Prominent on the nose of the Mig-23 Flogger is a pitot tube. From a modeling perspective a nose pitot presents several challenges. First you hope that the part is not bent, broken or molded out of round. Surviving that, you then need to remove the pitot from the sprue, remove the mold lines and ensure that the cross section is round. Lastly, a nose pitot tube becomes a transportation liability during model shows and displays. This Quickboost product provides a safety net to the modeler who has had difficulty with any of these issues with the Trumpeter Mig-23 kit (or for that matter the Italeri/ESCI or Hobby Craft kits).

Quickboost provides not one but two booms for the price. My sample was molded cleanly with no warping, although any bends could be corrected by immersion in hot water. The pitot tubes match the prototype and captures the subtle bulge in the forward part of the tube. It just drops into the molded opening in the nose for the kit pitot. In comparison, the kit pitot is molded from soft plastic and has molded lines on two sides. To make matters worse it is attached to the sprue on the side halfway down, leave a hard to clean up blemish in the soft plastic. The photo here compares the kit pitot (in black) with the resin replacement from Quickboost (in red).

This Quickboost set is an enhancement that saves time and effort and ensures the highly visible nose area looks right. That fact that you get two pitot is great, especially if you are at all ham-handed. Recommended.

My thanks to Quickboost and IPMS/USA for the chance to review it.