Originally built for SAMI and appeared in the July 2005 issue. AML have recently released another 1/72 kit thats even better!
This multi-media G.50bis model comes in a stiff cardboard box with a lid. This is a welcome change from their older G.50 kits, which were packaged in very flimsy end-opening cartons that offered little protection for its contents. That's one plus for starters. The next plus was the quality of the parts themselves. AML appear to have completely re-tooled their G.50 kit, the sprues bearing no resemblance to the older model. Although still hampered by the limited run injection process and a rather waxy feel to the plastic, which in turn means a bit of flash on virtually every part, the sprues contain a wealth of parts. A noteworthy point is the wheel well, which is now moulded more or less to its correct depth. The panel engraving is good quality, if a little soft. Only the smaller parts are rather poorly moulded, such as the tail wheel and propellor boss. There are 2 fuselages, 3 types of rudders & spinners, 2 types of cowling (with or without gun troughs), 2 upper decks, 2 tailwheels and even two sets of 2-part instrument panels. Separately moulded flaps and ailerons are provided as alternatives, which will involve a bit of surgery on the wings. It comes no surprise to find that the same sprue is used for the biposto G.50, which has also been released by AML. In fact, there is nothing to stop you from making almost all versions of the G.50, although the A.S. will require a desert filter. It is a big shame that the small bump fairings are not moulded on the cowling, as most "bis" would've featured these. Some of the really small detail parts are cast in resin, this includes very nicely moulded aileron mass balances and cockpit detail such as the control column, seat and throttle. Other cockpit items, such as seat belt harness and control levers are found on a small etch seat. The tiny canopy is provided as a pair and is vacformed. The decal sheet is very nicely done and is in good register.
Instruction
The two part instructions has one A5 sheet with some history and spec on one side and a parts breakdown & colour matching chart based on FS, Humbrol, Lifecolor and Agama paints on the other. The second sheet is A4 sized and has a rather chaotic assembly sequence filling up one side and on the other, a choice of 4 very well executed full-colour camouflage schemes, which will be of great help for anyone attempting either one of the two mottled G.50 schemes provided on the decal sheet.
Construction.
All the major parts needed for the "bis" were identified from the parts breakdown sheet, removed from the sprues and cleaned up. The cockpit was also started, using the injection moulded floor, instrument panel and rear bulkhead, onto which the various resin and brass etch items were added. What you get is a reasonably well detailed cockpit, but unless the access door is lowered on the model, not much of it will be seen. The fuselage halves can be glued together before offering up the cockpit through the gap below, the floor of which will need to be shaped to fit first. The instrument panel is glued into the upper deck, which is test fitted to the fuselage. It turns out to be a surprisingly good fit, so it is glued in place using a fast acting liquid cement such as Mek-Pak to ensure a good clean join. Only a small amount of filler was used. The overall cockpit colour chosen as a light grey.
The one piece lower wing was lined up, where it was found that the front of the wheel well moulding had to be trimmed back a little to get front the of the fuselage to close up properly. The same applied when offering up the top wing pieces. A piece of detail missed by AML were the intakes on the leading ege of each wing. These were easily drilled out, inline with the louvre detail on the top of the wing.
The cowling is in three parts, a top and a lower half with a front section. When assembled, its very thick trailing edge is thinned down to a more scale like appearance, not only to improve its look, but to get a good fit on the fuselage. DO NOT remove the top extension, as suggested on the instruction sheet (this only applies to earlier versions of the G.50, such as the Serie 1). At first, there was a quite gap between cowling and the fuselage, so several test-fitting sessions were needed to close it up until the cowl was almost touching the wing. The carbuettor intake is in two pieces and can be added at this stage.
The tailplanes and fin were also glued in place, as was the undercarriage. The legs will need to be shortened by 1mm to get the correct sit.
Each row of cylinders for the radial engine is in two halves. The detail is a bit crude and in fact is not a good match for the Fiat engine. After its diameter was reduced to get it to fit inside the cowling, it looks more than adequate once in place. A rudimentary spacer is provided to attach the engine to the fuselage, so to ensure correct alignment, I left the cowling on the engine to help aid the positioning. The exhaust stubs were much too big, so I replaced them with tubing of correct diameter.
Accuracy.
The kit dimensions are: span 154mm, length 116mm and height 34mm. The actual dimensions of the G.50 bis was a span of 10.99m, a length of 8.29m and a total height of 3.26m, including the propellor arc. The kit is a very close match indeed. AML have captured the look of the aircraft very nicely and can safely be considered as the best interpretation in 1/72 scale to appear on the market since Misterkits resin kit.
Colour options.
There are 4 to choose from, 2 mottled Italian schemes and 2 rather dour overall dark green schemes, (Luftwaffe & Croatian). One of the Italian schemes is for an early G.50 (not a bis) with a yellow cowl, so I chose the other one, a bis flown by cap. Ettore Foschini of the 355ª Sqd, 24º Gruppo Aut., based at Tirana, Albania in 1941. The colour scheme appeared to be accurately drawn, so I followed it as close as I could, even down to the large green patch by the cockpit. The fuselage white band is sprayed first, masked and then using the colour matching chart on the instruction sheet, sprayed Humbrol 63 as a base for the 116 and 180 mottles. This was after applying Humbrol 140 to the lower surfaces. One trick I discovered quite by accident was to spray a fine mist of the base colour over the mottles in order to blend them together and to tone it all down. I think it work very well. I buffed the painted surfaces before applying Future. This give a nice smooth surfaces onto which to apply the decals.
Decals.
There are 4 options. The colours were nice and bright and in good register. Over a well prepared surface, the decals worked fine. I'd give them a 9/10 rating.
Conclusions/recommendations.
Having bought the older AML G.50 kits and been somewhat disappointed by them, I was pleasantly surprised by the leap of quality that AML have taken with this re-tooling. The clever parts breakdown enables most G.50's to be modelled, albeit in different boxings. If only they had put the small fairings on the cowl and added a sand filter, they would have been able to increase the range even more. A missed opportunity, I feel. Nevertheless, it is still a very good example of a limited run multi-media kit. Provided care is taken during assembly, a good and at long last, an accurate G.50 is now possible in 1/72. Recommended to all experienced modellers.
Many thanks to AML for the review sample.
