de Havilland Mosquito Wheels Review

Ultracast, 1/48 scale

S u m m a r y
Item Number, Description and Price	Ultracast Item Nos.: 48246 De Havilland Mosquito Spoked Wheels (block tread) 48247 De Havilland Mosquito Standard Wheels (block tread) 48248 De Havilland Mosquito Spoked Wheels (diamond tread) 48249 De Havilland Mosquito Standard Wheels (diamond tread) 48250 De Havilland Mosquito Standard Wheels (Australian Z Block tread) each set CDN$7.95 plus shipping available online from Ultracast and specialist hobby retailers worldwide
Scale:	1/48
Contents and Media:	All parts cast in cream coloured resin
Review Type:	FirstLook
Advantages:	Perfectly cast; drop fit for original kit parts; designed to be easily removed from casting blocks.
Disadvantages:	None noted.
Conclusion:	Ultracast’s Mosquito wheels offer a higher level of detail, and wider range of type, than their plastic equivalents in the 1/48 Tamiya, Monogram, Airfix and Revell kits. If you are interested in good value, high detail, easy to add accuracy then you should consider these wheels for your next quarter scale Mosquito project.

Reviewed by Brad Fallen

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With nearly 8,000 examples produced it’s not surprising that de Havilland Mosquitos were fitted with several different wheel types.  Most received standard or ‘plain hub’ wheels with a brake either side, but some early night fighter, photo-reconnaissance and likely other types had single brake, five-spoke hub wheels.  (My references on this subject are quite ambiguous, so any additional information that matches wheels to variants would be welcome.)

A variety of tyre treads was used on both wheel types.  The bottom line, I think, is that you’re modelling a Mosquito and want to get the wheels right then you should find some photos of your subject.

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Fortunately Canadian aftermarket company Ultracast has most if not all of these variations covered in 1/48 scale, releasing resin sets of the following Mosquito wheel types:

• spoked wheels with block tread;

• standard wheels with block tread;

• spoked wheels with diamond tread;

• standard wheels with diamond tread; and

• standard wheels with Australian Z Block tread.

Anyone familiar with Ultracast products will find no surprises here.  The quality of the resin parts is excellent, with no casting flaws and very fine detail.  Highlights are the hubs – both plain and spoked – and the subtle tread pattern that with painting and weathering should look most convincing.  Other details include ‘Good Year’ logos on the tyre sidewalls, and valves tucked away inside the spoked wheels.

The wheels are joined to their casting blocks by reasonably narrow attachment points and, with appropriate care and safety, should be straightforward to clean up and prepare for painting. 

There’s not much that needs to be said about these sets other than that, as typical Ultracast products, they can be highly recommended.  Ultracast’s Mosquito wheels offer a higher level of detail, and wider range of type, than their plastic equivalents in the 1/48 Tamiya, Monogram, Airfix and Revell kits.  If you are interested in good value, high detail, easy to add accuracy then you should consider these wheels for your next quarter scale Mosquito project.

References

Dave Brown, Mosquito FB.VI:  Airframe, systems and RAF wartime usage, SAM Publications, 2009.

Richard A. Franks, The de Havilland Mosquito:  A Comprehensive Guide for the Modeller, SAM Publications, 1998.

Stuart Howe, de Havilland Mosquito:  An Illustrated History, Volume 1, Crecy Publishing, 1999.

Ian Thirsk, de Havilland Mosquito:  An Illustrated History, Volume 2, Crecy Publishing, 2006.

Thanks to Ultracast for the review sample.

Ultracast figures and accessories are available online from their website

Review and Images Copyright © 2014 by Brad Fallen
This Page Created on 27 April, 2015
Last updated 27 April, 2015

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