A6M2b S.A. Detail Set
Eduard's set 73467 is meant to detail Tamiya's 1/72 A6M2b. The set addresses the cockpit, the wheel wells, the engine and adds dropped flaps. This is done with two superb frets of photoetch. One is the standard set and addresses the flaps and wheel wells and engine with 61 parts. The second fret is colorized and covers the cockpit and miscellaneous parts with 66 parts. All are beautifully done.
Starting with the cockpit, there are three things that make a huge difference. First is the superb seat. it is scale thin and has the needed holes. It takes a little roll to get the right shape. Added to that are fantastic seat belts. Second are the side walls and panels. it is preprinted and also adds to the cockpit. Last is the instrument panel which is a little work of art. All of these fit well and as you can see by the detail shots,. they make the cockpit look fantastic.
The second area addressed is the wheel wells. These have new side walls and replacement ribs. You do have to sand all of the detail off first. The ribs are very thin and look much better than the plastic kit parts. There are also parts for the gear legs and also brake lines.
The engine gets an ignition harness and also u-shaped valve cover parts. The ignition harness looks great and is readily visible. The other parts are not viewable with the cowling closed. There are also latches for the cowling to give it some depth. All the parts fit well. My only comment would be that they are small, less than a millimeter in some cases.
Lastly, there are flaps. These require the entire removal of the upper wing portion. Take your time and cut things out carefully. The upper portion requires careful folding of the back and side parts. The ribs need careful folding and attachment. I folded them right in place and used thin CA to fix in place. once that is done, they are glued into the wing and faired in with several applications of putty. With the repeated sanding and handling, I knocked several of the ribs loose and ended up making new ones out of thin plasticard. The flaps themselves also require the same careful folding and delicate handling.
I included a fair amount of the finals shots and this set really helps to dress up an already nice kit. The cockpit and ignition wire are especially awesome in appearance. The flaps look good but I would recommend those to people with some PE experience. Due to the size of the parts, photoetch experience is needed but the payback is huge with the added detail.
My thanks to Eduard and IPMS/USA for the chance to review this excellent set.
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