Paul R. Brown
Reviews By Author
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Hellcat Mk. I MaskPublished:
This set is designed to fit Eduard’s recently released Fleet Air Arm Hellcat Mk. I, but as the Hellcat Mk. I is a F6F-3, the mask will also fit Eduard’s F6F-3 kit. Since Eduard’s Hellcat includes different parts for the central canopy section to allow you to pose it either open or closed, and these parts are actually a little different, the mask set includes separate masks for each option. I chose the open option as I wanted to show off the nice interior provided in the kit. As with Eduard’s other mask sets, these are easy to apply, but I apparently inadvertently stretched the mask for the left front quarter panel of the windscreen as it was a little too wide and covered part of the rear framing. This was easily fixed with a sharp Xacto blade. One gripe I have with… more |
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Su-17/20/22 Fitter Pitot Tubes and 30 mm Gun BarrelsPublished:
This set provides replacements for the two nose mounted pitot tubes and the 30 mm gun barrels for Su-17/20/22 kits. The set is designed for the Modelsvit series of kits, but as I had an Italeri Su-22M-4 kit in the stash and Modelsvit kits are not seen often in my neck of the woods, I used the Italeri kit for comparison. The set consists of 7 brass parts and two resin castings. The two smallest brass pieces are replacement barrels for the 30mm cannons mounted in the wing-roots of the Su-17/20/22. The brass parts are very nicely done and as shown in the photographs, they are a huge improvement over the Italeri parts. You will need to cut off the molded on gun barrels, drill a .6 mm hole in where you removed the kit parts and then superglue in the replacement barrels. Be sure to… more |
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UB-32A-24 Rocket Pods for Mi-24 HindPublished:
The UB-32A-24 rocket pod is a Soviet/Russian rocket pod designed for use on helicopters such as the Mi-8, Mi-24 and the Ka-29. The pod carries 32 unguided rockets that can be launched singly or in a salvo. Eduard’s set provides 4 rocket pods allowing you to load up your Mi-24 Hind. Each rocket pod consists of three parts: a resin pod body, a resin aft shroud and a photo-etch back-plate for the rocket pod. As with any resin set the first step is removing the resin parts from the casting block. The shrouds are easily removed as their connection to the casting block is very thin. The rocket pods themselves are not difficult to remove, but you need to keep an eye on your cut to ensure that the back of the pod is flat. I used an old vacu-form sanding method to square up the ends. I… more |
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Su-25 "Frogfoot" Pitot TubePublished:
This set provides replacement pitot tubes for the Su-24/39 Grach (Rook), better known as the “Frogfoot” in the West. The Grach has two nose mounted pitot tubes. The left pitot is a simple needle point pitot tube, while the right pitot has multiple vanes and spikes about halfway down the pitot, similar to many other Sukhoi fighters. The set includes three brass parts and one resin part. The left pitot is a single piece of brass which comes to a nice sharp point. The right pitot is composed of the circular tubes of the front and back of the pitot tube and the resin part replicates the fine vanes and protrusions commonly seen on Soviet pitot tubes. As with Master Model’s other pitot tube sets, the packaging for the set is really well thought-out as the brass parts are in separate… more |
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Su-9/11 "Fishpot/Fishpot C" Pitot Tubes and Missile Pylon HeadsPublished:
This set provides replacement pitot tubes and missile pylon heads for the Su-9/11 Fishpot/Fishpot C aircraft. The Su-9 was developed in the late 1950’s alongside the Su-7. While the Su-7 was developed as a ground attack aircraft, the Su-9 and the later Su-11 were designed and flown as interceptors. Neither the Su-9 nor the Su-11 was exported, so they are not as well-known as the Su-7 or the MiG-21. The set includes replacements for the nose mounted pitot and the pitot mounted in the leading edge of the left wing. The left wing pitot is a single piece of brass and is easily installed by drilling .6 mm hole in the leading edge of the left wing and inserting the replacement pitot. The set provides two options for the nose pitot; one is simple needle like pitot, while the… more |
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TS-11 Iskra Pitot Tubes, Undercarriage Indicators, 23 mm Gun BarrelPublished:
The TS-11 Iskra (“Spark”) is a single engine two-seat primary jet trainer designed and constructed in Poland for the Polish Air Force. It was also used by the Indian Air Force. As the aircraft was not used by many countries, it was mostly overlooked by model manufacturers until recently. I am aware of two kits in 1/72 scale, the recent Arma Models kit and an older kit by Master Craft models. I picked up the Master Craft kit last spring at a model show as I like odd looking aircraft, so of course shortly thereafter Arma released its new kit of the Iskra. As I have not yet acquired the Arma kit, the comparison photos are to the Master Craft kit. The set consists of seven brass replacement parts, two pitot tube tips, two tiny wheels down indicators (plus two spares) and a barrel… more |
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Su-24 "Fencer" Pitot TubePublished:
This set provides a replacement pitot tube for the Trumpeter Su-24 Fencer kits. The set includes two brass parts and one resin part. The brass parts provide the circular tubes of the front and back of the pitot tube and the resin part replicates the fine vanes and protrusions commonly seen on Soviet pitot tubes. The packaging for the set is really well thought-out as the brass parts are in separate pockets from the resin part and the resin part is contained in a small foam square that is lined with good sticky tape on the back side to keep the resin part from floating around, which is good as the resin parts are very delicate. Construction is very simple, with one caveat. The instructions have a small detail diagram indicating that the there is a step between the pitot… more |
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USN Tie Down Points (Cross Type)Published:
Whenever an aircraft or helicopter is not moving on a US Navy flight deck, it is attached to the deck with tie down chains which are connected to several tie down points scattered across the flight deck. While the real tie down points are sturdy enough to restrain a fully loaded Tomcat or Phantom, in 1/72 scale they would be a real bear to make. Thankfully Brengun has come to the rescue with two new photo-etch sets depicting the two styles of tie down points used by the US Navy. This set is the “cross” or “+” style of tie down point. These were used on the USS Midway and several of the helicopter assault ships such as the USS Belleau Wood LHA-3. The set includes a single photo-etch fret with 119 tie down points – plenty for several 1/72 scale display bases. No… more |
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Su-15 "Flagon" Pitot TubesPublished:
This set provides a set of replacement pitot tubes for the Trumpeter Su-15 kits. The set includes the nose mounted pitot as well as the pitot mounted in the leading edge of the left wing. The set includes 5 brass parts and two resin parts. The brass parts provide the circular tubes of the pitots and the resin parts replicate the fine vanes and protrusions commonly seen on Soviet pitot tubes. The packaging for the set is really well thought-out as the brass parts are in separate pockets of the plastic envelope from the resin parts and the resin parts are contained in a small foam square that is lined with good sticky tape on the back side to keep the resin parts from floating around, which is good as the resin parts are very delicate. The set includes parts for… more |
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R-33E Long Range Air-to-Air MissilePublished:
The R-33E missile is a long range air-to-air missile similar to the US Navy’s AIM-54 Phoenix. It is one of the primary weapons of the MiG-31 Foxhound and is believed to have been intended originally for use against the SR-71 Blackbird, the B-1B Lancer and other high-flying targets, but is capable of attacking other targets at long range as well. The MiG-31 can carry 4 R-33’s and its weapon’s system allows it to attack 4 separate targets at once with the R-33s. Advanced Modeling is apparently a newcomer to the modeling world, but its products are very extremely well researched and molded. This set provides 2 complete R-33E missiles, which are believed to be the most recent variant to enter services with the Russian Air Force. Each missile consists of a missile body with the main… more |