Introduction

Eduard have recently re-boxed Hasegawa's old A-4E/F kit into a new boxing titled Vietnam Scooters, which is limited to 3500 units, so Eduard have released three update sets for it, which take care of the weakest parts of the kit.
A review of Eduards Vietnam Scooters boxing can be found here, with Hasegawa's boxing found here.

A-4E/F Exhaust nozzle

Item No - 648 215 Price- £8.50 (Hannants)
The three resin and one small photo etch parts are packed in a blister pack with a foam insert behind the parts to keep them safe, a set of instructions complete the packaging.
The three resin parts replace the whole of the tail pipe section of the Eduard/Hasegawa kit, with a much better looking and thinner exhaust nozzle. The exhaust tube is one piece, so no worries about seam lines.
The exhaust fan is buried in the resin part and may be a little difficult to paint. A P.E part goes over the top of the fan and sits inbetween the two resin parts. The fan is a lot better then the kits parts, but it is debatable how much you will seen.
A small instruction sheet is supplied with the nbuild sequnce and postioning of the exhaust into the kits fuselage. A paint guide for Mr Metal Color paits is included.
The exhaust is the one area of the kit that does need improving in the base kit and Eduard have produced a lovely set for this area.
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A-4E/F Wheels

Item No - 648 214 Price- £5.60 (Hannants)
Packed in the same style as the Exhaust nozzle, this set replaces all the wheels in the kit.
The main wheels have the outside hubs moulded onto the resin parts wirth the inside brake drums as seperate parts. The detail is exquiste with the detail a lot better then the kits offerings, which was too shabby in the first place. The detail is a lot more refined on the hubs and the tyres have a nice tread pattern engraved onto them.
The nose gear wheel comes with part of the landing gear leg as a seperate part. The plastic kit leg will need the nose wheel and its upside down "U" shaped mount removed to fit the resin part. This looks to be the most challenging part as the resin part is delicate. The kits part is all one peice so there is some strength and stability up front, by cutting off thie lower part I do not know how much strength will be lost to the nose gear assembly, until its built.
The nose wheel is a lot better looking then the kits part with a lot more detail for the hubs.
A set of masks is supplied for painting the hubs and tyres.
The instruction sheet shows how the parts fit together and go onto the kit. A paint guide for the usual Mr Color/Aqueous Hobby paints is printed on the reverse side of the instructions.
A nice set of wheels for the Skyhawk. I am a bit unsure of cutting off the nose gear wheel, as that could cause strength problems.
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A-4E/F upgrade set

Item No - 48851 Price- £16.99 (Hannants)
The one brass fret is packed in a resealbe bag with two cardboard inserts and one set of instructions.
The fret is un painted and not adehsive. Parts for the inside of the cockpit has a two part P.E piece for the wall behind the pilots seat and some very nice parts for the inside of the canopy. There is also one small part for the cockpit sidewall which replaces a moulded on part.
P.E parts replace the interior faces of the airbrakes, and one inside face of the air brake wells.
The front slats have new inside detail, and new detail for the actuators, which fit over the kit parts. All of this you will only see if you drop the flaps.
Most of this set is for the undercarrige with pretty much every part getting upgraded. The main undercarrige doors get a makeover with part of a new inside faces, and a hydrualic line. The inside of the main wells get several new parts to detail the bays up, which are very good to start with. The nose leg gets some hydrualic lines added. The nose gear doors have new faces and hinges which fit straight over the kit part.
The air intakes get a pair of FOD covers.
The last items on the instruction sheet is the inclusion of new weapon mounting points for the pylons, which I dont belive you will see if you add external weapons. The two kit external fuel tanks have new P.E fins to replace the rather thick plastic equevilent.
The instructions are the typical Eduard style with the build sequnce taking place over several steps, with parts highlighted in blue that need parts added. Red areas indicate the plastic parts or detail that needs to be removed.
This is a nice set to upgrade the base kit, but some parts do look to be a bit fiddly.
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