Supermarine Spitfire Mk.Vc

Airfix 1/72 scale

Reviewed by Brett Green

The Spitfire Mk.Vc was the first of this famous breed to use the so-called "universal" C wing. The C wing could be fitted with up to four 20mm cannon or eight machine guns, but the most typical fitout was two 20mm cannon and four .303 machine guns.

The C wing armament was also used on the Spitfire Mk.VIII, IX, XVI and Mk.18.

Although the Spitfire Vc was built in significant numbers, we have not seen this variant produced as a mainstream dedicated 1/72 scale injection moulded kit until now.

Sword released a pretty decent limited run 1/72 scale Spitfire Vc in 2011 that received good reviews. They look pretty nice built up.

Both Kopro and Smer offered Mk.Vc kits based on the sprues of the old Heller Spitfire Vb, adding a new sprue with a C wing.

Airfix themselves adopted a similar approach in 2007 with a new Mk.Vc wing sprue added to their old 1/72 scale Spitfire Mk.Vb. This resulted in a hybrid with basic detail and raised panel lines on the fuselage, and thick plastic with heavy recessed panel lines on the new wing parts.

Let's see if Airfix has finally delivered what so many small scale Spitfire fans have been waiting for - a good quality Spitfire Mk.Vc straight from the box.

This brand new Airfix 1/72 scale Spitfire Mk.Vc comprises 68 parts in light blue-grey plastic, four parts in clear and markings for two aircraft.

This is an all-new kit with absolutely no parts in common with any previous Airfix Spitfire release.

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Moulding quality is very good. The plastic is smoother than earlier releases with no hint of the slightly pebbly finish sometimes found on Airfix's soft plastc. Moulding perfections are few, and generally in places that you won't see on the finished model..

Surface detail is by way of recessed panel lines. These are fine and relatively crisp compared to Airfix's previous 1/72 scale efforts. Fabric texture on the elevators and rudder is subtle and I like the recessed fasteners on the engine cowlings. Slots are even moulded inside the circular fasteners.

This cockpit is similar in breakdown to the latest 1/48 scale Spitfire kits, which is a good thing. It features the correct bottomless floor, with separate parts for the bulkheads, the seat and an instrument panel with simple but effective raised bezels. An optional decal for the instrument dials is included. I particularly like the separate lower cockpit halves, which are moulded with crisp raised detail. There are some ejector circles on the bottom of the parts but these will be effectively hidden once the cockpit is assembled.

All you really need to add is a set of harness straps, although even these won’t be required if you choose to use the supplied pilot figure. BTW, he looks better in real life than in this photo!

The entry door is moulded shut, and if you want to pose the canopy closed you'll need to trim away a thin strip of the canopy rails that are moulded to the fuselage halves.

The exhausts are one piece for each side. The outlets are solid, but they are very thin at the ends so hollowing out will be a challenge. Two styles of exhaust are offered, although I'm hard pressed to tell the difference between them.

Two propeller and spinner options are included – Rotol and de Havilland.

The wings are moulded as a full-span lower section plus separate upper wing halves. The various bulges, panels and the wing tips are all moulded in place.

Two upper wing options are supplied - one with clipped wing tips and one with the standard rounded wing tips.

I was a bit surprised about this. If there were two wing options I would have thought that one set with narrow cannon bulges and one with wide cannon bulges might have been more interesting. Wing tips could then have been supplied as separate parts in this hypothetical. However, the way that Airfix has broken the parts down probably results in the easiest method of assembly for less experienced and younger modellers.

Control surfaces are all moulded in neutral positions except for the separate rudder.

The main wheels are fitted with smooth tyres and feature five-spoke hubs. A second set of wheels and undercarriage covers are supplied for raised landing gear. The undercarriage sidewalls and covers are moulded as two pieces per side.

Two styles of oil cooler intake are included, but check the instructions because only one is appropriate for the Mk.Vc.

Other options include the choice of two or four Hispano 20mm cannon barrels, standard lower cowling or Vokes filter, and the big 90 gallon slipper tank for the lower fuselage.

A one-piece canopy is supplied for the closed option. If you want to pose the canopy open, Airfix has supplied separate canopy parts.

Unfortunately the clear parts are quite thick. The opening canopy section is noticeably distorted. I'd be tempted to buy a vacform replacement.

Parts breakdown is conventional, with locating pins and other devices that should make this model simple to build.

Markings

Two marking options are offered, both in the tropical scheme of Dark Earth and Middle Stone on the upper surfaces and Azure Blue below. The decals feature perfect registration, rich colours and a glossy finish.

Outlines appear to be accurate, as you would expect from an Airfix Spitfire.

This is a really nice little kit, close in quality to its larger cousin, the Airfix 1/48 scale Spitfire Mk.Vb released in 2014.

Kudos to Airfix that they started from scratch with this one - there are no parts in common with any of their earlier 1/72 scale Spitfire releases.

Cockpit detail is good, surface textures are fine and there are plenty of useful options.

Between this one and a handul of other lovely recent 1/72 scale kits such as the Special Hobby Bf 109 E-4 and the Eduard Zlin Z-37, I reckon I could be tempted back to building small scale...

Sample purchased by reviewer from Hannants.

Text and Images Copyright © 2021 by Brett Green
Page Created 18 January, 2021
Last updated 19 January, 2021

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