1/72 72011 Alliance Dornier Do-212 V-1
Resin Model Kit, Box Condition: Good+
Rare model of this very attractive subject. Beautifully cast in high-definition resin with all fine recessed panel lines, cockpit, optional position landing gear and full decals. The kit has never been started. The parts are still in the internal factory sealed bags and includes decals and instructions. The Do-212 shared it's good looks with many other Dornier creations of the time. It did not, however, share the success of the other designs. The Dornier Do 212 was a highly-original four-seat experimental amphibian flying boat built by the Swiss subsidiary of the DornierWerke at Altenrhein, near Rorschach, on Lake Constance. Its only relationship to the Do 12 Libelle III of 1932, apart from a common design origin, was that it was conceived as a successor for the earlier aircraft. Design work on the Do 212 was initiated by the Dornier-Werke at Friedrichshafen in 1938, the German and Swiss branches of the company subsequently collaborating in its development, the latter being responsible for the actual construction of the prototype. The Do 212 was an all-metal cantilever monoplane with fixed wingtip floats and a 460 bp Hirth HM 512B 12-cylinder air-cooled engine which, mounted aft of the four-seat cabin, was buried in the fuselage and drove a four-bladed propeller aft of the tail by means of an extension shaft which could be raised to provide adequate water clearance during takeoff and landing. The prototype (HB-GOG) was completed in 1942. Initial water taxing trials resulting in the enlarging of the wingtip floats, and one short hop off the water was made on 3 August 1942. However, the Do 212 was overly complex and had difficulties with the extension drive shaft and (as you can imagine) engine cooling presented a serious problem. Additionally, initial water also revealed that the wing tip float needed to be enlarged and so they were. However, there was a much more sinister problem: pitch instability. On 3 August 1942, a few attempts to take off from water were made, but these failed. A Do 24 was used to tow the Do 212 and it finally flew; however, this instability forced the pilot to ditch just after takeoff. Further trials ended the same way. Although we can never know for sure, it looks like a classic case of the design CG being too far aft. Consequently, no further testing was undertaken and the sole prototype was scrapped.
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