Eduard Model Accessories has produced another fine set of photoetch parts to help complete your Supermarine Spitfire Mk. VIII. The set is for up-detailing the cockpit and you should need to add nothing more to make the cockpit area a highly accurate replica.

As an added bonus the parts in this set are prepainted and have an adhesive backing.

There are two frets, made from stainless steel and a clear film with four marked rectangles to replicate glass faces on instrument panels and gunsight reflectors.

• Fret Part 1 includes the prepainted items. You will find two large panels; one is pre-punched and assembles as a front layer for the unpunched one. When assembled together they will make up the main instrument panel. The colors are accurate and the printing is so fine it would be impossible to duplicate by hand. Fret 1 also contains peripheral instrumentation, control brackets, quadrants, a placard and switch panels, compass face, gunsight, etc.
• Fret 2 contains items such as seat support beam, seat adjuster, compass holder bracket, a wiring harness and other peripheral items for added detailing.
• The instruction sheet is two sided and relatively easy to follow. It consists of drawings of sub-assemblies and arrow guides to locate the parts. The parts are individually numbered on each fret. Sheet “1/4” has an image of each fret and the clear film. All parts on each fret are clearly numbered as they are on the actual frets. There are four boxes depicting the shading codes as shown on the actual drawings. Original kit parts are depicted as black and this clearly indicates the melding of kit parts to the photoetch to produce unmatched accuracy.

As with all photoetch sets, this set will require a degree of skill to use. The pre-painting will save a lot of time and being self-adhesive mating them to the kit mountings should be a piece of cake. The trick is to cut the parts loose from the fret while it still adheres to the backing sheet; then work it free with the appropriate pointy thingy or tweezer to apply to the base. With luck the carpet troll will go unfed as you build up this set.

Thanks to Eduard Model Accessories and IPMS/USA for my review sample.