For ship modelers looking to improve the look of their ship masts, or specifically their yardarms, Master Model has come to the rescue. Their Yardarm Set Number 1 contains a dozen replacement yardarms in lengths of 5, 7.5, 10, 12.5, 15, and 17.5 mm (two of each size is included). The already small brass items are finely tapered out to the ends, just like the real thing. If replacing plastic yardarms on a kit, the comparison photograph shows what a difference these can make.

My hits are that once again, the folks at Master Model have released some very finely detailed replacement parts, in this case for the 1/700 scale ship modeler. The fine taper are clearly visible, and will make a nice upgrade for a reasonable price.

I have no valid miss for this release itself. The directions only show the items that are present, and mention set number 2 in this scale as well as the two sets available in 1/350 scale.

Overall, I would highly recommend this detail set to anyone wanting to improve his or her next 1/700 scale ship with better yardarms. The installation options would be to cut off the existing yardarm, and then glue the replacement to the mast, or to use a replacement brass mast, and solder the new yardarms to it. Although the smaller yardarms require some fine tweezers to handle, attaching these replacement yardarms should not be a challenge to most modelers with some experience using brass parts. Soldering parts is a skill upon itself, if you are looking to replace the entire mast with brass.

I would like to thank the folks at Master Model for providing this set to the IPMS/USA for review, to Dave Morrissette, who runs the review corps, for selecting me to assess this detail set, and to you for taking the time to read my comments.