REVELL 1:48 LIPPISCH P13A

Reviewer: Adrian  (rec.models.scale)

The Lippisch P13a is a very unusual looking aircraft and was designed by the Germans as a small fighter with delta wings and fin.  The radical design incorporated the pilot within the fin and was to be powered by a rocket motor and ramjet propulsion unit.  The aircraft was only in the first sketching and design stages by the time the war finished and many of its attributes can be seen in later US designs such as the Delta Dart/Dagger family.  Very little information has been known and released about this aircraft and certainly before Revell released this design I had no idea it even existed.

This is just a small model for its scale and in the box you will find a trolley (similar to that used with the Me163 Komet as the aircraft did not have undercarriage).  It is also a very simple kit for this scale and only a few dozen parts make up construction of the aircraft - the rest is for the trolley.

The wing halves are joined and then attached together to form the body of the aircraft with the ramjet exhaust grill trapped inside the.... fuselage?... I also added in a mold of putty to ensure there was no see through effect and painted the interior black.  The grill was painted in gun metal.

You then move onto the cockpit that includes rear bulkhead, rudder pedals, instrument panel, seat and control stick.  The instrument panel has raised instrumentation but the kit also provides a decal if you prefer.  I chose the decal and carefully scraped the raised detail off the console and affixed the decal with backing sheet with a drop of superglue.  The cockpit and the rest of the interior was painted in medium to dark grey.  The fin halves then trap the cockpit unit within, a small bit of detail is included on the walls either side of the cockpit.  The canopy was then placed in the opening - needing a touch of trimming to fit snugly into place.

Apart from a couple of external detailing pieces that concluded construction of the aircraft, with the landing trolley the next task to assemble.  The trolley itself has a tricycle set of unweighted wheels with two large rear wheels and one small "nose" wheel :)  These wheels are attached to a frame constructed by small strutlike pieces and is quite easy to assemble.  I didn't glue the P13a aircraft to the trolley, rather I liked the idea of just allowing it to sit on the trolley in the display cabinet.

Two speculative versions with colour schemes are reproduced by the kit and the decal sheet is large and extensive with good register.  However, it has a thin matt finish and was prone to curling and disintegrating when applied to the model.  I had lots of problems with the decals so a lot of care needs to be taken when affixing them to the model - perhaps even call on some spares if you have them floating around from other projects.  I chose to use the boxart as a basis for my aircraft which consisted of RLM matches from the Revell and Modelmaster range, Hellgrau undersides and olive green and green-grey camouflage lines on the upper surfaces with tank grey mottled effect (the latter not depicted on the boxart).  Since the aircraft is completely speculative I thought my design could taken on any pattern I felt appropriate.

Overall a very good kit, easy and quick build that would suit basically all levels of modelling skills.  The only annoyance of the kit was the decals - best replaced - but other than that if you are interested in this sort of material then the Revell P13a is a recommended kit. 

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