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Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Barracuda Studios
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$27.50

Roy Sutherland has been around for a bit, providing resin details we never knew could exist, but now do because of his commitment to improving basic products. This set is one of four that I used on the new (but old) Revell B-1B… they are in Roy’s “Barracudacast” resin accessories branch of his company. On to the review!

This set is comprised of eight Main wheel and tire assemblies, and two Nose wheel and tire assemblies for the B-1B. Sidewall letterngdetail is provided, and the tread is fantastic and deep like the actual high-speed radials used on the Bone. The original release of this kit back in 1983 contained styrene wheels with rubber tires. We know how well that works over time… so did Revell… so about 10 years or so ago, a couple of re-releases before this one, a set of styrene tire halves were provided to replace the rubber versions. Problem was, they weren’t accurate, being more balloon-like with almost no tread. Sometimes ya can’t win as a manufacturer.

Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Furball Aero-Design
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$6.99

Furball Aero design is one of the new companies that has been around for a few years, providing decals for many of the subjects we modelers of Modern Aviation subjects really want but rarely seem to get… Go to their site for details.

This decal is a simple but elegant way to deal with canopy framing… On the 1/48 B-1B, this framing is very prevalent. Now, I know many have not or will not build this kit. It’s huge. It has presence. And it’s an accurate rendition of the “Bone”. For the most part. But with work, it looks great when complete. This model is now on display on the overhead desk of my pod in our B-1/B-52 System Program office, and has garnered a lot of attention…

Review Author
Jim Stratton
Published on
Company
Riich Models
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$37.00

History

The British 6 Pounder Anti-Tank gun was manufactured in the US, in 1942. In early 1943, the US Army adopted it for their use and called it the 57mm Anti-Tank gun M1. The version adopted for the army was modified and supplied to the army with a modified towing hitch and “Combat” wheels. Most branches of the US Army considered the weapon as too heavy and it was also hampered by the lack of ammunition. In 1943 only simple armor piercing ammo was manufactured. It wasn’t until late 1944 before adequate AP ammunition was made available. The M1 could penetrate 75mm of armor angled at 30 degrees at a distance of 3000 meters. In spite of the shortcomings, by early 1944 the M1 had become the standard towed anti-tank gun of the US Army Divisions. The prime mover for the M1 57mm was the Dodge WC-63 and the White halftrack. Over 10,000 M1’s were built for the US Army and 4,242 for the British Army. The M1 was also used by the Free French and Russian armies.

Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Barracuda Studios
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$22.99

Roy Sutherland has been around for a bit, providing resin details we never knew could exist, but now do because of his commitment to improving basic products. This set is one of four that I used on the new (but old) B-1B… they are in Roy’s “Barracudacast” resin accessories branch of his company. On to the review!

This set is comprised of two sets of intakes, and four intake plugs used while the aircraft is on the ground to prevent Foreign Object Damage (FOD). It is relatively simple in use, but requires some mastery of measurement, installation, and Putty/filler work. Up front, this set does NOT address the intake trunking. It only corrects the inaccurate B-1B intakes at rest.

Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Barracuda Studios
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$35.95

Roy Sutherland has been around for a bit, providing resin details we never knew could exist, but now do because of his commitment to improving basic products. This set is one of four that I used on the new (but old) Revell B-1B… they are in Roy’s “Barracudacast” resin accessories branch of his company. On to the review!

This set is comprised of four sets of exhaust augmentor tubes, four augmentor flame holders, four sets of exhaust nozzles without turkey feathers, and three sets of support arms sufficient to detail all four nozzles. It is relatively simple in concept, but requires some mastery of measurement, plastic removal on parts, and care with removal of the support arms from the casting block. Roy also offers PDF instructions for those who need larger versions on his website.