IPMS South Africa - Building the Impala in scale.

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Building the Impala in scale.

Written by Anton Dyason - IPMS SA Media Group
Sunday, 19 August 2001
Page 1 of 4 General observations: Webmaster's note: Information in this section supersedes all 'Impala' articles previously published by IPMS SA. Most of these articles have a number of discrepancies, but were based on information available at the time. The only articles that are of note, were the ones by Lukas Potgieter and Dave Cooke and with newly researched info are included in this section. The MkI serial numbers from 460 to 610 and the MkII from 1000 to 1099. The MkII is fitted with a more powerful engine and therefore fitted with bigger squarer air intakes. The SAAF fitted both the MkI and MkII with the larger wingtip tanks. The big problem is the rocket pods - see below. A number of different colour schemes were carried by the 'Impala' aircraft - some artwork will be added in the near future. 1/72 Modelling the 'Impala' in 1/72 scale. By Dave Cooke - IPMS East London The first new kits from Supermodel for over a decade are the long awaited (in South Africa at least) injection moulded Aermacchi MB-326 Impala MK's 1 & 2. Box art of SuperModel Kit. Not a high tech kit by any means, these kits resemble the early `80s model with finely raised panel lines. The positions of the underwing pylons and fuselage gun pods are unfortunately depicted as raised lines on the lower wings and front fuselage sides and no separate attachment points are given. As the two kits share a common two-seater fuselage and wings, the raised lines for the gun pod are incorrectly shown on the two-seater. Some fine wet and dry sanding will soon remove them. The single-seater has an extra upper decking which covers the rear seat position. Both cockpit tubs have no locating lugs in the fuselage sides, so fitment is a bit of a hit-and-miss affair. The ejector seats have no rears and the mould would benefit if these were replaced by white metal ones. The large wingtip tanks for both kits suffer from bluntish noses, but once again wet and dry sanding will sort out this problem. Both kits come with underwing fuel tanks and Matra rocket pods; the 18-tube version supplied is wrong for the 'Impala'. The one-piece undercarriage leg and wheel is simple and not to well detailed, as is the nosewheel with integral mudguard. The undercarriage doors are beautifully to scale thickness but the engine intake lips will need rubbing down to achieve scale thickness. Each kit comes with a two piece canopy that could have been a bit thinner. The single-seater comes with the correct extended tail planes. Impala Mk1 by Hentie Viljoen. The wheel wells are blanked off but no interior detail is provided. A separate dive brake and jack is included. Alas, no tailpipe is included and one will have to be made. The rest of the kit is made up of aerials, control columns, etc. Decals include SAAF options for both. The castles (only for the two-seater) can be discarded. No under wing serial or squadron badge is provided for the two-seater. A neat 7-squadron badge is provided for the single-seater, and the kit includes under wing serials. Side consoles and instrument panel decals are also provided along with the usual finer stenciling. An incorrect upper wing camouflage pattern is shown for the single-seater. Generally, two neat little kits that will delight all SAAF 1/72 scale modellers. << Start < Prev 1 2 3 4 Next > End >>
Last Updated ( Sunday, 27 January 2008 )