Roden's big 1/32 scale Albatros D.III has been around for a little while now and has understandably proved a really popular kit. It's excellent built OOB, but Tom's Modelworks have a detail set which offers the kind of detail to produce a museum-quality replica. Set #514 arrives on a single brass fret which contains 104 individual items.

It should come as no surprise that the set is designed to very much the same format as its sister set for Roden's Pfalz. In fact some of the standard items are shared, so here you have the same excellent 11-part upgrade for each of the kit's Spandaus. Roden chose to mould the guns with solid cooling jackets, so Tom's Modelwork's delicate etched sleeves will instantly make a huge improvement, while the addition of metal brackets and cocking levers brings the kind of detail this large scale really cries out for.

Likewise in the cockpit, with a new rudder bar complete with toe-straps and a complete set of buckles with with to fabricate a seat harness. The well laid out instructions include a full size template for the straps to be card, foil etc. as the modeller chooses. The rudder bar is obviously rather 2-dimensional for this scale, so the instructions suggest that you may prefer to add the toe-straps to the kit part.

The exterior of the Albatros comes in for a lot of attention, with a complete new multi-part radiator to replace the kit's moulded item, while the fuselage is festooned with small access plates and delicate location brackets for the struts. These will provide a much crisper appearance than the moulded versions can manage, and should look particularly good contrasting against a wood-grained fuselage.

The instructions are clearly laid out with detailed written notes for each of the 12 separate areas of detail covered, plus a very handy introduction to working with etched parts in general. The parts themselves are illustrated as silhouettes in the instructions which really helps in identifying them, and backing everything up on the reverse side of the single sheet of A-4 are excellent illustrations for the Spandaus and the locations of the exterior fuselage details.

Conclusion

All in all this is another excellent set from Tom's Modelworks which will definitely be a worthwhile purchase for anyone building Roden's Albatros and wanting to take the basic model to the next level of detailing. Aimed at experienced modellers and well-priced and executed, it's the ideal accompaniment for the basic kit. Recommended.