Internet Modeler : First Look : Aviation RSS News Feed

Hasegawa 1/144 Embraer E-170 J-Air

By Chris Banyai-Riepl

Overview

Embraer has made a name for itself in the realm of regional jet airliners, with their highly successful ERJ line found around the world. Building on that success, Embraer developed a larger line of aircraft, starting with the E170. This plane, with an oval fuselage cross section that allows for greater room inside, has a conventional layout, with its two engines slung under the wings. Advanced materials and a highly modern cockpit makes the E170/175 an economical choice for airlines, and the larger E190/195, with its refined wing, is starting to take on the big manufacturers at the low end of their single-aisle aircraft.

The Kit

Hasegawa's airliners have long been in 1/200 scale, which worked out quite well for larger types such as the 747. After their initial production of a wide range of airliners in that scale, we haven't seen much in the way of new kits from Hasegawa, although they did produce a 1/144 YS-11. Now they have returned to airliners, and luckily have chosen 1/144 for their scale, as the Embraer is a small plane. The kit comes molded in white and gray plastic, with fine recessed panel lines throughout and a complete decal sheet covering all the J-Air E170s.

Construction starts with the fuselage, and right off we see a novel bit that is somewhat common in Hasegawa airliner kits. There is a large metal screw provided, along with a matching bulkhead with a hole for said screw. After screwing that in place, the kit now has the proper nose weight securely attached, eliminating the need for weighing things out. This is a very nice touch, and helps counter the other problems with the fuselage, of which there are two. Both of these problems deal with the windows.

First up, the cabin windows, provided in decal form, have absolutely no locating information on the fuselage. This wouldn't be a problem had the decals been printed with some kind of alignment device, such as molding them with a door outline. Sadly, this is not the case, so that means that the modeler will have to figure out not only horizontal placement but vertical as well, all while also working to ensure the windows are straight along the long strip. With no panel lines on the fuselage, the only way to achieve this is to create some sort of temporary alignment jig. Luckily, Hasegawa has provided information on how much reduced their instruction drawings are (80% in this case), so by scaling those back up to 1/144, one can cut out an alignment jig, working from the door outlines. For future releases, I really hope that Hasegawa will adjust their decal printing to include the door outlines with the window decals, which would eliminate all of this extra work.

The second problem is much more challenging to fix, and that deals with the cockpit windows. These are molded solid, and are depicted via decals. While this is a viable option with something that has small cockpit windows, such as a DC-4, the Embraer E170 has very large cockpit windows that reveal quite a bit of interior detail. Hasegawa provided a basic interior and clear windows in their YS-11, so to not have the same layout here is rather disappointing. Fixing this would be difficult, as it would require cutting out the kit windows, vacuforming a replacement, and scratchbuilding a basic interior. The kit does come with that bulkhead, though, which will help greatly in affixing a scratched interior, so that is one plus.

Moving on to the wings, these are in five main pieces, a somewhat complex wing assembly for such a small model. The upper wings are solid right and left halves, with the winglets molded in place. This is quite nice, as it ensures that the winglets are at the right angle. A couple of swipes with some sandpaper to thin those down a bit is all that is needed here. On the underside, the center fuselage incorporating the main gear wells has the lower wing section inboard of the engine pylon, while a separate piece provides the lower wing section outboard of the pylon to about 2/3 span. Because the engine pylon forms the end joint for those pieces, the only seam to worry about is the one at 2/3 span, which is not an issue at all. So while it seems complex at first, it actually is quite logical and should pose no problems in assembly. The engines are well engineered, with single piece intake rings and exhaust sections, eliminating any possibility of seams in tough areas. The main engine body is split into right and left halves, and incorporates the engine pylon.

Decision time, though, as at this stage you will want to decide whether to build your plane in flight mode or on its landing gear. The kit comes with a stand, which will require drilling out a hole in the lower fuselage section. Likewise, there is a single-piece insert for the main gear wells that has the gear doors and wheels all set up for in-flight mode. The nose gear bay also has a single-piece insert for the gear doors. For the gear down option, there are basic wheel wells for both the nose and main gear, and sturdy landing gear provided. The wheels are very nicely done, with beautiful hub detailing. The landing gear is simple, yet petite, providing a great base for those who want to really detail the gear out with the various plumbing found on these planes.

Like most airliner kits, this one comes with all sorts of antennae molded in place on the fuselage. For some of these, molded into the fuselage sides, this is not a problem, but for those found along the top and bottom seams, it can be quite challenging to clean up the seam without destroying these antennae. My usual method here is to very carefully remove those antennae and save them for re-attachment after taking care of the seam. Sometimes this works, sometimes not, and about half the time I have to scratch new antennae from plastic card or brass sheet. Hasegawa, though, recognizes the fragility of these antennae, and while they have them molded in place on the fuselage, they also provide replacements on the sprues. So you can work the seams as normal, and if you preserve the antennae, all is well. If you happen to knock one off, just replace it with the kit part and you're back in business. This is a great way to handle these fine parts, and Hasegawa should be commended for thinking this one through like this.

The decals are quite thorough, providing all the livery markings for the JAL J-Air scheme as well as individual registrations for ten aircraft. These registrations include both fuselage and wing registrations, as well as the nose gear door markings. In addition to the basic livery decals, this sheet includes a fair bit of stenciling and detail decals. There are wing outlines, engine warning stripes, elevator angle markings, and cargo door details. While the basic livery decals provide color, it is these small details that greatly enhance the realism of the finished model, so it is great to see them on the kit decal sheet. The quality of decals is quite good, although they feel a bit thick. Under a good clear coat, though, this should not be much of an issue.

Conclusion

Despite the window issues, this is a great little kit of the Embraer 170, and I am sure it will not take long for the aftermarket companies to come out with plenty of livery options. It would be nice to have some resin plugs to stretch this to an E175 as well (the changes to an E190/195 would require a new kit, though). As Embraer continues to move into more and more markets, the E170 will become a common sight at many airports, so it is great to have a high quality model of the plane in this scale. My thanks to Hasegawa USA for the review sample.