ICM 1/72 Yakovlev Yak-9

ICM 1:72 YAKOVLEV YAK-9

Reviewer: Johan De Wolf (rec.models.scale)
Kit Review submitted: 8 August 2006

Kit Details

Aircraft: Yakovlev Yak-9
Scale: 1/72
Kit: ICM #72021
Parts: 43 light grey + 2 transparent injection molded
Surface detail: engraved
Decals: 5 options
Accuracy: good (except for the canopy)
Price: less than $10

Additional items used:

Pavla #V72-15 Yak9 vacu canopy
AML #72004 Stalin’s eagles in Yaks II decals (4 options)

History

The Yak-9 was a development of the Yak-1. Whereas the Yak-1 developed further into the Yak-3 as a light weight air superiority fighter, the Yak-9 was a culmination of all the improvements made to the Yak-7. Like the Yak-7 the Yak-9 was a heavy frontal fighter. When it first appeared over the skies of Stalingrad in late 1942, the Yak-9 quickly ended the supremacy of the Fw-190’s. In fact the Yak-9 could out fly anything else in the sky at that time, including everything produced by the allies.

The Yak-9 was developed in several sub versions. The Yak-9D had an increased range, the DD was an improved D, the B (originally designated L by the OKB) was a D with provision for 4 100Kg bombs behind the cockpit. These fighter bomber versions usually only 2 carried bombs due to cg shift causing unpleasant flight characteristics. Then there was the 1943 R which was a D fitted with a camera behind the cockpit and the post war R with a similar camera installation but based on the Yak-9U.

Then there where two cannon toting versions. The T was fitted with the highly effective NS-37 canon instead of the ShVAK. More fire power had been high on the wanted list of frontline pilots and the Yak-9T was a god sent to them. The air to air kill ratio immediately went up in favor of the Russians. However frontline commanders where unhappy because, as the NS-37 was basically an anti tank gun, they had hoped the T yaks would be used as tank killers. High command deemed both task equally important and essentially gave the Yak-9T regiments a carte blanche to hunt anything worthwhile wings or no wings. In reality some regiments started to specialize in tank killing, demonstrating their effectiveness during the liberation of the Ukraine, while other regiments specialized in air superiority with equal success.

Next came the Yak-9K. This version was fitted with the awesome NS-45 canon. Even though only single shot firing was possible with this canon, the new shells where so powerful that even a near miss by 10m usually ended in the enemy aircraft going down in flames. The K was equally effective against tanks, and even the mighty Tigers succumbed to this gun. However the recoil and blast of the NS-45 was so ferocious that only a few shots often resulted in damage to the engine pipes and systems, putting the aircraft out of action for repairs frequently. As the T’s where quite effective only a small series of K’s were built. Because of these large guns the cockpit had to be placed 40cm further aft.

To standardize on this cockpit placement the 9M was developed which was basically a D with the cockpit moved aft. The M was further developed in to the U with the more powerful VK-107 engine. The U became available towards the end of the war and proved to be even more superior to German hardware than the D had been. As the war had turned in favor of the allies, strategic materials became less short in supply.

There for the last development was an all metal Yak-9 designated P. After the war the P was exported to several soviet “allies”. During the Korea conflict Yak-9P’s where still a force to be reckoned with and they where treated with the utmost respect by western pilots unfortunate enough to encounter them. By 1943 the Yak-9 was the most numerous fighter in the Soviet air force and by the end of the war over 14500 had been produced. Production continued after war and about 2000 more where added to the grand total. The Yak-9 was a real pilot’s plane, easy to fly, simple, reliable and rugged, with a powerful punch.

The kit

My kit came bagged and attached to a header card. Inside the bag there are two light grey sprues and a clear one. While the header card simply says Yak-9, parts are provided for the D, T, K and M versions as well. Panel lines are engraved. There is a bit of flash here and there but nothing major. There are only two sink marks on this kit but they are very pronounced and very visible. The trailing edge of the wing is single thickness and while this gives a nice sharp edge it also produced large sink marks above the flap area. The canopy is quite thick but reasonably clear. The instructions where missing from my kit so I can’t comment on those. The instructions in the ICM Korean war double kit, which includes a yak-9, show 6 easy to follow construction diagrams with colour details given at each step. The decal sheet doesn’t look Russian, and I would say it was produced by propag team. They are sharply printed without offsets. They are thin and quite matt. The sheets gives the choice of 5 machines and includes some stenciling. As my instructions where missing I cant give any details about which aircraft or versions are featured. Maybe one of the readers can shed light on this. Note however that this kit has also appeared in boxed form with probably different decals.

Accuracy

The dimensions are spot on for each version. The kit matches the scale drawings in Monografia Lotnice #47 very well, except for two parts. The canopy is too low in profile. Although it is only by 1 to 1.5 mm, it spoils the look of the kit completely and it has to be replaced to get an accurate look. The wrong canopy profile is also immediately noticeable when comparing the model with photographs. The other problem is the prop. The blades are too spindly and should be replaced as well. Other lines and details are captured very well, although the fabric effect on the rear fuselage is much too pronounced to my taste.

Construction

As usual construction starts with the cockpit. Although 7 parts go into this area, it is still a bit basic. As I wanted to build a Yak-9T I used the straight control column. As usual the decal for the instrument panel was too big. Strangely enough there is an attachment point for the rudder pedals on the floor but there are no pedals in the kit. So I added these myself, and I added a seat harness too. I painted the interior grey except for the steel tubing for which I used Humbrol polished steel. The seat was painted bare aluminum with leather brown padding.

Before joining the fuselage halves I sanded down the fabric effect on the rear fuselage. I also added a UBS gun port to the right fuselage halve. The machine I want to build had two UBS’s instead of just one (field modification). Part B19 (gun fairing) is only needed if you are building an early Yak-9. The exhausts where modified so they could be added after painting. After the fuselage halves where joined, I cleaned up the area around the chin radiator.

The wings where glued together and the wheel bay boxed in to prevent looking up into the fuselage. The fuselage and wing went together well but quite a lot of putty was needed to get rid of the sink marks on the top of the wings. The canopy was replaced with a Pavla vacuform replacement. It took a bit of effort to get this faired in properly. Note that this canopy is not suitable for a Yak-9B which had a longer rear canopy.

Next the radiator and landing gear where added. I chopped the blades of the kit prop and replaced them with modified parts from the spares box (I think they came from a Matchbox Me-410). Last things to be added were the gear doors, gun barrels, exhausts, pitot and antenna.

Painting and Decals

As the instructions where missing from my kit I had no way of knowing how the machines where painted and where to place the decals provided for them. But I had the very nice AML decals for Yak-9’s. Note that there is a big error in these decals: Nikkitovitch’s white 17 was not painted in two tone grey but in green/black! I chose the Yak-9T red 04 flown by Nikkitovitch on the Bryansk front in the spring of 1944. This machine had a drawing of an eagle tearing up a German fighter below the cockpit. This machine was painted in two tone grey over light blue. Using Erik Pilawskii’s book as a guide (see shameless plug at the end of this review) and an FS fan deck, I found the following matches for Soviet colours used on the Yak-9T I wanted to build:

- AMT-7 Light blue, Modelmaster MM2109 French light blue grey.

- AMT-11 Grey blue, Modelmaster MM2105 French dark blue grey.

- AMT-12 Dark grey, Modelmaster MM2082 RLM72 green (actually a dark grayish colour).

This machine had a red spinner with a white ring. According to the decal instructions the fin tip and surface on which the eagle where painted should be light blue. In hindsight I now think this should more likely have been white.

After painting I gave the model a wash with a mix of black and brown aquarel paint to highlight the panel lines and to dirty up the even paint tones. This was sealed in with a coat of gloss Tamiya clear. The AML decals performed flawlessly without the need of setting solutions. Do not use warm/hot water as this makes the decals curl up on themselves. After the decals had dried I covered everything with Talens decorfin satin varnish. Then the exhaust and gun stains where reproduced by brushing on pastel chalk dust (mix of browns and greys). Please note when weathering your Yak-9 that only the front fuselage was covered with aluminum panels; the wings and tail where made of wood impregnated with resin (called shpon) and the rear fuselage was made of steel tubes covered with fabric.

Conclusion

This is not one of ICM’s best kits. It is badly let down by the prop and canopy that must be replaced to get an accurate look. Having said that, it is not an overly difficult kit to build and will result in a good looking Yak-9 if the prop and canopy are replaced. This ICM kit is the only Yak-9 kit that provides the right fuselage for late model M-105PF powered machine. If you are not particular about the Yak-9 version you want to build, go for the Dacoplast kit. It is finer detailed and has an accurate prop and canopy. The Dakoplast kit (Reissued by Eastern Express?) can be built as a D, R and B.

References

Monogafie Lotnicze #47 Yak-7/9 (good scale drawings, polish text only)
Squadron Signal In Action, Yak fighters (interesting only for photographic reference, many errors in drawings and text)
Soviet air force fighter colours 1941-1945 by Erik Pilawskii

Start of shameless plug: this last book is an absolute must if you want to build an accurately painted fighter of the great patriotic war (WW2) It not only includes a history of paints used during ww2 but also goes into production details and version details of all soviet single engined fighters mass produced during the war. It makes for very interesting reading and it is in short a one stop reference on Soviet ww2 fighters. End of shameless plug.

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