“Communication Chief Lizbeth informed me that we were receiving an automated distress signal from a terra forming station on the planetoid LV-426. While not exactly on our current flight path we were the closet ship available to investigate....”

AMMO by Mig Jimenez offers a plethora of finishing and diorama accessories for just about any modeling need: paints, static grass, scenic plants, and pliable terrain among others. One such item is from their Terra Form Premium Textures line of acrylic base ground textures. Case in point is item 2178: Road Sand.

For those that are not that familiar, AMMO's line of products has previously produced a series of ground textures (mud, concrete, etc.) that trend toward a somewhat course texture. The products in the Premium Textures line are similar to those, but with what appears to be a finer grain. When applied, these products make for a much smoother and, for me, more realistic surface.

Casemate publishing continues its ongoing series of post-World War Two conflicts in Europe with an interesting volume that concentrates on Britain’s contributions to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in the last phase of the Cold War. This is an unusual volume in that the text is derived from the author’s Ph.D dissertation on the same topic. The volume is richly illustrated with color photographs, which I imagine would be well received by the modeling community. As with other publications in this series, it includes maps and 22 color profiles of vehicles, aircraft, and uniforms from this era.

Marmo’s Model Building Guides

Richard Marmo publishes model building guides for specific kits that provide greater insight than is usually included in the kit’s basic instructions. Richard uses photographs plus thorough written descriptions of his actual build to aid the modeler step-by-step building the kit. Richard‘s writing style is very informative and often includes humorous advice on how to avoid the pitfalls of model building. His written narratives go into much more detail than can be provided in the basic kit instructions. The photographs are high quality and because they are in a digital format can be zoomed in to magnify detail. This is particularly useful when a kit has many small parts like the one reviewed here. The guides provide additional tips on modeling techniques, tools, and materials, to expand the modeler’s knowledge. At four bucks each these model building guides are a must have for modelers.