Spitfire Mk.VIII Engine
for Eduard kit

Eduard BRASSIN, 1/48 scale

Reviewed by Brad Fallen

Eduard's 1/48 BRASSIN Spitfire Vb Gun Bays are available online from Squadron.com

Eduard’s Brassin Mk.VIII engine completes the trifecta of engines the company has released for its own 1/48 Spitfire kits.  This includes a Packard Merlin 266 for the Spitfire XVI and a 60-series Merlin for the Spitfire IX family, both of which are excellent upgrade sets.

The Mk.VIII engine is similarly impressive.  In fact, my comparison of the Mk.VIII and Mk.IX Brassin parts suggests the two sets are nearly if not fully identical.  This is understandable given the overlap in engine types fitted to Mk.VIIIs and Mk.IXs.  According to my SAM Datafile on Merlin-powered Spitfires, both variants received Merlin 63, 63A, 64, 66 and 70 engines.

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Thumbnail panels:

Given the similarity of the two sets, I will repeat here what I wrote about the Mk.IX engine back in 2015.

First impressions are daunting, with the packaging nearly filled by five bags of resin parts.  At this stage it pays to examine the instructions, which are clearly presented in Eduard’s usual style and offer reassurance that the jumble of parts will fit together.  Each part is clearly numbered, both in the instructions and on its casting block, and the instructions set out a logical step-by-step process that progressively builds up layers of detail.  Gunze paint numbers are used for colour call outs, and while Eduard’s choices here seem reasonable I’d recommend having some references handy to provide confirmation.

Construction begins with a beautifully cast one-piece engine block.  This is probably the most impressive part in the set and includes the rocker covers, propeller reduction gear and spark plug leads, along with a number of pumps, filters and other components.  My only quibble is with the spark plug leads, which while featuring fine detail are also connected to the cylinders with a thick film of resin that will be tricky to remove without damaging the leads themselves.  It might have been more practical – if less ambitious – for Eduard to provide the leads in photo-etch for attachment at the end of the build process.  I’ll probably remove the leads on my engine and replace them with lead wire towards the end of the build.

However this is a minor complaint only.  It’s clear as construction begins that the engine is a highly detailed mini-kit with parts engineered for a tight and positive fit (very different to some older resin Spitfire engines I have worked with!).  Parts that are added to the base engine include:

• airscrew reduction gear

• coolant header tank

• generator

• magnetos

• supercharger and carburetor

• intercooler

• a choice of exhausts (fishtail or tubular) with associated framework

• Aero-Vee carburetor intake filter

• oil tank

• and major pipes and trunking.

The largely complete engine is then attached to a one-piece firewall (that includes an integrally cast hydraulic reservoir tank and ancillary equipment) and wrapped in an engine frame.  The port frame features a radio suppression unit, and the armour plate that protects the glycol tank is well depicted.

Before the engine can be attached to your model, surgery is required on each fuselage half to remove the side cowls, and on the centre front of on the lower wing to remove a small ‘v’ of plastic.  If you take care these should be fairly straightforward tasks that leave you with solid mounting points for the Brassin engine.

One of the last jobs is to attach the large but delicate photo-etched panel mounting frames on each side of the engine.  Judging by the instructions and reference photos it looks like these frames will require a little manipulation and bending to sit perfectly; in order to achieve this without damage it might help to gently anneal the parts over a candle flame.

Eduard also supplies well cast top, side and lower cowl panels.  (There are two styles of top panel provided, so check your references for the aircraft you are modelling.)  I might be wrong but I’d be surprised if these panels were engineered to fit tightly over the engine (a la Tamiya’s 1/32 Spitfires).  However, with their finely rendered external and internal details the panels will look most convincing if used in a diorama or vignette.

If you choose to install this engine in your 1/48 Eduard Mk.VIII then you will be up for considerably more work than if you built the kit as supplied.  However carefully built, painted and installed, the engine will look stunning, and I have no hesitation in highly recommending it to anyone with a little experience in working with resin and photo-etched parts. 

References

Robert Humphreys, The Supermarine Spitfire – A Comprehensive Guide for the Modeller.  Part 1:  Merlin Powered (SAM Publications, 2000)

Thanks to Eduard for the samples and images.

Review Text and Images Copyright © 2017 by Brad Fallen
Except Blue Background CAD Images by Eduard
Page Created 19 July, 2017
Last updated 19 July, 2017

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