Eduard 1/72 Brassin MiG-21PFM Ejection Seat for Eduard Kit
By Chris Banyai-Riepl
Overview
When it comes to aftermarket sets, I'm a much bigger fan of smaller and simpler rather than larger and more complex sets, and there is no smaller, simpler set than an ejection seat replacement. Resin is ideal for these as there is a lot of fine detail that can be very challenging to mold in plastic but becomes much simpler to do in resin. Eduard kicks it up even further with their Brassin line by including some photoetch details to provide those finer bits that would likely get broken in resin.
The Seat
In most cases, aftermarket resin seats are done as just a single piece, making it an easy drop-in replacement but sometimes with detail compromises. This set for the MiG-21PFM seat avoids those compromises by casting the seat in two resin pieces and providing both the seatbelts and small details in photoetch. This improves the level of detail, but it also means some assembly required. Walking through the assembly, it starts with adding the upright cushion strap and some seat side details, then you can add on the lap and shoulder straps. Add on the photoetch ejection handle between the legs, and you can finally add the separate resin headrest. That part will cover up the shoulder strap attachments, which is both a nice feature and helps simplify adding those straps onto the seat.
Conclusion
While this is designed to fit the Eduard MiG-21PFM kit, this seat could be used in any kit that uses the same style of Soviet ejection seat. My thanks to Eduard for the review sample.