Eduard 1/48 scale Polikarpov I-16 Type 24

Kit: 8149
Scale: 1/48
Manufacturer: Eduard from Czech Republic, available from Squadron Mail Order, 972-242-8663, www.squadron.com
Price: $29.95
Comments: Injection-molded, 98 parts, decals
Pros: Needed subject, great fit and detail
Cons: Misnumbered parts in instructions

The Russian Polikarpov I-16 fighter looked like the progeny of a couple of Gee Bee air racers when it was born in 1933. It was most advanced for its time; a low-wing cantilever monoplane with retractable landing gear and a copy of the 9-cylinder Wright Cyclone engine up front. Despite this head start, the I-16 was soon outclassed by its major opponent, the Bf 109, in both the Spanish Civil War and World War II.
Eduard's kits of the I-16 are impressive; the Type 10 and Type 24 have been released thus far. The two kits are similar, but the differences are accurately represented. I choose to build the Type 24 in the box-art scheme. The kit contains 96 crisply molded light-olive plastic parts, two clear parts, yellow masks for the wheels and windscreen, a small film sheet for the window in the wheel well, multiple colored etched metal parts (which include seat belts, an instrument panel, and ring sight), and Aviprint decals for six schemes. The color, 12-page instruction folder is outstanding and includes color four-views for four of the six possible marking schemes. Options include two light olive green over blue aircraft, two dark green over blue, one overall gray, and one overall temporary white. A lengthy history of the aircraft is included, too.
The cockpit is well detailed, but even after utilizing the dropped cockpit side panels it is hard to see the great detail inside. In order to use the metal side panels, you will have to cut those areas out of the fuselage. The inspection window must also be cut out of the right wheel-well wall if you intend to install the film window. The cockpit and these options were time consuming, but well worth it. The assembled cockpit fit nicely within the fuselage halves.
I found the wing-to-fuselage joint required a little shaving of the edge where the upper wing surface met the fuselage, but a perfect fit was the end result. The trailing edge of the wing is slightly thick.
After adding the tail surfaces, the assembly was painted with lightened Polly Scale French khaki on the top side and Russian underside blue on the bottom. The Aviprint decals are excellent and can be used directly on the paint without a clear gloss coat without silvering. This is when I added the exhaust tubes.
The kit supplies more than twice the number of exhaust tubes you'll need, so you can use them to improve an old Hobbycraft I-16 if you have one in your collection. A little adjustment was necessary to get the cowl face (with the vent shutter and engine panel) to fit on the front of the fuselage. The well-designed tripod landing gear fit beautifully in the wheel well. The five covers for the gear on each side are a challenge. A minute projection and corresponding dimple indicate their position and the instructions are clear, but I resorted to white glue to stick them in place and then tweak the position. The masks worked well for the windscreen and wheels.
According to my references the model is accurate in dimension and contour. I spent about 38 hours on the model, much of that in detail work. I would strongly recommend this quality model to modelers with some prior small-part experience.
- Dr. Bill Funcke