Focke-Wulf Fw 190 D-9
Cottbus (Early Production)

IBG, 1/72 scale

Reviewed by Brett Green

If the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A was a bit of an ugly duckling, then the Fw 190 D was more like a swan. A new in-lime engine requiring a totally redesigned nose combined with an extended rear fuselage transformed the stocky Butcher Bird into the sleek embodiment of an airborne hunter.

The Focke-Wulf Fw 190 D was not built in huge quantities nor did it affect the outcome of the war, but it was a highly competent fighter that was more than a match for its Allied contemporaries in the hands of an experienced pilot.

Even though the Dora was in service for less than eight months, its good looks and wide range of colour schemes makes it a perennially popular modelling subject.

Current Small Scale Doras

There are plenty of 1/72 options available for Dora fanciers. These include the Hasegawa and Tamiya kits, the Academy Fw 190 D-9 which many suggest is a knock off of the Hasegawa offering, Italeri and others.

Most of those mentioned here were first released 20 years ago. The Hasegawa kit has a reputation for poor detail in the wheel wells and cockpit; while the small scale Tamiya Dora suffers from some detail accuracy issues around the spinner, propeller blades, undercarriage and wheels.

AZ Model released a limited run 1/72 scale Focke-Wulf Fw 190 D-9 in 2015. In his HyperScale review, Glen Porter was impressed with the AZ kit's clean moulding and innovative engineering but he did not like the soft recessed rivet detail and the lack of locating aids.

IBG has released some impressive kits in the military vehicle and aircraft categories lately.

This 1/72 scale Focke-Wulf Fw 190 D-9 Early Version was released at the same time as the speculative Fw 190 D-15 Torpedo Bomber. I will be covering the Fw 190 D-15 in detail next week.

The model is identified as "early" due to the five-piece gun cowl as manufactured at the Focke-Wulf Sarau factory. This is correctly depicted in the kit.

IBG's 1/72 scale Focke-Wulf Fw 190 D-9 Cottbus (Early Production) comprises 88 parts in grey coloured plastic, around 50 parts on a single photo-etched fret, five parts in clear plus two decal sheets with three marking options and full stencil data.

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Surface texture is made up from fine recessed panel lines and rows of rivets.

These textures are crisp and fine, although the recessed rivets may not be to everyone's tastes. I think they look good, and they will look even better under paint.

My big studio lights and close-up photos also probably don't do the rivets justice. From the natural viewing distance with the unaided human eye, the rivets are fine and almost invisible from some angles.

The cockpit is adequately detailed with plastic and photo-etched parts. Decals are supplied for the instrument panels and side consoles, or you can paint the bezels, dials and switches yourself. Photo-etched harness straps, rudder pedals with foot straps and a tiny handle on the instrument panel are also offered.

One of the most interesting aspects of the kit is its full engine and cowl gun assembly. The Jumo 213A engine looks very good and full painting instructions are supplied. The engine and cowl guns and mounts are made up from 23 plastic parts. The exhausts are supplied as one-piece each. The narrow ends are not hollowed out, but good luck with that in 1/72 scale!

These are in turn attached to the rear firewall, which doubles as the centre section of a single span wing spar, which itself is attached to the forward cockpit floor and instrument coaming.

This engine and cockpit sub-assembly is then trapped between the fuselage halves.

Surprisingly, the kit is not designed to display the engine through open cowls. Instead, it is an original approach to the see-through wheel well.

The wheel well is highly detailed. It features the correct see-through effect, with the rear of the engine and the supercharger visible through the open centre section of the wheel well. The wheel well sidewalls, support structures and ceilings are photo-etched parts. I recommend test fitting thoroughly before gluing and, if possible, only fold the photo-etched parts once.

With the full-span lower wing in place, the upper wing halves are designed to slot into the wing root at around a 30 degree angle, then be pressed down into place. In theory, this should result in a gap-free wing root join.

The pitot tube is moulded to the leading edge of the starboard wing. I am almost certain to snap this off during assembly or painting, so I will most likely cut mine off cleanly and reattach it late in the assembly process.

Three styles of drop tank -the cigar shap and two variations on the standard 300 litre tanks - are offered as centreline ordnance, although two of the options are not mentioned in the instructions. A boarding step is also offered.

There are a number of other options too, but most are not applicable to this early-version Fw 190 D-9.

The cowl flaps are moulded shut.

Undercarriage legs feature photo-etched oleo scissors and a solid connection to the gear doors.

The two-piece main wheels are crisply detailed with raised tread and sidewall lettering.

The canopy parts are clear and acceptably thin.

Separate parts are supplied to permit the sliding canopy to be displayed open or closed. Parts are provided for the blown and flat hoods.

Markings

Three attractive marking options are included on the small decal sheet.

Registration and colours look great.

All thre marking options are variations on late-war Luftwaffe camouflage.

The diagrams suggest that the upper surfaces should all be RLM 81 Brown Violet and RLM 83 Dark Green.

I'd recommend a bit of online research before you make up your own mind about the finer details of the schemes.

The decals are printed by Techmod.

Stencil markings are provided on a separate sheet.

This is a very well-detailed small-scale Dora.

IBG has put a lot of thought into the breakdown of the kit and they have come up with some innovative solutions, especially regarding the see-through wheel well and engine bay.

Surface textures are crisp and fine although the recessed rivets will not be to everyone's taste.

The inclusion of 50 photo-etched parts adds to the fine detail.

This is not a kit for the beginner, but any average modeller with some experience working with photo-etch won't have any trouble with IBG's 1/72 scale Focke-Wulf Fw 190 D-9.

IBG’s 1/72 scale Fw 190 D-9 certainly looks like a strong contender for the best Dora in 1:72 scale today.

Thanks to IBG for the sample

Review Text and Images Copyright © 2022 by Brett Green
Page Created 12 January, 2022
Last updated 13 January, 2022

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