Paul R. Brown
Reviews By Author
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F-14A Tomcat Exhaust Nozzle - Varied PositionPublished:
This set is designed to be used on Academy’s new F-14A Tomcat kit. The set consists of 6 resin parts and 2 photo-etched parts which allows you to assemble a pair of exhaust nozzles for the kit. Each nozzle assembly is comprised of a section with the rearmost fan blades, the flame-holder for the afterburner, the exhaust pipe and the exhaust nozzle. As noted in the title, the nozzles are varied, one is fully opened and one is fully closed, shore-based Tomcats normally appear in this configuration. The parts are cast in Aires standard grey resin which is easily cut with a razor saw and sands well. After washing the resin parts to remove any casting residue, I used a fine razor saw to separate the parts from the casting blocks. The instructions clearly show where to cut the parts… more |
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F-10G Starfighter (Two Seat) Landing GearPublished:
This set is designed to provide replacement parts for Italeri’s 1/32 two-seat F-104 kits. As with most of SAC’s landing gear sets, the metal parts are intended to be one-for-one replacements for the kit parts. The centerpiece of the set is a new single piece main gear section including both left and right main gear struts with attached retraction arms and gear door actuators. The set also provides white metal replacements for the hydraulic lines on the main gear struts. There are four parts to the nose gear – the strut, two retraction arms and what I assume is the nose gear steering unit. The parts are all well cast, but there is a casting seam on all the parts that you will need to remove with either a sharp knife and sandpaper or a fine file. Once this seam is… more |
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F-14 Tomcat Seamless Intakes - Academy KitPublished:
This set is designed to be used on Academy’s new F-14Tomcat kits. The set consists of a pair of drop-in replacements for kit parts F15/F17 and F17/F18 which make up the rear part of the intake trunks immediately in front of the engines. Academy did a nice job in trying to reduce the seam between the upper and lower parts, however, the Quickboost parts eliminate the seam completely. Both intakes are nicely molded and as the intakes are handed the pour stubs clearly indicate which the left intake is and which is the right one. I marked “L” and “R” on the resin parts with a Sharpie before removing them from the pour stubs under the KISS principal, even though I know that they will not fit if swapped, having just completed building the kit. The parts are easily removed with… more |
F-14 Tomcat ECS Heat Exchanger Exhaust GrillsPublished:
This set is designed to be used on Fujimi’s F-14 Tomcat kits. The set consists of 2 resin ramps, replacing the kit’s molded on ramps. The title states that the parts are the ECS (environmental control system) exhaust grills, however, in reality they are the fixed bleed doors which allow excess air to be vented out of the intakes, especially at higher airspeeds when the movable ramps deploy to restrict the airflow down the intakes and keep the air subsonic when it hits the front of the engines. The parts are exceptionally thin and crisply cast. However, as the bleed doors are molded as part of the upper fuselage on the kit, you will need to break out a razor saw or a new Xacto blade to remove the kit parts and install these replacements. I recommend the removal surgery be… more |
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F-14 Tomcat ECS Heat Exchanger Exhaust GrillsPublished:
This set is designed to be used on Hasegawa F-14 Tomcat kits. The set consists of 2 resin ramps, replacing the kit’s molded on ramps. The title states that the parts are the ECS (environmental control system) exhaust grills, however, in reality they are the fixed bleed doors which allow excess air to be vented out of the intakes, especially at higher airspeeds when the movable ramps deploy to restrict the airflow down the intakes and keep the air subsonic when it hits the front of the engines. The parts are exceptionally thin and crisply cast. However, as the bleed doors are molded as part of the upper fuselage on the kit, I used a fine razor saw to remove the kit doors. My regular razor saw was too big to get between the Tomcat’s fuselage and the bleed doors, I opted for a… more |
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DH. 98 Mosquito WheelsPublished:
This set provides replacement two main gear tires, 2 variations of tire rims and a new tailwheel. The main wheel tires have radial tread with raised markings. There is a flat spot, with slightly bulged sidewalls on each main gear tire to simulate a loaded aircraft. The tailwheel appears to be a solid style tailwheel, so there is no flat spot anywhere on it. Oddly, the set does not include the tail wheel strut but instead instructs you to remove the molded tire from parts “A6” or “A7”, so a little surgery will be necessary to install the replacement tailwheel. The set includes two options for the left rim for each main gear, one with a spoke type pattern and the other a more standard looking rim. To avoid confusion later, I installed the same rim on both sides of each tire.… more |
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F-14A "VF-143 Pukin Dogs"Published:
In December of 2019, Academy released a newly tooled 1/72 scale F-14A Tomcat kit. Like many of Tomcat kits of recent years, the kit is clearly designed to maximize the use of the molds to enable the company to issue not only the “A” version of the Tomcat, but also the F-14A+/B and the ultimate Tomcat, the F-14D. Upon opening the box, you will find 8 sprues of grey plastic parts, 2 clear sprues and separately molded intake trunks, ejection seats and upper and lower fuselage halves and a Cartograph printed decal sheet for single F-14A of VF-143. The styrene parts have finely molded features and crisp recessed panel lines. Unfortunately, you will also find quite a lot of ejector pin marks as they are on almost every part. Many of the parts are single sided parts where the ejector… more |
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F-14A Tomcat Masking SetPublished:
This set is designed for Academy’s new F-14A kit. The set provides masks not only for the canopy and the windscreen, but also for the tires or wheel hubs. There are three parts to the windscreen mask, one for each side and the central panel. The main canopy has 4 parts for each section, two for each side. The instructions advise you to cover the rest of the canopy area with liquid masking, but I prefer to cut small strips out of the unused parts of the masking sheet and use these strips to mask off the rest of the canopy. After masking the canopy and tacking it over the cockpit, I painted the canopy frames with flat black as this is the interior color of the Tomcat canopy. When this had dried, I then painted the canopy light gull grey when I painted the topside color as… more |
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BAE Systems and Boeing AV-8B Harrier II – Flying with Air Forces around the WorldPublished:
This is another of the fantastic new books published in the Duke Hawkins Books series. This volume is number 11 of the series and focuses on the Harrier II/AV-8B as operated by the RAF, the United States Marine Corps, the Spanish Navy, and the Italian Navy. The volume includes at least one photograph of a jet from each country. Apparently, the authors considered just doing a book on the RAF versions, but in the end decided to do an expanded book covering all versions of the Harrier II. The AV-8B/Harrier II has its origins in a USMC requirement for a replacement for the AV-8A Harrier. McDonnell Douglas designed and proposed a much upgraded and improved Harrier, resulting in the AV-8B Harrier II. Different variants were developed to meet the requirements of the RAF and the USMC… more |
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USN Mark XIII TorpedoPublished:
The Mark XIII torpedo was the primary air-dropped torpedo of U.S. Navy in World War II. While it originally entered service in 1938, due to a series of design flaws, its performance during the first years of World War II was dismal, often running erratically, failing to maintain the correct depth and arming prematurely. However, continued improvements to the Mark XIII during the war eventually made it a powerful and effective weapon. Later in the war, Mark XIII’s were used on American PT boats on roll-off racks, replacing the bulky torpedo tube launchers originally mounted (United States Naval Undersea Museum). This new set from Brengun allows you to build a single Mark XIII torpedo in several different configurations: early (1935-1942); late (1942-1951); and a specialized… more |