Online Build - Roden 1/32 Albatros D.III

[Brad Cancian]

In addition, here is the Model Cellar Voss figure, painted very nicely by Stephen Lawson:




So, now that I have built this kit, what are my overall impressions?

Without a doubt, this is the best 1/32 Albatros of any mark on the market. Although I have not built the Battle Axe offering, from the distain thrown at it by all that have tried, I am quite sure it is no competition to Roden's offering. Roden's kit offers a very comprehensive interior, some very nicely rendered flying surfaces, and some very fine details. This kit easily can be built into a spectacular model straight out of the box.

That said, the Roden kit is not without its tricks. There are still mould and fit issues, notably in actually getting that gorgeous interior into the kit, and getting the fuselage and wings to fit together. Many parts require dry fitting, and many parts have sink marks that require attention. None of this is beyind the patient modeller.

Unfortunately Roden continues to persist with leaving photo-etch out of thier kits, leaving it to the builder to find their own seat belts and spandau jackets. To Roden's credit, they have acknowledged this by having small details like jacketless spandaus included in the kit.

So, is it accurate? Well, it looks like an Albatros to me, although one area of accuracy does concern me, and that is in the profile of the nose. To me, the nose looks a little too pinched in plan view, giving the model a slightly odd pointed appearance. The rest, however, looks pretty well spot on.

More than anything else, it was a satisfying build.

As always, all comments, feedback and criticisms welcome!

BC

[Brad Cancian]

Here's some fun.....

[Lucky Dog]

Very nice Brad!

[aviators6]

your work never ceases to amaze me Brad. your posts always informative and inspiring. great stuff

[RAGIII]

Brad, as always your work is superb and inspirational!
RAGIII

[G. Scott Long]

Brad,
One day I hope I can build something that beautiful!
best wishes,
Scott

[MerlinV]

Brad.

One Word.

Perfect!

Cheers,

Hugh

[StephenLawson]

He does fine work! Brad beautiful finish. Thanks for the inclusion of the figure here. You may have to do a write up on the fit situation on the internal parts to the fuselage. I would be interested in the specifics. I ran into one or two with the Pfalz D.III. Though it just took some careful planning. At any rate you are a steely-eyed model builder !

[PrzemoL]

Terrific!!! I like the model very much, especially the wood effect and weathering!

[Brad Cancian]

Thanks for the very kind words fellows!

Stephen - firstly, again, a fine job on the Voss figure! The fit on the fuselage frames into the fuselage halves was tight, mainly around the cockpit. It seems to me as though the frames are slightly too wide. That said, unlike the Pfalz, there are no little bits and pieces that get in the way of the fuselage fit, so I figure it must be the frames. ome very tense moments and some firm pressure sorted it all out. That said, I think I may have made some errors in fitting the fuselage to the bottom wing which may have compounded the issue, plus my method of building the interior framework as a completely separate sub assembly was against the instructions and may have also contributed. If I was to build the kit again, I would try and fit the interior before closing the fuselage halves, hopefully this may assist with the wing and fuselage alignment... hopfully... Another issue identified by a few people is the fit of the top decking - the part needs to be another few mm wider. Again, if I was to build the kit again I would pad this area out with strip plastic prior to painting the interior.

Long story short, it was probably a combination of me not following the instructions and some minor fit issues with the kit....Hope this helps some

BC