Aires

1/48th - A-10 Resin Wheel Wells For the kit-HobbyBoss A-10 Thunderbolt II

Stock Number: 4412

Reviewed By  Andrew Stanicek, IPMS# 43237

MSRP: $29.95 Website: www.aires.cz As my 1:48th scale A-10 is progressing, I was at the point in the build where I really needed to decide if I was going wheels up or down. Typically, I enjoy building airplanes "in flight", as that's how they look the best to my eye, however, when there is something that adds a little extra detail, like these new Aires resin wheel wells, it'd be a shame to hide it - So, "wheel's down" wins! Initial Impressions: The parts are very nicely cast, with no bubbles, and no flash. I'm not sure how they designed their molds, but there is some very nice undercut details throughout this kit! The nose bay in particular is very nicely detailed, and looks much better than the detail included in the Revell model. The top of this part is a very large pour stub, and will require some careful sanding to get it to fit under the cockpit tub. There are also some MAJOR pour stubs on the landing gear nacelles that are going to need attention, but the resin is the dark gray stuff, and is not too brittle, so it looks like it should not be a serious problem. Accuracy and Detail: Well, this is a little tricky. Without having an actual Thunderbolt II handy to compare it to, this is an area that is not really well documented in my reference materials. Comparing these to the Revell kit parts, there's no contest. They are MUCH more detailed and very sharp looking parts. Electrical cables and hydraulic plumbing look very nice, and the rivet detail along the seams is very subtle. The kit includes one open stowage compartment on the left wing nacelle, and the interior looks very well done, and includes the interior bulkhead that pilots often use to stuff the "remove before flight" flags behind. The one part that I'm not 100% sure about is the countermeasure chaff dispensers on the rear underside of the pods. The set represents them as two recessed rectangles, where I have seen them elsewhere, including the Revell kit, as four small textured squares. Not sure if it's accurate, but it is different. FYI, the Afterburner decal set that I'm using for this project includes four small square decals for this detail. One other item of note: This upgrade set is designed to fit the Hobby Boss A-10 kit. While it looks like everything is going to line up and work OK, there is one major difference between the two kits that I have noticed. The panel lines on the wing are completely different. The directions show exactly where to cut the Hobby Boss kit along the leading edge panel lines to allow the pods to fit right in place. However, the Revell kit's panel lines are a good bit further back on the wing than this, so cutting and dry fitting will be very crucial in making these parts fit this kit correctly. I'll be keeping some putty close by just in case. My thanks to Aires for the chance to show this excellent item's merits.