Amodel 1/72 Yakovlev Yak-18

AMODEL 1:72 YAKOVLEV YAK-18
'INBOX Review'

Reviewer: Ioaea (rec.models.scale)

1/72nd AMODEL Yakovlev 18 INBOX REVIEW

Pre-Amble:

The twin-seat Yak 18 trainer was the replacement for the earlier UTIs of prior years, and introduced in 1946 as a tail-dragger (later it would be uprated with a tricycle undercarriage). It was also semi-aerobatic, and very easily maintainable in the field, as soviet trainers oft were. It also was a direct descendent of the Yak 5 -now there's a model you'll rarely see in any collection, it was that obscure a type.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly:

I positively adore Yaks. Especially those of the reciprocating engine line --fighter or trainer -- I shrug a shoulder in ambivalence for a preference. Yes, there's something about a Yak that I can't resist. Is it that slopey-forwardey rudder? The curvaceously-rounded triangular wing shape? I don't know -its an aesthetic thing that moves one's very soul. Therefore, admiring images of the 32nd scale Trumpeter Yak 18 to be found elsewhere on the internet, I parted company with a few pristine pennies for its 72nd cousin (twice removed) produced by Amodel. Amodel's version of the Yak 18 -faithfully- reproduces the *lack* of a curvaceous grace in the marque, and tells a campfire story of a rugged utilitarian appeal not unlike that of Clint Eastwood or something or someone very much like that.

Now then, first impressions, friends. Here, then, is a kit which is your everyday short-run job, with a lot of flash, thick light grey sprues, one transparent (which includes in my box, a single, noticeable, air bubble in the one piece canopy, darn it). The basic dimensions are broadly accurate however, which is one of Amodel's saucy attractions, the other being that they go for the more obscure soviet/russian beauties which the discerning VVS modeller will appreciate, and perhaps, find themselves wiping away a single tear of rapture with a man-sized tissue (-additionally the acrobatic Yak 50 and 52 types are made by Amodel, close relatives of the 18, of which inbox reviews I hope to submit shortly)

Dirty Harry:

Issues, problems or other minor irritants --on the original early Yak 18 the five panels which protected the Shvetsov M11 formed an impossible shape as the sum of their parts, and to be honest, the kit replica is every bit as incredible -but unfortunately a complete disaster in mimicry --it looks like a badly-treated starfish. The flash doesn't help either. A deft hand is therefore required to correct, nay, lovingly re-sculpt its contours, I should think, to get the thing looking just right in the eye of the beholder.

Elsewhere, absent parts might very well include the tailplane struts, a simple matter to resolve, and some brass wire would be useful as tailplane rigging, whilst we're at it. The kit includes a handy spinner, but not all early 18s used these -in fact if you wish to model the all-red flypast version of the (inaccurate) boxtop, and if you wanted to be an accuracy hound, then by all means leave it off, but check your references for the rather fiddly-looking spinner-less prop. Also, as stated, the canopy is one long piece, so be careful with your superglues and whatnot if you don't want clouding -it'd be very noticeable in this scale given the length of the part. Otherwise, the kit is unmistakably an early Yak 18, warts and all. (Mostly warts, 'tis true).

A Fistful of Decals:

Good heavens. A treasure trove, almost an embarrassment of riches. We have decals for several machines; your basic soviet DOSAAF (state flying club) example, the famous all-red flypast machine number 1 (don't forget that spinner), civil and military East German types and a I think a Polish civil machine in lurid livery. Everything here is in good register and they're as flat and as matte as can be, with no extraneous carrier film -very nice indeed.

Post-Amble:

You may be interested in this model if you like trainers, or merely like your russian/vvs/warsaw pact aircraft. Of course, Trumpeter's 32nd equivalent is a stunning thing, so you might want to flex your modelling muscle on that -but if, like me, you want a smaller scale early Yak 18, then here she be. Clint Eastwood fans, rejoice! (?)

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