ICM 1:72 SOVIET MODERN AIR ARMAMENT
'INBOX Review'

 

Reviewer: John Lacey  (rec.models.scale)   

One habit I have developed during my modelling life is sometimes buying a particular kit purely for the weapons that are supplied.  Needless to say, the weapons sets produced thus far by Hasegawa are certainly enjoyable experiences are are those of Italeri, Dragon and Airfix.  Of all these, only Dragon had produced separate weapons sets for Soviet / CIS aircraft so, needless to say, ICM's kit of similar weapons was something I looked forward to.  I'll deviate from the usual routine of reviewing due to the nature of this particular kit.

Four sprue trees are present, two identical pairs, giving a total of forty weapons and the added bonus of six pylons.

Weapons include:

Now for those of us with a smattering of knowledge regarding the weapons listed, we can see that this kit basically spans the Soviet/CIS use of air to air weapons from the early 1950s until the present day.  Definitely a bonus there.  The box art shows the weapons sitting in front of an Su-24 and an Su-27 at an airshow, although many of these weapons are long out of service regarding those two aircraft.   Still, at least we can load up all those old MiGs we've got stashed around the place.  The reverse of the box art give some painting guides, but unfortunately, the letters the point to each colour aren't listed as the kit I have contains no instruction sheet.  Anyone who knows differently can certainly feel free to let me know!

Now for the bad news.  Each weapon or pylon, whether they be a multi-part assembly or a single piece is almost bereft of detail.  These are unfortunately, some of the plainest weapons I have yet seen in kit form and although ICM is to be congratulated given the depth of subject matter, I personally would have preferred better detailed weapons, even if it meant fewer.  This is a trend ICM seems to have developed in their mould making processes as I have also purchased 35th scale troop sets of similar quality.

To conclude, I can't really recommend this kit to anyone seriously looking for Soviet stores for their aircraft unless you are looking for a 'filler' for that halted project.  Nice try, but better luck next time ICM.

 

SMAKR Home  |  What's New  |  Submissions  | Information Requests |  News  |  Links  |  Reference Corner  |  Site Info 
1/72 Reviews  |  1/48 Reviews  |  INBOX Reviews