Re: AN Ila Muromets

C.P. Hart (hartc@spot.colorado.edu)
Mon, 30 Oct 1995 13:57:19 +0000

Hello All,

Gerry McOsker (a member of the helping profession) has noted on 10 October 1995:

>Good evening all- I'm sure all have noticed it- but I've seen little
>comment- The Ilya Muromets notice on p 78 of the November FSM- Arnis Model
>Centrum, Eksporta 2-50, LV-1010 Riga, Latvia- A 1/72 Ilya for $20. plus
>$4.00 postage? Has anyone deigned to ship off $24.- into the Baltic?
>Comments? Can a Zeppelin be far behind?

Well, your money doesn't have to travel quite that far. I have found
this kit on the shelves of :

Colpar Hobbies
804 S. Havana St.
Aurora CO 80012

1-800-341-1554

The kit lists for $19.95, I don't know how much they charge for shipping.

A few comments on my example. This kit is pretty well molded in grey
plastic with not too much flash. The upper wing comes in 5 panels with
rather heavy rib detail on the upper surfaces that will need to be removed,
the same goes for all flying surfaces. Trailing edges will need refinement
as well. The fuselage is well molded with clear parts for the windows that
are of good quality. There is some heavy detail of fuselage former
positions on the fuselage sides coupled with three nice mold release pin
circles, the interior of the fuselage halves is beautifully smooth. There
is little inthe way of interior detail and the guns, engines and props are
rather basic items that will all need replacement to make a sharp model.
The struts are a little thick but should work in the little holes molded in
the wings for them. The decals are basic, cockades and penants for the
sides of the fuselage. The colors are debatable when compared with the
Russian cockade fabric on display at the USAF Museum, this suggests that
both the blue and red should be much darker.

This kit is the basis, I think, for a nice model on this subject
although it will require a fair bit of work to add details.

Charles

hartc@spot.colorado.edu