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1/35th Trumpeter Mi-24 in Afghanistan, Soviet Era


rtwpsom2

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I'm making this post a little earlier than I had planned because a couple people in MadMax's thread of his Mi-24 in Angola asked me to post something, which I'll get to later, so I haven't gotten a ton done.  I want to show an open engine/gearbox compartment so I plan to cut these two panels open. I need to research a bit more before I decide how to treat the area at the front.

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I also need to build up the compartment interior aft of the crew cabin because the kit part stops at the aft cabin bulkhead.

 

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Various bits and bobbins on the engines. I've used Model Masters Buffing Aluminum on them and they've come out quite nice.LZxmt0W.jpg

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And here I've started replacing the kit piping, but haven't gotten very far.

 

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Soooooo...like I said I haven't really done enough, I feel, to warrant starting a topic thread yet, but as I stated I have my reasons which I'll start explaining in my next post, which I'm working on right now and will post in a few minutes.

 

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In MadMax's Mi-24 in Angola thread, I mentioned having some aftermarket stuff for the Trumpeter kit, and some interest was expressed, so I thought I would do some mini out of the box reviews for that stuff. Which is the main reason I am posting as early as I am.  First off, John1 pointed out some decals from Begemot for the Trumpeter Mi-8/17 Hip kit and a lot of those decals/stencils were also used on the Mi-24. I obviously haven't tried them out so I can't speak to their usability, but graphically they are extremely well detailed. 

 

Here I've scanned them at 600 DPI and as you can see they are extremely readable and sharp.

 

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Here are the instructions:

 

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So, if they adhere as well as they look, then I'm going to say these are some pretty damn good decals.  I got them from HobbyZone USA for $11 shipped. ★★★★★

Edited by rtwpsom2
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The next piece is the Master JakB 12.7 mm Machine Gun and DUAS Probe set.

 

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It consists of two resin pieces, one for the machine gun and one for the vaned section of the DUAS probe, two turned aluminum parts for the DUAS probe, and one turned brass part to represent the spring mounted rod inside the gun barrels. The resin parts are EXTREMELY delicate but well packaged to prevent damage. Thumbs up for that! To my trained eye I can see under extreme magnification that the gun barrel assembly was cast from a 3D printed master, but with a magnifying glass you really won't be able to see the telltale striations.  Still, the detail on them is quite spectacular. I can't tell if the vane assembly is done the same way, but it also has some amazing detail.  One side of the foam enclosure has cellophane tape over it to keep the parts in place to avoid damage during shipping.  Hopefully I'm not ham handed enough to break them getting them off the tape.

 

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And finally the instructions:

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Again, extremely high quality product, I got it from Jadar Hobby in Warsaw for $9.40 plus about $1.50 shipping. I say about $1.50 because I bought 5 things and divided the $6.75 shipping amongst the 5 of them. ★★★★★

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This is turning out to be more of a project than I anticipated.  Anyway, on to the PE.  I have sets from two companies; Eduard and Part.  Eduard is a well known AM and kit manufacturer from the Czech Republic.  Part is a company in Poland that I hadn't heard about until I started looking for aftermarket upgrades for this Trumpeter kit.  There are four sets from each company but they are only roughly equivalent. 

 

The Eduard sets break down as such:

 

1. Exterior $19.95

2. Interior $29.95 - includes the cockpit and crew cabin combined

3. Armament $19.95

4. Masks $5.95

 

All four sets can be purchased at a $23 discount in the Big Ed set ($52.95).

 

The Part sets are slightly different and don't include masks:

 

1. Exterior $14.30

2. Cockpit $10.73

3. Crew Cabin $14.30

4. Armament $16.35

 

Please note I priced them based on where I purchased them, your mileage may vary. Next I'll look into each set and try to compare the two.

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The Exterior

 

Eduard 32127 - $19.95

 

The set includes the instructions, one large fret and one small one. The frets are made from .15mm brass. There are parts for all the exterior vent panels, the heat shielding around the exhaust, and most everything else is small details around the aircraft. 

 

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Part S35-019 - $14.30

 

Similar to the Eduard set, the Part set has instructions and two brass frets, however both frets are similarly sized. The frets are made from .11mm and include part for the heat shielding, wheels, rotor head, and flare pods.

 

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The Comparison

 

As you can see below, there are a lot more parts in the Part set, most notably for the flare pods, wheels, FLIR doors, and the rotor head. While the flare pods might seem to be an advantage for this set, Eduard does include a set of similar flare pods in their Armament set which I will review later.   Quality-wise both seem to have very good detail.  Eduard lacks behind in terms of total number of parts, but has the advantage of having all the little vent doors, which Part is completely missing for some reason.  Eduard's brass, while nice, is slightly thicker and covered in fingerprints which I sincerely hope won't show through in the finished product.  Part's brass is thinner but enough parts are included to layer them together to get quite nice effects. The main wheels, for instance, get 8 parts apiece to form a very nice imitation of the wheel hubs and brakes.  The FLIR doors are also quite advantageous to the Part set, I think they can be modeled opened or closed.  I'd say Part is the clear winner here in terms of price and part count, but it's missing vent panels is quite a disappointment.  

 

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very good start, and especially the analysis that makes between Part and Eduard, in my case, it was very difficult to choose, even, I thought both in complement, I finally preferred Part for this model; My decision was in the interiors, they made me richer. I will follow your progress closely. thanks for sharing:clap2:

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WEAPONS

 

Eduard 32129 - $19.95

 

The Eduard set consists of instruction, one small, and one large fret.  Both frets are made from .015mm brass.  Parts are included for the flare pods, rocket pod details, and bomb fins (about 50 parts). As stated before, the inclusion of flare pods in this set might seem advantageous, however Part includes their flare pods in the Exterior set.

 

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Part S35-020 - $16.35

 

The Part set includes instructions 2 large frets and one slightly smaller fret, all made from .11mm brass.  The parts include rocket pod details, K2P32M/K-4U missile rails, bomb vanes and gun pod details (about 150 parts).

 

 

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The Comparison

 

Okay, not much to be said here.  Part wins.  Hands down.  There's just no comparing.  If you don't count the flare pods Eduard has maybe 30 parts for ALL the weapons.  Part has 50 parts just for the rocket pods. Plus they have Swatter launch rails that just blow the kits launchers away. Part wins on part count, details, and price.  How Eduard justifies $20 for their set is just ridiculous.

 

 

 

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Allright, last one.

 

Interior

 

Eduard 32521 - $29.95

 

The set includes an instruction sheet, 2 small stainless steel frets, one small brass fret, and one large brass fret.  Parts are included for a rudimentary cargo cabin, cockpit control and display panels, seatbelts, and a few fittings. The instrument panels are all painted the traditional emerald green commonly found in Russian aircraft.  A separate painted piece with dials painted on it is meant to go behind the main instrument panel to give a tiered effect.

 

 

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Part S35-017 - $10.73 - Cockpit

 

The set includes One large brass fret, one small brass fret, and on small clear plastic sheet with printed details.  Like the Eduard set, the clear plastic sheet has dials printed on and is meant to go underneath the instrument panels.  This one has the advantage of giving the dials the appearance of being under a glass cover, as most cockpit instruments generally are. Parts are included for all instrument panels as well as a great deal of cockpit details, including some rather complicated looking rudder pedals. Notably, the set does not include seat belts, I guess they felt the kit supplied ones were adequate.

 

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Part S35-018 - $14.30 - Cargo Cabin

 

The set includes two large brass frets, one small brass fret, and one small plastic sheet with printed details.  Parts are included for detailing out the cargo cabin, as well as for making the radio rack that sits behind and to the right of the pilot, and the cabinet that is to the opposite side from that, though it appears to lack a few details. The assemblies for the cargo cabin windows seem quite detailed and it appears you can pose them open or closed. This assembly does include seat belts for the rear, as well as parts for the door interiors in case you are posing those open.

 

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The Comparison

 

Part again dominates this time.  The sheer number of parts you get when you buy both Part sets for $25 just outweighs Eduard's $29.95 by a long shot.  Eduard does have some notable features which make it worthwhile, pilot and gunner seatbelts, as well as painted instrument panels. However I worry that the color might not match the paint I intend to use for the rest of the cockpit, so I am unsure which set I will use at this point. Eduard's lack of detail is just disappointing. 

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PE FINAL THOUGHTS

 

Whelp, this was fun but I'm going to bed.  Before I do, I'll just wrap up my final thoughts here.  Eduard, I'm disappointed in you.  I feel like you just phoned it in with this kit set. Part not only undercut you on price, but blew you out of the water in detail, quality, and volume. You are not the Eduard I looked up to back in the 90's. It might be time for you to take a deep introspective look at yourself and see if you have just been resting on your laurels. 

 

Part....damn girl, that **** was cra cra.  You really know how to hook a mofo up.  Call me.

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