Yet another addition to Scale Aircraft Conversions large line of metal landing gear is this set for the Wingnut Wings Sopwith Triplane.

Like most of SAC’s sets, this is meant as a drop-fit replacement for the kit’s plastic landing gear. The set comprises of both main gear legs, the landing gear “wing” between the legs, main axle, tail skid, and tail skid adjusting piston. All are made of sturdy, white metal.

While these (as is often the case) look to be cast copies of the original kit, there are a few highlights. One appreciable difference I saw in this set (versus the few others I have seen/used) was the ‘sprue’ attached to the main legs and the axle. Unlike the Junkers J.1 gear I recently reviewed, the Sopwith’s axle is meant to be at an angle and the sprue it was attached to in this set keeps it at the correct bend. The gear legs are also kept properly aligned by being attached to their individual sprues. The result of the sprue being attached to these pieces means the common occurrence of bent white metal does not occur. A big plus in my book. There are some mold lines and flash on these pieces (the axle in particular) that will need to be cleaned up.

The SAC gear is considerably stronger than the kit plastic, which is the main intention of this line. The Sopwith Triplane is somewhat on the heavier side, and it will benefit from metal gear’s added strength. The tail skid is notoriously an area of weakness and delicacy on many WW1 kits, making the metal piece a welcome substitute. This kit can be a little top heavy with the 3 wings, so the extra weight lower down gives the added bonus of making it a bit more stable on the table.

I would say this is a worthwhile replacement for the kit’s gear. The strength and added stability it gives to the finished model make it an investment worth considering.

I would like to thank SAC for the review set, and to thank IPMS for allowing me to review it.