designer also introduced couple modifications to simplify the build process. In addition, after the experience with Yak- Mk.IIc received a bunch of raised surface details, such as rivets.

The result is a completely new frame (Arma does not experiment with any replaceable sections of the fuselage, or other such annoyances), which elements look familiar only at a first glance. The more you look at it, the more changes you see.

Let's move on to the specifics. The fuselage was traditionally divided into two halves.

With subtly reproduced fabric sections covering the tail part and very delicately marked longerons. The latter might not survive a bit thicker layer of paint.

In addition- fine recessed panel lines and a number of raised surface details.

Our old friend from the previous Hurricane- traces of the form milling (mostly visible at the lowered fuselage part behind the cockipt), is nowhere to be found. I won't miss him.

Vertical stabilizer with rudder were designed as one separated part, with delicately reproduced fabric sagging.

The horizontal stabiliser on the other hand, is separated from the elevator.

So the latter can be mounted in tilted position without a fuss.

The cockpit interior has been slightly redesigned. More details was moulded directly on the inner surfaces of the fuselage.

The truss elements were divided and distributed between the parts in a slightly different way than in the Arma’s previous Hurricane.

Rear armoured wall has also undergone a slight "lifting"- delicate details are clearer and the traces of machining are nowhere to be seen.

The seat has undergone only minor changes and looks not bad at all. For a plastic one, of course.

Similarly to rudder bar, which have however undergone a more severe slimming treatment.

There is no point in looking for the sinkholes on the instrument panel this time.

And that's because of the thoughtfully slimmed back.

The steering stick has also been slightly improved.

The cockpit floor is not completely separate now, but is integrated into the upper wing connector.

Wings now make a really good impression, thanks to the delicate raised surface details.

Thin trailing edge and the ailerons don’t spoil the general good mood.

The problems may be caused by the splitted mountings of the wing cannons, glued together with the wing halves.

The barrels however (two versions provided) look quite decent for a plastic, although of course we won't find exit holes in them. More demanding modellers will be pleased to know that quite recently Master from Poland released two sets of metal barrels for Hurricane IIc in 1:72 scale (what a coincidence!).

The bottom surface of the wings has also been slightly enhanced with details.

Mounting of some of the components (radiator) has also been modified.

This time the ceiling of the main landing gear bay does not need to be supplemented with a metal panel, because the details from it were reproduced directly in plastic.

The bay walls were also modified, and the designer didn’t hold back with rivets in this corner of the model.

Problem with the plastic sinkhole in the gear bay tank has been solved.

Delicate landing gears will still require increased attention when cutting. This time however, the instruction does not suggest that those should be installed at the early stages of the build.

The main wheels look like in Mk.I, but the word "Dunlop" seems to be a lot clearer. One minor glitch is the unevenness in the lower part of the tyres, probably caused by widening the inlet channel (judging by the test sprues shown earlier by the manufacturer).

The tailwheel also doesn't look bad, but one of the box paint options requires the use of an adequate element from the Mk.I version, which Arma missed.

Slightly altered landing gear covers look pretty ok.

The radiator housing consists of two parts. Rear one with thin edges of the outlet.

And the front one with an oval inlet, this time in full- probably to make the build easier (in Mk.I the split was a bit more troublesome).

Good idea, but something didn't quite work out, and there are some quite bad scratches visible inside.

The radiator, which apparently keeps some modellers awake, has been redesigned. This time it consists of two elements, directly on which the surface details have been reproduced (so there are no photo-etched meshes in the set).

Everybody now can relax- there are no sinkholes like in the Mk.I. Something like a minimal unevenness can hardly be seen on the rear element (the pins placed on the back may have something to do with it), but it's just really heavy nitpicking (you can't even see it on the photo).

Carburettor air intake was also remodelled- now it consists of two parts (and a PE mesh).

Beware of the positioning tab when cutting the part out of the sprue!

Exhausts, like many plastic ones, doesn't look amazing. Aftermarkets manufacturers can breathe a sigh of relief!

The above are complemented by shields mounted in night fighters, which can be replaced by thinner elements from the attached PE plate.

This time we get one version of the propeller, so we were spared the need to assemble it from single blades.

The spinner features some delicate plastic overflows, which will be easy to remove. Oh, and modellers who like to spin something will be happy.

It remains to mention the tropical air intake, which will find greater use in one of the upcoming standard editions of the kit.

This time only one painting option requires it.

Also a plastic

In the subject of "glass" Arma took the easy way out and threw into this set the transparent parts known from Mk.I. The frame contains a windscreen with separate movable canopy prepared in two versions- to be used with the cockpit closed and open.

Clarity is on a pretty good level, not perfect, but certainly acceptable.

There is another problem however- the canopies are way too thick. Really- straight from the box build with open cabin is out of the question. At least in my opinion.

In addition to the canopy, transparent sprue contains also some smaller details such as spotlights or gunsight.

Masks

A small sheet of masks was also already released, hence the catalogue number placed on it which does not match the set at all.

It will be useful both for painting the canopy and the wheels.

PE

Tiny photo-etched plate is basically a poorer version of the one from Mk.I- the elements that are now reproduced directly in plastic (radiator meshes or the main landing gear bay ceiling) have been removed. There is also no film for the instrument panel- Arma has been opting for the use of a decal here for some time now.

Hmm...

Yeah, well... it shouldn't be like this. Apparently, the quality control failed, because this copy of the PE simply shouldn't be put in the box. Fortunately I haven't heard anyone complaining about problems with reclaiming replacement for broken parts, so probably soon there will be also a picture of the “proper” PE plate here.

That's better

Told you so.

Decals

In contrast, you can't say a bad word about decals. Made by Techmod, represent a high level of quality.

The details of even the smallest markings doesn't raise any concerns. There is no point in looking for colour shifts or other printing errors.

The second set of stencils is no longer provided. Free bonuses are over.

Yellow tips for the propeller are intriguing. It may seem ridiculous, but many beginners may appreciate it. Although they will probably not reach for the "Expert" edition. In similar fashion- I also don't know why there are pilot's seatbelts on the decals.

Manual

Arma Hobby has made us accustomed to aesthetic and clear brochures guiding us through the construction process. It is no different this time, although some changes have occurred.

The list of suggested paints in this case is not limited to Hataka products only. We also receive indications of paints from AK-Interactive (Real Color series), Lifecolor, AMMO, Humbrol (!), Vallejo and Tamiya.

What we can paint with those is traditionally shown on colour views, which also contain information about the proper location of the decals.

I would like to see Gunze acrylics in the table as well, but it's pretty good as it is, so I'm not complaining. It's nice that Arma listens to the suggestions of the modellers.

Painting options

This way we have reached the most controversial aspect of the set- the paint versions proposed by the manufacturer. We have at our disposal four options, but none of them with a white-and-red chequerboard, which caused a small uproar before the kit release. After all, how can it be- Polish kit without Polish markings?

We do have an LK-A machine from the 87 Squadron RAF in night painting scheme.

Kit painting option (Arma Hobby)

The same plane after the top surfaces were repainted with Dark Green and Ocean Gray (or Medium Sea Gray as some suggests). This is also the "missing" Polish accent of the set- F/Sgt Henryk Józef Trybulec was using this aircraft.

Kit painting option (Arma Hobby)

Hurricane JX-W (No. 1 Squadron RAF) in more typical colour scheme, with an interesting emblem on the engine cover. The choice of this painting however, involves the need to replace the tail wheel with an unit from the Mk.I variant.

Kit painting option (Arma Hobby)

FT-Z machine in a rather unusual livery- top in Temperate Land Scheme (Dark Green and Dark Earth) and underside in the "desert" Sky Blue.

Kit painting option (Arma Hobby)

Personally I miss a little bit "more Polish" option, i.e. with a small chequerboard in the vicinity of the engine, but the proposed variants are so diverse and interesting that somehow I will manage.

Conclusion

To be honest, I'm impressed. I was expecting a simple repetition of a nice "mark one" kit, with obvious changes required by the new version, but basically every plastic element was more or less improved. There are more details on the surfaces, the elements are more delicate and more thoughtfully designed (see radiator). It's just a pity that the transparencies didn't go through a similar treatment.

Overall, we received another high quality set- a solid base for building Hurricane miniature in 1:72 scale. I hope that soon we will also receive a Mk.IIb version.

MMXIX