MiG I-320

Modelsvit's always great box art.



First page of the instruction booklet - with a brief history of the type and Humbrol paint matches.


Last page of the instructions - note the canopy masks.



The fullyl-detailed VK-1 engine, ejection seats and cockpit/nose intake.



Fuselage halves.



Wings, tailplanes and slipper tanks.



Cockpit parts (lower) with intake and jetpipes (upper).



Undercarriage parts - look at the detail on those doors!



Parts for the VK-1 engine.



One-piece clear canopy, canopy & wheel masks and decal sheet.



Seven parts make up the jetpipe....



... with six parts for the VK-1 centrifugal-flow jet engine - the assembled jetpipe on the right.



This is what it looks like when completed.......



... and primed.
 


After mistakenly sanding off what I thought was flash, I had to re-instate the flanges on the annular cans !!!



Parts for the cockpit and intake trunking.



Jetpipes assembled - almost seamless! Yes, there are only two engines.



The ejection seats are exqusite mouldings - each seat is made up from five parts.



Cockpit parts painted and decalled. Not yet fitted are the seats, rudder pedals and control columns - it really is very detailed.



Despite my best efforts to ruin it, the VK-1 engine has turned out OK.



With a little bit more care - plus some super-detailing and a display stand, it could be made into a model in its own right.



Nosewheel undercarriage bay and front VK-1 jet engine fitted inside the intake sidewalls - it's a tight fit!



The air for the front engine passes either side of the front undercarriage bay -
the air for the rear engine passes between the intake walls and outer skin, by-passing the cockpit tub.



Top view of the assembled cockpit tub, sidewalls, undercarriage bay and jet engine.



From front to rear - intake/cockpit assembly, upper rear cockpit decking, front engine 'pen nib' fairing, rear engine jetpipe, rear pen nib fairing.
The yellow tape is covering a couple of pieces of lead weight.
The two fuselage halves only just join - after a lot of 'fettling of the front assembly - scraping plastic away/sanding etc.



Fuselage halves together, fin and nose intake ring added. A first primer coat reveals the upper and lower fuselage joints.



Four parts to box in the main wheel wells.



Wings attached - followed by a couple of sessions of filler/sanding/primer/sanding to eliminate all the joints.



Underside view - note the ventral jet exhaust of the front VK-1 engine.



Outer wing fence, slipper tanks, nose radome and ejection seats added.



The cockpit is superbly detailed - as are the ejection seats.



Next job is to attach the one-piece canopy.



Applying the self-adhesive canopy masks - they are translucent (to aid placement?)



Nosecone and fin tip masked with Tamiya tape - and a coat of 'Aluminium' from a rattle can.



Overall painted aluminium.



Masking removed and decals applied (red stars on fin and underwing only).


Without the supplied masks, that complex canopy frame would be a nightmare.



That cockpit and canopy is a work of art - Modelsvit's, not mine!



Closeup of the cockpit area.

Finished Model

Underside view showing the tandem engine exhausts.

Single NR-37 cannon to port





Starboard pair of 37mm NR-37 cannon



Rival night fighters - Lavochkin La-200 (left) and MiG I-320 (right)







Same Tandem VK-1 engines, same side-by-side seating, same 3 X 37mm cannons.

Jun 2017