Eduard MiG-15 Mk.2

[ya-gabor]

Eduard has released at this years E Day the 72nd scale MiG-15 kit. You could say we have heard this news exactly a year ago. Well yes, but this is a brand new kit and not a repack of last years ill-fated kit. It was all back to the drawing board and to the real aircrafts to get everything right this time. One year has passed and lots of work put into the brand new kit, it has to be said that the kit was ready just at the very last moment for the show.

The Mk. 2 kit is a state of the art kit from the very start and has very little relation to the original. Just the name I would say, the resin parts for the missiles and the box which has not changed apart from this everything is new in the special limited dual combo edition. A brand new decal sheet, new photoetched parts and of course CAD designed plastic parts. Not only the fine details but also the brake down of the parts was also redesigned to incorporate lots of special features. The Dual Combo kit has one MiG-15 and one MiG-15 bis plastic kit in it. This is very good news since I believe this is the very first time that the original early MiG-15 has been kitted by any company. Till now everyone had the impression that the original MiG-15 and the MiG-15 bis were different only in the engine and some antennas.

The box is open

This is what is inside

Just for comparison here are the sprues from last years models to compare with the Mk. 2 version. Remember this is what was available last year, and only 116 examples were made. The kit we have now is the one overhead!!!

Just as the Dual Combo was released two Overtrees versions were also available at the E Day. One for the early MiG-15 and one for the MiG-15 bis, as one can expect they only have the plastic parts and nothing else. A lot of extras is also available separately from the company both as etched products and as Brassin sets. More on this later.

The plain white boxes of the Overtrees kits

And what is inside. Here only one kit and only the plastic.

More details of the new kit soon.

Best regards

Gabor

[Kingoalie]

This is exciting! Thanks for sharing the updates.

[mario krijan]

Not in my scope, but effort and final product looks fantastic!!

[ya-gabor]

Hi there to Everyone,

Here is a bit more on the Mk.2 Eduard MiG-15 kit('s).

The kit provides five wing halves to cater for the original wing and the wing of the bis which had a landing light relocated from the intake centre piece. In accordance with this we get two intake centre parts, one from clear plastic with the landing light at the top and one from grey plastic for the later version. Also two versions of the gun bay cover are provided as well as two versions of the main wheels, which were slightly different.

You have to remember that there was no clear division line between original MiG-15 and the MiG-15 bis. They were manufactured in different aircraft production plants all over Russia, there were some local modifications too but also the MiG OKB was sending all the time corrections, modifications, improvements to the original design so a very wide variation of different details can be found on aircraft. One has to look at the particular aircraft that he wants to build and in accordance with the references, photos make all the changes. Please note that you will find late bis aircraft which still had the landing light in the centre section of the intake (supposedly an identifying feature of the early aircraft) as well as many early MiG-15's which already had the big antenna on the back added, which was supposedly only part of the bis aircraft. The reason for mentioning all this is that the kit gives you the chance to build up your kit to the particular specifications of your subject, you can use the different jigsaw parts in the kit to make your version.

Here is a closer look at the fuselage.

The two gun bay covers. OK I have to add that there were more variations to this than what is given in the kit, but then you would have needed a complete sprue for all the gun covers and gun blisters. Also dont forget that the heat resistant steel plate on the underside of the nose also had many variations to it.

Here are the different main landing gear wheels

It would have been nice to see the nose wheel leg given in two versions, one with a separate wheel and one as a one piece nose leg (as provided in the kit). It could have been made in a similar fashion as the tail wheel in the Eduards Spitfire kit. Well, you cant have it all. . .

Thats about it for now. More soon.

Best regards

Gabor

[SCOUT712]

Two bis overtree boxes are already on it's way to me. :rolleyes:/>

I like this offer. Since I want to use AM decals anyway, it saved me the money for these.

Scout

[ya-gabor]

Two bis overtree boxes are already on it's way to me. :rolleyes:/>/>

I like this offer. Since I want to use AM decals anyway, it saved me the money for these.

Scout

You are one of the few lucky ones, since at the moment the kit is not available in any form from Eduards pages/shop. It was sad to read that according to some Eduard sources the Overtrees line will be discontinued. I for one did like it, as it gave you the chance to use the aftermarket decals of your own choice and you did not have to pay the extra for the decals which the set provided to you as a compulsory choice. And in most cases they end up in the spare box anyway.

I think the role of the Overtrees will be taken over (partly) by the Weekend edition, which is slightly more expensive with its choice of just one particular aircrafts markings.

The biggest loss with the Overtrees kits is that you dont get the prepainted instrument panel etching. It looks amazing!!!! in the dual combo set. I think it will be also in the Profi Pack too but not in the Overtrees or the Weekend.

Best regards

Gabor

[Vodnik]

Two words: wrong scale ;)

[172flogger]

You are one of the few lucky ones, since at the moment the kit is not available in any form from Eduards pages/shop.

The kit will be available again next month after some mould upgrades because there were some small fitting problems.

There were only several hundreds of the Mk.2 Combo/overtrees MiG-15s produced for local Eday 2013 kit show.

Now you waiting for the Mk. 2.1 version of the nice kit.

[ya-gabor]

The kit will be available again next month after some mould upgrades because there were some small fitting problems.

There were only several hundreds of the Mk.2 Combo/overtrees MiG-15s produced for local Eday 2013 kit show.

Now you waiting for the Mk. 2.1 version of the nice kit.

Yes I know Sulc told me that they still need to do some work on it. As part of my "review" I had made some photos of mistakes on the kit and will have them here later on. One is the pitot.

Best regards

Gabor

[Big Kohona]

The kit will be available again next month after some mould upgrades because there were some small fitting problems.

There were only several hundreds of the Mk.2 Combo/overtrees MiG-15s produced for local Eday 2013 kit show.

Now you waiting for the Mk. 2.1 version of the nice kit.

So they rushed out a kit with problems (regardless as to how small) and/or other issues. Well isn't that just ever so nice of Eduard. :angry:/>

I hope they plan to make correction parts available to those of us they conned with their first release and GIVE / SEND them free of charge...

[Litvyak]

Two words: wrong scale ;)/>

Other scales than 1/72 exist???? ;)

Actually, although this is /way/ out of my scope, I'm kinda tempted...

[ya-gabor]

So they rushed out a kit with problems (regardless as to how small) and/or other issues. Well isn't that just ever so nice of Eduard. :angry:/>/>

I hope they plan to make correction parts available to those of us they conned with their first release and GIVE / SEND them free of charge...

There is a problem with the pitot tube which was integral part of the wing but did not materialize in plastic, so on the sprue a separate pitot tube is provided. So both the problem and the solution are also in the box.

The kit is good.

Best regards

Gabor

[Big Kohona]

Thanks Gabor, if that is all it is, then yes, I agree problem resolved. I misread the 'small fitting problems' (plural) as a larger issue. I have a few of these on order and am looking forward to getting them, it was discouraging to read that there were problems, but as they have been identified and are small in nature, obviously nothing to be really worried about. Thanks again Gabor.

[ya-gabor]

Here is a bit more on the kit. This is the MiG-15 bis kit that is under construction here. Some work was started on the kit. I like the quality of engraving and surface detail. At the weekend we had a bigger competition here in Budapest Hungary, it was in the organization of Bolyai Club. A lot of discussion was about the kit and some people raised the question of the rivet details, or to be more precise the absence of it on the surface. I believe in 72nd scale you would not see rivet detail unless it is the very early aircraft in their service carrier when they were still in natural metal finish with just a clear varnish layer covering the metal surface for protection. On these aircraft the rivets were visible but it was a short lived affair as the aircraft received a metal paint (clear varnish with 6-8 % of powdered aluminium mixed into it) giving the airframes an overall metal finish where non of the rivets were visible anymore. Only the quick releases and the screw heads fixing some of the panels which were removed every now and then. These are present on the Eduard kit. So I think the kit represent well the real aircraft.

Here are a few photos of the surface details:

The wing underside

The fuselage sides, with some work in progress. On this particular airframe the airbrakes will be open with the Brassin examples as well as the flaps from the Eduard range.

This is the part that you will not get in the Overtrees set. The instrument panel as part of the etched sheet with fabulous prepainted details. WOW, please remember that this is 72nd scale!!!

Best regards

Gabor

[SCOUT712]

My two boxes arrived. And I have to say WOW!

Ever since my childhood I was inspired by the red nosed Fagots flown by the Russians during the Korea War as iirc one of those depicted on the box art of the KP kit. Of course nobody back in the 80' said they were flown by Russians-at least not on my side of the Iron Curtain.

But now I started a bit of research and two (or better 3 questions pop up into my mind.

First it looks like these jets were NMF? so the Korean roundels should not be white on the bottom, but painted directly on?

Second, all pictures you can find of this timeframe (and this is not a lot) show that no markings were worn on the upper wings ( it is clearly seen on the defected MiG and on the museum pieces) But all aftermarket decal makers claim that markings were also on top of the wings. Now my question is, were markings applied on top of the wings or not?, since the defection took place shortly after the fighting ended.

Maybe somebody with connections to Russia can help?

Thanks and best regards!

Scout

[ya-gabor]

Hi SCOUT712,

The Russians have published a great book on the "internationalist help" by the Russian pilots during the Korean war. It is excellent, but very big, very heavy and was fairly expensive! So I had to leave it in the book shop in Moscow. It has lots of photos and very detailed account of all the pilots and their aircraft. Hope that someone with the book will be able to help you on this.

Kotey do you know anything???

I would say there is a fairly big chance that a future Eduard release will include Korean war decals too. . .

Best regards

Gabor

[Litvyak]

I assume that that book is written in Russian? Sounds like it would make for fascinating reading...

[ya-gabor]

I assume that that book is written in Russian? Sounds like it would make for fascinating reading...

Yeap! Its a good read (judged by looking into it in the shop) and yes it is in Russian.

I had so many books to bring back from Moscow that I already had close to 40 kilos in my suitcases far more than the allowed 20. So had to leave it back in the shop. Sad, but there were things more important.

Best regards

Gabor

[randypandy831]

Two words: wrong scale ;)/>

truth be told!

hope to see a 1/48 version.

[ya-gabor]

As far as I can see the Overtrees MiG-15's are back in stock on Eduards page today.

Best regards

Gabor

[ya-gabor]

Here is a bit more on the Eduard MiG-15. Of course there are some problems on this kit too. After all nothing is 100% perfect.

There is one point in the kit that I don’t like. The fins of the external fuel tanks are way too thick and have strange rounded edges on the top while the underside is completely flat. On the real aircraft they are just a thin sheet of metal. The plastic parts look very strange and even if they shape was dictated by injection moulding technological requirements I think that it would have been possible to include an etched version of the fins on the photoetched sheet. After all it’s the main business of Eduard. OK I know that the manufacturer has to cater for the Overtrees and Weekend Edition kits too which don’t have an etched sheet in them, but I think a solution could have been found for this, other than making these strange fin parts.

One other small point concerns the pitot tube on the right wing leading edge which is not completely formed on most sprues. An alternative pitot tube is provide and I think it is only a question of time that some adjustment will be made to the press forms.

Now to some good news. This is what you get in plastic for the cockpit. The cockpit is perfect with all the possible details in this scale. If we want to be nit picking than one could mention that the early MiG-15’s had a different seat, without the steel plate armour in the back, a different head rest, while the later seats had ejection initiators on both sides. Still what we get in the cockpit is perfect as it is. One can use the provided decal for the instrument panel, or have it as a prepainted etched version or simply use the plastic one with the instrument faces moulded on it.

Here are the side walls.

Best regards

Gabor