KP Models Avia BH-10 (KPM0421) 1:72

[Mike]

Avia BH-10 (KPM0421)

1:72 Kovozávody Prostějov

 

 

Designed and manufactured in Czechoslovakia in the mid-1920s, The BH-10 was a civilian aircraft that was intended as an acrobatic sports plane, and unusually for the era, it was a monoplane.  It was developed from the earlier BH-9, adding a tall anti-roll bar behind the pilot, as the aircraft had been known to nose-over, resulting in injury or death to the pilot in the open cockpit.  Only twenty-one examples were built, ten of which were bought by the Czechoslovakian army and used under the designation B.10 as trainers for their newly formed air arm, the rest being used by civilian owners and flying clubs.  It was powered by a small Walter NZ 60 engine that output 60hp through a two-bladed wooden propeller with a maximum speed of 100mph, below that of a modern passenger car, although granted that was in three dimensions, rather than just two.  Of the small number that were built in the 20s, a few still survive in museums and collections around the world, which is quite surprising, considering that WWII was waiting in the wings only a decade later.

 

 

The Kit

This is the first boxing of a recent new tool from Kovozávody Prostějov of this little aircraft, and the kit arrives in a small end-opening box with a painting of a bright blue BH-10 on the front, and the decal options on the rear.  Inside the box is just one sprue of grey styrene, a small clear sprue, a comparatively large decal sheet, and the instruction booklet printed in black and white on a folded sheet of A4, with a line drawn set of profiles on the back page.  Despite the small size of the kit, detail is good, and includes a cockpit, some nice rib and fabric detail on the flying surfaces, and a representation of the five-cylinder Walter radial engine.

 

 

 

Construction begins with the sub-assemblies, starting with painting the instrument panel, which has a staggering total of three whole instruments, typical of aviation’s early days.  The engine is a single part, and benefits from being painted four contrasting shades, then the pilot’s seat is painted and has four-point decal seatbelts applied, before it is glued to the rear bulkhead of the cockpit, which has the floor added at a right angle.  The cockpit is completed by a straight control column that inserts in a hole at the forward end of the control lines moulded into the floor.  The fuselage has a little internal detail moulded-in, despite being only 6cm long, so after detail-painting, it is trapped between the fuselage halves along with the semi-circular instrument panel, inserting the elevators and tail fin into slots in the rear of the fuselage, adding a skid under the tail.  The main gear is made from three V-shaped struts, linking them with an aerodynamically faired axle, which has the wheels applied to each end, allowing the model to stand on its own wheels (and skid).

 

Each of the two wings are moulded as a single part, and have a lot of nice detail moulded-in, depicting the ribs, flying surfaces and fastenings, attaching to the fuselage sides on a pair of short pins.  They are supported by a pair of thick struts, two on each side of the fuselage, and the instructions advise that there should be a small gap at the trailing edge of the wing, illustrated by a scrap view from above.  The engine is exposed, and simply glues directly to the front of the fuselage on a large peg, showing off your work on painting it earlier.  It is finished off by a two-bladed prop, and the model is completed by adding a choice of two styles of windscreen in front of the cockpit, and the highly visible triangular roll-over bar that is covered for aerodynamic reasons behind.

 

 

Markings

There are three decal options included on the sheet, two in a cream colour, one in blue as shown on the box art.  From the box you can build one of the following:

 

 

 

The decals are printed using a digital process and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas.  This means that the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film.  It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain.

 

 

Conclusion

The BH-10 is a new one on me, and its small stature is quite appealing.  The surface detail is nicely done, and if you really want to push out the boat, you could add the exhaust stacks behind the engine from brass rod or tube.

 

Highly recommended.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of

[kapam]

I knew nothing of the type before seeing this review, but it looks so cool, I think I’d like to get this kit.

[John_W]

That's a pretty little aircraft in some colourful schemes.

Nice to see the rarer inter war types getting some attention. I know its a cliché but the 20s and 30s really were a "Golden Age" for aviation.