|
Piaggio P.108A
with 102/40 Anti-Ship
Cannon
Special Hobby,
1/72 scale
S
u m m a r y
|
| Catalogue Number: |
Special Hobby SH 72065 Piaggio P.
108 A. |
| Scale: |
1/72 |
| Contents and Media: |
89 mid-grey plastic parts on four
sprues, 13 very clear plastic parts on one sprue, 22 cream resin parts
on eleven casting blocks, decals for two aircraft plus a 15 page A5
sized instruction booklet with history, parts plan, 14 build diagrams
and 2 pages of paint/decal drawings. |
| Price: |
USD$51.46
from Squadron |
| Review Type: |
FirstLook |
| Advantages: |
Very rare subject, highly detailed,
excellent decals and resin, no PE. |
| Disadvantages: |
A big model for anyone who is space
challenged; not for beginners |
| Recommendation: |
Recommended to experienced modellers |
Reviewed by
Glen Porter
Special Hobby's
1/72 scale Piaggio P.108A may be ordered online from Squadron.com
This is the third version of this aircraft released in 1/72 scale
(click here to see Brett Green's
review of the initial release)
All the moulding of the plastic and resin was done by MPM in the Czech
Republic but the first kit out was the P. 108 B series I by Flying
Machine in cooperation with MPM. The next was the series II by Special
Hobby and of cause, here we have the third. All three kits have the same
plastic with the only difference being the box, decals and instructions.
The 108 A was fitted with a 102mm naval gun in an effort to find an
effective anti-shipping aircraft after the tests with torpedoes had not
gone well. It was found that the firing of the gun did not influence the
flight characteristics of the aircraft but that aiming it was a problem.
However, before a workable sight could be had, Italy signed the
Armistice and the Piaggio P. 108A was confiscated by the Germans and
flown to Rechlin for further tests. It is not known what happened to it
after that.
Again on opening the top opening box, the first thing you will notice is
the box itself. It has a very sturdy bottom half, something I've seen on
other large MPM products and very welcome too. This model has a
shortened solid one-piece nose with the big 105mm cannon muzzle
protruding from it's lower side and no clear windows. There is no
interior detail of the gun and the rest of the kit is identical to the
other two kits with the wing mounted, remotely controlled guns etc.
Click
the thumbnails below to view larger images:
For those of us who are not very capable with
Photo-Etched parts, you will be happy to know there is none. Thats not
to say this kit will suit beginners because it won't. It has quite a lot
of resin and like all short-run kits it has no alignment pins but it
does have a wing spar on one of the three bulk-heads on the inside.
Remember, this is a big kit even in 1/72 scale so you will need to know
you have room to display it before you buy.
Decals, printed by I don't know who, look very good with national
marking and some stencils for two aircraft. The first is as it was
tested by the Italians and the other is in Luftwaffe markings at Rechlin,
Germany, 1944. In both cases, the aircraft is in Italian Dark Green with
Light Grey under-surfaces.
Although it's large, it looks like being a very interesting build and
you can bet you will have the other competitors at your local club
competition scratching their collective heads trying to work-out what it
is.
Recommended.
Thanks to MPM/Special Hobby
for the review sample.
Review Text Copyright © 2006 by Glen Porter
Images Copyright © 2006 by
Brett Green
Page Created 04 May, 2006
Last updated 03 May, 2006
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