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First Look Review
148
Focke Wulf Fw 190 F-8
Focke Wulf Fw 190 F-8
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by: Jean-Luc Formery [ TEDMAMERE ]

Introduction
The Fw 190 F-8 is the ground-attack version of the A-8. The aircraft was nearly indentical except for the following modifications:
- Outboard cannons removed.
- Upper wings rectangular plates sometimes removed (check your references).
- ETC 501 Fuselage rack as standard.
- "Blown Hood" canopy with pylon monted headrest fitted on late models.

The F-8 was the most produced model of the "F" fighter bomber series. In 1944/45 many of them were being encountered by advancing Allied forces on all fronts.

The Kit
Hasegawa's new Fw 190 F-8 kit comes in their standard top opening cardboard box. The artwork on it is somewhat misleading since it shows an aircraft flying at high altitude, which is something that must not have happened too often to a F-8 at the end of the war! Anyway, the kit is composed of the following items:
- 5 grey plastic sprues protected within two plastic bags.
- 1 transparent plastic sprue protected within it's own bag.
- 1 decal sheet.
- 1 panoramic instruction sheet.
- Poly caps

The content of the kit is well known now. If you want to read more about the new range of Fw 190 kits produced by Hasegawa, then take a look at the following reviews:
- Fw 190 A-3
- Fw 190 A-5 with BMW 327
- Fw 190 A-8/R-8

The quality of the kit is excellent throughout. The plastic parts have been crisply molded with no traces of flash or sink marks. Surface detail is subtle and the level of detail is very good. The kit is also a spare parts provider. The unused parts are highlighted in red on the pictures accompanying the review.

The clear parts are excellent and two types of canopy hoods are provided: flat or blown

Only two marking options are provided which is not much. Eduard for example have 5 and Tamiya 3 in their F-8 kits. Why not more Mister Hasegawa? Also, both decorations are not very original:
1 - Fw 190 F-8 II./SG 4 "E", Eastern front, Summer 1944.
2 - Fw 190 F-8 SG 2 red (black?) 9, Hungary Winter 1944-1945.

The first aircraft wears a RLM 74/75/76 camouflage with yellow tactical markings on the rudder, underside wing tips, fuselage and around the cowling. The second aircraft is well known (Tamiya has chosen the same decoration for one of the options in their Fw 190 F-8/9 kit). It also has a RLM 74/75/76 camouflage but with a white winter wash added and carries a yellow chevron on the underside of the left wing. It is to note that the original aircraft had some parts of the landing gear doors removed. This is indicated in the instructions and Hasegawa ask you to cut some plastic parts to accurately reproduce this.

While we are at it, let's take a look at the construction guide. It is composed of 13 steps printed on a large panoramic sheet of paper. I personnaly don't like this format since it takes away a lot of space on the workbench, but this is a matter of taste. The instructions are easy to follow and will guide you safely through the build. Also present are an history of the plane, a parts layout, a list of the color used (Aqueous Hobby Color and Mr. Color range of paints) as well as a painting and marking guide.

What's new in the kit?
The kit provides two new sprues. One, identified by the letter "K" is labelled "Fw190 F-8" while the second, identified by the letter "B" is labelled "Luftwaffe Set WWII". The first has new underwing access panels and the parts for the four ETC 50 underwing bomb racks - Rüstsatz 1 (R1). The second provides the SC 50 and SC 250 bombs. This sprue is part of the "Luftwaffe Pilot figures & Equipment set WWII".
As I said before, a new "blown hood" is also present, so I would say that if you want to build a Hasegawa Fw 190 A-8 kit, this kit is probably the best option as it provides the parts for both the A-8 and F-8 variants, which is not the case of the A-8 boxing.

Conclusion
Hasegawa's new range of Fw 190 kits is now almost complete. This is good news because they are excellent and easy to build. They don't have the same level of interior detail as the Eduard kits and don't feature separate controle surfaces neither, but if you want to have an "all closed" aircraft model, they are the way to go, along with the Tamiya kits. We should consider ourselves very fortunate to have the choice between so many Fw 190 kits, each having their qualities.

Hasegawa's Fw 190 F-8 was kindly provided for review by HobbyLink Japan. Visit HLJ for Japanese kits at Japanese prices.

Please remember, when contacting retailers or manufacturers, to mention that you saw their products highlighted here - on AEROSCALE.
SUMMARY
Highs: Good quality, very nice surface finish and easy to build. Options for A-8 and F-8 variant.
Lows: Only two decal options which are not very original.
Verdict: High quality kit. recommended if you want to build an all closed Fw 190 F-8.
Percentage Rating
90%
  Scale: 1:48
  Mfg. ID: 09856
  Suggested Retail: €21.85 (HLJ)
  PUBLISHED: May 22, 2009
  NATIONALITY: Germany
NETWORK-WIDE AVERAGE RATINGS
  THIS REVIEWER: 87.63%
  MAKER/PUBLISHER: 85.84%

Our Thanks to HobbyLink Japan!
This item was provided by them for the purpose of having it reviewed on this KitMaker Network site. If you would like your kit, book, or product reviewed, please contact us.

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About Jean-Luc Formery (TedMamere)
FROM: MOSELLE, FRANCE

I'm mainly interested in WW2 aircraft and I build them in 1/48 scale.

Copyright ©2021 text by Jean-Luc Formery [ TEDMAMERE ]. Images also by copyright holder unless otherwise noted. Opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of AeroScale. All rights reserved.



Comments

Hi Jean-Luc Thanks for another nice review! I am looking forward to that model to appear in Germany, because I do not agree on this: there are still some omissions, that I hope to be filled in the future. As a stop gap solution I will swap parts to make a Fw 190 F-3 out of the Hasegawa F-8 ad A-6 editions. I am also hoping for a Fw 190A-7 with choices for antenna positions and correct details (although this is probably just wishful thinking). Why do you wonder? .. .especially Hasegawa is known to rebox their kits very often with different decals and I do not find this too bad. In the end you can only build one c&m from the kit. Sadly the AM is not very well equipped with the Schlächter versions ... maybe a problem of documentation. How many books on german ground attack units do you know? Looking forward to see your finished model soon. all the best Steffen
MAY 22, 2009 - 09:46 PM
Hi Steffen, That's why I said "almost"... For the decals your are right of course. However, with so many Fw190 now on the market, when compared to the other kits, this is a bad point for Hasegawa. I wonder if they will do the D-9 in the future... Jean-Luc
MAY 23, 2009 - 11:49 PM
Hi Jean-Luc you are right of course. But the way I read your post it seemed to me that you said it is almost complete and not almost complete ... also many of the editions appeared as "limited" and not as regular JT, e.g. "F-1" and "A-6". this has two effects: (1) there is no wonder they only put in 2 c&m options (2) they are only available for a short time. In general I would agree that a bit more variation would be nice, but as I wrote above .. documentation on late war Luftwaffe is not very well illustrated, esp. non fighter units. Anyway ... this is something we can agree to disagree all the best Steffen P.S. I passed the exam on Friday .. come over to me and we can have a drink or two milk or tea of course
MAY 24, 2009 - 12:30 AM
Aaaahhhh! Great news! Congratulations! I will talk to Marc and Oliver and maybe we can do a fiesta in Niederseebach... Jean-Luc
MAY 24, 2009 - 07:39 AM
Hi Jean-Luc many thanks, my friend! .. yes we could meet there but it will be no big party (cannot afford that) .. just, shoot me a note when and where! To get back on topic: how far is your Fw 190 F-8 project? colours already on? all the best Steffen
MAY 25, 2009 - 03:45 AM
Nice! I just brought the Hasegawa A3 Butcher bird , this " Mud mover " Fw190 looks like a winner for sure
MAY 25, 2009 - 02:39 PM
Errr... the F-8 isn't on my workbench. But I've started to work on the Fw 190 V1... Jean-Luc
MAY 27, 2009 - 01:40 AM
   
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