6

Glowing Ghost of the Red Baron

Completed Interior

Sd.Kfz.234/3 mit 7.5cm KwK

Rear detail

M1113 ACAV

Right-rear

ASF-X Shinden II "Ridgebacks" – Limited Edition

Finished rear

US Staff Car

Modified kit props, engines, and drilled out bulkheads with added brass tubes

Sikorski JRS-1 The Boat, Limited Edition

Finished rear view

MA-1A Start Cart

Top Wing Set

Halberstadt CL.IV (Rol.)

Left rear with trailer

Sd.Kfz.2 Kettenkrad Early Production w/ Infanteriekarren

Wheels

Carl Casper’s Cosmic Charger

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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.

IPMS/USA Members: We encourage you to submit reviews, both here and to the Journal. To volunteer for membership in the IPMS/USA "Reviewers Corps" and submit your own reviews, please read the Guidelines For Submitting Product Reviews.

Manufacturers, publishers, and other industry members: IPMS/USA is pleased to offer your company the opportunity for product reviews. All product reviews are performed by IPMS/USA members, and are posted in the publicly-accessible section of our website. With very few exceptions, we perform full build reviews of new kit releases, aftermarket products, and supplies. If you would care to provide product samples for review, please contact John Noack, IPMS/USA 1st VP.

To learn more about IPMS/USA, please see our About Us page.

Box art

USS New Jersey & USS Essex
Review Author
Mike Hanson
Published on
Company
Aoshima
Scale
1/2000
MSRP
$5.00

Two Tiny Ships

The USS New Jersey and USS Essex by Aoshima

  • USS New Jersey
  • USS Essex

I like small models, so when I saw these two 1/2000 scale kits from Aoshima on the review list I quickly asked for them. Aoshima makes a whole series of ship kits in this scale, and I admit that I liked these review samples enough just upon opening the box that I went out and ordered a half-dozen more. The series includes American, English, and German subjects. There are unfortunately no Japanese ships included in this series so far.

Since the kits are so small, and are very similar, I’ll be reviewing the two sample kits side-by side.

These two kits represent a couple famous WWII US Naval subjects – the USS New Jersey BB-62 and the USS Essex CV-9.

Contents

USN/USAF 35lb Lubricating Bucket Pump

Review Author
Dave Morrissette
Published on
Company
Aerobonus
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$10.00

Aires has issued two versions of a 35 lb. lubricating bucket pump used to grease planes and the like. Both versions have exactly the same resin, photoetch and paint schemes. The only difference is the decals- one is for the US Navy and the other, the US Air Force. It makes sense to do these build concurrently.

The resin consists of eight parts; four for the wheels, the handle, the plunger and the main body. The parts are cast perfectly and only the large body needs a pour spout removed. The photoetch parts are for the nozzles and the handles. There is also a length of wire for the hose. Assembly is pretty quick. The instructions call for you to cut small wire pieces (not included) to add the handle as pivot pins. I skipped this part; it is way to small) and just glued all the parts in place. The four wheels are glued in place and the handles and construction is done.

Boxart

FW-190A Night Fighter
Review Author
James Binder
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$8,177.00

This kit is a new Profipack boxing of the venerable 1/48 scale Eduard FW 190A series, this time in its Nachtjager guise. It was my first foray into the Eduard FW 190 and I was blissfully unaware of the quirks of this kit. I started working on this kit during a build night at my Local Plastic Model Club and two other members warned me as to what I had gotten myself into. As the build went on I was to see why everyone has a love hate relationship with this kit and why it paid to heed their warnings. The Eduard Profipack is chock full of what we’ve come to expect from Eduard. Superb photo etch for the cockpit and other external parts (in this case the antennae for the FuG 217 Radar). Excellent masks for the canopy and wheels, and enough plastic parts to practically make two full kits. It also comes with an extensive decal set for 4 different aircraft from the a-5 through a-8 series and a sheet of stencil decals as well.

Product Picture

Horten Ho-229: Part 2 - Cockpit, Wheels and Wings
Review Author
Dave Morrissette
Published on
Company
Zoukei-Mura
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$152.00

Diving back in, we'll build the cockpit. It is similar to the frame itself. This starts with the two side walls which are detailed with extra levers and gauges and the throttles. These are painted RLM 66 so it stands out from the RLM 2 frame. The rudder pedals are painted and they are sandwiched between the two side frames and attached to the fuselage. Fit is perfect. The instrument panel is next and there are two choices. One is clear and there is a decal that can be added to the back. The second is solid and you can add the decals to the front. I built the clear version with Elmer's in the glass parts and then painting and adding the decal to the back. Once dry, I sprayed the back of the panel black as it is visible in the plane. To finish off the cockpit, the instrument panels is added to the frame and then added to the cockpit with its bracing. The linkage rods and control stick are added and the cockpit is done.

Book cover

T-26 Light Tank: Backbone of the Red Army
Book Author(s)
Steven J. Zaloga
Review Author
Marc K. Blackburn
Published on
Company
Osprey Publishing
MSRP
$17.95

The New Vanguard series from Osprey Publishing is not so new anymore, but they continue to produce one quality publication after another. It seems that at one point they will run out of topics, but thankfully, they have not. The series’ most prolific author, armor expert Steven Zaloga has turned his attention to the T-26. As the subtitle of this book suggests, it was one of the most prolific tanks in the Soviet Army in the late inter-war era.