Fuse halves

OS2U Kingfisher Build

2

RF-4E Phantom II, JASDF 501st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron

Sprue H Closeup

Sd.Kfz.10 Ausf.A w/5cm PaK 38

In-porgress shot of fuselage and wing assembly

F6F-5(N) Nightfighter

9

M2A1 1940 Medium Tank

Finished

P-51D Mustang "Aces of the Eighth" Dual Combo

Parts trees

Spad XIII (early)

Runner A

Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf. Type J/L/M, Part 1

Turret detail

Tiger 1 "Early Version"

22

Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor

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Welcome to the IPMS/USA Reviews site!

Introduction: The primary organization of the IPMS/USA Review website is by IPMS/USA National Contest Class. Within each Class there are sub-menus by kits, decals, books, etc. The Miscellaneous Class is for items that are not class specific or that cross two or more classes.

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Box cover

Bf 109E-7 trop Weekend

Review Author
Pablo Bauleo
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$24.95

Eduard continues to expand its Bf 109E line, this time with a Weekend Edition of their E-7/Trop. The kit comes in 5 sprues (one clear), a “superfabric” seatbelt and two marking options. Recently Eduard has started to offer two markings options in their Weekend editions and I appreciate that.

Construction starts, as usual, with the cockpit. A simple affair to assemble it delivers a realistic representation of the “front office” of the 109 E-7. Decals are provided for the instrument panel or you can paint and drybrush it. Please note that I built this model using a photoetch fret (reviewed elsewhere in the IPMS/USA website), so the seatbelt shown in the image does not represent the “superfabric” one.

Product picture

MiG-15 bis
Review Author
Jim Pearsall
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/144
MSRP
$10.00

Eduard recently released two very good 1/144 MiG-15 kits. This is the PE detail set designed to make the kit even better.

What you get is a fairly small PE fret with color cockpit components and aluminum colored parts. This is pretty good, since most of the exterior parts are will be natural aluminum when finished. There are only enough parts to upgrade one aircraft per PE set.

The Cockpit

This utilizes the Eduard cockpit tub. I painted the interior medium gray (36320) and the seat black. Then the PE instrument panel goes in, and the PE seat belts. The seat belts are absolutely super. There are also two side consoles and two handles which go in the cockpit. I used Gator Glue to put these parts in.

Following the instructions, I put the cockpit into the fuselage along with the intake splitter, and glued the fuselage halves (top & bottom) together. Back to the PE.

Box Art

MiG-15 bis Dual Combo
Review Author
Jim Pearsall
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/144
MSRP
$23.00

This spiffy little kit comes two to a box. There are 5 markings choices. This is the “out of the box” version review. I did the other half of the kit using the Brengun PE.

Major Assembly

Since this is the second of these, I gained a little experience with the first, and I learned something. Well, I actually knew this from before, and that’s the MiG-15 model is a tail-sitter, and you need to add weight to the front. On my Airfix 1/72 MiG-15, I had to put about 6 finish nails in the intake before it would sit on the nose wheel. For this kit, the amount of lead needed just fills the top of the intake splitter.

Box Top

Cockpit Instrument Decals: Hawker Typhoon 1B
Review Author
Eric Christianson
Published on
Company
Airscale Model Aircraft Enhancements
Scale
1/24
MSRP
$16.75

The new website for Airscale (Model Aircraft Enhancements), out of the UK, describe the company as providing ‘High resolution cockpit detailing for aircraft modellers’. This is my first exposure to this company’s impressive products, which range from 1/48th through 1/24th scales and include highly detailed cockpit decals placards, and etched brass. The decals are offered as individual images as well as full panels, and products are offered for WWI, WWII and post-war, for RAF, USAF, USN and Luftwaffe, and for prop aircraft and jets. Their website is well designed, easy to navigate, and they take PayPal. ‘Comprehensive’ is the word that comes to mind, and I will be returning to their site often.

Box Art

Sd.Kfz.234/2 'PUMA'
Review Author
Keith Gervasi
Published on
Company
Tamiya
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$61.00

History

Among the variety of wheeled armored vehicles which saw action in WWII, the Sd.Kfz.234/2 – armed with a 5cm gun – boasted the strongest firepower. The Sd.Kfz. 234 series, which was developed as successor the 8 wheeled Sd.Kfz. 231, had an important role in reconnaissance missions for Blitzkreig tactics. Four variations from 234/1-4 were deployed with differing armament and the 234/2 was the first in this series. Unlike the 231, armored with plate bolted onto the frame, the 234 adopted a monocoque structure to improve productivity and strength. Controls were located in both ends and the front armor plate was 30mm thick. The Tatra-made Type 103 air-cooled V12 diesel yielded 210hp, a maximum speed of 80kn/h, and a range of 1000km. The chassis had sophisticated 8-wheel drive and 8 wheel steering mechanism. The turret was armed with the 5cm Kwk39/1 gun which was able to penetrate 37mm thick armor plate from a distance of 1500m with armor piercing ammunition.