Mirage Hobby 1:48 PZL.23B Karas

[Radzy]

Hi guys,

As my projects are in various stages that require time (like primed, painted or something) I decided to start over with the PZL.23B Karas.

A little bit about the plane itself.
It was a light bomber and reconnaisance planes developed in 1931-1932 by Polish engineers under command of designer Stanislaw Prauss. The first prototype was flown in 1934 and after few corrections (last prototype P.23/III was flown year after) it was accepted under the codename Karaś (which in Polish means crucian carp). Initially (version PZL.23A) was fitted with Bristol Pegasus IIM2 engine which proved to be innefective it was replaced in version PZL.23B with Bristol Pegasus VIII which gave the 720HP power. Some planes were fitted with Gnome-Rhône 14K engine. Those were known as PZL.43 Karaś.
Plane was build in total numbers of ~250 . They were used by Polish & Bulgarian Air Forces.

Use in combat

Although it was obsolete in the eve of war this plan remained the main bomber in Polish Air Force - the main drawbacks were inadequate engine power, defence weapons and poor maneuverability when loaded with bombs.
Polish planes made several bombing raids in first days of war - amongs others Karaś bombers made first bombing raid on German territory bombing factory in Ohlau (Oława nowadays).
They have also succesfully bombed columns of 1st & 4th Panzer Divisions causing relativly high losses to the enemy (~20-30% of tanks & vehicles plus broken supplies delivery for about a whole day).
Karas crews claimed also 5 air victories - 2 Bf 109, 2 He-156 and 1 observation baloon.

In totals - 90% of PZL.23 Karas were lost in combat or in accidents during the defensive war of 1939. Rest was seized either by Germany or Soviet Union. Some planes were flown to Romania and interned there. No Karas survived the war.

Specifications (PZL.23B) - after Wikipedia (pictures are also courtresy of Wikipedia)




General characteristics

Crew: 3
Capacity: bomber
Length: 9.68 m (31 ft 9 in)
Wingspan: 13.95 m (45 ft 9 in)
Height: 3.3 m (10 ft 10 in)
Wing area: 26.8 m² (288 ft²)
Empty weight: 1,980 kg (4,365 lb)
Loaded weight: 2,893 kg (6,378 lb)
Useful load: 913-1,546 kg ()
Max. takeoff weight: 3,526 kg (7,774 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × PZL Bristol Pegasus VIII 9-cylinder radial engine, 720 hp (537 kW)

Performance

Maximum speed: 319 km/h (198 mph)
Cruise speed: 270 km/h (167 mph)
Stall speed: 110 km/h (68 mph)
Range: 1,260 km (783 mi)
Service ceiling: 7,300 m (23,950 ft)
Rate of climb: 6.7 m/s (1,319 ft/min)

Armament
3 x machine guns:
1 x 7.92 mm PWU wz.33 fixed in nose;
1 x 7.92 mm Vickers F or PWU wz.37 in rear upper station;
1 x 7.92 mm Vickers F or PWU wz.37 in underbelly station;

700 kg (1,543 lb) bombs.



About the kit - You can view the kit review on my YT channel:

[youtube]hkRAnnqKnmY[/youtube]

Cheers,
Radek

[Radzy]

Hi guys,

here comes...

Update #1

So I started building the kit. I'm struggling a little with the instructions, so I've done some initial parts only - pilot's seat, propeller, some machine gun and observers seat.

Nothing fancy, but those small PE parts make a deal in detail (an are PITA to glue ).



That's it for now...

Cheers,
Radek

[jmar829]

Gonna be an amazing build, I can tell already. I agree about glueing PE. The stuff looks great when done correctly, but some times it can really test your patience.

Good luck. I can't wait to see how this one comes along.

Cheers!

[UKscalemodeller]

Beautiful, I have the 1/72 Heller kit with the full Eduard etch set. Dare not try it until my etch skills improve.

Looking forward to this one.

[Radzy]

Well... I've kind of thrown myself into the deep end with those PEs on Karas. Although it's 1/48 but they're really nasty small... and I struggle fitting them... But as Yoda used to say ... patience my young aprientice I hope I will soon leave those "aprientice-hood" or I will die trying

[Nige201980]

Looking great so far it's nice to see something different from the war

[Radzy]

Looking great so far it's nice to see something different from the war

I hope it will be easy to build... I still have very bad memories of old (late 1980s) Polish kits... more flash than rest
But at least this one looks like it will be piece of cake minus photoetched parts

Cheers,
Radek

[greg74]

Radek
of course, with love of Karaś - I have been following this issue with interest and keep my fingers crossed