This item from Wee Friends addresses one of the two major faults with the Trumpeter Char B1bis kit, that being the incorrect driver's periscope cover. For some unfathomable reason Trumpeter molded the cover inside out, that is, the cover is found on the underside of the hull piece while the periscope tube is on the outside of the hull. Those wanting an accurate Char B1bis will need to do one of two things: scratch build their own cover (see my review here) or get a replacement from Wee Friends.

The Wee Friends part is cast in white metal and looks very nice. The cover even comes with the raised rib as seen on the cover of the real thing, something that is not very easily done if the modeller chooses to make their own cover. The rib shape does not quite exactly match the real cover (the rib should touch the edge of the cover) but it's close enough in my mind. To my eye it also looks a bit on the thick side but that is easily rectified with a bit of sanding.

This item should make the correcting of the glaring error of the Trumpeter kit quite painless. All you need to do is trim the periscope tube from the hull, do a bit of sanding to smooth the area and then affix the new cover with a touch of superglue.

Review sample supplied by Ian Hanratty of Friendship Models.