Introduction

Monogram's 1/48 scale B-26 Marauder is a nice kit (see the review of the Revell reboxing here ). However it was released in the late 70' and misses details in some places. Eduard have recently released a serie of photoetched references to improve the kit and the second in the line, the B-26 bomb bay set (48562), will allow you to raise the level of detail of the model to contest standards.

The set

Eduard's new B-26 Marauder bomb bay set comes in the standard packaging of the Czech manufacturer: a resealable plastic bag with a cardboard sheet to prevent that the metal sheetings are damaged. The set is composed of two photoetched frets and one A4 sized instruction sheet.

Fret one is mainly composed of parts which will improve the look of the bomb bay doors (internal structure). Some parts are also present which are destined to detail the two bulkheads of the bomb bay. Two doors are included in case you want to show the access to the navigator's cabin or the waist gunner positions. But you will have to scratchbuild these areas as there is nothing represented there in the original kit.

Fret two is more eclectic and is composed of parts to detail the bombs (tails, fuze prop, fasteners etc...) but also to replace the two ladders in the bomb bay which are in fact the bomb racks. The "ladders" will probably represent the biggest challenge of this set because each one is made of no less than 32 PE parts of which some are very small, not to say microscopic! Numerous other detail parts are also present such as the bomb bay doors open/close mechanism (wheels, actuators, etc...), electric wires, fasteners etc...

The parts on both frets are all very nicely done with precise relief detail. Again, some a very small and you will need to remove them carefully from each PE sheet. For the longer parts, which need to be folded to shape, a bending tool is almost obligatory. It is better you buy one before assembling this set. In any case that's what I will do.

Instructions

The instructions are printed on an A4 paper sheet and are very precise. The plastic parts which have to be removed on the original kit are clearly indentified with an orange color while the PE parts are represented in blue. In fact my only complaint is that the instructions don't show how some parts must be folded to obtain the final result that can be seen on the drawings. This is especially the case for the complex bomb rack "ladders".

Conclusion

The set is composed of approximately 160 parts which will allow you to display the bomb bay of Monogram's B-26 in the opened position. It will give to the experienced modeler many diorama possibilities, but also the opportunity to build a contest winner. I recommend it to anyone wanting to build a highly detailled and ambitious B-26 model in 1/48 scale.