Pfalz Dr.I

Czech Master Resin, 1/72 scale

Reviewed by Rob Baumgartner

CMR's 1/72 scale Typhoon IB Early Version is available online from Squadron.com

The Fokker Dr.I was not Germany’s only production triplane.

The Pfalz Flugzeugwerke GmbH’s first attempt at such a fighter was to add a third set of wings to their D.III fighter. Understandably it was a failure.

A completely new design was called for which resulted in the Pfalz Dr.I. With its 160hp Siemens Sh.III rotary engine and sleek design, it possessed a faster rate of climb than the aforementioned Fokker product.

Ten machines were built for evaluation purposes and the type arrived at the Front in April 1918.

The pilots rejected the airplane as the reliability of the Sh.III engine was found wanting. The speed of the triplane was also a handicap as the newer faster machines were preferred by the flyers.

Pfalz tried again with the smaller Dr.II but by this time the era of the triplane had come to an end.


 

The CMR kit of this unconventional fighter is cast in 26 buff coloured resin parts. Accompanying these are decals for two options along with three A4 sheets of paper. These contain the assembly instructions and include a large set of 3-view illustrations.

In 1990, S J Simkin produced a lovely set of drawings for this aircraft. These were used for assessment purposes in this review and are considered an excellent guide regarding accuracy.

The kit parts compared very favourably to the aforementioned plans. Most items were spot on with the only real discrepancies being a slight shortness in span of the middle and lower wings. On the completed model, these deviations should not distract from the appearance of the finished product.

Click the thumbnails below to view larger images:

The representation of the ribs is nicely restrained and will greatly enhance the look of the completed model. A quick swipe with wet and dry paper will slightly alter the shape of the centre wing’s extremities to a more rounded style for those that prefer Mr. Simkin’s interpretation of this area.

Each part is very well formed with subtle and delicate detail. The wing trailing edges are razor sharp and my examples showed no sign of any warping. The odd air bubble that managed to surface can easily be filled but these blemishes were a rare occurrence.

A modicum of interior detail is provided with all the obvious items present. The engine is superb and it’s a pity that the cowling hides most of it. The struts are produced as near to scale as possible and this makes them quite thin. For those that wish to use another medium for these, the kit parts provide excellent templates.

Two subjects are catered for in this release. They are DR.I 222/17 and DR.I 3050/17. The decals are very thin with minimal carrier film. CMR not only provide the usual serial numbers and insignia but also include the prominent stencil information that appeared on the struts.

Packaging is via sealed plastic pockets that help to stop the parts rattling around. This is then stocked into a soft cardboard box which is adorned by the artwork of Bob Pearson.

Despite the three sets of wings, this would be an ideal kit for the novice that hasn’t made a resin kit before.

The single piece struts are designed to join all three wings which should make assembly a breeze. The limited rigging required of the Dr.I will not tax the beginner and the simple paint scheme should also help matters.

This package contains everything the modeler needs to create an excellent replica of this often neglected aircraft. It’s up to the individual how far they want to detail the kit, but out of the box it will look just fine.

Highly Recommended
 

Thanks to CMR for the review sample

CMR Models are available online from Hannants in the UK,
NKR Models in Australia and quality specialist model retailers worldwide.