SBD-3 Dauntless

FlyHawk, 1/72 scale

Reviewed by John Miller

The Douglas SBD Dauntless is a World War II American naval scout plane and dive bomber that was manufactured by Douglas Aircraft from 1940 through 1944. The SBD ("Scout Bomber Douglas") was the United States Navy’s main carrier-based scout/dive bomber from mid-1940 through mid-1944. The SBD was also flown by the U.S. Marine Corps, both from land air bases and aircraft carriers. The SBD is best remembered as the bomber that delivered the fatal blows to the Japanese carriers at the Battle Of Midway in June 1942. The type earned its nickname "Slow But Deadly" (from its SBD initials) during this period, along with a rarely-used accompanying nickname of "Furious D."

Text edited from Wikipedia

Background

As a change from my normal diet of 1/72 and 1/48 aircraft I built the FlyHawk 1/72 FT-17 tank a few years back and was very impressed with the kits crisply molded parts and the ease with which it came together. With that experience in mind I’ve been looking forward to seeing this new-mold 1/72 SBD-3 Dauntless from FlyHawk; a company known for mostly armor and maritime-related models. This kit has been out for a while but I’ve not been able to get my hands on one until now. It’s was worth the wait.

The FlyHawk Dauntless ranks as one of the most beautifully molded airplane models this reviewer has seen. The fidelity of detail is amazing throughout with surface details that are crisp and scale appropriate. The Dauntless ranks high on my list of all time fave airplanes so it’s nice to see the release of such a quality replacement for the venerable Hasegawa SBD-3. 

On six light grey, styrene sprues are ~85 beautifully molded parts. There is a notable lack of flash and the sprue gates are small and strategically placed on mating surfaces. Immediately noticeable is the high level of detail throughout the kit. Whether the part is a tail wheel or a wing halve, the details are abundant and crisply molded.

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Thumbnail panels:

The recessed surface details on the larger parts (ex. wings and fuselage) are beautifully rendered. Of note is the level of detail provided on the belly center section and dive flaps. This is going to be a very nice model when assembled.

The parts layout and engineering are both conventional. As such, assembly begins with tithe cockpit and here the kit provides an amazing level of detail right out of the box. Both the pilot and the rear gunner areas are enhanced with nicely molded side panels. In addition, the pilots seat, aft bulkhead, main panel, and torque tube (with front and rear control sticks) are all separately molded. The rear gunners seat, comprised of three nicely detailed parts, and radio gear will look very convincing when assembled. Ditto that for the beautifully molded twin .30in flexible-mounted Browning machine guns. All in all, this is one of the more detailed 1/72 scale cockpits I’ve seen that relies entirely on styrene parts; no PE is used. Fortunately, the canopy parts are sufficiently clear to allow all that beautiful detail to be seen (below).
 
The nicely detailed Wright R-1820-60 Cyclone, 9-cylinder radial includes a separate ignition harness. This is going to look great peaking out of the single-piece cowl; no seam work here. Once the cockpit and fuselage are assembled, the build moves on to the wings, which are comprised of a full-span lower wing with left and right upper halves.

As with the fuselage, the inscribed surface details on the wings is beautiful. The belly center section, in particular, has an abundance of molded-in detail that will look awesome under paint. 

The crisply molded dive brakes can be positioned opened or closed—nice. Likewise the main gear can be positioned up or down—nice, again. The nicely molded belly center section is augmented with a center-line bomb.

Two nicely-molded additional bombs and racks are provided for the outboard hard points. And with the that, the build is largely complete.

The canopy parts are crystal clear with scale-appropriate framing.

Sufficient parts are provided to pose the canopy closed or partially open.

Considering the birdcage canopy of the Dauntless, a real plus are the die-cut canopy masks made from Tamiya-tape-like material.

Color and Markings

Interior and scheme colors are provided in Tamiya and Mr. Hobby paints.

The decals, by Flyhawk, are crisply-printed with good registration and color density. Sufficient markings are provided to do any of the SBD-3’s that served in Bomber Squadron 6 (VB-6), commanded by Lieutenant Richard Halsey "Dick" Best. VB-6 was assigned to the USS Enterprise and played a crucial role in sinking both the Akagi and Hiryu during the “Battle of Midway.”

Wow! This a really nice kit!

If the Flyhawk SBD-3 goes together half as well as it looks, assembly will be a piece of cake and the result is going to be a very detailed model right out of the box. The detail is abundant and very well-done for the scale. The surface details in particular (inscribed and in relief) are just beautiful; some of the best I’ve seen. Given the kits straightforward engineering and low total parts count (~85), I suspect this will be a quick and enjoyable build.

Highly Recommended!   

Keep your airbrush wet!
—John

For more on this review visit ModelPaintSolutions.com.

Text and images copyright ©2024 by John Miller/Model Paint Solutions.

Review Text and Images Copyright © 2024 by John Miller
Page Created 14 June, 2024
Last updated 26 July, 2024

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