Pavla 1/72 MB 326K Impala Cockpit Set First Look

By Sundiata Cowels

First Look

Wow! Pavla Models offers a blister pack cockpit upgrade kit for the Italeri and Supermodel line of MB 326K Impalas. This nine piece set includes: an ejection seat with belt details, cockpit tub with rear bulkhead detail, side panels and throttle lever (my review sample arrived with the throttle lever and rear cockpit oxygen pipe broken off and were not in the pack), a revised canopy bulkhead, new main instrument panel with coaming and HUD attached, new joystick, rear cockpit oxygen tank platform cover, and three additional sidewall levers.

The HUD does not come with a vacuform sight glass, so Pavla recommends that you scratch build it out of clear film; you could probably use the blister pack plastic itself for the job if it is the proper scale thickness.

The pack comes with a two sheet photocopied installation and painting guide which is straight forward for assembly purposes but a bit vague on specifics when it comes to painting the details. For instance, for the canopy and main instrument panel, Pavla instructs the modeler to paint the details as "Yellow + Light Grey + Red + White." Do they mean these colors should be mixed together to create a new color and if so, in what proportions? Or do they mean that these colors are for specific regions of the items in question?  You will definitely need some research material on hand if you are interested in painting this resin set to match the real world article.

Overall, Pavla has done a great job for such a non-mainstream aircraft variant.

My sincere thanks to Pavla Models for this review sample.