1:24 De Havilland Mosquito Pitot Tube

1:24 pitot tube for the De Havilland Mosquito

A turned metal accessory in 1:24 scale from the Polish brand MASTER. It is not a kit, but a single replacement part for a large model of the British Mosquito. It replaces the plastic pitot tube, that is the sensor from which the aircraft reads its speed.

Why it pays to replace it

In reality the pitot tube is a thin metal tube extended into the free airstream beyond the influence of the fuselage and the wing. Exactly this shape cannot be molded from plastic: a mold calls for draft angles and a minimum wall thickness, so the part from the kit tends to be solid, blunt and often gets deformed when cut from the sprue. In 1:24 scale, moreover, we are talking about a part several centimeters long, which the eye lands on at once. A metal replacement gives the model a properly slender outline and will survive your catching it with an elbow during the build.

Fitting and painting

• Cut the plastic original off and level the mating surface with a file
• Drill the hole perpendicular and rather in two steps, so that the part does not sit crooked
• Degrease the metal and go over it with primer before the final shade
• Fit it at the end of the build, so that it is not in your way while handling the model

Who the set is for

For modelers who have taken on the Mosquito in a large scale and want the details to match the size of the whole model. On a build of this size, replacing the small shapes has the greatest effect: it is exactly on these that the simplification of plastic is most glaring.