The Little World

I am not a fan of super-detailed cockpits. They seem to be too much trouble for too little reward.

But I do admire the AML company for the all-resin cockpit tub produced for this fighter plane. I has popped together with a precision that is rarely seen.

Not without effort, I might add. Resin parts are poured into moulds that can have a considerable block of plastic under their details and it is a matter of both delicacy and brute force to separate them. I tried an old razor saw to divide the main tub but it was the best part of 45 minutes and a borrowed saw that freed it. I am still amazed that it came off in one piece, as did the various sticks and levers that were moulded with it.

I cannot claim the instrument panel as one of my signal tri-umphs, but it is buried deep enough to excuse me. There are machine guns with their breeches in the cockpit, which is a first for me.

The truly amazing part came when I tried a dry fit of the tub in the fuselage halves. It fit with no fettling and the seams could meet in the middle. There was even space to use two different shades of green.

This kit has more to it than meets the eye.