Spitfire Mk.IX Cockpit
As nice as the Tamiya 1/32 Spitfire Mk.IX kit is, Aires wants to make it better. They now offer a cockpit set that is intended to improve the detail in that portion of the kit. The detail is crisp, delicate and very well rendered. This set does not include a photo-etch fret. All parts are resin…typical Aires resin…gray and smooth. The parts come on either single or shared casting blocks and can be removed with a sharp #11 blade, sanding stick and/or razor saw blade. Although the resin has a degree of flexibility, care always should be exercised when removing the delicate small parts from the casting blocks as they are prone to break if handled with a heavy hand. There is a little thin flash on some parts (like the fuselage bulkheads and the oxygen hose) so a little clean up is required, but there are no discernable pinholes to worry about.
The twenty parts in the set are either replacements for multiple kit parts or are to be used along with twenty-eight of the kit’s plastic and photo-etched cockpit parts to achieve an improved level of overall detail. Included in the set are a highly detailed seat, new ‘floor’ (actually a one-piece casting of the inside of the fuselage underside area that can be seen within the cockpit, with all of the bulkhead and plumbing detail cast in), replacement sidewalls with an amazing level of detail, three cockpit bulkheads, twin oxygen cylinders, cylinder connecting pipe, emergency CO2 cylinder with valve, new cockpit door (with crowbar cast in), new control column, oxygen hose, throttle quadrant, propeller speed control lever, and other assorted small detail bits. Many of these parts also could be used to enhance the detail in the new Tamiya Mk.VIII kit (and maybe on an older Hasegawa Spitfire kit, with some adjustment). The photo below shows everything that is included.
Some may question if it is worth investing in a substantial resin aftermarket detail set for a kit that has received universally rave reviews as the new benchmark in 1/32 scale multimedia kits. But, since many modelers already have purchased numerous aftermarket parts from BaracudaStudios, MasterCaster, Eduard and others to enhance the details in the Tamiya kit, it’s likely that Aires will find an adequate market for a complete bundle like this.
This set is recommended to anyone interested in adding more detail to an already great kit.
My thanks to IPMS/USA and Aires Hobby Models for the opportunity to review this detail set.
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