Kovozávody Prostějov (KP) 1/72 Anslado SVA9 and SVA10Reviewed by Brad Cancian
Item:
KPM0448 SVA10 “Other Services”
KPM0447 SVA10 “Italian Services”
KPM0446 SVA9 “Other Services”
KPM0445 SVA9 “Italian Eagles” (not reviewed here)
Scale: 1/72
Price: 12.99 Euros each, direct from Kovozávody ProstějovReview kit kindly provided by KP Models at
https://www.kovozavody.cz/?s=S.V.AThe Ansalado SVA9 and SVA10The Ansaldo SVA (named for Savoia-Verduzio-Ansaldo) was a family of Italian reconnaissance biplanes of World War I and the decade after. Originally conceived as a fighter, the SVA was found inadequate for that role. Its impressive speed, range and operational ceiling, with its top speed making it one of the fastest of all Allied combat aircraft of the war, gave it the right properties to be an excellent reconnaissance aircraft and even light bomber.
The SVA9 and SVA10 were designed upon the same basic design, the former primarily designed as a training aircraft (with its cockpit configured accordingly) and the latter as a reconnaissance and light bombing machine. Most were powered by the SPA 6A six-cylinder inline engine. While the SVA9 remained unarmed, the SVA10 was provided with a flexible machine gun for the observer and 1-2× synchronized Vickers for the pilot. Pictures of the SVA9 and 10 show both a split cockpit and communal cockpit configuration. Optional over-wing fuel tanks could be supplemented by a jettisonable under-fuselage tank for a total of eight hours endurance.
By October 1918 the SVA10 was starting to trickle into front-line units in small numbers, including several Sezioni (flights) that eventually folded into Squadriglie 87ª, 31ª, 86ª, 57ª, 56ª, and 58ª. Unfortunately, the SPA-6A engine was difficult to produce, resulting in only small numbers of SVA9s and 10s being completed before the Armistice. More of them were produced post-war, serving with at least eighteen different countries.
After the war, Ansaldo sold two-seaters to Poland, Lithuania, Ukraine, Georgia, the Soviet Union, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Yemen. A deal with the USA looked promising but fell through. Guns removed, the plane also saw civil use in Italy, delivering mail and as trainers, with their last flying days in 1936.
The SVA9 and SVA10 in 1/72Not surprisingly, for a relatively obscure machine, there have not been too many kits of these particular variants in 1/72; more popular has been the single seat SVA5 variant. That being said, Choroszy Modelbud previously kitted an SVA9, and RVHP an SVA10, both in resin. KP have therefore been the first to kit these aircraft types in main stream injection moulded form.
The Bits and BobsRecently, KP have been utilising previous releases of other manufactures as the basis for their kits. From what I can see, the SVA9 and SVA10 moulds used by KP here have not been based off the Choroszy Modelbud or RVHP kits. Doing a little snooping, I have determined that these moulds are based upon the AZ Models SVA5, with the fuselage parts modified for the enlarged dual seat cockpit (valid given the SVA models were all based off the same basic airframe), the wings / parts sprue being the same as the AZ kit, and an additional sprue added for the interior and additional weaponry. A novel approach!
In any case, what we get in the box is a single large sprue of grey plastic, two sets of fuselages to account for the variant differences, a smaller plastic sprue for the additional interior pieces, a clear sprue for the windscreens, an instruction booklet, and a decal sheet, all nicely packed in KPs usual end-opening box. The box has some striking box art (noting both seem to be based off the same overall 3D master), and the colour schemes provided on the reverse side.
The plastic sprues contains a total of 67 parts, and are the same for all four releases of the SVA9 and SVA10 currently being sold by KP.
Firstly, there is some flash to deal with, but this is not major. I for one am willing to cut KP some slack here; they are using limited run mould technology to keep the costs of the kit very reasonable for us consumers, so some flash must be expected.
As per their most recent releases, the surface detail is lovely. We get a smooth finish, relatively sharp detail around the forward fuselage panels (with a couple of minor exceptions around the engine louvers), and some excellent renderings of ribs under fabric for the flying surfaces. The ailerons, elevator and rudder are moulded into their respective flying surfaces, but hinge detail is sharp.
The fuselage parts capture the unique tapering and curved shape of the SVA fuselage, with the appropriate lumps and bumps. We get complete fuselage parts for both cockpit configuration variants, which is nice and saves the need for cutting or inserts. Detail on the interior of these pieces is crisply done. There is some softness to some of the louvre detail on the forward fuselage, but this may have also been the case on the AZ kit which was used as the master. There are also some mould release pins on the interior which may need to be dealt with, but these are in places that don’t get in the way of the interior detail.
The main sprue contains the flying surfaces (which are nicely presented, as above), and the detail components. Of note, we get some lovely radiators (with alternate parts depending on the variant used), nicely detailed instrument panels, and crisply louvered chin panels for the forward fuselage. We also get some nicely to scale struts; some care will be needed in removal and clean up.
The smaller sprue contains the newer parts for the interior (which looks quite nice and suitable for this scale) and the additional accoutrements that the SVA9 and 10 variants exhibited. Interestingly, these are in a slightly different coloured plastic, suggesting perhaps an additional sprue supplier for these pieces. In any case, detail is crisp and consistent with the rest of the kit.
Lastly, rounding out the sprues, we get some nice and clear little windscreens.
InstructionsThe instructions are printed on a single folded A4 sheet and are printed in black and white. The instructions contain colour call outs (in Humbrol paints), a parts breakdown, and construction sequence consisting of 8 steps. Though no rigging diagram is included, the SVA didn’t have much rigging of note. Sufficient detail for the minimal rigging can be gleaned from the box top.
We get some detail on which parts are used for which variant, mainly for the interior. Other alternative parts such as chin panels and radiators, as well as the jettisonable under-fuselage fuel tank, will be at the judgement of the modeller. As the instructions are generic for all of the kits, study of period photographs and the box art will be needed in selecting the appropriate pieces for the colour scheme you are modelling. I also note that there are both trainers and operationally equipped aircraft depicted in both the SVA9 and SVA10 boxes, so be mindful of this.
The instructions also give the modeller the option to cut the upper wing piece in half, and more accurately re-connect them with smaller plastic rods, so as to better represent the two-piece wing of the actual aircraft. My recommendation, should you choose to do this, would be to use stiff wire of the appropriate gauge into some pre-drilled holes.
Colour schemes for three machines are provided in each boxing; they all provide some interesting variations for the modeller:
KPM0448 SVA10 “Other Services”:
• SVA10, “2”, Czechoslovak Air Force, 1920
• SVA10, “5K”, Latvian Air Force, 1925
• SVA10, “30”, Polish Air Force, 1922
KPM0447 SVA10 “Italian Services”:
• SVA10, “89-1”, Italian Air Force, 1929
• SVA10, “31”, Italian Air Force, 1927
• SVA10, “24436”, Italian Air Force, 1927
KPM0446 SVA9 “Other Services”:
• SVA9, “Fray Bentos”, Chile (unknown year)
• SVA9, “12880”, Polish Air Force, 1920
• SVA9, Netherlands Air Force, 1925
As noted above, there are armed and unarmed variants in each box, so take the SVA9 vs SVA10 delineation with a grain of salt…!
DecalsThe decals are produced in house and are very nicely printed with solid colour and good register. Seat belts are included as decals. The decal film looks nice and thin, with minimal carrier film. My only gripe is that the small Italian shields in the “Italian Services” SVA10 boxing are printed on the rudder stripes. It would have been better to have printed these separately, so that the modeller could paint the rudder stripes rather than having to use the decals. In my experience, rudder stripe decals never work rightly, and one can never really colour match the paint around the edges of the rudder. Oh well.
Accuracy and BuildabilityI don’t have the datafile on this aircraft in my bookshelf, nor any other published three view drawings, so I am unable to draw any detailed conclusions as to the accuracy of the kit, other than to say that it ‘looks’ like an SVA and captures the nuances of that aircraft’s lines reasonably well. There are some photographs which show aircraft with some additional fairings around the cockpit, so again, study of your chosen colour scheme may be beneficial. One minor omission I did spot is the lack of aileron control horns, but these are easily added from small sections of sprue or etch from the spares box.
As noted above, care will need to be taken in removing and cleaning up the smaller and more fragile parts. This may be made more complex by the slight softness to the plastic. Unsurprisingly, this model does have its complexities by virtue of the original’s design, in particular, its wing strut arrangement. A method that has worked for me in the past also has been coming up with a jig from strip plastic over a piece of clear plastic, with the strut holes match-drilled in the clear plastic to match the upper wing piece. Other than that, I think this should be a straight forward build.
ConclusionsThis is an excellent release of this often overlooked yet important Italian machine. Whilst we do get some flash here and there, and some fragile pieces that will take some care to deal with, we also get some crisply moulded details, a comprehensive interior, and an excellent to-scale representation of fabric over wood. With the varied colour schemes on offer, the model should build up into an attractive representation of the SVA. KP should be commended for its release; and future releases of this type!
Our very sincere thanks to KP for the review samples!
