Autogiro Cierva C8L-II

HR Model, 1/72 scale

Reviewed by Rob Baumgartner

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The autogiro came about in 1919 thanks to Juan de la Cierva. He conceived of a rotor being driven by aerodynamic forces alone, with thrust being provided by an engine powered propeller.

This Spanish engineer developed a number of designs, and his success eventually led him to establish the Cierva Autogiro Company.

Contents

This kit is the ideal opportunity for the modeller to try something different.

It is a multimedia product which consists of over forty resin parts, a fret of etched metal and a printed acetate sheet. Decals are not forgotten and provide for a single subject.

Thoughtfully a set of general arrangement drawings are included though oddly enough, there are no assembly instructions. I know this kit is for advanced modellers but…

The boxed parts match the kit’s plans very well, except when it comes to the fuselage. This part possessed much less depth and a very different side profile to the machine depicted. Since this area was derived from the Avro 504K, a comparison was made with respected plans for this aeroplane. The results were the same and one suspects HR used the undernourished 1967-vintage Airfix fuselage as a basis here.

The parts themselves were very well cast with good detail and a pleasing absence of blemishes.

Click the thumbnails below to view larger images:

The rotor blades and other flying surfaces have well defined trailing edges with no visible deformities. A light sanding will improve the sharpness of the former items and contribute to the fine appearance of the originals. Another good idea would be to replace the shafts with metal tubing as this would add some extra rigidity to the assembly.

The delicate struts are superbly cast and their appearance was deceiving. Despite their apparent fragility, they were quite strong and there should be no problem using these items “as is”.

The cockpit area contains the basic “office” elements with the floorboard, pedals, control columns and seats, all being catered for. Some internal ribbing has been moulded onto the fuselage halves which add to the overall effect.

The photo-etched fret comes from their Avro 504 and includes the control horns, seat belts, propeller boss, throttles and a couple of instrument panels. To these latter items are added the printed acetate dials and these contribute to a pleasant result.

The decals are very well printed with thin carrier film and no bleeding of the base colour. Happily, two sheets appeared in my example.
 

This is a very interesting subject and makes a welcome change from more mainstream topics. The multimedia aspect of the kit is welcome and will add much to the finished product.

Sadly the kit is marred by the fuselage proportions so those wanting a more exact replica are in for some surgery. The omission of the assembly instructions may be a “one off” error but a skilled builder (whom the kit is aimed at) should be able to overcome this.

Recommended for the advanced modeller.

Thanks to hobbyshop.cz for this review sample.

HR Model kits are available online from the hobbyshop.cz website

Review and Images Copyright © 2006 by Rob Baumgartner
Page Created 12 October, 2006
Last updated 21 February, 2007

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