Valom 1/72nd Supermarine Walrus Mk.I
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Background
  The
Walrus represented a culmination in a series of previous flying boat designs:
for example, the various stages and marks of the Seagull during the inter-war
period. Used briefly in the role for which it was initially created in
1939 and 1940, the Walrus was a spotter for the fleet and then again for
the same later in the Mediterranean theater. Later on, the Walrus fell
into its famous Air Sea Rescue role as well dive-bomber and the more mundane
types of communications tasks. Such was its resilience and multiple–use
facility that the Walrus continued in civilian operations for some time
after the end of the Second World War.
The Kit
  The
is housed in a sturdy top-opening style box, which contains two grey sprues
of plastic parts, a sprue of clear parts, a set of resin detail parts,
a sheet of photoetch pieces, a clear acetate piece for the instrument
panel, a decal sheet and an excellent 20-page gloss, colored instruction
booklet. The grey plastic is finely detailed and the molding is on a par
with other short-run kits on the market. Some of the finer detail in the
interior is a little muddy but definitely acceptable. The grey plastic
will require some clean up and the fuselage has to be butt-joined because
there are no mating pins and holes – all of this is par for the
course when it comes to this type of short-run product. The surface detail
looks excellent with the fuselage containing some nice engraved panel
lines and the wings’ surfaces are nicely done without too much overstatement
of the hills and valleys for the spars. The clear parts are especially
good being very delicately molded and thin so when you detail the interior
it will be visible. In fact, the clear parts provide the option of having
the canopy open. The resin parts are nice though the engine will require
some clean up and   the
photoetch sheet provides a large amount of the interior detail in addition
to pieces like the gun ring. The decals look clear, in-register and high
quality: they provide markings for two schemes. The first is an overall
aluminium finish for HMS Manchester, 1930, and the second is an Extra Dark
Sea Gray-Dark Slate Gray/Dark Sea Gray-Light Slate Gray over Sky Type
S for HMS Gloucester, March 1941. So far as accuracy is concerned, I placed
the main parts over some scale drawings in the Kightly and Wallsgrove book,
and found that the kit was just about spot-on. A few panel lines and small
details may be absent but in 1/72nd scale, it’s not always a good
idea to put in every single detail and rivet. If desired, the modeler
can always add small details but I think there is sufficient.
The temptation for reviewers is to compare this kit with the Matchbox
Walrus Mk.I, which I own. In truth, such a comparison is a little unfair
given the improved technology available nowadays and   the
level of detail that consumers tend to want these days. The Matchbox kit,
while not a short-run product, has far less detail – virtually no
interior detail whatsoever – and has the clunky raised panel lines
typical of kits manufactured at that time. The only real issue with the
Valom kit is its price. Any short-run kit, all other things equal, will
have a higher price because the manufacturer has a smaller number of units
over which to spread his overhead. Added to that, the Czech currency has
risen more than 22 percent against the U.S. dollar in the last three years,
which has increased the U.S. price of several foreign manufacturers’
products. This brings the U.S. retail price of the kit somewhere in the
mid to high thirty dollar range. However, for the money, Valom adds the
nice photo etch and resin parts described above. I must confess that this
is a kit that I have wanted for a long time and if you want a decent kit
that is easily the best available Walrus in 1/72nd scale then this is
it. Recommended for modelers with some experience because it is a biplane
and contains multiple types of media.
 Acknowledgement
Many thanks to Valom for supplying
us with this review sample of their kit.
References
James Kightly and Roger Wallsgrove. “The Supermarine Walrus and
Stranraer.” Color Illustrations by Bob Pearson. Published in Poland
by STRATUS for Mushroom Model Publications, 36 Ver Road, Redbourn, AL3
7PE, United Kingdom. 2004.
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