Mig-29A Single Seat

[Mike]

Mig-29A Single Seat

1:48 Eduard

The Mig-29 is a 4th gen. Fighter designed in the 70s, and coming into service since the early 80s in various guises. Dubbed the Fulcrum by NATO, the name has become its de facto appelation, with even some of its pilots referring to it that way. The A model was the initial product, and was referred to as the Fulcrum-A by NATO.

The Fulcrum has become a widely respected fighter aircraft, wowing the crowds with its so-called "cobra manoeuvre", where the aircraft appears to stand on its jet exhaust for a length of time... a trick that has been copied and has become a symbol of an aircraft's capability in some spheres, irrespective of the manoeuvre's combat usefulness.

The plastic within the box is the Academy kit, with some Eduard magic breathed into the cockpit and around the airframe to improve the detail. The kit is the only game in town in 1:48 scale, and despite some inaccuracies that have been discussed ad nauseum on the internet forums, it is your only option. Various of the issues have been fixed or ameliorated by aftermarket companies, and a comprehensive build thread on the original kit can be found here on Vodnik's pages that details any shortcomings of the kit and how to fix them if they concern you.

The box is a compact affair, and once the striking lid has been removed, you will find six sprues of greenish styrene parts, a sprue of clear, six small bags of resin parts, two Photo-Etch (PE) frets, a small sheet of masks, a large decal sheet, instruction booklet and separate stencilling guide. There isn't much free space inside the box.

Construction begins with the cockpit, and Eduard have provided a replacement cockpit tub in resin with PE detail parts. A new set of rudder pedals is built up from resin and PE, and a replacement instrument panel laminated from the pre-painted PE parts. A box on the turtle deck needs removing before installing the cockpit, as do the moulded in supports for the HUD. A choice of auxiliary intake louvres is provided to depict the aircraft with motors running (open), or static.

Once installed, the fore and aft fuselage parts are joined, and gear bays boxed in on the lower halves, before those too are offered up to the upper. The main gear bays are devoid of much detail, save for some raised marks on the bays themselves, and some moulded in detail in the underside of the upper fuselage. A super-detailer will probably source some replacement bays here, or scratch the detail themselves.

The kit's nose cone has a double curve to its forward section, which is incorrect, and can either be ignored, or an inexpensive resin nose cone can be sourced. Sadly, there is not one within the upgrades provided. Some aerial and sensor detail is provided in PE, as well as braces for the probe on the very tip of the nose cone.

The twin jet intakes underneath the fuselage build up separately and have PE variable intake ramp parts at the front and a PE burner ring at the rear. The intake ramps hide the fact that there is no true intake trunking within the nacelles, and saves the modeller from having to install external FOD guards to disguise this fact. There is a choice at the rear to have the centrally mounted air brakes posed open or closed, simply by swapping jack parts on the twin clamshell halves and installing the actuator rams in the rear of the pen-nib between the exhausts. A few PE vents, hooks and aerials are added to the underside, plus pair of coloured clear resin beacons on each engine nacelle.

The landing gear is relatively simple in construction, with the main gear legs having only one strut and one retraction jack. The bay doors have raised rivet detail inside, and landing lights within each main door. The nose gear is somewhat more complex, and has a moulded in mudguard that is replaced by a more detailed mesh part, which give more of a scale thickness to this prominent feature evident on many Soviet aircraft.

The vertical tails have replacement leading extensions that have more detail than the kit parts, and give the modeller the option of installing blanking plates for the flare dispensers, or the flare dispensers themselves. Static wicks are also provided as PE parts for the tips of all flying surfaces, which is a nice touch. The main planes have flashed over attachment holes for the weapons that are provided with the kit, but as many of these are somewhat "odd" in shape, the modeller should decide whether to source replacements or live with the inaccuracy of the kit munitions.

The kit canopy is crystal clear, and with the addition of the PE sill and rear bulkhead parts will be much improved. A set of masks simplify painting of the exterior, and the PE rear view mirrors will improve detail still further. The rear turtle deck is completely skinned in some very nicely rendered PE, which is installed toward the end of the build, but I would install earlier so that the lovely cockpit detail doesn't get damaged during the process. A new PE HUD is also included, together with some clear film to serve as the glass component.

Additional resin parts are layered upon the PE turtle deck, further improving detail, and with the addition of a gaggle of antennae and aerials in that area, the cockpit is completed, save for the stunning resin ejection seat. The seat builds up from a large number of resin parts, and is further enhanced by PE detail, and a full set of pre-painted seat belts. A bonus of a flight helmet is also included, to personalise the cockpit area with a little candid detail.

As previously mentioned, pairs of R-60. R-27, and R-73 missiles are provided, although the shape of the first two types is questionable, and the fins of the latter a little chunky. A large belly tank is also included that installs between the engine nacelles on stubby pylons.

Decals are up to Eduard's usual standard, with good register, excellent colour density and crispness, which is to be expected as they have been printed by Cartograf. From the box you can build one of the following:

• 2nd Flight 1521st AB, Soviet Union Mary Air base-1, 1991-2
  
• 85th GvIAP, merseburg AB, Germany, 1991
  
• Czech Republic Army Air Force, No.1 Squadron, Zatec AB 1993
  
• Lt. Col. Robert Cierniak, No.1 Squadron Tactical Air Force, Minsk Mazowiecki, Poland, 2005-7
  

The first two schemes are similarly camouflaged with a pale green over grey, but the shark-mouth and stinging bee on the tails make the first stand out, while the four tone camo of the Czech airframe should provide plenty of airbrushing fun. The final scheme is more typical of a modern "grey jet", with a darker grey on the upper surfaces behind the cockpit, and an irregular anti-glare panel in front of the windscreen.

The separate stencilling guide should give you a clue how many stencils cover the Fulcrum from stem to stern, so be prepared for the task in advance. Every single one is legible (although I don't read Cyrillic, so it could say anything!), and these details really bring a model to life.

Conclusion

Although the base kit has its issues, a great many of us will fix little or nothing, while the purists will have endless fun making their Fulcrum as accurate as possible. The inclusion of all the detail parts brings the package up to date, with only the gear bays found wanting for extra detail. Masks for the canopy and wheels are very helpful, as is the glossy and easy to follow instruction booklet, so typical of Eduard's modern releases.

Review sample courtesy of

[Dads203]

Got this one today myself, great package, super decals and a great cockpit, base kit not without it's faults as you said Mike but it

Should build up nice.

Nice review Mike.

[Greased Lightning]

Thanks for another great review Mike! Do you know if Eduard intend on doing the same with the UB?

[Mike]

I don't know at this juncture sorry

[Colin @ Freightdog Models]

I don't know at this juncture sorry

The UB is listed as a future release on their website.

Colin

[Greased Lightning]

Thanks for getting back guys, that's good news. I've always prefered the look of the UB to the single seater. )

[Julien]

Now that looks rather nice

Julien