Copper State Models 1/32 scale Nieuport XXIII

[Dave W]

Copper State Models 1/32 scale Nieuport XXIII



REVIEWED BY David Wilson

Scale: 1/32nd
Price:  $A119.99 in Australia; €62 Euro (Export price from CSM); £67.99/ $US 73.90 from Hannants UK;

Stockist: Review Sample provided by and available through Copper State Models at: http://www.copperstatemodels.com
Also available from quality model retailers world wide. 

Contents: 134 parts in grey plastic; decals for five marking options; full colour instructions booklet; photo etch fret; clear film (windscreen)


Background:
The Nieuport XXIII was a development from the Type XVII and had many similarities to the earlier type.
The RAF Museum blog states In French service, the Type XXIII featured an offset Vickers gun, which differed from the XVII. In British service, both the Type XVII and Type XXIII were equipped with an over-wing Lewis gun. A change to the structure of the Type XXIII’s upper wing required a revision to the fitting of the Lewis gun mounting plate. This small difference, in the absence of a visible serial number, is the only visual clue.

The type XXIII was powered by the 110hp Le Rhone  engine.


Comment:
Copper State’s Nieuport kits are now well established and match Wingnuts quality. This kit, the Nieuport XXIII, is like the recently released type XXI, a tweak on the earlier Nieuport XVII models.
While this release features XXX markings, Copper State has now announced a forthcoming RFC edition that is sure to be a very popular seller.
As has been stated before, after an initial foray into 1/48th scale, Copper State moved to 1/32 scale in 2018 with its acclaimed Nieuport XVII kits. They have wisely maximised the moulds with two new variations, a Nieuport XX1 and XXIII.
Nieuport is an instantly recognisable name for some of the most famous French fighters of the First World War.


The kit:                         
Quality and attention to detail are now hallmarks of Copper State Models kits and this is clearly evident in this edition of the kit, which like the XXI draws heavily on the XVII frames, but has new parts and decals representing the type XXIII.




Contents:
As always Copper State Models' 1/32 scale kit comes in the familiar packaging of a solid flip top- opening cardboard box beneath a separate lift off box top featuring distinctive artwork by Antonis Karydis, whose CSM boxart is world class.
The individually bagged sprues within are well protected.
All of the 134 plastic parts, and the decals and small photo etch are individually bagged.
Parts design ( by Edgar Liepnish) and moulding quality is superb, as is to now be expected, there’s no flash to worry about and the sprue attachment points are tiny and thus far easier to gently remove from the frame without damage to the part, something often overlooked by other manufacturers.



The parts feature very subtle surface textures and the delicate fabric stitching is depicted. Wing trailing edges are nicely thin.
Cockpits can make a model and the cockpit interior for the Nieuport is outstanding. The seat back comes fully perforated, a nice detail touch that will reward a careful detail painter.
This is a model that should look like museum quality out of the box, there’s really no need to rely on aftermarket here!
The Le Rhone engine is nicely detailed and ready for extra detailing.





Instructions:
As before, the 22 page instructions booklet cover resembles a vintage Nieuport technical publication, a nice evocative touch.
The instructions booklet, in an A4 format, is well illustrated in colour and clearly shows where rigging and control cables are needed during the build process.
There’s a lot about this kit to like and the parts breakdown looks pretty straightforward to assemble aided by easy to follow instructions.





Photo Etch:
Photo etch quality is good and not overdone. A small single photo-etched fret contains parts including the seat harness straps as well as the windscreen frame and a detail item for the Vickers gun. Copper State seem to be aware that with photo etch, less is best.



Decals & Colour schemes:
The kit features five colour schemes of aircraft operated by Belgian, Russian and Eastern European services. It’s since been announced CSM is to release another edition of this kit in RFC markings.
If there’s a criticism, it’s as usual in the lack of any hobby paint number callouts for the colours.
While the instructions note where particular colours should go, there are no hobby paint brand references provided and this means modellers have to find this information somewhere else. Not necessarily easy for aircraft in what may be unfamiliar schemes to many of us.
There’s a world of difference between being a modeller interested in WW1 aircraft, and knowledge of the colours used by the Russian or Belgian operators.
The decals are printed by Cartograf of Italy, regarded by many as among the best in the world. They are perfectly in register as expected.

A note re the decals- Copper State discovered an error in one of the markings post- decal production, but had a correction set printed and included with this kit- that’s quality service!






Conclusion:
Copper State Models’ latest entry in the 1/32 scale field continues the quality enhancement of its predecessor. CSM have achieved the reputation of producing the definitive large scale Nieuport kits.
Verdict:
Highly recommended.
(Review kit kindly supplied by Copper State Models. Please support the businesses that support this Forum.)