Pavla

1/48 Canberra Cockpit sets For the Airfix 1/48 Canberra PR.9

Reviewed By  Chris Durden, IPMS# 29474

48017        Pilot and Navigator cockpit      MSRP $41.95    48018    Pilot cockpit    MSRP $21.95    48033    Navigator seat MB mk. 4QS    MSRP $ 2.95    48032    Pilot seat MB mk. 2CA    MSRP $ 2.95 Website: www.pavlamodels.cz Airfix made a big splash in the modeling world with their release of the 1/48 scale Canberra series. While there have been some criticism of the different marks, they are priced competitively and relatively simple to build. Simple is an understatement though when it comes to the cockpit details , and it is for this area that Pavla has released an excellent series of sets targeted specifically for the Canberra PR.9 . Pavla offers separate pieces that can be purchased depending on the level of aftermarket that the modeler wishes to use: I built the Pilot and Navigator cockpit since it includes all of the other sets. Consisting of 19 parts in a dark grey resin, the Pavla set includes everything to fill both the front navigator station as well as the main cockpit. Unlike other Canberras, there is no side door on the PR9, instead the pilot enters from the raised canopy and the navigator must enter via the hinged nose. To me, the best part of this set is the ability to display the unique nose of the PR.9, complete with hinged nosecone as well as a removable blast panel that allows for all of the detail to actually be seen. To that end, there is a simple plug that extends the kit nose, a new resin nosecone, and the navigator's instrument panel. A set of side panels completes the navigator's station, along with a sharply detailed ejection seat. The largest piece by far is the resin tub that bridges both stations and provides a bit of needed weight to the front of the kit.

There was a minimum of clean-up for the parts and I found the castings to be sharp, with only a few air bubbles found on the new nose cone. A few of the smaller pieces were knocked loose in transit - be careful with the throttle quadrants as they are easily lost. For those of you used to the drudgery of thinning kit sides, don't worry! To my pleasant surprise this set is designed to fit snugly inside the kit fuselage with minimal modification aside from cutting out the blast panel and sanding off the locating pins. Not to say that locating exactly where to cut for the blast panel is easy, given that Airfix left this detail out entirely. Here is how I made adjustments to the fit as well as traced the location of the upper panel: Secure the fuselage halves together with tape . Go ahead and tack the side panels to the navigator section. Now, slide the tub forward via the empty bomb bay until you achieve a good location by lining up the side windows and using the top kit panel (that will set the proper offset to the pilot's cockpit). You'll find that the side panels protrude about 1/8" forward, which is OK as the provided nose ring covers that portion. You can now trace the outline of the panel from the inside of the fuselage. Disassemble everything and grind out the opening. I ended up leaving the thickness of the fuselage in place and detailing it with some plastic stock to simulate a 'lip'. The only other modification that I ended up adding was to replace the small resin roll bar behind the pilot with wire (for strength). One of the most challenging aspects of this set is how to make an essentially black cockpit visually interesting! I had a nice set of reference photos and the interior of the navigator's station looks like a black hole with some small flashes of blue. Not wanting to lose all of the nice detail, I first painted all parts flat black (using a sandable auto primer) followed by airbrushing RLM 66 and dark grey to create some 'depth' to the pieces. Next, I picked out some details with different grays as well as painting the cushions and belts on the ejection seats. I then dry brushed everything with medium and light grey to pop out the details. One surprising omission is a total lack of dial detail on both instrument panels. However, I found that using dials from a Mike Grant sheet ended up looking much more convincing anyway - so I give Pavla a pass on this issue. A quick wash to help define the shadows around sharp edges was the final step prior to installation.

Final fitting was tricky in trying to keep everything aligned before applying glue to the fuselage and then to the cockpit tub. The final piece to attach was the nose ring, which ended up with a step because it was too small compared to the fuselage. However, it may have been me that caused the issue, so I am not prepared to lay the blame at the feet of the designers! A bit of sandpaper and gap filling CA helped me to fair the ring into the fuselage and I was good to go. As with any resin detail set, you have to test fit frequently to get the best results. But the effort was worthwhile as the detail really adds to the model, especially in comparison to the kit parts! All in all, I highly recommend this product. My thanks to Pavla for the review sets.