Dash 8 - 300

OzMods, 1/144 scale

Reviewed by Graham Carter

HyperScale is proudly sponsored by Squadron.com

The DHC-8 or Dash 8 is a series of turboprop-powered regional airliners, introduced by de Havilland Canada in 1984. DHC was later bought by Boeing in 1988, then by Bombardier in 1992; the program is to be sold again to Viking Air parent Longview Aviation Capital later this year. It has gone through progressive up-grading of engines and fuselage length to accommodate more fare-payers. The -300 can carry 50 passengers and is a familiar feeder liner/short-medium haul aeroplane throughout the world, over 650 have been sold in the various configurations. The  -300 version will set you back about US$ 13million (about $20million Aussie dollars). This kit is a lot cheaper!! heh heh!

OzMods has been around for several years now and from their base in Queensland Australia have built up a commendable reputation for their aircraft, conversions and figure kits.

In 1/72 they produce a great range of aircraft accessories relevant to the Aussie modeller and already have a PC9 in this scale. In 1/144 they produce a big range of aircraft, military and civil of which this kit is a prime example.

The review kit is for an Air New Zealand scheme but the kit is also available in different boxings with markings for British Airways, Philippine Airlines and Jetstar. The OzMods website is easily negotiated and full of information.

The kits come in a top-opening box with a stick-on illustration of the Air NZ scheme. Inside there are 41 white short-run parts, including a couple of spares for smaller parts, a clear canopy and 21 resin parts.

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Thumbnail panels:

The resin parts are nicely moulded and comprise the finer details such as instrument panel, pilot seats, control columns, exhausts and 10 propeller blades ( 2 spares).

Whilst two injected props are provided , they are for engine-on configuration such as flight, the instructions explain that planes at rest nearly always have the props feathered and the resin blades allow for this to be represented - nice idea!

Parts are nicely moulded with the usual thick gates associated with short run (SR)  moulding, so be careful removing them from the runners. No parts were short moulded but some areas are discoloured brown by some imperfection in the plastic and others are slightly grainy - easy to sand smooth. Flash is almost non-existent but all parts will benefit from a bit of a clean-up. Barely any panel lines, apart from control surfaces, are in evidence and nor should they be in this scale!

No windows are marked as they come as decals, but the cockpit area is marked out, as one option is to use the clear part here. This is clear enough to show the cockpit interior but the windows are tiny and a decal is provided if the modeller opts not to go down this path.

The six-page instruction sheet is an example to all SR manufacturers ( and some larger enterprises as well) containing ,as it does, a clear set of safety instructions for the resin parts, gluing and cleaning hints, a photographic sprue chart ( parts numbered to aid construction) and nine clearly drawn construction steps - no chance of misplaced parts here! Nose weight is clearly indicated and the colour scheme is well illustrated. There are no colour call-outs during construction but the overall scheme is clearly shown.

Markings

Decals in this kit are for ZK-NFI of Air NZ and are nicely printed by Pacific Airline Decals , a new one to me but a search reveals that they do a range of decals for airliners used in the Pacific area.

Density and alignment look excellent and small extra sheet provides for the instrument panel (!) should the modeller opt for a complete cockpit and clear canopy. Decal application notes are on the last sheet of instructions.

This particular scheme requires an overall gloss white finish with a black area over the tail and rear fuselage and spinners, while the decals provide the huge white fern leaf and AirNZ symbol for the fin.

De-icing boots are also provided as decals.

A list of internet sites for information on this plane is also provided - good idea OzMods!

This is my first look at a product from this Queensland company and I am very impressed by the thorough presentation of the package.

A fine little replica should be easy to produce by any fan of civil airliners.

Thanks to OzMods for the review sample.

Review Text & Images Copyright © 2019 by Graham Carter
Page Created 1 May, 2019
Last updated 5 May, 2019

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