In Box Review of Tamiya 1/48th Scale
Brewster F2A-2 Buffalo Fighter
Kit no. MA119
By Ray Mehlberger
My kit is out of production.
I paid $4.98 for it at a local hobby shop that went out of business. However, the kit is shown several for sale several places on eBay for prices ranging from $26.00 up to $52.00.
By Ray Mehlberger
My kit is out of production.
I paid $4.98 for it at a local hobby shop that went out of business. However, the kit is shown several for sale several places on eBay for prices ranging from $26.00 up to $52.00.
HISTORY:
The Brewster F2A Buffalo was an American fighter aircraft which saw service early in World War II. Designed and built by the Brewster Aeronautical Corporation, it was one of the first U.S. monoplanes with an arrestor hook and other modifications for aircraft carriers.
The Buffalo won a competition against the Grumman F4F Wildcat in 1939 to become the U.S. Navy's first monoplane fighter aircraft.
Although superior to the Grumman F3F biplane it replaced and the early F4F's, the Buffalo was largely obsolete when the United States entered the war, being unstable and overweight, especially when compared to the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero.
Several nations, including Finland, Belgium, Britain and the Netherlands, ordered the Buffalo. The Finns were the most successful with their Buffalo's, flying them in combat against early Soviet fighters with excellent results.
During the Continuation War of 1941–1944, the B-239s (a de-navalized F2A-1) operated by the Finnish Air Force proved capable of engaging and destroying most types of Soviet fighter aircraft operating against Finland at that time and achieving in the first phase of that conflict 32 Soviet aircraft shot down for every B-239 lost, and producing 36 Buffalo "aces".
In December 1941, Buffalo's operated by both British Commonwealth (B-339E) and Dutch (B-339D) air forces in South East Asia suffered severe losses in combat against the Japanese Navy's Mitsubishi A6M Zero and the Japanese Army's Nakajima Ki-43 "Oscar".
The British attempted to lighten their Buffalo's by removing ammunition and fuel and installing lighter guns to improve performance, but it made little difference.
After the first few engagements, the Dutch halved the fuel and ammunition load in the wing, which allowed their Buffalo's (and their Hurricanes) to stay with the Oscars in turns.
The Buffalo was built in three variants for the U.S. Navy: the F2A-1, F2A-2 and F2A-3. (In foreign service, with lower horsepower engines, these types were designated B-239, B-339, and B-339-23 respectively.)
The F2A-3 variant saw action with United States Marine Corps (USMC) squadrons at the Battle of Midway. Shown by the experience of Midway to be no match for the Zero,[2] the F2A-3 was derided by USMC pilots as a "flying coffin.".
However, the F2A-3's performance was substantially inferior to the F2A-2 variant used by the Navy before the outbreak of the war despite detail improvements.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Role: Fighter aircraft
National origin: United States
Manufacturer: Brewster Aeronautical Corporation
First flight: 2 December 1937
Introduction to service: April 1939
Retired: 1948 (Finland)
Primary users: United States Navy, Finnish Air Force, Royal Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force
Produced: 1938–1941
Number built: 509
Developed into: VL Humu
The Brewster F2A Buffalo was an American fighter aircraft which saw service early in World War II. Designed and built by the Brewster Aeronautical Corporation, it was one of the first U.S. monoplanes with an arrestor hook and other modifications for aircraft carriers.
The Buffalo won a competition against the Grumman F4F Wildcat in 1939 to become the U.S. Navy's first monoplane fighter aircraft.
Although superior to the Grumman F3F biplane it replaced and the early F4F's, the Buffalo was largely obsolete when the United States entered the war, being unstable and overweight, especially when compared to the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero.
Several nations, including Finland, Belgium, Britain and the Netherlands, ordered the Buffalo. The Finns were the most successful with their Buffalo's, flying them in combat against early Soviet fighters with excellent results.
During the Continuation War of 1941–1944, the B-239s (a de-navalized F2A-1) operated by the Finnish Air Force proved capable of engaging and destroying most types of Soviet fighter aircraft operating against Finland at that time and achieving in the first phase of that conflict 32 Soviet aircraft shot down for every B-239 lost, and producing 36 Buffalo "aces".
In December 1941, Buffalo's operated by both British Commonwealth (B-339E) and Dutch (B-339D) air forces in South East Asia suffered severe losses in combat against the Japanese Navy's Mitsubishi A6M Zero and the Japanese Army's Nakajima Ki-43 "Oscar".
The British attempted to lighten their Buffalo's by removing ammunition and fuel and installing lighter guns to improve performance, but it made little difference.
After the first few engagements, the Dutch halved the fuel and ammunition load in the wing, which allowed their Buffalo's (and their Hurricanes) to stay with the Oscars in turns.
The Buffalo was built in three variants for the U.S. Navy: the F2A-1, F2A-2 and F2A-3. (In foreign service, with lower horsepower engines, these types were designated B-239, B-339, and B-339-23 respectively.)
The F2A-3 variant saw action with United States Marine Corps (USMC) squadrons at the Battle of Midway. Shown by the experience of Midway to be no match for the Zero,[2] the F2A-3 was derided by USMC pilots as a "flying coffin.".
However, the F2A-3's performance was substantially inferior to the F2A-2 variant used by the Navy before the outbreak of the war despite detail improvements.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Role: Fighter aircraft
National origin: United States
Manufacturer: Brewster Aeronautical Corporation
First flight: 2 December 1937
Introduction to service: April 1939
Retired: 1948 (Finland)
Primary users: United States Navy, Finnish Air Force, Royal Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force
Produced: 1938–1941
Number built: 509
Developed into: VL Humu
THE KIT:
Tamiya is an old prolific model company based in Shizuoka City, Japan. They manufacture all manner of model subjects in the popular scales.
This kit came in a shrink-wrapped tray and lid type box.
The box art shows 2 Buffalo's being chased by a Zero. They are both in a pattern of dark-green and stone over a light-gray under-carriage.
The Buffalo in the foreground has a blue spinner, a white fuselage code of TD roundel V, followed by black serial no. AN185.
The other Buffalo has a blue and green spinner and a gray fuselage code of TD roundel I.
The Zero is banking and showing its top only. It is dark-green with yellow wing leading edges.
Above the box art it says the wingspan of the model is 222.5 mm (8 3/4") and the fuselage length is 162.6 mm (6 1/4"). Kit includes marking for U.S. Navy, R.A.F. and Netherlands East Indies Royal Air Force.
One side panel shows a color profile of a Buffalo that is in a wave pattern of very dark-green and mid-stone over a medium-gray undercarriage. It has a white fuselage no. B-396, followed by the Netherlands's orange triangle insignia and a paragraph in Japanese and a illustration of a pilot wearing a tan shirt and shorts over gray knee-socks.
He has a leather pilot's helmet on his head with goggles and MADE IN JAPAN.
Tamiya is an old prolific model company based in Shizuoka City, Japan. They manufacture all manner of model subjects in the popular scales.
This kit came in a shrink-wrapped tray and lid type box.
The box art shows 2 Buffalo's being chased by a Zero. They are both in a pattern of dark-green and stone over a light-gray under-carriage.
The Buffalo in the foreground has a blue spinner, a white fuselage code of TD roundel V, followed by black serial no. AN185.
The other Buffalo has a blue and green spinner and a gray fuselage code of TD roundel I.
The Zero is banking and showing its top only. It is dark-green with yellow wing leading edges.
Above the box art it says the wingspan of the model is 222.5 mm (8 3/4") and the fuselage length is 162.6 mm (6 1/4"). Kit includes marking for U.S. Navy, R.A.F. and Netherlands East Indies Royal Air Force.
One side panel shows a color profile of a Buffalo that is in a wave pattern of very dark-green and mid-stone over a medium-gray undercarriage. It has a white fuselage no. B-396, followed by the Netherlands's orange triangle insignia and a paragraph in Japanese and a illustration of a pilot wearing a tan shirt and shorts over gray knee-socks.
He has a leather pilot's helmet on his head with goggles and MADE IN JAPAN.
The other side panel has color box arts of 4 other aircraft kits that Tamiya manufactures: a 1/49th scale H.S. Harrier GR Mk. 1, a 1/48th scale Mitsubishi A6M3 Zero fighter, a 1/48th scale Mitsubishi J2M3 Jack/Raiden and a 1/48th scale Nakajima A6M2-N Rufe. No kit numbers are given for these.
WHAT'S IN THE BOX:
The kit contains 4 light-gray trees, a clear tree and the decal sheet in a sealed clear cello bag and 2 instruction sheets.
The first instruction sheet consists of a single-sheet folded in half to fit the box. It is large, at 22" x 8" in format and all in Japanese only.
The face side has a black and white photo of the model made up in the box art scheme, with the pilot figure standing in front of it. He has his right arm raised.
This is over the history of the Buffalo, also all in Japanese and there are painting and marking instructions for 3 schemes on the right.
There is a 3-view for each scheme:
1. The Netherlands scheme (already described above).
2. The box art scheme (already, also, described above)
3. A U.S. Navy scheme. It is light-gray with yellow wings and rudder, has a navy-blue cowling and fuselage band and a fuselage code in black 2- white F- black 7, over the fuselage band with the white F centered on the band.
The kit contains 4 light-gray trees, a clear tree and the decal sheet in a sealed clear cello bag and 2 instruction sheets.
The first instruction sheet consists of a single-sheet folded in half to fit the box. It is large, at 22" x 8" in format and all in Japanese only.
The face side has a black and white photo of the model made up in the box art scheme, with the pilot figure standing in front of it. He has his right arm raised.
This is over the history of the Buffalo, also all in Japanese and there are painting and marking instructions for 3 schemes on the right.
There is a 3-view for each scheme:
1. The Netherlands scheme (already described above).
2. The box art scheme (already, also, described above)
3. A U.S. Navy scheme. It is light-gray with yellow wings and rudder, has a navy-blue cowling and fuselage band and a fuselage code in black 2- white F- black 7, over the fuselage band with the white F centered on the band.
It has a navy-blue diagonal stripe over the wings. The fuselage code is followed by black U.S. NAVY. There is a small black 1412 on the sides of the rudder and F2A-2 on the rudder flap.
The reverse side of the sheet has 6 assembly steps on it.
The second instruction sheet is 8" x 11", printed in color on one side on slick-coated paper. It has a 3-view of the box art scheme and a 2-view of the U.S. Navy one.
Parts fit the box tight. The trees are not alphabetized or illustrated in the instructions. However, they do have part number tabs next to the parts on them.
The first light-gray tree holds: a fuselage half, propeller, engine, cowling, figures, foot pedals, joy stick, bulkhead, seats, cockpit floor, dashboard (27 parts)
The reverse side of the sheet has 6 assembly steps on it.
The second instruction sheet is 8" x 11", printed in color on one side on slick-coated paper. It has a 3-view of the box art scheme and a 2-view of the U.S. Navy one.
Parts fit the box tight. The trees are not alphabetized or illustrated in the instructions. However, they do have part number tabs next to the parts on them.
The first light-gray tree holds: a fuselage half, propeller, engine, cowling, figures, foot pedals, joy stick, bulkhead, seats, cockpit floor, dashboard (27 parts)
The second light-gray tree holds: an alternate propeller, spinner, landing-gear legs, alternate tail wheels, elevators, main wheels, alternate tail cones, bombs, gear doors etc. (26 parts)
The third light-gray tree holds: the wings upper halves (2 parts)
The fourth light-gray tree holds: the wings lower halves (1)
The clear tree holds: 2 alternate cockpit canopies, gun-sight, wing light lens (6 parts)
The decal sheet completes the kit.
The kit has nice raised detail. Flaps are all molded solid.
Recommended.