Begemot 1/48 Sukhoi Su-34 Fullback/Hellduck Decal First Look

By Michael Benolkin

First Look

Here is the latest release from Begemot and this set is noteworthy on several levels. First, and as you can see, this is the first release from Begemot that features full-color instructions. Second, this set is the first I've seen from Begemot that provides decals sized for different kits - in this case walkway decals sized for the Kitty Hawk and for the HobbyBoss kits. This decal set is rendered on four larger decal sheets plus two smaller sheets. You can see that three of these sheets are focused on airframe, weapons pylons, and weapons stenciling. Let's take a look:

This set provides 28 markings options including:

1. Su-34, Bort 43, second prototype (T-10B-2), 1996
2. Su-34, Bort 343, second pre-production prototype (T-10B-4), MAKS-1997 airshow
3. Su-34, Bort 349, first early production airframe (T-10B-5), MAKS-1995 airshow
4. Su-34, Bort 46, second early production airframe (T-10B-6), MAKS-2003 airshow
5. Su-34, Bort 46, second early production airframe (T-10B-6), 2015
6. Su-34, Bort 47, third early production airframe (T-10B-7, flight test, 2008
7. Su-34, Bort 48, final early production airframe (T-10B-8), MAKS-2011 airshow
8. Su-34, Bort 01, flight test, 2006
9. Su-34, Bort 02, Chanchun AB, China, 2017
10. Su-34, Bort 03, Lipetsk AB, 2009
11. Su-34, Bort 06, 47 OSAP, Baltimor AB, 2010
12. Su-34, Bort 02, 47 OSAP, Baltimor AB, 2011
13. Su-34, Bort 05, 47 OSAP, Baltimor AB, 2013
14. Su-34, Bort 21, Khmeimim AB, Syria, 2016
15. Su-34, Bort 25, Khmeimim AB, Syria, 2016
16. Su-34, Bort 28, 47 OSAP, Butulinovka AB, 2015
17. Su-34, Bort 03, Khmeimim AB, Syria, 2016
18. Su-34, Bort 26, Khmeimim AB, Syria, 2016
19. Su-34, Bort 01, 559 BAP, Morozovsk AB, 2013
20. Su-34, Bort 08, 559 BAP, Morozovsk AB, 2013
21. Su-34, Bort 21, 559 BAP, Morozovsk AB, 2017
22. Su-34, Bort 35, flight test, 2015
23. Su-34, Bort 28, 559 BAP, Rostov-Central AB, 2017
24. Su-34, Bort 31, Khmeimim AB, Syria, 2016
25. Su-34, Bort 10, Lipetsk AB, 2017
26. Su-34, Bort 07, Khmeimim AB, Syria, 2017
27. Su-34, Bort 02, 2 GBAP, Lipetsk AB, 2018
28. Su-34, Bort 08, 2 GBAP, Shagol AB, 2018

This set provides a great cross-section of examples from early development through current operations as well as examples wearing the blue-gray over blue scheme and the so-called 'eggplant' color scheme. These decals are so up-to-date that they also provide options for the 'standard' VVS Rossii (Russian Air Force) or the current VKS Rossii (Russian Aerospace Forces). The red stars are printed with the white outlines for pre-2010 subjects as well as the separately-printed blue outlines to represent the current red stars with blue/white outlines. Of course there are lots of stencils with clear instructions for placement on the airframe, on the pylons, or on the weapons.

Whether you're building the Kitty Hawk or the Hobby Boss kits, this decal set is designed to get you the best results. This is a nice set and will really add some great visual detail to your scale masterpiece. I'm not certain where the nickname 'Hellduck' came from, but it sure fits.

For more information about this set and the other releases from Begemot Decals, visit their website at http://www.begemotdecals.ru.

My sincere thanks to Begemot Decals for this review sample!