Mac 1/72 scale Pfalz D.IIIa

Kit: No. 72032
Scale: 1/72
Manufacturer: Mac, available from Squadron Mail Order, 1115 Crowley Drive, Carrollton, TX 75011-5010, 972-242-8663, www.squadron.com
Price: $14.96
Comments: Injection molded, 47 parts (16 photoetched), decals
Pros: Good overall shapes and accuracy, needed subject
Cons: Vague parts locations, inaccurate color recommendations, lack of lozenge decals, small parts have poor detail, photoetched parts may need to be replaced

Mac Distribution is a new company in the Czech Republic, and one if its first releases is the World War I Pfalz D.IIIa. It features plastic main assemblies, photoetched details, and a small decal sheet. Overall, the quality of the moldings is good. Some of the flat photoetched parts simulate items that are round in crosssection; you may want to scour your spares box for substitutes.

Mac's instructions are OK, but some parts locations are vague. The color and marking section has several incorrect colors noted. While lozenge camouflage on the undersurface of the top wing and both surfaces of the lower wing is shown, there is none included on the decals. I had to use aftermarket sheets.

There's little interior detail in the kit, and the machine guns and other small parts are poorly detailed. I found substitutes in my spares box. Aside from these setbacks, the project went well. Mac's moldings produce the correct shape of the graceful fighter. I used a pin vise and a No. 80 bit to drill holes for the rigging. The lower wing joint is critical, so take your time getting it right. The good news is that it has the proper dihedral molded in.

I had to enlarge the slot for the horizontal stabilizer considerably. Before attaching the cabane and undercarriage struts, I opened all the holes in the fuselage and wings. At this point, I painted and decaled the fuselage and upper wing. Mac provides markings for only one aircraft. They were well printed, but very thin and translucent. The stripes around the rear fuselage fit well with just a little overlap.

The "pfinished" Pfalz scales right on the money to the dimensions in Albatros Production's Datafile No. 21, Pfalz D.IIIa and Datafile No. 7, Pfalz D.III. Since there have been few kits of this aircraft in any scale, it is sure to be welcome to WWI model collectors. I spent more time than usual on my Pfalz, 45 hours, but that was because of the extra work on the lozenge decals. Modelers with a little patience and experience in limited-run kits should enjoy this new kit.