NOTE: Two cockpit sets are virtually the same, with only a few parts different.

To go along with Aires’ new A6M5 Zero wheel bay set, Aires released two cockpit sets. The sets are virtually the same, and are intended for use with the same base kit. The differences are that one set offers an A6M5 Zero, while the second set is the A6M5b Zero. The -b Zero featured various upgraded avionics within the cockpit. Comparing the two sets, minor differences are seen, including different controls and avionics boxes. As with all Aires sets the castings are well done and are cast in grey and beige resin. While the casting in grey resin was excellent in my samples, the beige castings featured quite a bit of flash, and did not seem to have the crisp detail that Aires is known for. In my opinion, this is not a fault of Aires, but more due to the type of resin used.

Both sets are very detailed, and far superior to kit parts. While I did not have the Tamiya kit on hand for comparison, I did have the 21^st Century Zero (rumored to have detail copied from Tamiya). While many of the details matched up with the kit parts, it was clearly evident that the resin parts feature a higher level of detail, with much cleaner castings (grey resin).

While I am disappointed with the quality of the beige castings in my review sample, I am nonetheless impressed with the overall detail of the two sets. I highly recommend them to anyone planning on building the A6M5 in 1/32 scale. My thanks to Aires for providing the review samples.