This is a simple metal upgrade for Hasegawa’s early 1980’s/90’s release 1/32 radial-engine FW-190 kits, and their “Dora FW-190 kit." Out of the box, it’s a great and easy kit for almost anyone to make a decent Wulf… but this SAC gear adds the additional “peace of mind” when dealing with the long legs and (as on many plastic kits) “always waiting to be broken off” tail gear.

It’s an easy one-for-one replacement to install this gear, and the cool part is it can all be installed at the end of the build if desired. I show the model with the gear in place before painting the project, as this gear lends itself to such shenanigans…. Just like an Armor kit!

What’s in the package? Two main gear legs with on-ground strut extension, two retraction arms with hydraulic pistons for the same, and one tail gear strut incorporating the wheel assembly. The kit tail gear has two tire options, one slightly larger than the other, and in this case the SAC tire is slightly larger, making it appropriate for most builds. The struts in the kit have you install separate torque links; SAC have thoughtfully incorporated them into the metal struts. FIVE parts. No fiddly superglue combo here.

This is the part where I rant about “what if” scenarios where the model is dropped and the plastic gear (or 3d printed gear, same thing) are broken off. I recently tested the premise of SAC being better, when I knocked the newly-finished (Lat review) Tamiya 1/48 F-35C from three feet high on a shelf, onto the concrete floor in my garage.

The model landed on its feet… and the ONLY result here: the SAC gear axles bent slightly, the tires stayed in place on the axles, and one of the stabilizers broke at the glue joint… I was expecting catastrophic damage and was pleased SAC gear didn’t fail. Slight straightening of the wheels and a bit of thin acrylic cement on the stabilizer joint, and the model is none the worse-for-wear!

I’m SOLD on SAC gear.

In closing, thanks again to Ross McMillan at SAC for providing this product to IPMS/USA. I fully recommend this one!