Aires

1/72 Hurricane Wheels and Paint Masks; Hurricane Wheel Bay For the Hasegawa Hurricane

Stock Number: 7203, 7210

Reviewed By  Paul Bradley, IPMS# 35554

MSRP: $5 for wheels, $10 for Wheel Bay Website: www.aires.cz Here are two useful sets for the 1/72 Hurricane modeller. While intended specifically for the Hasegawa kit, these resin sets can be adapted for any 1/72 Hurricane kit - I happened to have an Academy kit available for this review. Academy's (and indeed Hasegawa's) kit features a boxed-in wheel bay that doesn't completely accurately portray the bay of the real thing, in particular it is lacking the overhang at the front of the bay that covers various pieces of equipment. The Aires wheel bay set, part number 7210, provides all the parts necessary to replace the moulded-in detail, and more. The largest part is the new bay piece, but there are also smaller pieces that represent other pieces of equipment such as the retraction jacks, pipework, main leg doors and the prominent pneumatic system cylinder. By removing the moulded-in detail and leaving the outer skin in place, the new resin part can slot over the top to provide the right look. The whole looks very convincing and certain adds a lot to the model. Set 7203 comprises a pair of finely detailed replacement wheels. These show better depth of detail than the Academy wheels, even to the extent of having the valve stems depicted. The set is completed by a set of wheel hub masks, made from the yellow Kabuki tape favored by many modellers. These fit precisely over the hubs, both front and back, and will give a splendid result. Taken together, these sets will take your little Hurricane's undercarriage to another level, and they are two inexpensive sets that I can recommend. My thanks to Aires for the review samples. Aires products are available from leading hobby stores and retailers.