Manufacturer: Classic Airframes, P.O. Box 577580, Chicago, IL 60657-7580, 773-665-7817
Kit: No. 452
Scale: 1/48
Price:$59.95
Comments:Mixed media, 156 parts (66 injection-molded plastic, 66 cast resin, 24 photoetched brass), decals
Pros: Excellent resin and photoetched details, fine Microscale decals
Cons:Thick plastic parts inhibit cutting open doors and hatches; complicated fit
The aircraft most associated with the World War II Italian air force is the S.79. The three-engine design, while not unique, gave the aircraft its distinctive shape. It was not modern by WWII standards, but had been used effectively as a bomber in the Spanish Civil War.
A torpedo-bomber version equipped some of the best squadrons of the Regia Aeronautica. As with most Italian aircraft, the S.79 fought on both sides of the conflict after the surrender of Italy.
A modern kit of the S.79 has been a long time in coming. The only 1/48 scale plastic kits available were Smer reissues of the ancient Artiplast kit from the 1960s.
Classic Airframes’ main parts are plastic and detail parts are resin and photoetched metal. The kit has several interesting options, including a retracted dorsal gun fairing, crew entry ladder, and direction-finding antennas.
Using the retracted dorsal fairing and the boarding ladder will require plastic surgery. The excellent cockpit interior, wheels, and engines are supplied in resin.
I started by assembling the cockpit and gunner station. The main parts consist of a floor, sidewalls, and rear bulkhead. I glued the left cockpit wall to the left fuselage half to make painting the interior easier. The finished cockpit fits well into the fuselage.
At this point, I decided not to open the dorsal gunner’s station. Opening the station (along with the crew access door and side-gun positions) exposes the thick plastic of the fuselage moldings, so I kept everything buttoned up.
Prior to closing the fuselage I added the tail-wheel strut and all of the fuselage windows. The clear parts are injection molded and of excellent quality, but the gunners’ scanning windows would not fit without repeated sanding and test fitting.
Attaching the cockpit canopy is tricky; the front and side windows are close to the edge of the part, so fairing it into the fuselage requires careful filling and sanding.
Assembling the wings is the most difficult part of the project. Contrary to the instructions, the wing fits better if you mount the lower center section to the fuselage first, then align the lower outer panels, and finally the top panels. Even so, I still had to dry-fit and sand the parts several times to achieve a tight assembly.
The horizontal stabilizers have no tabs or slots to aid alignment, so I had to eyeball a 90-degree set. Complicating this are a pair of struts underneath each stabilizer and support wires on top. I made the wires from thin plastic rod.
I built and painted the engine cowlings as separate subassemblies. When I checked the fit of the cowls to the wings, I found there was far too much leeway in centering them. I added sections of 1/4″ plastic tubing to the back of the engine firewalls, then fitted them into corresponding 1/4″ holes in the wing mount. This provided a neat, solid attachment.
The complex landing gear assembly was well represented but time-consuming to clean up. I trimmed about 1/16″ from the back of the X-frame retracting strut to achieve a proper fit.
I painted my S.79 with Polly Scale’s Italian Air Force colors following my main reference, Ali D’Italia 9 SIAI S.79. Excellent Microscale decals are provided for three aircraft – two from the Spanish Civil War and one early World War II machine. They went on easily over a gloss coat.
The finished model matches the dimensions in my references, and I was pleased with its completed appearance. Thirty-three hours went into the model – about what I expected for a multimedia kit.
Experienced modelers will enjoy the challenges presented by Classic Airframes’ Italian bomber. It’s not a kit that can be rushed through, as patience and planning are required.