Hasegawa 1/48 P-40E Warhawk

The Hasegawa 1/48 P-40E Warhawk is currently the best kit on the market of this aircraft. The fuselage assembly will fit together precisely if each half is completely assembled from its component parts instead of following the order as shown in the instructions. I did not have to use any filler material for the seams between the fuselage halves due to careful dry fitting of these parts and completely building each fuselage half up before cementing the halves together. When attaching the main wing assembly to the fuselage, I obtained a tight wing root seam by only gluing on the wing lower half to the fuselage initially and then attaching the upper main wing surfaces afterwards. Once the completed wing assembly is attached, apply Tamiya Extra Thin to the main wing root seam and tape or hold the main wing tips in the correct dihedral angle against the fuselage along the wing root seam. If this is done carefully, no filler will be required for the main wing root seams. Use of the Eduard Canopy/Wheel mask set for this kit is highly recommended due to the greenhouse style canopy on this aircraft.. The Eduard USAF/USN WWII Seatbelt set is also recommended for this kit as a decal for this is not provided for in this kit. The kit has two different paint scheme options to select from. The builder also has the option of installing a 500 lb. Bomb or an auxiliary fuel tank to the undersurface of this aircraft. Unfortunately no pilot figure is provided in this kit. Decals are thick so Micro Sol and Micro Set are highly recommended, especially when installing the shark mouth decals on the fuselage.. Application of exterior camouflage paint by an airbrush is recommended for best results. There are alot of navigation lights on this aircraft that must be either carefully painted or masked off. Stencil decals are minimal. This kit should be rigged with aerial antennae wires for historical accuracy. EZ line fine black thread and Gorilla superglue work best for rigging this up. Due to these build issues, this kit is recommended for intermediate to advanced fine scale modelers with airbrush and decal application skills. With careful attention to these issues mentioned above, an excellent result can be achieved.

My dad flew a Curtiss P-40E during World War Two and I've been looking for an E Model for a while to add to my collection of other military aircraft he flew. But I wanted a good example to build and after watching a guy build one on YouTube I knew this was the sample I was looking for. Lots of small parts to assemble and many of the usual seams and gaps to fill. Not really a model for a beginner though. Hasegawa makes many good kits and this is right around the middle or maybe a little higher example of their mold quality.

Ivebeen rebuilding my model collection I always loved this one I remember reading the flying Tigers in the early 80s Claire chenault and the avg in China defending there as nercs in these planes the warhawk and later the bigger gunned flying tanks was giid reading. They'd dive on jap planes in these things they weren't as maneuverabke as a zero but could outside them and were armored snd bugger guns.

Pieces fit together nicely good amount of detail. Fun to build personally I choose to build my planes with the landing gear up to see the planes and they’re more natural state as if they were flying.

Old, discontinued kit. The decals fell apart when I tried to apply them, there were several parts included that were not meant for the kit, and building it with the gear up was well-nigh impossible. The wheels didn't fit in the wells and had to be ground down so they would. The gear doors didn't come close to fitting when in the closed position. I found out the kit was discontinued when I contacted Hasegawa, and they told me there was nothing they could do about the decals. I found an aftermarket set, fortunately. Just a PITA from start to finish.

Good product easy to clean parts Good instructions

I enjoyed building and painting this model. It was fairly easy to build with well written instructions. The decals fit well and were easy to put on.

This Hasegawa model is up to their usual standards with clean parts requiring a minimum of trimming of flash. A couple of ejector pin marks required trimming but it wasn't a major concern. Fit and finish were good and minimal fill was required at join lines. Instructions were good and easy to follow. My only real down-check for this one would be the decals. They are crisp and sharp, but take FOREVER to release from the backing sheet. If you decide to build this one, be sure to take your time with the decals or you will tear them. Ask me how I know. Recommended.