The Model:
Prior to Mirage releasing their 1/350 Flower Class corvettes, the only option were resin versions in either 1/350 or 1/400 scale, with the corresponding high cost associated with them.
Mirage’s Zinnia comes in a cardboard box with nice artwork of the Zinnia in a convoy on the top. Inside the box are three grey trees containing approximately 120 parts, a four sheet (eight page) instruction booklet with a nice color profile and a decal sheet.
The two piece hull measures out to 7 inches in length, which is pretty much spot on for her actual length in 350th scale. Prominent hull plating is molded into the hull. My opinion is it is 
a little overstated, but hull plating is a new trend with ship model manufacturers, as they to up the ante all the time, trying to out do their competitors. Again, I think it’s a little overstated, but will probably look okay under a coat of paint.
The deck is 1 1/16 inches wide, which again scales out very close to the real thing. The forward deck has some nice planking details on it (albeit without the butt ends of the planks). The after deck has some odd diagonal scratches in it, which will most likely disappear under a coat of paint.
The plastic sprues are thick and the attachment points on the sprues are also thick, which might leave you with some clean up or broken parts as you go along. Use caution when removing parts from the sprues.
That being said, the small parts are – for the most part – well done and have nice detail.
The instructions are eight pages on four double sided sheets, consisting of history, exploded view CAD drawings and a color painting profile. The color callouts look a little “off” to me – check your references before painting.
There is no photo-etch included with the model, which seems to be standard with most ship models today.
Conclusions
All in all, this looks like a pretty nice little model in the box. I’m not a Flower-class expert, but it certainly LOOKS like a flower class corvette. While there is no photo-etch in the box, after market manufacturers have released some sets if you want to make your Flower bloom. Retail price is $24.99, which is a nice price point, but you can get it for even less on line.
This should be a nice addition to any ship modeler’s collection, and fit in nicely with any of the plethora of 1/350 German U-boats kits now on the market. Recommended!
Review sample courtesy of Mirage Hobby, via Mike Dobrzelecki of New Jersey IPMS.
-November 2014