Wingnut Wings 1/32 Bristol F.2B Fighter (32060) Kit review

[@johnw4659]

My girlfriend bought me this kit for Christmas. Cannot wait to get started on it.

[@pstrutt1]

Another great review Peter. I too received this kit as an Xmas present, from my partner. Back in November this kit came up as part of the Black Friday sale from Andy's HHQ Europe, at a discount but with a little more postage to the UK, so pretty much normal retail price. They had several other WnW kits available then, but I've checked recently and they've all gone now unfortunately

[@davidclarke1426]

Dave from Ireland here Peter, I'm very glad to see this review. This is one of the kits that became available again briefly, I recently installed two in my stash! I'll build them for my teenagers in the Irish schemes, but I'm regretting not snagging one for myself to do as a British or NZ bird. I'm from Belfast and our family has ties to the British Army and Royal Navy. When I was a kid I toured the RAF Wildenrath and RAF Brüggen bases in West Germany several times. Phantoms, Tornadoes and Harriers up close leave a lasting impression, so I do have a bias for red and blue roundels. To be honest, I was relieved to see Kotare announce anything at all. Personally, I find their spitfire perfect for me. Deep down I think the plane looks best all closed up, it's a beautiful thing. For a WnW-esque 1/32 kit to come along and make the 'show the lovely merlin or not' dilemma moot, I'm all in! I think they could (hopefully will) produce the best 1/32 Hurricane out there. Given Mr. Alexander's collaboration with the Wingleader photo archive guys, the research might even have been easier. Perhaps this 109 is to widen the appeal early. The 109 has an enduring popularity and the best we have in this scale is either the old Dragon kit in whichever boxing, Revel or Hobby 2000 being the cheapest at around £60, or the Zoukei Mura @ £100+. And showing the engine on that one is only the first dilemma! I've both and think both need skill and patience. The Hurricane would be wildly popular in U.K, Canada, Australia and New Zealand I think, but in other territories it is often dismissed as the ugly sister of the spit. Maybe the idea is to follow up the Spitfire with it's nemesis first, rather than the obvious brother-in-arms. If you've got a gorgeous, accurate Spitfire, you're probably going to be a sucker for an equally gorgeous, accurate 109. Hopefully it sells well and they can get on with filling that top-notch 1/32 Hurricane gap well.

[@markgordon2260]

Me again! Pulled kit 32004 out of the cupboard, ordered Gaspatch turnbuckles from my favourite local online store, and will start building. Need to find the appropriate rigging lines though.

[@barrywalker8790]

Nice to see you with a smile on your face again 😄Wingnut Wings are the benchmark for every manufacturer in our hobby with presentation and the way a kit should go together if they hadn't just done WW1 who knows what would have happened but to me, personally WW1 aircraft and Wingnut Wings especially are too hard for me and rigging l can only just do a aerial wire but l like looking at the kits 😛this was the heyday of the RAF when the British Empire was policed from the air by aircraft like this and other, there's guy out the will know more then me about this part of history great review Peter 👍

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

Thanks Barry...👍🏻 Agree on all fronts, especially the rigging! 🫣

[@mikemontgomery2654]

Peter, if you love WNW kits, you’d love the Hendon museum. I have most of those aircraft on display, in WNW kits. I got as many detail pics as I could of each aircraft not hanging from the ceiling. The F.2 fuselage is half cut out, so you can see the interior of the aircraft.

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

It's definitely on my list to visit! 👍🏻

[@pstrutt1]

And there's a Hannants shop nearby one you've finished at the museum. It's a couple of hundred yards away!

[@mikemontgomery2654]

@@pstrutt1 yep! Went there right after I was done at the museum. Skipped the gift shop, went right to Hannants.

[@markgordon2260]

Hi have the earlier F2B in the stash, as well as the Junkers J.1 and Roland C11a late. Whether I make or keep is a quandary. You showed the New Zealand scheme from the 1930s. I have a feeling that that is what the Kiwis are flying now! I shouldn't talk though. I think the Aussies are trying to source V and W Class destroyers for the RAN.

[@tgapete01]

No, only one of those I think, Peter Jackson put together a squadron of Albatross aircraft for us to gaze at i think!😆

[@stephenwhelan2515]

Great review as always - i’d love to add this to my stash, if only someone would buy the moulds and rerelease it.

[@stephenrose1343]

A real beauty,always a delight to see these WNW kits.

[@PiperStart]

Peter, the James Bond villain that models kits for a hobby.

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

"I've been expecting that comment, Mr Bond..." 😂

[@PiperStart]

A Wingnut Wings quality response.

[@markgordon2260]

Sorry, for one more comment. This is regarding the fuel tank. The pilots were not allowed to wear parachutes (apparently they would promote cowardism), and hence they had a choice of being burnt, jumping to their death, or some carried a pistol for quick despatch purposes.

[@5EyesIsntWatching]

Last time I built a biplane was a Guillow balsa and cloth model lol. It didn't end well after the Cox glow plug engine was installed and well a tree jumped out and attacked it.

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

Now there’s a blast from the past! 👍🏻

[@stephenheyes1487]

Looks like very detailed kit, I can understand why they are very expensive. I wouldn't like to have a go at the rigging😦

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

I know what you mean...🫣

[@stephenheyes1487]

@@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab Big job on your hands, I think I would rather have a go at my phantom and it's many many decals😁

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

@@stephenheyes1487 Ooooh...not if they were Eduard decals though, eh? 😜

[@stephenheyes1487]

@@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab luckily they are Cartograf🙏

[@rsf5898]

The kits weren’t particularly expensive when in production. They were actually very good value for money compared to other contemporary 1/32 scale kits.

[@DavidRamirez-ww5kv]

Good show on the Bristol F2B Peter. I have the kit with the WWI markings in my stash. Lol.

[@kevinjohnson8220]

As for your remark about Kotare putting out a Bf109 F-4, I'd be interested to see what they do although I would have preferred an E4/E7. I have the Trumpeter one and it's pretty decent, although some might argue with me about that. Their choice makes sense though if they are aiming to compliment Zoukei Mura and cater to the market purchasing G-14s

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

It turns out its the K-4.

[@goforitpainting]

Hi Peter, Cool as always 👍

[@EricIrl]

The RAE example would have been based at Farnborough. I'm pretty sure the hangers in the background of the photo are Farnborough structures.

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

Thanks! I was trying to think on the spur of the moment and knew there was another location. 👍🏻

[@EricIrl]

@@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab In the 1920s and 1930s, the RAE was essentially a Farnborough based operation. I'm sure their planes sometimes flew out of other airfields but their HQ was at Farnborough and their planes were based there. The A&AEE, which we later associated with Boscombe Down, was based, back then, at Martlesham Heath in Suffolk. When World War 2 it was thought prudent to move weapons testing and type acceptance tests away from the east of the UK so they moved to Boscombe Down. They are still, there, of course although I don't know what they are called now. The RAE eventually, after a number of name changes and reorganisations, became QinetiQ and they are based at Boscombe Down these days as well.

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

@@EricIrl Didn't know about Martlesham...I used to live nearby.

[@EricIrl]

@@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab Bits of the old airfield still exist. There was an article about the place in Aeroplane or Flypast not that long ago. I think the prototype Spitfire (K5054) was written off in a landing accident there.

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

@@EricIrl Wow! My brother would occasionally fly his R/C planes there with the local club around 1972, long after it was closed of course.

[@finlayfraser9952]

Peter what has happened to the Wingnut moulds, do they still exist? Surely another manufacturer would be happy to continue production?

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

Meng retained the DR.1 Fokker Triplane Mould and Border have the Lancaster moulds...as for all the rest, it is rumoured that either Peter Jackson has them locked away somewhere, or they are still retained in China where the were last used...🤔

[@markgordon2260]

Following from on some comments below. Rigging, decals (mainly jet stencils) or masking (the 1/48 Anson I am now doing with Eduard T-Face). What is the worst?

[@stuartsteel1]

Eduard have a 1/48 version of this one i think. You might want to try building that?

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

No thanks: I am right off Eduard right now. 😖

[@stuartsteel1]

Yeah. That zero isn't what it's all cracked up to be is it? I lost interest when it came to the decals...

[@twsuzu]

Good review

[@adampender2482]

Peter your reviews and videos are so enjoyable im watching this even though im not interested in WW1 aircraft. This could persuade me though. Besides Wingnut, which company would you recommend for a starter WW1 kit?

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

Thanks Adam! Airfix, Revell, Academy, Roden and Copper State Models all do WW1 planes, as well as WNW , Othe first 3 at affordable prices.👍🏻

[@pstrutt1]

I wouldn't recommend a Copper State Models kit as a starter to WW1 aircraft modeling. I'm building one of these at the moment and in many respects it's more of a challenge than the WnW kits

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

@@pstrutt1 OK, Thanks Peter. They are rather pricey too

[@ukmarsadelaide]

Now Peter this just saddens me. Your flaunting your privilege here by showing off a lovely Wingnut Wings kit that I can never own....Rant Over

[@Peter-Oxley-Modelling-Lab]

🤣 This one was a gift to me...😉