I was in the midst of building Hasegawa's 1/72 F-14A Tomcat when a new list of review items came out and SAC's gear for the mighty 'Cat was one of the available goodies. Having already done some work on the kit landing gear, it provided a great opportunity to do a side-by-side comparison.

SAC's gear come in an attractive clear bubble/card packaging emblazoned with the (USAF) SAC logo. I opened the package, removed a small amount of flashing from the 3 white metal parts, and went immediately to paint – flat white as a primer coat followed by gloss white out of a rattle can. Score one point for SAC, as I had spent a lot of time with needle files, blades and sandpaper removing a whole lotta flash from the kit parts (this is a theme that will repeat in the kit review).

Master Model from Poland specializes in metal turned parts for aftermarket kits. In my personal option they are among the best in the market. I really like their products.

This set is devoted to the USN 16in/45 Mark 1 cannons (without blast bags) and it includes a set of 8 metal barrel which is very nicely detailed down to the holes on the end of the barrels. It can be used for the USS Colorado, USS Maryland and USS West Virginia

The instruction sheet clearly describes where to cut and how to modify the plastic part to receive the aftermarket detail part. It is a very easy task and any modeler with a bit of experience modifying parts will run into no problems.

This aftermarket set will enhance the looks of your finished model.

Recommended to the average modeler due to the need to replace plastic parts.

I would like to thank Master Model Poland and IPMS/USA for the review sample.

If you are looking to improve the appearance of the nose on your 1/72 scale EMHAR F-3H Demon, I would direct your attention to this new release from Pavla Models. Recommended for the EMHAR kit released in 1991, this replacement nose is a clear advancement over the old plastic nose provided in the kit. Modelers with some experience in using resin parts should have no issues with utilizing this part.

As I stated in another recent review, from my perspective, Pavla Models continues to quietly add new items to their product lines in order to add detail to existing kits; many of these lines are intended for aircraft modelers, but there are some AFV items as well. Pavla Models provides replacement canopies that are vacuum-formed as well as cockpit sets, ejection seats, and general detail sets for aircraft.