Nieuport 24bis WW1 Fighter

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Nieuport 24bis WW1 fighter

1:32 Injection moulded plastic kit from Roden.

The Nieuport 24bis is a French WW1 fighter aircraft, it was developed from the Nieuport 24, when it was discovered it suffered control problems during flight a new tail was designed and the Nieuport 24 was renamed the 24bis. Deliveries of the Nieuport 24bis started in the summer of 1917.

The Nieuport 24bis was used by the air forces of France, U.S, Great Britain, Poland, Japan, Romania, and some found a home in Russia, where they survived the Revolution of October 1917, and served with both the white and red army.

The Nieuport 24bis has been previously released by Roden in 1:72 and was reviewed here by Paul A H.

The kit come in one of Rodens sturdy boxes with another very nice bit of art work on the top and some information on the aircraft and the versions you can make from the box. The instructions are an A4 size black and white booklet with diagrams on assembly, and some history on the aircraft. On the whole they look clear and easy to follow.

The kit is spread over 7 sprues, and there are some extra bits not needed and some optional parts for the different versions, mainly the airscrews. I find the instructions are vague on what options are for what version so check your references carefully.

The moulding is, as you would expect from Roden, first class with very fine details and no flash anywhere on the review sample. The fabric effect on the wings and fuselage is bang on scale, and will look great under some paint, and the trailing edge of the wings are nice and thin.

There is a choice of 5 different aircraft you can build,

5th Squadron Polish Air Service 1919

Latvian Aviation, Spilve airfield, Riga, 1919

Unknown training squadron USAS France late 1917

Caporal Six, of Escradrille N.159 Aviation Millitarie 1918

Soviet fighting Air Group Swiyazhsk airfield, 1918

The decals are well printed with nice bright colours and fine details as you have come to expect from Roden. The painting and decal instructions are black and white diagrams but look easy to follow, with the paint colours referenced to the Model Master range.

Conclusion

I like this kit, with its fine detail, and high quality moulding and decals will be an ideal introduction to WW1 Bi-Planes. You will need to do some research to ensure you use the correct optional parts for the aircraft you are making.

Review sample courtesy of