Eduard F-104A cockpit ZOOM-set for Italeri kit

[One-Oh-Four]

Eduard F-104A cockpit ZOOM-set.

Product-number 33-142.

Available from many online stores or direct from Eduard for €18,75.

 

 

For quite some years now, Eduard gives the modeller the choice between complete interior / cockpit sets or basic sets to only tackle the key parts of the cockpit such as instrument panels and the like. This set is one of the latter; a ZOOM-set. Instead of two frets of PE as in the other Interior-set, you only get the coloured PE fret.

 

 

The set does include parts to dress up the cockpit sills and has parts for new rudder pedals however. I don't have too much info on the F-104A cockpit but from looking at the drawings and photo in the "F-104 Starfighter in Detail & Scale" it looks like Eduard did their homework. The Instrument Panel does feature the differences I could see between the F-104A and C for instance. I don't know if the gunsight control panel (part 50) would have been predominantly red, however. The F-104C has the same panel that on F-104C-5-LO 56-914 in the Air Force Museum is completely black. The single B&W-shot of the F-104A cockpit that I have doesn't show a tonal difference between the black panel and the red. But then again, I don't know if a tonal difference would show up between those colours in a B&W photo... It may be that it was because the F-104A flew until 1964 without a gun, but really, that's just guessing on my part.

 

Dan Siegle from The Dan Zone is or was busy building a 3D model of the F-104A cockpit. In the line of that quest he posted this composite picture of the F-104A cockpit -made from the original manual pictures- on his site:

 

 

You can use it to check out the basics of the set, regarding the instrument panel and side consoles.

 

The Eduard instructions give you an idea which parts are incorporated and which areas of the cockpit are treated.

 

This set will give your F-104A model a boost by significantly upgrading the cockpit.

 

Highly Recommended!

 

I like to thank Eduard for providing the review sample.