Spitfire Mk.IX Cockpit

Eduard BRASSIN, 1/72 scale

Reviewed by Mark Davies

Eduard Brassin’s 1/72 Spitfire Mk.IX Cockpit are available online from Squadron.com

The Contents

The parts come in Brassin’s standard clear plastic bubble pack with separate compartments for the PE fret and resin parts; the latter cushioned by foam packing.

The folded instructions are contained within the pack and printed in colour on matte finish paper. They can also be viewed or downloaded from Eduard’s website by clicking here. A parts map is provided and the instructional drawings are nicely rendered. Colour call-outs are cross-referenced to Gunze Sangyo’s Aqueous and Mr. Color paint ranges.

This CAD illustration also gives clear picture of the parts breakdown.

The casting of the resin is flawless, with super-crisp detail, and easily removed casting blocks; although care is still required, especially with the smaller pieces. The PE parts are also produced to Eduard’s usual high standards.

The Cockpit

The cockpit set and Eduard’s Mk.IX Spitfire kit were developed in parallel, and designed to fit one-another from the outset. So only the most minor surgery to the Spitfire kit is required. This involves scraping away a few small details moulded integrally with fuselage sides to enable the fitting of some PE panels to the upper cockpit sides.

Assembly of the lower cockpit sides and floor etc follows a similar pattern to the kit parts, and it is in this respect that the parallel design and development of kit and cockpit set really pay dividends; offering secure and exact placement of the resin cockpit within the kit fuselage.

The instructions show just how beautifully detailed the cockpit is using mainly resin parts, along with some coloured PE for items like the instrument panel, seat harness, small controls as well as the upper side panels mentioned earlier.

This is a superbly well executed detail set, and only the more obsessive amongst us would find anything to add. The kit cockpit is already excellent, especially in the ProfiPACK editions, but this Brassin set takes things to another level.

A choice of early and late gun-sights is provided to cover the range of Mk.IX production runs, and the photo-foil provides the reflector glass associated with these. There is also a choice of headrest styles, the instructions advising to check references.

I did note in the same instructional drawing as the headrest option is the voltage regulator (part number R22) mounted behind the headrest. I am fairly sure this is a MK.V carry-over feature found on early Mk.IX converted from Mk.V airframes (like raised rather than flush fuselage rivets) and possibly early Mk.IX production. I am sure it was relocated elsewhere out of view in later in Mk.IX production, as per the Mk.VII & VIII. Again, check your references.

I have included both CAD images in the gallery section, whilst a collage of images featuring the assembled and painted cockpit from Eduard’s website is given below.

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Thumbnail panels:

Eduard’s Spitfire Mk.IX cockpit is a little gem, and is a great compliment for the best Spitfire Mk.IX kits in “The One True Scale”.

The base kit’s detail is very good, and even more so in the case of the ProfiPACK editions, but this Brassin set just raises the bar yet again. I highly recommend it.

Thanks to Eduard for the samples and images.

Review Text & Images Copyright © 2017 by Mark Davies
Page Created 17 April, 2017
Last updated 17 April, 2017

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