Introduction

Eduard's F6F kit has been released in several boxings. Below is a list of Aeroscale reviews which covers some of them:
- F6F-3 Hellcat in Orange box (now Profipack)
- Hellcat Mk.I/Mk.II Dual Combo (two kits with British markings only)
- Hellcat F6F Royal Class box (with F6F-3, F6F-5 and nightfighter versions).

A full review build of the F6F-3 Weekend edition kit by Michael Wolfe can be found Here.

The Hellcat F6F ZOOM sets

Eduard's "Zoom" range is destined to modelers who want to include basic details to their kits. Only the most important parts, which are impossible to do in injected plastic, are provided on the fret. In the case of the F6F Hellcat Weekend kits these are:
For the F6F-3 (set FE447):
- Seatbelts
- Instrument panel
- Engine placards
- Frontal air intake grills
- Detail parts for the bomb and bomb rack

For the F6F-5 (set FE454):
- Seatbelts
- Instrument panel
- Side consoles details
- Engine placards

As you would expect from Eduard, the quality of these photoetched fret is very good. Most of the parts are pre-painted (seatbelts, placards and instruments). Unfortunately, the Frontal air intake grill is missing in the F6F-5 set. I would have tried to include it in any case as I think it improves the look of the model a lot. But to be honest, the cockpit interior is busier in the later version so maybe there wasn't enough surface on the metal sheet anymore to add it.

The black & white instructions are printed on a single sheet of A5 size paper. They are nicely done and easy to follow.

Conclusion

These are nice little PE sets which will allow you to slightly improve the overall level of detail of your Weekend Hellcat kits. However, to be honest, I can only recommend the ZOOM sets to people who have already purchased their Weekend kits and who regret, afterwards, not to have the photo etched parts. For the others, it is better to buy the Profipack version as they are in the end cheaper while providing more PE parts, additional masks and more decal options!

Below are direct links to the Eduard info page of both ZOOM sets:
- F6F-3 Weekend (FE447).
- F6F-5 Weekend (FE454).

Please remember, when contacting retailers or manufacturers, to mention that you saw their products highlighted here - on AeroScale.