Short Sunderland Mk.III Flexible Paint Masks  #CX582  £7.70

This release from Eduard contains flexible Kabuka paint mask set  for the clear parts and the wheels of the beaching unit of Special Hobby's 1/72 scale Short Sunderland Mk.III. The masks for the port holes are a real motivation for acquiring this set. It is difficult to create circular masks the size required unless you have a punch and die set. The masks for the port holes are in two sizes although this is barely perceptible just looking at them. Eduard has mistakenly shown the bomb bay doors for the Mk.V which has the two portholes on each door instead of the three port holes that the Mk.III has. It is not a problem though as there are a few spare masks with this set.

For the canopy there are only masks for the exterior, but that is not a great hindrance in this scale. There are a fair few masks  for the greenhouse style canopy, numbering twenty-two masks in all . Eduard supply masks for the gun turrets as well, but there’s a caveat with that. The bow turret has twenty masks and the stern turret has eleven masks. Unfortunately, Eduard has completely omitted masks for the Nash & Thompson FN-7 dorsal turret, so you will have to makeup your own. I checked this set against Eduard’s mask set for the Sunderland Mk.V [CX 541] and as far as I can tell they are identical. The Special Hobby Sunderland Mk.V release has no dorsal turret, which explains the omission of masks from this set for the  dorsal turret of the Mark.III. It also explains the incorrect depiction of the number of port holes on the bomb bay doors.

The astrodome also has a mask, which comprises of a thin Kabuka strip and the rest of the dome you need to apply liquid mask. Masks are also supplied for the landing and wing tip navigation lights.

There are masks for the wheels of the beaching equipment.

There are enough masks, around forty in all, to do all of the port hole exteriors, but I'm trying to see if I can  first use the masks in the interior. Then carefully remove them after painting for use on the exterior. I will report back on the results.

The masks come away from the backing sheet with ease. I made life a little difficult for myself peeling of the waste masking material to reveal the masks themselves. 

The instructions are very good and with care are easy enough to follow. Thankfully Eduard has used multiple images of the the parts to help with the location of the masks. Just as well as there are so many.

Conclusion

It claims on the packet that this set of masks is intended for use of Special Hobby’s 1/72 scale Short Sunderland Mk.III. The fact that masks for the dorsal turret is omitted and the bomb bay doors shown are for the Mk.V plainly makes the claim inaccurate. This set as far as I can determine is the exact same set as for the dorsal turret less Sunderland Mk.V that Special Hobby released last year. It would seem to be quite an oversight on Eduard's part, unusual for them. One that will have many modellers scratching their heads. Having said that this set of masks is a definitely a worthwhile accompaniment for the Special Hobby Sunderland Mk.III. Time and effort saved will be considerable with the masks available. You will just have to make some masks for the dorsal turret or go for option ‘B’ sans turret.

Advantages: This set will save a huge amount of time and effort creating your own

Negatives: Shame about the lack of masks for the dorsal turret and the incorrect depiction of the bomb bay doors

The sheer number and the shape of the masks makes acquiring this set a no brainer, despite the lack of masks for the dorsal turret. Recommended with reservations.