Attack Hobby Kits

Su-7BMK

Kit Number 14410

Reviewed By Rod Lees, #10821

When I asked John “does IPMS have any kits in the review stash that nobody else has claimed?”, I was fully expecting to receive a vacuformed XP-Q49 Explosive space modulator delivery missile as a review item.  Instead, John said, “I’ve got this really cute SU-7 kit in 1/144 that’s about the size of your index finger if you want to take it on”. Being an adventurous sort, I said “Sure”.

(Side note on my reviews:  Since the Trumpeter SU-27 was the last IPMS-from-the-manufacturer-provided build I’ve done, I’ve not asked for anything to do for a while.  I prefer to build kits I purchase in order to prevent the dreaded “coercion curse” from being an issue, but once in a while I ask.  The SU-27 ended up as a donation to Mike’s hobby shop in OKC right after I built it… never to be seen again (They went out of business a few months ago after over 25 years of business).)

I don’t, as a matter of course, work in 1/144, except for heavies.  I figured this would be similar to one of the old 1/144th scale kits I’d built as a kid in the late 60’s and early 70’s. Turns out I was really wrong on this assumption.

Date:  Today, Saturday, June 17th,  three or four days after corresponding with John; and as I walk in from my weekend errand runs, Momma Bear says “You have a package on the kitchen table”.  Christmas in June… and let the education of an old man begin.

What I received was a high-quality small kit which has a lot more detail than some 1/48th kits I’ve built recently.  Hmmm.  The kit box is of the end-opening variety.  I personally don’t care for these as they tend to be crushed by anything weighing more than a pencil… in this case one end of the box had been slightly compressed but the contents weren’t damaged.  The painting on the front is a very-well done rendition of a Czech jet, rolling out with the standard twin-canopy braking chutes deployed.  Nice.  The kit itself consists of 40 parts:  39 in light gray on three gates, with a separate clear canopy.  Under wing stores are rocket pods, dumb bombs, and external drop tanks.  The decal sheet appears to be well-printed and in register.  Five marking options are provided:  Czechoslovakia, USSR, Egypt, Iraq, and India.  Instructions are pictorial and clear. All painting instructions reference Humbrol paint numbers, with a description of the color in bold print next to it.  (Example:  Humbrol 65, “light blue”).  This is a nice touch, as some manufacturers choose to play the “Marketeer” game by only listing “their” company paint numbers without explanation.  Attack have chosen the smarter option and are to be commended.

The kit even has a cockpit.  I personally will not be able to make functional instruments for the panel, but certainly the gifted among us are welcome to try.  Let’s just say this build promises to be something different and, hopefully, fun.

I painted the interior Russian green/blue from the Testor's Model Master line, and ran a wash of black over the instrument panel to bring out the detail.  More than adequate.  Two lead split-shot sinkers for nose weight behind the cockpit, install the engine afterburner turbine bulkhead, and assemble.

The rest of the kit went together without difficulty.  A bit of Mr. Surfacer on the wing attachment points, and a swipe with the trusty emery board to clean up the fuselage seam, and it was downhill all the way.

The instructions would have you put the external tanks on the centerline stores pylons; I opted to follow pictorial evidence (and the box art) and installed them outboard of the main landing gear.  The bombs are single-piece affairs, with the rocket pods having fore and aft sections.  Engraving was particularly restrained, comprising of major panel lines and some access panels.

After installing the gear and pylons, I painted the aircraft underside with Tamiya German light blue, masked and painted the upper surfaces Testors dark brown and camouflage with Tamiya RAF green.  It all looked right; Glosscote, decals for the Czech version, and Dullcote after a few hours.  Simple is the word, only thing I'll add later is a pitot tube to the nose.

This is nice effort, perfect for someone who works in this scale.  You could build an Air Force base... and not take over the garage in the process.  I commend Attack hobby for this kit; and, as usual, thank them (Úvodní strana!) for providing the kit to IPMS for a review.  Although I don't build this scale normally, I can recommend it for a change from AMS!  It would be interesting to see what they could do with an SU-27.

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