Eduard 1/48 Spitfire Mk.VIII Gun Bay 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.

In this release, Eduard has produced an intricate pair of gun bays for the wing roots of their recent Spitfire Mk.VIII kit. The set is comprised of 20 parts cast in gray resin plus one fret of photo-etched parts. The set comprises the two structural frames for the gun bays which demonstrates some impressive casting technology though removing these from the casting block will be an interesting exercise. The set also provides the two 20mm cannons, ammo belts, separately cast wing access panels, and other small details. The photo-etched fret provides the bottom of the bays (the wing interior), bay dividers, and additional structural details.

If you want to render some breath-taking details in your Spitfire build, this set will definitely add some eye-catching details, especially if you use this set with the Brassin Merlin engine and cockpit sets sold separately!

My sincere thanks to Eduard for this review sample!