Quickboost

1/48 SBD-3 Dauntless and A-26B/C Invader Resin Engines

Stock Number: 48070(SBD), 48062(A-26)

Reviewed By  Dick Christ, IPMS# 18127

MSRP: $10.95 SBD-3, $13.95 A-26B/C These engines are in the series of simplified detailed parts from Quickboost and made by Aires. The engines are designed to replace the kit engines in the Accurate Miniatures SBD-3 Dauntless and the Revell-Monogram A-26B/C Invader. A single Wright R-1820 is provided for the SBD-3. Two Pratt and Whitney R-2800 engines, cowl flaps, and a sprue with three additional ignition system parts per engine are included in the A-26B/C set. These parts are molded in gray resin that is somewhat flexible. Both sets have crisp detail and the A-26 set has the exhaust stacks cast with the cowl flaps. The P&W had some flash between the front and rear rows of cylinders. This was easy to remove. Both sets do not include ignition harnesses or pushrod tubes. Even without these details, the engines are a significant improvement over the kit engines.

John Nowak asked that the reviewer of these engines have the two aircraft kits to evaluate the fit of these engines in the intended kits. Since I had both kits in the stash, I volunteered to do the reviews. The resin engines had provisions for push rod tubes and ignition harnesses, so I also added some of these details to see how easy adding details would be. I removed the pour tabs from the back of the engines and the front of the A-26 cowl flaps with a Ryobi combination 4 inch belt sander/6 inch disk sander. (Note: this is a great tool for working with resin parts, and is available at Home Depot or Lowes for less than $100.) After removing the excess resin, the parts were washed in Wesley's Bleche White to remove any mold release. Mr. Resin primer was applied and the cylinders painted with Model Master flat black. The fins on the cylinders were highlighted with a Prismacolor silver pencil. The additional ignition system details for the A-26 were painted flat black, then removed from the sprues and installed on the crank case with CA glue. That completes the basic assembly of the engines. I added pushrod tubes to both engines and ignition wires to the R-1820. The tubes were easy to install after drilling out the depressions in the engine cases. I used copper wire for the tubes and CA glue to fix the wire to the case and the cylinder heads. The wires were painted gloss black after installation. Tinned copper wire was used for the ignition wires. The ignition wires were left unpainted. This was a quick and easy way to improve the appearance of these engines.

Next, the engines were installed onto the firewalls and into the respective kit cowlings. This is where the ease of assembly differed between the two engines. First, the SBD-3: The engine fit well onto the kit firewall. I used some Elmer's to float the engine and square it to the firewall. The engine cowling fit well around the resin engine and aligned well to the firewall.

As shown in the photos, the Quickboost engine fits well and looks better than the kit engine. Adding some simple details improves the appearance even more. Now, the A-26: This engine fits nicely into the nacelle. It is a marked improvement over the appearance of the kit engine. A couple of shims were needed to ensure a tight fit of the cowl around the engine

It was obvious that the kit cowl flaps and the Quickboost cowl flaps were not the same shape. In general, the forward ends of the resin cowl flaps are slightly smaller in diameter than the aft end of the cowl. The kit cowl flaps has a smooth transition from the scoop on the top of the cowl to the nacelle. Quickboost cowl flaps have a constant diameter, leaving a gap between the cowl and the nacelle at the top of the cowl flaps. These flaws can be easily corrected with some plastic sheet and filler. Perhaps the fit of the Quickboost A-26 cowl is better than the fit to the kit cowl.

There is misalignment in the location of some of the exhaust pipes relative to the ramps in the nacelles for the exhaust pipes. Interference is present on only two of the nine ramps and is easily corrected. Overall, both of these engines will improve the appearance of the respective kits. Quickboost SBD-3 engine mates with the Accurate Miniatures kit with ease. The A-26 engines require some work on the cowl flaps for an acceptable installation. Even with the extra work, these engines are far superior to the kit engines and cowl flaps. All of the extra work on the installation is well within the capabilities of any experienced model builder. I am looking forward to completing both of these kits with these nice resin engines. Thanks to Quickboost and IPMS/USA for the opportunity to review these kits.

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