When the Germans invaded Poland in 1939, the main fighter of the Polish air force was the PZL P.11c. Designed in the early ’30s, it featured all-metal construction and high gull-wing design. It was armed with two 7.92mm machine guns mounted in the fuselage firing through the engine with an option to mount two more guns in the wings.
This kit marks IBG’s first foray into 1/32 scale. Molded in medium gray, the parts feature excellent surface detail, especially the corrugated flying surfaces and raised rivets. The absence of ejector-pin marks impressed me.
As one would expect in 1/32 scale, the interior is well-detailed and several fuselage panels can be posed open to show that. They fit well closed if you prefer. The Bristol Mercury engine looks terrific and is packed with detail, but sadly much of it is hidden on the finished model. All of the control surfaces are separate.
The photo-etched metal (PE) fret provides excellent detail; none of the parts require complex folds although some are extremely small.
Techmod decals provide markings for three Polish fighters in September 1939. The instruction booklet features large assembly diagrams but a few parts are shown very small, making it difficult to determine their exact position. Rudimentary detail painting instructions are given, but color four-view diagrams detail each marking option.
Assembly begins with the engine. Tiny bumps align it with the motor mount — a critical step — but I found it difficult to know when they were squared up. So, I skipped steps 4 and 5, except for assembling but not installing the air-intake system (parts K3, K4, K15).
In the cockpit, the instructions have you install the seat components to the left frame, then add the right frame. Instead, I added both sides to the floor and was able to easily install the seat. The nice instrument panel includes good raised details that are detailed with individual decals for the instruments. Research on the interior colors led to confusion. Some sources said light gray, others silver, and yet others khaki. I followed the photos of the restored plane in the Polish Aviation Museum — light gray interior walls, silver frames and seat, and a khaki floor. I added the engine mount to the frame, but still not the engine.
The interior fit nicely into the fuselage. The fuselage halves have an unusual fine overlapping step joint. Make sure you don’t sand it away. The main seam required only minor filling.
I added the rear engine flange (Part J6) to the front of the fuselage (but still not the engine). I glued the lower front fuselage panel (Part L3) to the fuel tank adding a couple of small pieces of sheet styrene to the sides of the tank to support the panel in the proper position but did not install it yet. I painted the fuselage with Hataka light Polish khaki. Then, I installed the engine and air-intake system, and then the tank and lower panel combo. Everything fit perfectly.
I built and painted the wings and tailplanes separately. Optional panels allow the plane to be unarmed or carry one or two bombs. Unable to find Hataka’s underside color, I mixed equal parts Tamiya light blue (XF-23) and royal light gray (XF-80) to match.
The decals are thin and responded well to Microscale Micro Sol over clear gloss. However, I had a hard time conforming them to the fine corrugated surfaces on the wings even with Walthers Solvaset. I scored the clear areas with a knife to eliminate silvering. If I were to build another, I might mask and paint the national insignia.
After a little weathering, I added the wings, tailplanes, cowling, and landing gear. There are noticeable gaps around the tailplane joins but don’t fill them — they are there on the real plane.
I spent about 36 hours building my PZL. While there were a few challenges, it was a pretty enjoyable experience. The finished model matches perfectly dimensions published on several websites. I was really impressed with the quality of the moldings, the fit, and the detail. While not a kit for the novice, most experienced modelers could easily do justice to this kit.
Note: A version of this review appeared in the October 2020 issue.