Aires has come to the rescue with a major enhancement to the anti-tank 30 mm 2A42 cannon supplied in the Italeri 1/48 Kamov Ka-50 Hokum kit (tan plastic). Revell has also released the Italeri kit in black plastic with both the Werewolf and Black Shark markings along with more extensive stencils. There are no supplied instructions; you simply swap out the kit provided plastic parts with the new Aires replacements.

Aires has molded the cannon perfectly in light grey resin with no apparent bubbles. The Aires cannon is supplied on a single resin sprue with thin resin attachments to the parts that should minimize any cleanup. I used a razor saw to carefully remove the muzzle brake and then focused on the rest of the cannon. You will want to be quite careful removing the sprue around the barrel. It does have some flex, but not much. Assembly is rather simple after clean-up. Attach the muzzle brake to the cannon barrel and you are ready to mount the assembly to the airframe. What you get to decide is how to orient the muzzle. I was not able to find any pics on the internet that show the muzzle as depicted by Italeri / Revell. I was able to find internet photos showing the muzzle as I’ve attached it.

Although most paints will adhere to resin alone, I would recommend that you wash the parts to remove any remaining mold release and prime them first. They will need to be installed with your favorite CA (super glue) or epoxy, as the normal plastic glues or solvents will not react with the resin.

This replacement assembly is a huge improvement over what comes with the kit. After cleaning off the resin sprue, you don’t have any other seam work or sink marks to worry about and the added detail is simply quite superior to that of the injected part. If you want to take the next step, check your reference photos, as there is a mass of exposed hydraulic lines and wiring.

Highly recommended.

Thanks to Aires and IPMS/USA for the opportunity to review this set.