The MiG-15 build starts with the cockpit so this will be a good introduction to the "smallness" of this new scale. For such a small build, the cockpit is surprisingly complete with a full, multi-part cockpit tub, a two-piece ejection seat and a little control stick.
The Eduard photoetch instrument panel is a typical "sandwich" affair and has very nice dial details. The common vertical white stripe on the IP is faithfully represented. I've elected to attach the facia to the backing while it is still on the sprue. The background color of the panel is that familiar purplish-grey that Eduard tries to pass off as RLM66
The cockpit parts are painted a light blue-grey that I mixed myself to match the Eduard panel color.
After a sequence of detail brush painting, sealing with a gloss coat, dark panel wash, attachment of the photoetch parts, another gloss coat and wash on the PE parts and a final flat coat, we have our cockpit components ready for assembly. Here is the floor with the front and rear bulkheads added and control stick put into place. The foot straps are little strips of PE that need to folded into shape... not sure how I managed to do it but it will be for naught as they will be virtually invisible behind the IP.
The ejection seat with the PE harnesses.
The instrument panel after it was sealed with a flat coat. The dials were dabbed with drops of Future.
The sidewalls with the various PE parts stuck onto it. The one criticism I have about the PE cockpit placards is how flat they can appear. Eduard took the extra step of adding separate instrument bezels, similar to the instrument panel, on both sidewalls.
The gunsight is supplied as a clear part. It's pretty small but having done similar modifications in the larger scales, I thought I could cut off the reflector glass components and add my own using clear acetate.
Here's my test mule just to see how it would come out. I've since pulled it apart and drilled a tiny depression for the optical element. I want to make sure the reflector glass is glued on as solidly as possible to prevent accidental dislodging. I'll show the final gunsight in my next post.
That's it for now. 1/72nd is definitely small but not unworkably so. It's not dissimilar to the 1/48 scale cockpits that I've been so used to.