Zvezda 1/72 ANT-5 (I-4, I-4Z)
|
 |
Overview
The ANT-5 was the Soviet Union's first all-metal mass-produced fighter,
with the first being built in 1928 and production continuing through
to 1934. Armed with a pair of 7.62mm machine guns, the ANT-5 was one
of the best Soviet fighters of the period and saw limited service during
the Spanish Civil War between 1936 and 1939.
 The Kit
This is, I believe, the only injection molded kit of this aircraft,
and it looks nicely done, which is always a good sign. The majority of
this aircraft is corrugated, and this kit represents that quite well.
There are two sprues of light gray plastic, with some minor flash on
some of the smaller pieces. A small decal sheet provides markings for
two aircraft (actually, the decals are for one of these, as the other
has no markings).
Construction, as would be expected, begins with the interior. This
kit comes with a rudimentary interior, with the main floor getting a
separate seat, control stick, and rudder pedals. The control stick needs
some serious work to look like a real stick, and the seat needs to be
thinned down to look realistic. Some seatbelts would also add to the
final appearance of the cockpit.
 Once done with the interior, the rest of the assembly is what you would
expect. The only real diversion here are the separate cowl bumps. This
is one of the differences between the ANT-5 and I-4/4Z, as the earlier
variant had covered bumps. Both options have separate exhaust stacks
that will need some edge cleanup. This distinctive cowling will look
nice when finished, though.
Moving on to the wings, this is the other main difference between the
I-4 and ANT-5. The lower wing for the I-4 and I-4Z was a much shorter
span wing. This is provided as a separate piece. The vertical fin is
the final difference between the variants, with the ANT-5 tail being
triangular in shape. Other details include optional underwing and overwing
stores.
 The color and marking instructions have an overall aluminum aircraft
devoid of markings, and a green and blue aircraft, "White 2." The
decals are typical Zvezda, being thin with a flat appearance. Past experience
with these decals indicate that there might be troubles with applying
them over corrugations.
Conclusion
This is an interesting aircraft that would make for a great addition
to a VVS model collection. The challenges in building this kit are not
insurmountable, and with a bit of extra work this could be made into
a very nice model. My thanks to Squadron for the review sample.
|
|
