Beer Spitfire Mk.IX Conversions

Brengun, 1/144, 1/72, 1/48 scales

Reviewed by Brad Fallen

Eduard's 1/72 Avia B.534 IV serie Weekend Edition is available online from Squadron.com

In the weeks after D-Day, a number of resourceful and often surreptitious ways were found to transport alcohol from England to thirsty Allied servicemen in Normandy.  Most famous are the beer flights conducted by RAF and USAAF pilots in Spitfire Mk.IXs, Typhoons, P-51s and P-47s, with the amber fluid carried in a variety of external fuel tanks.  Exposed to cold air at altitude, the tanks kept the beer chilled but also added unwelcome metallic and gasoline flavours.  Some RAF units, assisted by Supermarine and local breweries, solved the problem by modifying Spitfire wing racks to carry wooden barrels…ensuring the beer arrived in perfect condition. 

The incongruity of these ‘beer trucks’ has long appealed to modellers, with their interest supported by a number of kit and aftermarket companies including (but not limited to) the following releases.

• In 2013 Eduard themed its Royal Class 1/48 Spitfire Mk.IX boxing around the subject, with beer-carrying Spitfires gracing the marking options, the box art and even a bonus beer glass.  The delicately cast resin beer barrels included in the kit have unfortunately yet to be released as standalone Brassin products. 

• Hasegawa and Italeri have produced 1/48 ‘beer truck’ kits, with the latter a re-pop of Occidental’s vexed kit.  In both of these kits, the beer barrels were provided in injection-moulded plastic.

• Kopro and CMR have tackled similar subjects in 1/72 scale, the former in injection-moulded plastic and the latter in resin.

Aftermarket company Brengun has now also come to the party, with ‘Beer Spitfire’ conversion sets in 1/48, 1/72 and 1/144 scales.

1/48 Beer Spitfire Mk.IX

The 1/48 set consists of two resin beer barrels, two underwing racks, a fret of photo-etched brass detailing parts, a decal sheet and a black and white instruction sheet.  The resin parts are well cast with no pinholes or other flaws; the beer barrels are particularly nice and with careful painting (I’d recommend oils over an acrylic base to capture the wood grain appearance of the originals) will look excellent.  A quick comparison of these barrels with their Brassin equivalents from Eduard’s Royal Class kit revealed the Brengun parts to be significantly larger; I don’t know which is the more accurate size.

The resin underwing racks are plainer, but will be dressed up with photo-etched details that require careful cutting and folding.  The photo-etched fret also includes hoops that go around the barrels and attach them to the racks.

The instruction sheet is small and slightly perfunctory; it includes all the information required to complete the barrel assemblies, but you will need to pay close attention to the illustrations that show how to fold and attach the photo-etched parts.  What the instructions don’t contain, unfortunately, is any information about the two Mk.IXs for which markings are provided other than small black and white portside profiles showing the location of codes and serials.  Both machines featured in Eduard’s Royal Class kit, and if you are using any of these Brengun conversions I’d recommend looking at the Eduard instructions as a guide.  It’s from these instructions that I’ve drawn most of the following information.

• The first aircraft is the most famous ‘beer Spitfire’ by a considerable margin:  a Mk.IXe, MK329/JE-J Jr, flown by Wing Commander J.E. ‘Johnnie’ Johnson, CO of No.144 Wing, RAF, in June 1944.  MK329 was reportedly assembled from components of other airframes, and only flown by Johnston on a couple of occasions; I found photos of this Spitfire to be elusive, particularly of it fitted with beer barrels.  Both MK329 and the next machine were camouflaged in Ocean Grey and Dark Green over Medium Sea Grey, with full invasion stripes on wings and fuselage.

• There is more doubt around the accuracy of the second marking option –  a IXc or IXe, MH978/MF-F, in which Squadron Leader Count Franz Ferdinand Colloredo-Mansfield was shot down and killed in January 1944.  As summed up in Eduard’s painting and marking guide,

photos of this Spitfire with beer barrels are known to every Spitfire fan.  Photos have surfaced, but unfortunately none of them are good enough to provide useful information for a full colour reconstruction.  About thirty years ago, a reconstruction appeared in a Czechoslovak magazine.  It is now clear that this interpretation has no basis in reality…

I haven’t been able to find out much more about MH978 than this, and if anyone has further information I’d love to hear about it.

Brengun’s decal sheet offers only the squadron codes and serial numbers for each aircraft; you’ll need to source roundels and stencils from elsewhere.  The decals are crisply printed in what appear to be accurate fonts.  The Sky colour of the codes is slightly too dark for my liking, but this is just a matter of personal taste.

1/72 and 1/144 Beer Spitfire Mk.IX

The 1/72 and 1/144 sets are identical to the 1/48 set except in scale and the inclusion of a resin slipper tank.  Resin casting is again good although detail diminishes as scale decreases, and I noticed several pinholes that weren’t present in the 1/48 parts.  The 1/144 photo etched parts are simplified compared to their larger equivalents, which should reduce – but perhaps not eliminate – the potential for frustration when using these tiny items.  The 1/144 decals are not quite as sharp as those on the other two sheets, but with careful application will still look convincing when applied to one of Eduard’s lovely little Mk.IX kits in this scale.

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‘Beer Spitfires’ are popular modelling subjects, a popularity that should be increased by these three sets from Brengun.  All are well produced, with high quality resin, photo-etch and decals that will make the conversion process relatively straightforward.  The instructions are slightly disappointing, especially in relation to markings and camouflage but fortunately the Eduard instructions are a readily available alternative.  The accuracy of the second marking option must also be questioned.  Overall, however, these are good sets that can be highly recommended.

Thanks to Brengun for the review sample.

Review Text Copyright © 2016 by Brad Fallen
Page Created 27 September, 2016
Last updated 27 September, 2016

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