Eduard Polikarpov I-153 detail sets. 1:32

[Shar2]

Polikarpov I-153 detail sets

Eduard 1:32

 

The new ICM I-153 is a lovely little kit, as reviewed HERE. But never one to miss an opportunity to improve a kit, Eduard have now released three sets of etch, (if you include the zoom set), and a set of masks.

 

Detail Set (32929) - The parts are contained in this set on one sheet of etched steel, and one on a sheet of etched brass. The steel sheet is pre-painted, and it looks like Eduard have gone away from making these parts self adhesive. The sheet contains the instrument panels complete with the instrument faces on the backplate.  A little dab of aqua clear will give them the appearance of glass fronts.  The sheet also contains the myriad of coloured levers, knobs, additional instruments, rudder pedal support bracket, access doors, first aid kit and radio face panel. The unpainted sheet contains items such as the rudder pedal straps, cockpit sidewall framing, for which you will have to remove details on the kit fuselage and reshape the forward end, once the etched parts are glued into place. The largest parts on the sheet are those that make up the undercarriage doors, with outer panels, internal structure and brackets to fit the doors to the main legs and actuators, and the roof of each main undercarriage bay.  There are also new grilles for the various vents, replacement struts and hinges for the horizontal tail planes and a new wiring harness for the engine. The set also includes a small sheet of acetate for use to replace the gunsight glass.

 

 

 

Interior Zoom Set (33198)

This zoom set contains only the above pre-painted sheet and allows the modeller to build a well detailed cockpit without the hassle of getting bogged down with detail that might otherwise be deemed superfluous.

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Seatbelts (32199)

This small single sheet of etched steel contains the pre-painted seatbelts, and while it is quite simple, they do look really nice with the stitching picked out and some shading already added. They may take a little fiddling to make look the part, as they’re not as giving as cloth belts, but once glued in place, the will stand out, even in the small cockpit of the I-153.

 

Masks (JX219)

To complement the sets mentioned above, Eduard have also released a set of paint masks for the I-16, which helps masking the clear areas a whole lot easier as well as the wheels/tyres.

 

Conclusion

 

There’s never a kit release without Eduard set or two being designed for it as they are so prolific.  Whilst not as comprehensive as some of the previous releases, (perhaps ICM got it right and didn’t need as much), they will add that extra level of detail sought by some modellers.  It’s still disappointing that they chose to release the seatbelt set separate from what is basically an interior set, but I guess it gives modellers more choice on how much they want to add.

 

Review sample courtesy of