Dornier Do335A-0 Pfeil/Arrow, Zoukei-Mura 1/32 scale (SWS10)
Number ten in Zoukei-Mura’s “Super Wing Series” (SWS10) is the 1/32nd scale Dornier Do 335A-0 Pfeil (Arrow) kit - packed in a very attractive and sturdy box. The kit is based on the sole remaining Do 335A-0 currently residing at the National Air & Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
Contents of the kit:
7 sprues in gray plastic, (two of sprue E included).
4 sprues in clear plastic.
1 sheet of canopy masks.
1 sheet of decals.
1 Instruction booklet.
Kit features:
Two fully detailed DB603 engines
Nicely detailed cockpit
Positionable canopy
Positionable ailerons, flaps, rudder & elevators
Positionable engine covers
Boarding ladder
Nice structural detail in wings and airframe that can be viewed through clear plastic parts
Fine detail throughout all moldings
The main external kit parts - flying surfaces, wings & fuselage, are molded in lightly frosted clear plastic. This gives modelers the option of revealing interior detail, or painting the exterior as usual. One can also choose to paint half of the exterior and leave the other half in clear plastic for an interesting take on traditional presentation or leave off parts of the skin completely.
History of Do335
Of all the WW2 aircraft, it was the Do 335 that was perhaps the most intriguing, unique in its push-pull layout: a single-seat fighter-bomber developed during the last days of WW II by Claude Dornier, who acquired a patent for the "push-pull' (fore and aft) engine layout in 1937. He proposed, in 1942, an aircraft using his twin-engine configuration to the RLM (Reichs-Luftfahrts-Ministerium) in response to their request for "a twin engine bomb-fighter for invasion and bombing, 500kg bomb equipped, and a maximum speed of 800km/hr". The first test flight of the prototype in 1943 proved Dornier's design had excellent stability and maneuverability, despite the top speed being less than the required specification.
The Pfeil's top speed of 770/km/hr put it in the elite class of piston-engine aircraft during WW II. It was the fastest propeller-driven aircraft to enter production during the war. For its size (slightly larger and heavier than the P-47) it was fast, remarkably agile and a steady gun platform. It was also the first of its kind to be equipped with a compressed-air ejection seat for the pilot. The Do 335's speed, acceleration and maneuverability combined were extraordinary for a reciprocating engine aircraft. The A-0 fighter-bomber was the pre-production variant. Its armament consisted of two MG151/20 mm cannon placed on the upper cowl, one MK103/30 mm cannon, which fired through the prop hub, and one 500kg bomb in internal weapons bay. Several of the 10 Do335A-0 fighter-bombers were used in September 1944 for service evaluation and trials for the development of suitable operational tactics.
Though slated for mass-production, when US forces overran Dornier’s factory less than 40 aircraft had been completed due to the loss of production facilities, and many other problems/shortages late in the war. Components and assemblies for nearly 70 additional aircraft had been also at various stages of completion. Production of the dual seat Do335A-6 night and all weather fighter had been transferred to the Heinkel factory at Vienna, but despite the high priority allocated, circustances prevented the necessary jigs and tools being assembled.There is no record of the Do 335 engaged in combat with the Allies. However French ace Pierre Clostermann claimed the first Allied combat encounter with a Pfeil in April 1945. In his book “The Big Show” (pp. 273–274) he describes leading a flight of four Hawker Tempests from No. 3 Squadron RAF over northern Germany, when he intercepted a lone Do 335 flying at maximum speed at treetop level. Detecting the british aircraft, the German pilot reversed course to evade. Despite the Tempests' considerable low altitude speed, the Royal Air Force fighters were not able to catch up or even get into firing position.
Inside the box…
The quite large and sturdy box (dimensions: 53 x 33 x 12 cm) contains 11 sprues/runners with over 360 parts molded in light grey plastic and also the now-familiar “clear” plastic (more precisely it looks like frosted glass) that enables you to create more of a museum piece that shows the full interior. It is possible of course is to leave many of the panels open so that you can see plenty of detail provided in the kit. All parts look crisp, clean and very detailed. There is also a mask set for the canopy framing, a set of decals and the instructions booklet. All sprues are beautifully molded, wrapped individually and well packed. The sturdy brown colored box has clever front side flaps and a second separate top lid, so your kit will arrive perfectly protected through the mail. Looking inside the box and box art you get a sense that this is going to be a wonderful kit to build.
Instruction book
The instructions booklet is 55 A4 pages of well laid-out, extremely detailed construction and painting information. By carefully studying it you get an idea for exactly how it all goes together and even functioned on the real aircraft! (one of the main advantages of 1/32nd and larger scales!). What we particularly liked are the numerous photos in the booklet, showing how each completed sub-assembly should look – this is really helpful during the build.
The cockpit section alone is seven pages long and the engines section 14 pages! This is a complicated kit with a large amount of detail. Each page should -and must- be inspected thoroughly before even thinking starting construction! Plenty of information is included about the real aircraft as well as the model. Each section of the instructions deals with every sub-assembly in detail. You can see more in our photogallery at the end of this review.
Zoukei-Mura Concept Note SWS Vol. VIII Do335A-0
A reference book, titled Zoukei-Mura Concept Note SWS Vol. VIII Do335A-0, is also available from the manufacturer. It does not come in the kit and is sold separately directly from ZM Japan and their US partners - you will not find it in your LHS or bookstore. With 66 pages and beautiful layout it has color pictures of an original plane that is in the Smithsonian museum, of which the folks from Zoukei-Mura went and took numerous photos and measurements to get the correct size, color and detail for its rendition of the Do335. There is also three separate kit builds by three modellers that you can check out to see how their kits turned out. We had bought the relevant book on the ZM’s Ta152H-1 kit and these special SWS notes are excellent reference sources, worth buying with the kit.
The kit…
When looking at the parts trees everything looks very good with no flash, crisp molding and very good detail. Four sprues are “clear” and the rest are light grey. The fuselage and wings are molded in “frosted glass” plastic and have fine recessed and precise panel lines. The 'frosted' texture is on the exterior of the parts and varies from medium to very light. Since some modellers choose not to utilize the semi-transparent nature of plastic in their build, it would be of some benefit to rub carefully with fine wet & dry paper polish the surface before priming.
The major components like fuselage and wing halves, engine cowlings and so on are supplied in clear styrene, allowing you that view into all the internal structures. Levels of detail are top class – you can see the side wall internal detail moulded into the fuselage sides. There are many other sections moulded in grey plastic that go to make up the full detail in the cockpit, bomb bay, wheel wells, flap internals and engine bays.
Exterior detail is very sharp and well to the standard of a kit of this class. Several open panels are provided for those that wish to have them opened to show off the wealth of detail. If you wish you can pose multiple panels open, exposing the engines and bomb bay. Adding the flaps in the dropped position will further add interest and so you have many options to finish your Do 335A-0 exactly as you like. Open and closed cowl flaps are included.
Engines
The detail of both DB 603 engines is also excellent. All hoses, wiring/plumbing and fittings are thin, realistic and free of flash. With minimum - or even without scratchbuilt additions - one can have an excellent rendition of each engine straight from the box. A surprise is that there are internal parts of the engine, like pistons & connecting rods, which is a welcome bonus if one wishes to create a separate cutaway model of DB603! The nose will require the addition of about 60 grams of lead weight to keep the model from tail-sitting. This is an important step which should not be forgotten or overlooked when building the front engine and nose section. As the available space in this area is limited, a good idea is to enlarge the existing internal cavities of the front engine (before cementing its two halves) and stuff as much lead weight there.
Cockpit & canopy
The windshield/canopy is provided with two parts for the open configuration and one for the closed. All are thin and crystal clear. A sheet of masks for painting the canopy framing is included. The cockpit parts are well-molded and delicate. There is sufficient detail that there would probably be little scope for aftermarket additions.
A number of options is offered to depict the instrument panel, using the gray or “clear” plastic part D10 (unfortunately this is molded in frosted plastic instead of 100% clear): One is placing the whole decal on top of a raised bezel instrument panel and the other is to cut each instrument separately from the decal sheet. The option for using the “clear” instrument panel normally necessitates you apply the decal instrument faces to the back of the panel, but since this part is frosted the decal detail of the instruments will be lost. So the only practical option here is to use the grey-moulded panel (H9), paint it with the raised details as usual and then place the decal, finishing off with some blobs of gloss varnish to achieve the glass effect.
The ejection seat consists of twelve pieces, including belts. The manner in which Z-M molds the belts is exceptional and innovative: the seat belt/ shoulder harness is molded separately from the seat - this approach is very clever as with a little effort in painting you may not need to look for an aftermarket set.
Wings
Wings sport very nice internal structure, including spars, ribs and fuel tanks, as well as main landing gear wheel wells detail. Separate control surfaces (flaps, ailerons and elevators) are provided for both wings and horizontal stabilizers, so they can be positioned as desired. There are also separate rudders (upper and lower part respectively).
The landing light cover (D11) in port wing leading edge is molded with the same “frosted” texture instead of 100% clear. It will need some polishing and a clear coat such as Future to help restore clarity - or it can be replaced by thin clear plastic sheet.
In our opinion, such kits should not include “clear” fuselage/wing parts – or include them as an option with solid plastic provided together. One cannot actually observe too much detail through frosted plastic!
Landing gear
The landing gear struts are highly detailed. Zoukei-Mura provides a clever locking system so the legs should do the job without the need for metal replacement parts (sold separately as an extra set - if you need more strength there). Main wheels and tires are provided as separate parts. Individual brake lines for the main wheels are a nice addition. The nose wheel strut is highly detailed as well. Very fine detail to the wheel spokes also. All three wheel wells consist of several parts each and have nice internal detail.
Weapons
Two machine guns MG 151/20 mm and one MK 103/30 mm cannon are included in the nose section, between the front engine and the instrument panel area. Ammo cans and feed chutes are included. No bomb is included in the kit but the bomb bay with all internal detail and separate doors are there.
With a little effort the modeler can show much of this internal detail, like the machine guns, by carefully cutting, thinning and cementing the relevant panels open.
Decals
Decals are thin, well printed by Cartograf in perfect register and provide instrument panel details and many stencils. The Do 335 didn’t see operational service, entering WWII right at the end of hostilities with a number of prototypes and pre-production aircraft flying and this is reflected in the only set of markings supplied for a Do 335A-0 coded VG-PH (white “102” on the tail).
Epilogue
Zoukei-Mura has produced another modeling gem. You certainly get more than you pay, by just browsing the instructions booklet and closely looking at the parts! A comprehensive package full of detail, real love for precision and dedication to authenticity. Quality is very high, detail is exceptional and if you like WWII and Luftwaffe subjects, not to mention pretty large models, you’ll love this kit. The Zoukei-Mura 1/32 Do 335A-0 kit is an excellent depiction of the prototype. We highly recommend this kit as an impressive addition to any collection.
You can easily order it online using the following link:
