Named after the Russian saint Alexander Nevskiy, the second ballistic submarine in the Borei-class is just now entering service after several delays during her construction, which began when the keel was laid in March of 2004. Although there were budgetary issues that hampered completion, there are also reports of issues regarding the missiles that were to be carried aboard the new class of submarine that is meant to replace the Delta and Typhoon classes. Original plans were to arm the submarine with “Bark” missiles, but these were later cancelled and replaced with “Bulava” missiles. The Alexander Nevskiy is supposed to be very similar to the Yury Dolgoruky, the lead boat in the Borei-class.

The submarine is reported as having a displacement of 14,720 tons surfaced and 24,000 tons when submerged. The dimensions are 557 feet, 9 inches in length, 44 feet, 3 inches at the beam, and having a draft of 32 feet, 10 inches. Propelled by a single nuclear reactor, the boat is thought to have a maximum speed of 28 knots. The crew compliment is 130 officers and men, and armament includes sixteen “Bulava” SLBM’s (Submarine Launched Ballistic Missiles), and six cruise missiles that are fired from the torpedo tubes.

Upon opening this kit, you will find two gray sprues holding eighty-eight parts for the submarine, one black sprue that surrounds the base, a photoetched fret with six parts and the nameplate, a decal sheet, and an eight-page instruction booklet. The plastic used by Bronco is similar to that used by Dragon and some other companies, as it has a slightly pebbled texture to it. The black base was a smooth plastic by comparison. The photoetched parts include what I believe are railings for the sail, an optional propeller, and the aforementioned nameplate that fits into a recess on the base.

The instructions for this kit begin with a short write-up by Phil Greenwood on the history of the Alexander Nevskiy and the issues with the weapons system. Page two defines the symbols used throughout the instructions, and includes a chart for the five colors called for, including Mr. Hobby, Hobby Color, Humbrol, and Tamiya paint numbers. The instructions are printed on glossy paper, and use color throughout.

Assembly of this kit begins with the lower hull which includes openings in the stern for thruster motors. The stern planes are connected by a tube (kit part B19), which allows them to actuate together, and there is an eight-piece assembly that allows the rudder halves to work together. In step 3, the photoetched rails are installed, and it took me a fair amount of light and magnification to see the locating spots on the sail, but they are there. Unlike the older Dragon kits, there are no hinges on the missile tube hatches, so they will need to be installed either open or closed. The two furthest aft tubes are actually tubes, and the kit contains the parts to assemble two missiles that snuggly fit inside. The other tubes are only partials, and they have molded-in missiles. Construction is completed in a mere six steps, and the final page of the instructions covers the painting and markings.

I felt that building this kit was straightforward enough, although the complexity of the offset drive for the rudder halves worried me a bit. The assembly worked fine when assembled, and also in the dry fit, but something changed during construction, so mine ended up only working partially. The forward dive planes are glued directly to openings in the hull, so they will not operate when installed. There are optional parts to show these retracted, and therefore flush with the hull. There is also an option to have the covers closed for the thruster motors, but I could not resist installing them, and showing them off. I was concerned about a heavy seam line between the upper and lower hull, but there is a white stripe that goes along this area, and it adequately hides this line. The decals went on just fine using Micro Set and Micro Sol, but the crosses that are installed on top of the missiles have a very thin connection point at their center, and the four legs easily detach from one another when the decal is removed from the backing sheet. The white stripe around the waterline intimidated me initially, but this went on without issue.

In building my kit for this review, I utilized Model Master Acryl Semi-Gloss Black, Model Master Lacquer Silver and Gloss Red, Humbrol Brass, and Tamiya Hull Red for the submarine itself. The base was painted with Alclad Gloss Black Base and Polished Brass.

As far as my hits of this kit are concerned, I have to say that the assembly was relatively easy with the assembly for the rudder being the only real challenge. The photoetched parts are a nice touch, and the nameplate was done well and looks much better in this medium than one made of plastic. I mentioned that the waterline decal intimidated me at first, but this was much appreciated in the end as it covered a seam, and went on with relative ease. I also appreciate the timeliness of this kit, as this is the latest and greatest SSBN placed in service by the Russian Navy, and was not even in service yet when the kit was released.

As far as my misses, the seam line between the upper and lower hulls pretty much ensures that you install the waterline decals. I am not sure if I missed something in the complexity of the drive for the rudder halves, but at least mine did not work properly once the model was completed. Although few colors are used, I would have liked some additional detail for displaying the missile hatches open, as the hatches are not shown in the drawing used for having them open, just the missiles and their top cross marking. There is also no reference for painting the propeller when installed in step 2, nor is this shown in the color guide.

Although not misses, things that I would have liked to have seen would have been hinged missile hatches, options for the items on top of the sail to be installed extended or retracted, and markings that would be used on the real SLBM’s, as the ones included are likely for trials of the new missiles.

In conclusion, I would recommend this kit to anyone who enjoys building submarine kits, especially those of modern subjects. This kit is big when completed, measuring nineteen inches in length, but it will look great in my display case next to my 1/350 scale USS Ohio and Typhoon submarines.

My thanks go out to the folks at Dragon Models USA for providing this kit to the IPMS-USA for review, to Steve Collins who runs the Review Corps and allowed me to appraise this kit, and to you for taking the time to read my comments.