SPAD XIII
Weekend Edition

Eduard, 1/48 scale

Reviewed by Rob Baumgartner

Eduard's 1/48 SPAD XIII Weekend Edition is available online from Squadron.com
 

Eduard’s Spad 13 takes on a new incarnation, this time appearing in the popular “Weekend Edition” format.

It represents the later version of this fighter which incorporated a new modified wing. Here the extremities took on a more square shaped appearance in the hope of improving the flight characteristics. 

Inside the box we find 3 sprues of tan coloured plastic and these contain a total of 85 parts. Also included are 3 clear pieces for the windscreen and a decal sheet for a single subject.
As befits a “Weekend Edition” kit, this issue is kept simple by omitting the photo-etched parts and mask set from the previous release.

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Thumbnail panels:

Doug Carrick created a wonderful set of plans that were published in Windsock Datafile 32. When the outlines of the major parts were compared to these drawings they were found to match perfectly.
Even the smaller details are faithfully reproduced so this kit provides an excellent starting point.

As with any aircraft produced in significant numbers, there were many changes made along the way. Thus the modeller must keep in mind the differences in such things as louver positions, wheel sizes and bell crank apertures.

All parts are beautifully moulded and one struggles to find any imperfections or surface defects. The detail is crisp and the few ejector pins that are present do not make themselves visible on the final product. The spare parts box will benefit as Eduard thoughtfully provide single and two piece cowl arrangements as well as the Gremont and Éclair airscrews.

The cockpit is very well apportioned with close to two dozen pieces being crammed into this space. The Memorial Flight Association’s restored Keller-built Spad 13 is a good reference here. A close comparison reveals that Eduard has done their homework.

The result is an extremely busy looking “office” but care is needed during assembly. A quick dry-run will expose a problem with the fitting of the upper deck later on. This will have to be thinned to make more room for the pilot’s “shelf” which also needs modification. The fuselage halves require coaxing to contain the interior and don’t be surprised if a shim is necessary to allow the nose to fit squarely on the assembled fuselage…mine did.

The wings are superb pieces of engineering. They each come in single lengths with good airfoil section and sharp trailing edges.  Beneath the delicate rib tapes one will find a subtle representation of the stitching and also notable is the correctly rendered ply sheathing.

The unconventional splitting of the fuselage is a bonus. Not only does this help preserve the delicate stringer detail but it also permits the tailplane to be moulded integrally as a single piece thus allowing perfect alignment.

Marking Options

As this kit is a “Weekend Edition” release, only one aircraft is catered for.

The decals for this are on a single sheet and display perfect registration and sharp printing.
It was a little disappointing to find this aircraft being repeated here as it was only recently covered in Eduard’s kit # 8196.

It is of course the SPAD XIII of Capitaine Rene Fonck, Escadrille SPA.103, Fall, 1918.

Fonck claimed a total of 127 victories although only 75 were officially confirmed. He survived the war and became the Inspector of the French fighter force just before WWII. Fonck endured this conflict as well and lived in Paris before dying at the age of 59 on 18 June 1953.

These “Weekend Edition” kits offer great value for money.

By providing only the essentials for each subject, the modeller is able to pick up a bargain and usually build it in a relatively short time. The complexities of this aircraft will prolong that process somewhat but the results will be worth it.

With the range of aftermarket decals available for these aircraft, the “Weekend Editions” are an ideal way to increase the membership of your Escadrille.

Thanks to Eduard for the sample

Review Text Copyright © 2009 by Rob Baumgartner
Page Created 19 January, 2009
Last updated 21 May, 2009

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