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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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Review Author
Bryan Krueger
Published on
Company
Dragon Models
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$54.99

This kit allows you to build one of two versions of a prototype WWII Russian tank destroyer based on the ISU-152 assault gun. The goal was to field an anti-tank gun heavy enough to deal with the heavier German tanks like the Tiger II, JagdTiger and any potentially larger tanks the Russian thought might be in the works with the Germans. The first prototype ISU-152-1 (Object 246) was developed in April 1944 and mounted the BL-8 long barrel gun. Performance did not meet expectations so the gun was reworked. In August 1944 a second prototype ISU-152-2 (Object 247) replaced the BL-8 with the improved and slightly shortened BL-10. The penetrating power and accuracy still did not meet expectations so the gun was again sent back for improvements but the war ended before this was ever completed. The 155mm designation in the kit name is incorrect and should not be used in the description of this vehicle.

Review Author
Gino Dykstra
Published on
Company
Dragon Models
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$52.00

Dragon has recently released a 1/35th model of the much used IDF UH-1N “Anafa” Troop transport helicopter. As a bonus, they have included a set of their Israeli Paratroopers – a figure set which was, I believe, the second set of figures released some decades back by the then-new Dragon Models, right behind their Soviet “Spetznatz” figures. As these figures have been on the market for almost 30 years, I will pass on reviewing them yet again and instead focus on the helicopter itself.

Review Author
Tracy Palmer
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$69.11

Tiger II is the common name of a German heavy tank of the Second World War. The final official German designation was Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. B, often shortened to Tiger B. The ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz. 182. It is also known under the informal name Königstiger (German for "Bengal tiger"), often mistranslated as King Tiger or Royal Tiger by Allied soldiers.

The Tiger II was the successor of the Tiger I, combining the latter's thick armor with the armor sloping used on the Panther medium tank. The tank weighed almost seventy metric tons, was protected by 100 to 180 mm (3.9 to 7.1 in) of armor to the front, and was armed with the long barreled 8.8 cm Kampfwagenkanone 43 L/71 gun. The chassis was also the basis for the Jagdtiger turretless tank destroyer.

Book Author(s)
Dariusz Karnas
Review Author
Dick Montgomery
Published on
Company
Mushroom Model Publications - MMP Books
MSRP
$29.75

MMP Books has released Vol 1 (more to come!) in their “Inside” series, entitled, “German Aircraft Instrument Panels”

Volume 1 features instrument faces and instrument panel illustrations for six Luftwaffe aircraft, those being the Bf-109F-4, Bf-110E, Fi-156 Storch, Fw-190A-3, Hs-123, and the Ju-88A-4. In North America, Casemate is the distributor for MMP.

Review Author
Mike Van Schoonhoven
Published on
Company
Model Art
MSRP
$20.40

Model Art Magazine is a monthly magazine that covers aircraft, armor, ships and car modeling. Model Art started releasing magazines in 1966 and has evolved from there over the past forty six years.

This is a special issue released by Model Art covering plastic model aircraft of the IJN in scales 1/72, 1/48 and 1/32. The book is broken down into six sections. Interceptors, Night Fighters, Land - based Attackers and Bombers, Trainers, Experimental and Reconnaisance Land - Based Aircraft and Foreign - Made Aircafts and others.

Each section includes photos of finished models, period photos, available kits, year released and a rating system for a lot of them. The ratings are from one to five stars and you find most of the older kits tend to have a lower rating, but this not always the case as some of the recent releases have some lower ratings.

The very last part of the article consists of minor scale plastic kits (1/100, 1/144 and 1/700).