Phalz D.III

The Roden Pfalz D.III is a very graceful aircraft by WWI standards. This is one of the most aerodynamic to come out of that war. Roden seems to have captured the lines in this 1/32 scale offering. There are seven sprues of that Roden Beige Plastic. The plastic Roden uses is a little on the soft side, so use caution trimming or removing parts from the sprues because the tools will really dig in. The seven sprues hold a total of 82 pieces. This promises to be a nice large build. The styrene Roden uses is kind of waxy and soft. In my experience, it cuts well, and it sands well, it holds glue and paint quite well. I think it is one of the better styrene formulas on the market. But an Exacto knife will really dig in, so use caution to not cut too deep. There is no flash at all. There are six ejector pin marks along the inside of the fuselage. Only one of those is in an area that will be partially visible when the fuselage is joined up. No ejector pin marks will be visible on any of the other parts when the model is completed. The mold parting lines are almost invisible, and can be removed easily with a number 11 blade. In the past, Roden kits have lost a lot of detail on small parts because of the mold alignment being off. In this kit, the molds are correctly aligned resulting in parts that are crisp and clean. This is a well-engineered kit. The sprue containing the engine parts is the same sprue contained in the Albatross D.III kit. When I built that kit and this Pfalz, the engine went together well and resulted in a fine representation of the Mercedes Engine. In the past, Roden has provided Spandau machine guns with and without cooling jackets molded-on. Only the molded-on jackets are provided in this kit, which shouldn’t make a big difference since they will be completely covered up anyway. The detail inside the fuselage is great, although marred by ejector pins. The wings are both one piece, and have subtle details that are fantastic. The ribs are well represented and not overdone. The tip of the upper wing in my kit was damaged in shipping. I straightened it out, and the damage should be almost invisible when painted. The rudder is provided as a separate part. All the other control surfaces are molded in place, but delicately attached. This means they can be positioned without any cutting or gluing. Great engineering on that Roden! Building this kit follows a logical sequence. So, if you follow the instructions you should not have any trouble. Assembly begins with the engine and engine mount. When you put the engine mount together, you should test fit it together within the fuselage sides to ensure correct alignment. Building the interior is next. No trouble here but be careful with the many small parts. The next thing to work on are the empennage and the seat. These all go together really well and fit nicely into the fuselage which is next. It is good to ensure there are holes drilled in the upper and lower wings, as well as anywhere else the rigging will attach. I use .03 steel wire also known as piano wire for all the rigging. It is stiff so it actually makes the model a little stronger. The upper wing and some exterior parts go together before you attach the rigging, wheels, and propeller. There are some very nice schemes to choose from. The decals went on nicely with some setting solution. But the most important thing is that this kit looks great when finished. I was very happy with the scheme I chose. It looks great on this kit. Roden did an exceptional job on engineering and molding this kit. This kit gets high marks all around for fit, molding, decals, subject matter, and instructions. It is a medium easy to hard kit to build because of the rigging and painting. Overall, I would rate it as a great kit and I will definitely recommend it to a friend.