Su-17M4 / Su-22M4 Modelsvit

[Rob de Bie]

9 hours ago, Diego said:

It was indeed a very special day...there was the ( first and last )  occasion to see many great nose arts applied on the mighty Su-17M4s together...

after the show, we made a whole decal sheet in 1/72 and 1/48 to commemorate this event:

 

Diego, it's really nice to meet one of the creators of one of my favorite decal sheets!! I found especially the double-sided A3 instruction sheet very impressive. Super work!

 

May I ask how you (or the team) obtained the upper side camouflages? Maybe by shooting photos from the top of one of the shelters while they taxied by? I was on top of one for a short while.

 

My plan always was to do bort number 10, with its extra dark camouflage. But I don't have a full camouflage pattern.

 

I'm checking the Aviation Mega Store nearly every day for the arrival of the Modelsvit kit 🙂

 

Rob

[dehowie]

Oh to have a high quality SU-22 in 48th!

Crazy to not bang this out in 48th with Afghan war markings and Eastern EU specials.

 

[ya-gabor]

15 hours ago, Rob de Bie said:

I'm checking the Aviation Mega Store nearly every day for the arrival of the Modelsvit kit 🙂

Rob

 

I sent a letter to you.

 

Best regards

Gabor

[ya-gabor]

For those who are not into the video thing . . .   also here on photos the details are much better visible and not so shaky.  : )  : )

 

Just a short run down on what is included in the kit: in one zip-lock bag there are 12 grey sprues, the transparent parts are packed in a separate bag. There is a perfect screen printed decal sheet (in this kit № 72059 two of them) made by Cartograf of Italy so lines are sharp, colours excellent, all the small stencils are there! For the German “tiger” scheme there is a second decal for the black stripes. To make this marking perfect there is a separate paint mask for making that fin yellow marking a perfect fit. As an extra a small sheet of paint masks is provided for canopy and wheels, there is also a tiny acetate sheet for the HUD glass (actually 3 HUD parts in case one, or two are lost or damaged along the way ). Be careful the acetate sheet is very small and is in the same plastic bag as the small photoetch providing all sorts of small additions. The Syrian aircraft had a different "local" Flare dispenser on top surface. The kit provides them also as plastic main bodies with photoetch dispenser surface.

 

An important note is that this kit is part of a line of Fitter Family made by Modelsvit so there are sprues which are common with earlier releases in some cases made many years ago. There are 4 brand new sprues to cater for this specific M4 version. Fuselage parts, tail / horizontal stabilizers, new main wing fence, cockpit details and the K-36DM ejection seat. Of course the kit has engraved panel lines and most of the fasteners are also made for service panels on the brand new sprues. Parts which overlap others are appropriately represented with raised surfaces. Lines are clean, nicely engraved.

 

More soon.

 

Best regards

Gabor

[ya-gabor]

Now, the fact that the new Modelsvit Su-22M4 kit has some common sprues with previous Fitter kits has a small down side to it. The wings sprues are from the older M3 / M3R / UM version sets. Unfortunately they are missing the service panel fasteners while the brand new fuselage parts have very exquisite quick-locks/fasteners and some other surface screw heads. Will the difference be visible on the finished kit? Depends on how demanding you are. Of course it is possible to add some of those fast locks / screws on servicing panels. As I have commented before nothing is perfect.   

But the M4 fuselage parts are certainly fully up to todays standards of surface details in 72 nd scale!

 

There were questions on how do surface details compare to other contemporary kits. Well, here is a little comparison with a recent MiG-21 kit from a Czech manufacturer in the same scale, side by side, under same lighting conditions.

I know people say, the lines are either too deep for them or too shallow. Everyone has his own opinion and priorities. All I can do is to show how it looks like as well as the comparison to another kit which could be known to them. Anyway modellers can make up their own mind if they like it or not.

 

A little colour at the end. Have a look at the superb Cartograf decals which come with this version of the kit. Perfect register, fine details, nice colours . . .  well everything one would expect from a Cartograf decal sheet. I am very tempted by the tiger stripe Luftwaffe version!

 

Best regards

Gabor

[ya-gabor]

In the previous post the new Modelsvit Su-22M4 kit was compared with the surface details of another manufacturers kit. Many modellers have earlier Modelsvit kit and so they can assume that the new M4 kit is something similar.

But how much did the tool making develop within Modelsvit in the past years? One can have a look for comparison with the Su-17M3 kit which was released back in 2017. Here are some images of the older and the new version surface detailing.

 

The kit also includes a small sheet of photoetch for further detailing. Is there need for any other aftermarket photoetch after this? Well I am sure there could be further things worth making . . .

 

Best regards

Gabor

[ya-gabor]

What about the transparent parts? Two canopy alternatives provided, there is a two part canopy for “open” display of the cockpit and of course there is a one piece also. Plastic is fairly thin and clear. I did see some distortions on the plastic surface but when making the traditional “over the print” test of the parts I did not see them on photos. So it is possible that only I was too critical of the parts.

 

Did two versions of the test, put the canopy directly on the print while with the other holding the transparent parts at a distance so as to increase the magnifying effect of any surface distortions. This is shown on the last photo.

 

Bit more of the decal sheet also.

 

Best regards

Gabor

[Rob de Bie]

It went on sale at the Aviation Mega Store today:

 

https://www.aviationmegastore.com/nl/modelbouw/sukhoi-su-22m4-soviet-fighter-bomber-export-version-modelsvit--72059-204758.html

 

I ordered one straight away, but will have to wait until the 31st to pick it up.

 

Rob

[ya-gabor]

22 hours ago, Rob de Bie said:

It went on sale at the Aviation Mega Store today:

 

https://www.aviationmegastore.com/nl/modelbouw/sukhoi-su-22m4-soviet-fighter-bomber-export-version-modelsvit--72059-204758.html

 

I ordered one straight away, but will have to wait until the 31st to pick it up.

 

Rob

 

Hi Rob,

 

Have fun with it!

 

Best regards

Gabor

[ya-gabor]

There is the question of the ejection seat in the new Modelsvit Su-22M4 kit.

 

With the Su-22M4 kit there is a separate Sprue for the seat, which in this case is named M. It represents the early K-36DM Seria 1 seats which were easily identifiable by a big headrest. Putting side by side with the ejection seat Sprue O in the earlier Su-17M3 kits it is obvious that the seat in the new kit is a further development and what is more important a more detailed version. With this seat all the straps come as photoetch which is a step in direction of authentic thickness. On the earlier seat in kit Su-17M3 the straps were injection moulded plastic parts.

 

One can say that seat in the M4 kit is wrong, he (or she) has a photo from a given air show where a different seat was visible. They are both right and wrong! Some production series Su-22’s were fitted with the earlier K-36DM Seria 1 seats (big headbox) while others had the more modern  K-36DM Seria 2 seats with smaller headbox (version included in the M3 kit). So have a careful look at your references and act accordingly. Cross kitting can be a solution or getting an appropriate aftermarket seat.    

 

Also two views of the different instrument panels and the area under the windscreen. One of them has the TV monitor for the guided missiles on the top right, with the other without this.

 

Best regards

Gabor