Marivox 1/72 SAAB B 17

MARIVOX 1:72 SAAB 17

Reviewer: Simon Skinner (rec.models.scale)
Kit Review submitted: February 2001

Aircraft:
The company now known as Saab was created in 1937 and after cutting its teeth on several licensed-built designs, its first original type was the Saab 17. As a two-seat reconnaissance plane this type first flew in May 1940. After suggestions for various other roles the aircraft was built to the extent of about 325 in several forms for Swedish service.

The Saab 17 was not really remarkable in any way and accommodated its crew under a long canopy. Fairings were attached to the undercarriage legs which then faired into the underwing surfaces. Some models operated on floats and in winter the landplane models could be fitted with ski replacements. Ethiopia were the main user of this aircraft outside Sweden and almost two dozen were exported to them immediately after the second world war.

The Kit:
Inside the box you are presented with a lot of parts and sprues with plenty of optional components included to make up other versions. For instance, wheels, skis and floats are provided as different landing gear so you can immediately tell not every part in the kit will be utilised. All surface detail is finely engraved as well.

Construction:
Starting with the cockpit this is a relatively easy affair because it is pretty sparse. Nothing other than a seat, instrument panel, stick and floor are provided so an aftermarket set or a bit of scratchbuilding is needed to spruce it up a bit. Likewise the rear gunner compartment is also sparse but half filled by an object that looks like a spent-cartridge chute, which if it is that, it is pretty overdone scalewise. The gun is also large in scale but does not look too out of proportion. The instructions are a bit vague on exact positioning of the rear gunners seat and you need to spend some time dry fit testing before securing in place.

There were no problems fitting the fuselage halves together other than the usual clamping to hold it in place while drying and sanding off the join lines. The wings were attached to the fuselage again without any major dramas but both them and the tailplanes needed filler around the joins.

As I understand it there were three different radial engined versions on the B17 but it appears the kit provides for only two of them - the standard Pratt & Whitney and the Bristol Pegasus (an Italian Piaggio engine was the third version). Attaching the engine was a little difficult as the cowling did not sit back far enough on the nose. I hacked off a very small section of the nose area where the cowling mates onto it with a razor saw to fix this problem.

The bomb bay on the belly of the aircraft can be displayed open as the doors are easy to fix in either open or closed position. Curiously there is no bomb bay detail or bombs to put in there so I simply molded the bay closed. One could fix in some small bombs and display it open if you wish.

For the last couple of steps in the construction process I added on the canopy, undercarriage and external details. The canopy did not pose any problems and although it is possible to have the rear gunners port open I closed it off. I built the B-17A undercarriage version and the same fitted without any troubles. Out of curiosity I dry fit tested the skis and floats for those who might consider these options and couldn't see any problems these might cause. There is no wheel well bay and the undercarriage although containing the right shapes, is a basic mold.

Versions & Decals:
As already touched upon this kit can produced any of the major Saab B17 variants and the decal sheet caters for this as well with more than a dozen versions covered, although very little stencilling is provided. In terms of which countries are shown on the decal sheet you can build one of the Swedish wheels, floats or ski versions (with of course a different engine) or a Saab B17A from the air forces of Denmark, Austria, Finland or Ethiopia. Colour register on the decals is very good and there were no problems putting them on a Gloss Cote with Micro Set & Sol and sealing them in afterwards with another cote of Gloss. I chose a Swedish B17A and all the other decals went into the spares box!

Accuracy:
Captures the look and feel of the Saab B17A very well in my opinion and without much other choice on the market is about the best you are going to get. The only criticisms are the engine cowling as touched upon above and measurements which appear slightly overscale by a few millimetres.

Overall:
I must admit the kit turned out better and was easier than what I was expecting so I was pleased with the outcome. For the subject matter part and the quite reasonable outcome I would have no hesitation recommending this kit to all but the real beginner.

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