Finished front view

Hurricane Mk. IIC

Right side

Westland Sea King HC.4

Finished Model

Focke-Wulf Ta-152C1/R14

Sprue sample

T-90A Russian Main Battle Tank

Right front

British M3 Stuart Homey

Trees 4

Lysander Mk. III Profipack

Nose gear well

OV-10A/C

Wing Bottom Added

Part 2 - Henschel Hs-129B-2/RIII Wings, Cowlings and Things!

Sprue front

German Luftwaffe Pilot WWII for Bf 109 Late Version

Right cockpit sidewall with placards

P-61B Black Widow "Last Shoot Down 1945"

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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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Front Cover

Cross & Cockade International Autumn 2013 Vol. 44/3
Review Author
Roger Rasor
Published on
Company
The Great War Aviation Society
MSRP
$33.50

The Cross & Cockade International is the quarterly publication of a non-profit organization known as The First World War Aviation Historical Society. The UK based organization has been publishing these journals since 1970 with the objective of furthering the study of First World War Aviation History. The Company overview on its Facebook page says “Cross and Cockade International can trace its history back to the 1960s. We have always attracted some of the premier historians in the field. Our current President is Air Vice Marshal Peter Dye (Rtd), Director-General of the RAF Museum. We publish a high-quality quarterly journal of original research into the subject.”

NOTE: The journal is apparently not available as single issues, but by volumes. Back issues sell for $33.50 per volume.

Package

US WWII Era Parachutes
Review Author
Roger Rasor
Published on
Company
True Details
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$4.99

MMD-Squadron has added a 1/48 scale US WW II era parachute to their True Details resin aftermarket parts line. The parachute is sculpted to represent a chute in pre or post-mission repose with integral pack, cushion, harness and hardware visible. It is well sculpted with an amazing amount of detail for such a small item.

This parachute would be a perfect diorama accent for any US WWII aircraft model, posed the way parachutes were typically placed on the wings or stabilizers of aircraft prior to a mission so pilots could quickly ‘suit up’ for a takeoff. Two parachutes come packaged on a blister card with a foam pad backing to protect the fragile features of the casting. They are molded in gray resin on a very thin layer of molding scrap. No assembly is required. They just need to be sanded off the small casting scrap, painted and positioned. A fresh #11 blade can then be used to carefully trim away scrap from the edges of the parachute without damaging the details.

Sample Cover

Aircraft Plans
Book Author(s)
Various
Review Author
Dick Montgomery
Published on
Company
Mushroom Model Publications - MMP Books
MSRP
$12.00

Mushroom Model Publications are available in North American from Casemate Publications.

MMP is expanded their excellent selection of scale plans for various aircraft. Sets No. 1 and 2 (detailed below) have been available for several years. In 2014 scale sets, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 have been released. One can see that the plans are of excellent quality and are filled with detail that many modelers value.

The pages, themselves can be removed from the publication and are suitable for framing, even suitable to decorate a display base! The price is right, the quality is excellent, and the subject matter is appealing.

Set No. 1 (978-83-89450-79-1 ) priced at $10.72, formatted in A4 Softcover, spiral wire binding 24 pages in A3 - Pages - 24 (0 in colour) contains plans in 1/48th for these aircraft:

Manufacture's Part Photo

Alpha Jet Landing Gear
Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Scale Aircraft Conversions
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$14.95

I’d like to express my ongoing appreciation to Ross at SAC for continuing to provide us with review items; I know that everyone at IPMS/USA sincerely appreciates your contributions.

This is another in a series of “drop fit and direct replacement” metal gear for your models. In this case, the set is for the Kinetic-series of Alpha jets in 1/48. In my case, it is being used on my “Wingman” German aftermarket release of the kit, and as such, the weight of the resin cockpit, seats, and more make use of metal gear almost mandatory if you don’t want the “failed plastic gear” effect on your model. As an aside, the Wingman release is fantastic too, but that’s not the point of the review.

As you can see by the pictures, 11 parts are provided for this set, totally replacing the plastic parts in the kit. I will say that the metal parts have a bit more “crisp” look to them, and with no mold seam, you can install and paint with confidence.

Package

P-38 Correct Engine Covers
Review Author
Chris Gibson
Published on
Company
Quickboost
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$8.50

Quickboost has come out with a very nice aftermarket set of correct engine cowls for the 1/72 Academy P-38 Lightning. Right out of the clear packaging I could see that they did a very nice job in detail and size.

I took the kit cowls out and noticed I had to glue on the lower radiator intakes. The intakes did not fit very well, and would have to be filled and sanded. I then compared both cowls and you can see in the photos the kit lower intakes are bigger and thicker than the Quickboost. The scoops on the side look much nicer and are hollow, whereas the kit scoops are solid. After comparing them I started the task of cutting the Kit cowls off and installing the Quickboost ones. I used a very thin saw blade to do the job. Be careful and take your time so as not to ruin the rear cowls of the kit.