Bristol Beaufort torpedo-bomber

FROG 337P Bristol Beaufort II torpedo-bomber, International Model Aircraft, 1962-63

MODEL TALK BY PHILIP BURDEN
BEAUFORT OF NOTE:

Another new Frog 1/72nd-scale kit is of the Bristol Beaufort II and for 3s. it should interest many modellers, young and old. Moulding is good, assembly very straightforward, and like the Herald decals the transfers in this box are also good. One point which will probably be seen by all is that the engine cowlings are inaccurate. A little sanding can however, make these more authentic.

The Royal Air Force Flying Review, Vol.XVIII, No. 7, march 1963

Bristol 152 Beaufort II

	337P	1963-1965	E(R)	} 190000	1xRAF
**	F337	1965?	E(R)		1xRAF
	F337	1965-1969	F2(R)		1xRAF
	F229	1971-1973	G1(G)	105000	1xRAF & 1xRAAF

Also see double kits F520/F530 (1973).
The second issue listed above is a bit of a mystery. A style E box with an F-prefix number has been found at the factory lately, but it is not confirmed that the kit was in fact ever sold with this box. No other aircraft kit has ever been found with an F-prefixed number on this style box. The Beaufort was later reworked into a Spin-a-Prop kit and sold as such under number F229.

Tri-ang Série Rouge 337P Bristol Beaufort II Bombarier-Torpilleur, Lines Freres - S.A.Calais, 1962

FROG F337 Bristol Beaufort II torpedo-bomber, Rovex Scale Models Ltd, 1967-69

FROG Red Series F337 Bristol Beaufort II torpedo-bomber, Rovex Scale Models Ltd, 1967-69

Air Lines 7907 Bristol Beaufort II torpedo-bomber, Lines Bros Inc., 1965

UPC #5089-100 Bristol Beaufort II torpedo-bomber, Universal Powermaster Corporation, USA

FROG Green series F229 Spin Bristol Beaufort, Rovex Tri-ang, 1971-72

Air Enthusiast 1971-07 vol.01 no.02
MODEL ENTHUSIAST
My wife doesn't understand met

A Frog quartet

Released simultaneously by Frog were re-issues of three kits that have existed for some time but have now been redesigned for motorisation. To accompany them there is a set containing two tiny electric motors with the necessary wiring and copper connections. This is a first class idea, for which we award full marks. The kits concerned are Bristol's Beaufort and Beaufighter, and the Junkers Ju 88A-4, and the motors are 0-8 in (2,0 cm) in length and 0-45 in (1,14 cm) in diameter, and thus slip easily into 1/72nd scale radial engine cowlings. Their shafts are offset, which may enable them to be used for some liquid-cooled engine installations, though nacelles such as those of the Hornet are too slim to accept them. The motors are driven by means of a pen-light battery housed within the fuselage of the model (and accessible by means of a detachable panel in the fuselage underside) and are started and stopped simply by turning or stopping the airscrew. The price of the entire motorisation set is only 42^ pence in the UK, and we foresee a wide application for this clever device.

Turning briefly to the kits themselves, the Beaufighter is an excellent model, and has now been provided with the bulge forward of the windscreen that characterised Australian-built variants and an excellent new decal sheet for a Beaufighter 21. The Ju 88A-4 is a kit of older vintage, and suffers a number of inaccuracies, notably concerning the shapes of the wings and nacelles. The new decal sheet provides markings for examples of this aircraft that served both in North Africa and the Soviet Union. Oldest of the trio is the Beaufort, but it has stood the test of time well, and is generally a very good model if one throws away the atrocious engine cowlings and replaces them with suitable cowlings from another kit. Incidentally, despite the statement on the boxtop, the markings of neither aircraft provided by the decal sheet are those of a Beaufort II (W6476 was a Taurus-engined Mk I while A9-408 was a Twin Wasp-engined Mk VIII). The cowlings of the two types of engine were noticeably different, and the box art is in error in showing the Australian machine with the forward collector rings and long exhaust pipes of the Taurus installation.
W R Matthews

RECENTLY ISSUED KITS

Company	Type	Scale	Price
Airfix	TriStar	1/144	85p
Airflx	J 35F Draken	1/72	24p
Frog	Hornet	1/72	26p
Frog	Beaufighter (M)	1/72	36p
Frog	Ju 888A-4 (M)	1/72	36p
Frog	Beaufort (M)	1/72	36p
Aurora	DC-10	1/144	$2-50
Revell	OH-6A Cayuse	1/32	49p
Revell	Hurricane I	1/32	£1-05
VEB	Mil Mi-10K	1/100	—

Air Enthusiast 1971-07 vol.01 no.02

FROG F530 Combat Series Messerschmitt Bf 109F/Bristol Beaufort,
Rovex Industries Ltd; 1973

Modelling world
S. W. Stevens-Stratten
Toy Fair report
Frog

Rovex Limited had an impressive display of its Frog range of aircraft kits and new releases for 1973 in the 1/72 scale series include a Gloster Gladiator at a price of 19p (including VAT). This is in the Black Label series while the Blue Label range will have a Sea Venom in October (price 23p). The Red Label series has a Grumman Avenger due for release in June and a Fairey Swordfish for October, both costing 28p each. Two new additions in the Green Label series (36p each) are a Martin Maryland for August and a BAC Jaguar for November. At 50p each the Orange Label series will be adding new items, including an English Electric Canberra in May, a Black Widow and a Martin Marauder in September and finally a NA Mitchell scheduled for November.

The 1/72 size de luxe series of large prototype aircraft will have an additional model in the shape of a Lockheed Neptune which will cost £1.95 when it is released about July.

A new "Combat" series is to be released immediately, and each box will contain two 1/72 scale kits together with a picture frame display stand. The price, which will include the "Spin-A-Prop motorising kit", is 99p. It is thought that the kits may also be available without the motorising gear at a lower cost. The first three pairs are a Messerschmitt Bf 109F/Bristol Beaufort; Spitfire 1 A/Junkers Ju88; and Focke-Wulf Fw-190A/Beaufighter.

A new range of 1/32 plastic kits should be on the market by the time this report appears. The latest catalogue gives the range as a Messerschmitt Bf109, a Mitsubishi Zero, and a Messerschmitt Me262A. New additions announced at the Toy Fair are a Grumman F6F-3/5 Hellcat and a Focke-Wulf Fwl90A. Each kit will be fully detailed with cockpit and engine details visible. The transfer sheets contain a wealth of small markings and two different liveries are given on each box so that authentic replicas can be finished.

AIRCRAFT ILLUSTRATED 1973-04

Bristol Beaufort II & Messerschmitt Bf-109F

F520	1973 only	G4	7000	See below
F530	1973 only	G4	6000	See below

These three double kits were similar in style to the earlier ones of 1969, but had nothing to do with the Battle of Britain film. Each pair (e.g. F520 and F530) shared a common box, which had the F52x number printed on it. The F53x kits were created by placing a sticker with a new number over that printed on the box. The difference between the two sets was that those with F52x numbers were intended for export only and did not contain a Spin-a-Prop motorising set, while the F53x ones were for the home market and did include the motors etc. in a small plastic bag. All the kits came with the decals used for the individual kits at the time, except for the Beaufighter which had the old 3xRAF sheet. The painting instructions were printed on the box side, and not on a separate sheet as in the earlier double kits.

FROG model aircraft 1932-1976, R. Lines, L. Hellstrom

FROG F229 Bristol Beaufort, Rovex Hobbies & Models, 1974-76

NOVO Series 5 Bristol Beaufort, Cat.No.78145, delivery planned for 1980, not issued

Bristol Beaufort, Odessa, USSR, the end of 1980-s

16.10.2019