IKAR 1/72 Tupolev ANT-25RD

IKAR 1:72 TUPOLEV ANT-25RD
'INBOX Review'

Kit Details: IKAR 1/72nd Tupolev (Sukhoi) ANT-25 RD: Number OO1.

Aircraft History:

In 1936 three Russian fliers--Valeri Chkalov, George Biadukov and Alexander Beliakov flew the ANT-25 5,800 miles from Moscow across Siberia to Kamchatka near the Bering Sea. Later, on July 13, 1937, Mikhail Gromov, Andrei Yumachev and Sergei Danilin flew another ANT-25 from Moscow across the North Pole to San Jacinto, California. All these years later, some aspersions have been cast upon whether or not this remarkable achievement was merely some stage-managed propaganda coup, or worse. Nonetheless, conspiracy theories aside, the A.N.Tupolev 25 has a certain place in aviation history -it surely was a remarkable aircraft in many ways.

Kit Parts: -

62 injection-molded parts in whiter than white, hard, brittle plastic on five sprues, one of which being a clear sprue veritably overflowing with indescribably opaque and scuffed parts. The sprues for the wings are a masterpiece in the abstract. Barely a right-angle or straight line to be seen anywhere. And these wings are HUGE. And deep. And heavy. It's as if someone, somewhere, roughly cut away these wings from a thick vac-form sheet, then glued them ON to pieces of spare sprue gates. Very odd indeed. The fuselage and smaller pieces are better in quality, thankfully.

Instructions:

A double-sided instruction sheet, in Russian throughout, gives details in very small illustrations in nine stages, very simple to follow. A brief history is included of the ANT 25's achievements. FS/Humbrol numbers are given for two options, Chkalov's URSS-NO25 and Gromov's URSS-NO251, both civil registrations.

Decals:

Horribly yellowed, with a great deal of carrier film. However, if you're after URSS (sadly not CCCP) civil codes in this 1/32nd...er 1/72nd scale, where else are you going to find 'em? (I was lucky, two copies of the sheet were included in No 001)

Cockpit/Wheel bay Detail:

Cockpit detail is passable for the tiny cramped cockpit. You get a seat, control column and dash that's about your lot. If you simply must model the primus stove and hot-water bottles for those long arctic nights, by all means do so, but you'd likely not see anything through the canopy anyway. The other two crew stations aren't represented whatsoever, but there are sources out there which gives details of these interior placements for the die-hard realism fan. Wheel-well detail is probably as it was on the real aircraft, virtually non-existent, except buried deep in the main wing structure. That said, I for one certainly wouldn't wish to weaken the structure of these gigantic wings by opening up anything to 'improve' the wells, anywhere without some prior consideration and/or sheer bravery.

Options:

All ailerons and elevator, rudder, parts can be modelled in any position if one so desires. And you can make its prop spin too (by cunningly using a hairdryer set to 'frigid' for authenticity's sake).

Impressions:

Hear ye! Hear ye! Get out thy tube(s) of Squadron white and be prepared. Also, have plenty of spare re-enforcing plastic card and superglue for a the alignment of the wings and to ensure that you don't get an anhedral. Future/Klear may help with the clear parts, if taken nice and slowly. Vacforming may be an option, but there are a lot of clear items, so plan ahead. Y'know, this kit is starting to remind me of ICM's TB 3 as I write this -not a bad thing at all.

Conclusion:

Apart from Tupolev's own kit which may be purchased from Tupolev Aviation directly, the IKAR model is your only alternative as far as I'm aware. It's crude, has gross flashing, hardly a straight line anywhere to be seen, and the clear parts are diabolical. But. It's an ANT 25, a beautifully ugly aircraft, in my opinion. With hard work (and isn't that what modelling is all about?) a stunning replica, complete with its humongous wingspan will be your reward. It'd sit nicely next to your Polikarpovs and Yaks and SBs at any rate. It's also a bonus that the registration URSS-NO251 option is available for those who like the lesser-known paint scheme.

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