Scale aviation modeller international

MB Mk4 typical for this application.

The plastic for a Mk10 (used on

some later versions) is also on the

sprues but needs some ferreting

out if you want to go that way.

I had decided to add some

aftermarket seats and used the

Aires multi-part option, but once

I started, these proved to be quite

a bit larger than the kit’s plastic

seats, so some serious carving

was necessary to get them to fit.

I couldn’t decide whether the

kit seats were undersized, or

the Aires ones oversized, but I

suspect a bit of both, with the Aires

offerings being closest to reality.

The resin seats come with quite

complex photo-etch belts (twelve

pieces per seat); these need careful

bending and fitting, but the end

result is worth it. The seats fit into

a rather narrow cockpit tub, to

which are added rudder pedals,

control sticks, and instrument

panels. The latter are quite heavily

textured, but as I have said, there

is no decal for the instrument faces

or side consoles, so the modeller

has to rely on careful, detailed

painting according to the less-

than-clear painting diagram. I

did the best I could but resorted to

adding some Airscale instrument

decals from their Modern Jets

set to add some sharpness.

Once completed, the cockpit

tub can be attached to the nose

wheel bay and the assembly added

between the fuselage halves.

The instructions suggest adding

the tailpipe at this point, but

there’s no need, as it fits easily

right at the end, which simplifies

painting. The fuselage closes

neatly, but remember to open up

the antenna holes according to

the variant you’re modelling, and

don’t squeeze the joint too hard

and thus introduce a distortion.

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