This set provides a replacement nose pitot for the most of the variants of the MiG-25 Foxbat, other than the PD and PDS “Foxbat E” interceptor. The instructions do not list what kit the set is designed for, but there are a number of different Foxbat kits available from as Hasegawa’s initial offering based on the MiG-25 that Viktor Belenko flew to Japan, up to more recent offerings from ICM and other manufacturers. I had a MiG-25PU already underway, so I used that kit as a comparison kit.

The set consists of just 3 parts, 2 brass parts and a resin part that includes the various vanes and hooks present on the actual pitot tube. As with Master Model’s other sets, both brass parts and the resin part are very nicely done and as shown in the photographs, they are a huge improvement over the kit pitot. The instructions tell you to drill a .6 mm hole in the tip of the nose cone to install the replacement pitot. If you are like me and don’t always hit the exact center of the radome when you go to drill, you may want to drill a bigger diameter hole to give you a bit more room to get the pitot centered. I recommend drilling a pretty deep hole as the tip rear of the pointed brass part protrudes a ways beyond the base part so you will need to extra depth in the hole to ensure all three parts are snug up against each other.

Depending on which kit you are using, you may need to cut off a small portion of the tip of the kit nosecone to get the correct diameter needed such that there is just a slight step between the kit part and the new pitot base. As shown in the photographs, the kit part was too narrow before I shortened it, so the step was bigger than it should be. Be sure to just take off thin slices or sand off a bit at a time in order to avoid going too far (as I did) when trimming back the tip of the nose cone. Be sure to consult the instructions as you are working to ensure you get the proper placement of the new pitot tube.

Once you have the base of the pitot properly matched to the nose cone, I recommend setting the pitot aside while you finish building the model, at least until it is up on its landing gear as you will need to know where the horizontal and vertical planes are when you install the pitot tube as you will need to ensure that the vanes and hooks are properly aligned as the instructions show that the parts that look like rear facing hooks should be horizontal. Use gel superglue to assemble the parts as this will give you some time to ensure that your alignment is correct before the glue sets up. Even though assembly is pretty straight forward, take your time to get things properly aligned. Once you have installed the pitot, watch out – it is very pointy and can be bent if you are not careful. In addition the resin vanes are pretty fragile, so try to avoid them once the pitot is assembled.

Like Master Model’s other pitot sets, this set is very well made and will really enhance your model. Highly recommended. Thank your Model Master for the sample and to IPMS-USA for letting me review it.