Focke-Wulf
Fw 190 A-1, 2, 3, 4

Pacific Coast Models, 1/32 scale

Reviewed by Brett Green

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The Focke-Wulf Fw 190 Würger was a German single-seat, single-engine fighter aircraft designed by Kurt Tank in the late 1930s and was widely used during World War II. Along with its well-known counterpart, the Messerschmitt Bf 109, the Fw 190 became the backbone of the Luftwaffe's Jagdwaffe.

The twin-row BMW 801 radial engine that powered most operational versions enabled the Fw 190 to lift larger loads than the Bf 109, allowing its use as a day fighter, fighter-bomber, ground-attack aircraft and, to a lesser degree, night fighter.

The Fw 190A started flying operationally over France in August 1941, and quickly proved superior in all but turn radius to the Royal Air Force's main front-line fighter, the Spitfire Mk. V, particularly at low and medium altitudes.

The 190 maintained superiority over Allied fighters until the introduction of the improved Spitfire Mk. IX. In November/December 1942, the Fw 190 made its air combat debut on the Eastern Front, finding much success in fighter wings and specialised ground attack units called Schlachtgeschwader (Battle Wings or Strike Wings) from October 1943 onwards.

The Fw 190 provided greater firepower than the Bf 109, and at low to medium altitude, superior manoeuvrability, in the opinion of German pilots who flew both fighters.*

The Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-4 was the last of the short-nose Würgers. It was decided that the Fw 190 could easily carry heavier ordnance, so from the A-5 onwards, the engine was moved forward, resulting in a longer nose and a forward movement of centre of gravity.

The Fw 190 A-1 through A-4 were similar with the differences being very much in the detail. The main differences between the Fw 190 A-1-3 and the A-4 was the triangular antenna mast on the fin the installation of cooling louvres on later production Fw 190 A-4s. The armoured headrest wwas also modified during the A-4 production run.

Early Würgers in Plastic

It is surprising that, in the year 2018 when so many large scale kits of famous and obscure Luftwaffe aircraft are available, that there is still no mainstream 1/32 scale offering of an early Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A.

Pacific Coast Models released a limited run 1/32 scale Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-1 / 2 3 in 2010.

This was an accurate kit with a modest number of plastic parts supplemented by highly detailed resin and colour photo-etch and eight varied marking schemes.

This kit has been out of production for some time and I had not seen one, so I was curious to examine this new incarnation.

At long last, we have a good quality, multi-media 1/32 scale kit of the Fw 190 A-4 straight from the box.

Pacific Coast Models' Fw 190 A-1 / 2 / 3 / 4 comprises just 76 parts in grey coloured plastic, five parts in clear, 23 grey resin parts, a colour photo-etched fret and markings for a whopping 16 aircraft.

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All the parts from the original release, including the decals, are incuded here, so you have the choice of building the A-1, A-2, A-3 or A-4 variant straight from the box.

The plastic parts have been moulded by Sword of the Czech Republic. The plastic is shiny, and surface detail is very good with crisply recessed fine panel lines.

The 24 grey resin parts are bristling with detail. The cockpit tub is a resin part.

Resin parts are also supplied for the undercarriage bay, two styles of early wheel (one with treaded tyres and one with smooth tyres), tail undercarriage bay, gunsight and smaller detail parts.

The one-piece engine and the exhausts are resin parts too. Very little of the engine will be seen behind the Würger's characteristic exhaust fan, so this one-piece engine is entirely appropriate.

This time around, PCM offers three additional resin parts to convert the original A-1 / A-2 / A-3 kit to an A-4 - a replacement fin tip with the triangular antenna mast and the louvered cooling vents (for later A-4 variants). The use of the louvres will require the modeller to cut out the exhaust slot panels in the fuselage sides.

The colour photo-etch fret offers glorious eye-candy for the front office including a beautifully detailed instrument panel, harness straps with printedhalf-tone stitching detail and much more.

The clear parts are very nice - thinly moulded and good looking in shape.

Engineering and parts breakdown looks straightforward. Being a limited run kit there are no locating pins, so take your time with test fitting and alignment before committing to glue.

The lower wing is full span, with the upper wing halves supplied separately. The rudder is moulded as part of the fuselage halves andthe elevaors are in the neutral position. Ailerons are separte parts. Flaps are (mercifully) moulded in the closed/up position. The trailing edges of wings and tailplanes look pretty fine, but they will probably benefit from the attention of a sanding stick to thin them to a razor's edge.

The overall profile and plan form looks good.

The large colourful decal sheet from the Fw 190 A-1 / A-2 / A-3 is still included with this kit, along with the colour instructions.

A new sheet and colour instruction leaflet is included for an additional eight varied Fw 190 A-4 options.

This kit does not include ordnance.

Decals are printed by Cartograf. Colours look good and registration is perfect.

This is a welcome return of PCM's 1/32 scale early short-nose Würger, now with extra resin parts and decals to also build the Fw 190 A-4 variant.

Due to its limited-run nature, you should certainly have had some experience with short run kits or resin accessories. However, if you take your time preparing parts and test fitting, and treat this kit with the respect that any limited run offering deserves, then you should be rewarded with a very attractive and well-detailed model of these early Würger variants.

Highly Recommended.

Thanks to Kitlinx for the sample.

Review and Images Copyright © 2018 by Brett Green
Page Created 27 June, 2018
Last updated 27 June, 2018

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