Special Hobby first released their 1:48 AH-1G earlier in the year with markings for Israeli and Spanish machines, and it later appeared as part of ICM's "Forward Base" diorama set. Now they have produced what may be the definitive boxing for Vietnam-era machines, adding resin, photoetched and 3D-printed parts plus painting masks to the already excellent kit.
The Hi Tech "Snake" arrives safely-packed in a very sturdy top-opening box. The first thing that strikes you is the large number of runners, many devoted to various ordnance load-outs, so I think we can look forward to more versions in future. The main runners are packed together in one resealable bag, with the clear parts and accessories bagged separately and - a really nice touch - the delicate 3D-printed parts protected in their own padded box.
The kit comprises:
141 x grey styrene parts (plus 44 spare)
11 x clear styrene parts (plus 14 not used)
19 x colour-printed photo-etched parts, plus clear printed film
11 x etched brass parts
47 x resin parts
5 x 3D-printed parts
A sheet of washi-tape painting masks
Decals for 4 colour schemes
Nearly 60 parts not used? Some of that's down to the kit including items for other versions (e.g. alternative tails and canopy sections), but the bulk is down to this Hi Tech boxing giving the cockpit a major overhaul.
Special Hobby have come a long way since their short-run origins and the AH-1 is moulded to the latest mainstream standards - CAD-produced and beautifully crisp throughout. The surface finish comprises precisely engraved panel lines and applique details. The rear fuselage correctly features raised rivets - but, looking at walkaround photos of the full-sized aircraft, they seem a bit too prominent to me, so I'll knock them back somewhat. The photos also show areas with raised rivets on the main fuselage and nose, but these aren't represented in the kit.
The sample kit is free of flash and any moulding flaws, while ejector pin marks are light and appear to have been kept out of sight.
Dry Fit
There's only so much you can sensibly test fit on a kit like this, but dry-fitting the fuselage halves and belly panel showed everything lines up perfectly, while the tail is firm fit. One thing that surprised me was just how big the HueyCobra is in 1:48 - it dwarfs the WWII era fighters I'm used to. This will be an impressive model when built!
A Few Details
Special Hobby have really gone to town on the pilot and co-pilot/gunner's "offices" in this Hi Tech boxing. The original styrene seats are replaced with superior resin versions along with new side armour. Pre-coloured etched harnesses are provided, and this is also used for new multi-layer instrument panels. As an alternative, decals are also included for the original styrene instruments, but the etched versions win hands down for me.
A myriad of small resin and etched details are dotted around the cockpit, but the stand-out parts in my opinion are the delicate 3D-printed sights and control column. Produced in a distinctive salmon-pink resin, they allow a level of intricate detail we could only have dreamed of a few years ago.
All told, you're looking at almost 60 parts for the cockpit itself, but there's more to come in the form of a further 8 grab-handles and other items to add inside the roof of the canopy, plus a pair of neat 3-part resin/etch bone-domes to add interest to the finished "office".
The canopy parts are beautifully clear and both the pilot's and gunner's side hatches can be posed open to further show off the work you put into the cockpit. Special Hobby have provided a set of die-cut painting masks, and a nice touch is that it includes interior and exterior masks - especially useful if you're posing the entry panels open.
Staying up front, the nose turret is nicely detailed, with resin barrels for a choice of either 2 × 7.62 mm miniguns, or a single minigun and a 40mm grenade launcher.
The rotors are straightforward and effectively depicted, and there's a choice of landing skids. A neat extra touch is the inclusion of a tow-bar, with resin wheels replacing the original styrene parts. These new wheels show much better detail, including text on the tyres' sidewalls.
Finally, there's a range of ordnance to mount on the Cobra's pylons:
1 x M35 20mm cannon
2 x M18 7.62 mm Minigun pods
2 x 2.75 inch 7-tube XM157 rocket pods
2 x 2.75 inch 7-tube XM158 rocket pods
4 x 2.75 inch 19-tube XM159 rocket pods
The XM158s are provided in two forms - the standard styrene parts, plus new resin/photo-etch replacements. The latter look much superior to me, so I'll definitely use them. Seeing as they supplied new FFARs, I guess you could bemoan the fact that Special Hobby didn't also include a resin M35, but the styrene version should look fine - and if you want to go the extra mile, Special Hobby do have an upgrade set in their CMK range (Item #4454).
Instructions & Decals
The kit comes with a 20-page instruction booklet that's printed in colour on good quality stock. The diagrams are clear and well-sized, and the overall construction sequence seems pretty logical for the most part (although there are occasional anomalies, such as the diagram for the canopy painting masks coming two pages after the clear parts have been installed...). Basically, though, while this isn't a suitable kit for beginners, anyone with a bit of experience, particularly with mixed-media parts, should find it a really enjoyable build.
The instruction feature colour matches for Gunze Sangyo paints.
Decals for a quartet of Vietnam-era AH-1Gs are included:
Scheme A - AH-1G, s/n 67-15536, "Thor's Hammer"
Scheme B - AH-IG, s/n 68-17068, "Cindy Ann"
Scheme C - AH-1G, 68-15031, "Pandora's Box"
Scheme D - AH-1G, s/n 68-17074, "The Gladiator"
The decals are thin and glossy, and the registration looks very good. One thing I did notice, though, is that the yellow looks rather "muddy", and using a magnifier reveals it's printed as as tiny multicoloured dots to create the illusion of the hue. It's a common technique, but not my favourite, so I'll go for Scheme D which doesn't use any yellow decals (by coincidence, it also sports a particularly striking shark mouth design on the turret, so I'd have probably chosen it anyway).
Recent experience using Special Hobby's decals shows their thinness means they require a little extra care when applying them to avoid a tendency to turn over on themselves. Once in place, though, they snuggle down excellently and respond to all the usual setting solutions. This will be important with all those raised rivets on the tail.
Rounding everything off is a comprehensive set of stencil decals for the airframe and some of the ordnance, which are crisply printed and legible. The instructions include a full-page placement guide.
Conclusion
Special Hobby's standard 1:48 AH-1G is already a very impressive kit and this new Hi Tech boxing takes the level of detail a step higher. Obviously, the inclusion of photo-etched, resin and 3D-printed parts will strain the abilities of less experienced modellers, but there doesn't appear to be anything to worry anyone with a few mixed-media kits under their belt. In terms of moulding quality it really represents Special Hobby at the top of their game, matching the latest mainstream kits on the market and it deserves to be major success for them.
Above all, it's just one of those kits that cries out "Build me!" as soon as you open the box and begin to examine the contents! Thankfully, I've got a little bit of time off work coming up soon, so the HueyCobra will be heading to the workbench ASAP!
Item #SH48230 is available now from Special Hobby - Price: 62.30 Euros
Many thanks to Special Hobby for the review sample.
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