Eduard 1/48 F-4 Weapons Set BigSin Set First Look

By Michael Benolkin

First Look

Eduard from the Czech Republic is easily the most prolific producer of aftermarket details. Period. Their series of photo-etched detail sets have brought additional fidelity to otherwise bland subjects, and have taken even the best-produced models and kicked them up a notch or two with details that cannot be produced with injection-molded plastic. Many AMS modelers will collect the relevant Eduard photo-etch sets for a given project, but they'll also go out and gather specific resin enhancements as well. Eduard has stepped up with a new product line to complement their photo-etched detail series - Brassin. Brassin is a play on words with Brass and Resin, and in many sets in this series, the resin details also include a set of color photo-etch as well.

If you've been using Eduard's detail sets for a while, you'll know that for the AMS modeler, they combined all of the photo-etched details for a particular subject into a single package in their BIG ED series. Buying the BIG ED sets can give you some sticker shock, but if you add up the prices of the individual detail sets and masks included in each BIG ED set, you'll see you're saving some good money in that combined package.

Following that same business model, Eduard has released their latest savings package for the AMS modeler - BIG SIN for a nice selection of F-4 weapons. If you look at the list on the box, here are the specific sets included in this release:

• 648028 AIM-9B Sidewinder
• 648062 AIM-7E Sparrow
• 648093 Mk.82 Bombs (three sets)

This set provides the typical fighter or fighter-bomber loadout for the F-4B/C/D Phantom II in the early days of the Vietnam war. With three sets of Mark 82 500lb slicks (18 bombs), you can max out your Phantom with two Multiple Ejector Racks on the outboard stations, two Triple Ejector Racks on the inboard stations, one centerline tank, and (check your photo references) four AIM-9B on the inboard shoulder stations and four AIM-7s in the wells. If your Phantom is fragged for combat air patrol, load up with three fuel tanks, four AIM-9s and four AIM-7s - you can bomb up an A-6 later.

If you buy these sets individually, they run around $10-$15 USD suggested price (street prices may be lower) while this BigSin set is priced at $47 USD or a savings of $21 USD. Not bad. You should be able to find this detail set at your local hobby retailer or one of the many online hobby shops. Trust me, this is worth looking for!

My sincere thanks to Eduard for this review sample!