Kiev
Aoshima - 1/700

By : Mike Dunn

While I was browsing for modelling supplies, my wife found this kit, and decided that she really liked it. So, after extracting a promise that I could have a new CD drive for the PC (my last one died), I let her have the kit. Bribery works!

The box is quite large for a 1/700 kit - 45x15x5 cm - which surprised me. Most of the naval kits I have are 1/600, and this dwarfs all of them. Guess I must build small ships! The box art looks quite good - this was what attracted Lynn to the kit in the first place - and shows the ship heading away from the viewer, who is at enough of an angle to see the flight deck with a little detail. While overall a good piece of art, I doubt it is in enough detail for anything more than basic assembly. Having the ship going the other way would, to my mind, have been better, as the island is on the side closest to the viewer, and therefore totally obscures any sight of the middle to end of the flight deck.

On opening the box, the first thing that jumps out at you is the main hull and flight deck. These are packed in their own bag, and are easily 40x6.5x2.5 cm (without island). The detailing on the hull is basic (portholes, access ports and what seem to be emergency equipment just under the flight deck), but adequate. The flight deck has the various markings raised, reducing the amount of decals required. I'm not certain if I like this idea - while it will simplify painting, I personally would prefer detailed decals. The overall hull is crisply moulded, with very little flash or excess plastic.

Moving on to the second, and smallest bag, this contains the sprue with the aircraft (12 Yak-36) and the helicopters (4 KA-25). I was thrown looking at this bag, as there are 8 sets of rotors. Only when I examined the instructions relating to the 'copters did I realise that there are two sets per 'copter (one on top of the other). Again, the moulding is crisp, with little excess. There is a decal sheet here, with six rows of 14 red stars, ranging from very small (say 1mm) to absolutely tiny (say 1/4 mm).

The last bag holds three sprues. The largest is the one with the island structures on it. The second sprue holds items such as the ship's boats, the missile tubes, the gun turrets, and most of the forward and aft details. The last sprue, the smallest, has the remainder of these details, as well as the island details. There is also a decal sheet here, with the ship's name and pennant number. Once more, all parts are crisply moulded, with very little excess.

The last item is a small cardboard sleeve. I had thought, based on the weight, that there may have been white metal castings involved - on opening this, two metal bars slid out. These, I understand from the instructions, are to assist with the overall weight and stability of the model. This is the first time I have seen this, and I must admit I think it is a good idea. Only time will tell if the enemy of all models, the ever-present household feline, will let well alone a heavy model (heavy in comparison to "standard" models - the overall weight of the bars is enough to give some mass, but not too heavy).

The instruction sheet is relatively clear, despite being totally in Japanese - a language I have zero knowledge of! The first page is a reproduction of the box art, together with what I would guess to be some history on the vessel. The second page has three graphics - the first is a basic side view, and seems to be identifying the main areas of equipment on the carrier (eg, the 76mm guns, the SSN-12 missiles, etc). The second is a top view, and seems to be giving painting guides. The last is a detailed side view of the finished vessel. The last two areas on this page are, I guess, hints and tips on building and painting the ship. The third page consists of the first seven stages of assembly, and is quite clear. The last page is of the final two stages, and again is quite clear.

Overall, I must say that, at first look, this seems to be a good kit. While I dislike the raised detailing (there is no scribed detailing as far as I can see) and lack of decals, the moulding has impressed me. Quality seems to be quite high. One thing I really like is the depressions in the flight deck where the lifts from the hanger deck are. While I would have liked to have had a small area of the hanger available, I will happily settle for having some of the aircraft on the lifts, at various heights.