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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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.

Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
Ultracast
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$7.95

Ultracast has been providing replacement wheels for quite some time. The latest offerings are all designed for the Mosquito. What sets Ultracast wheels apart from the rest of the replacement wheels is the bulge. They are realistically bulged and will add an appropriate weight to your model.

Perfectly molded in light caramel color, there are two wheels per set that are molded with unique treads. The pour blocks are small and placed in an inconspicuous place, the flat spot. Adding them to your Airfix, Monogram or Tamiya model is very easy. Remove the wheel from the block, clean up with a sanding stick, then paint and add.

Also when you order from Ultracast directly you will have to add $9.95 CDN for shipping and handling world wide.

Review Author
Doug Hamilton
Published on
Company
Revell
Scale
1/24
MSRP
$34.95

The Revell/Monogram offering of the Tom Daniel Paddy Wagon is a recent release of nostalgia. Originally released in 1968, the Paddy Wagon is one of many collaborations between noted show car designed Tom Daniel and Monogram. Others in the series include The Red Baron, Rommel’s Rod , The Beer Wagon, and The Garbage truck to name but a few. Anyone of a certain age will have fond memories of these kits, and if you’re like me, very happy to see them again on store shelves.

The kit contains 88 parts, and is molded in dark blue plastic, and has one sprue of gold plated parts. Four tires, a clear windscreen and two headlight covers round out the parts list. Then there are the two cop figures, more on these later. The instruction sheet contains nine steps, all of which contain multiple mini steps, and the final step shows decal placement. Paint call outs are part of each step, and are easy to follow.

Review Author
Roger Rasor
Published on
Company
GasPatch Models
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$23.00

GasPatch’s growing line of aftermarket detail parts includes cast metal detail parts that will add considerable detail to rigged aircraft. This line includes a wide array of turnbuckles and anchor points (available in both 1/48 and 1/32 scale) for Allied and Axis WWI aircraft. As a previous review of the Gas Patch product line accurately states: “these items represent a significant and notable advance in the quality of aftermarket parts for WWI aircraft”.

Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
Lifelike Decals
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$16.30

Lifelike Decals has produced another sheet for the Hasegawa/Minicraft/Academy and Eduard 1/72nd B-24s.

Contained in a 6x9 Ziploc baggie, the first thing you will notice is two A4 sized single sheet full color instructions. One sheet contains the front with the profile drawings and the back page has the plan views and references listed where Lifelike got their information from. This is a particularly good idea because if you wanted to verify the information you could. The other thing this does is it allows Lifelike to tell you what they saw. Lifelike is not afraid to make an informed guess if they don’t know something. But unlike other decal companies, Lifelike will tell you if they don’t know something.

Review Author
Mike Van Schoonhoven
Published on
Company
Aires Hobby Models
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$4.99

Product

The gun barrels come packaged in the typical clear cellophane and cardboard insert that Quickboost has become known for. The parts are cast in a light gray resin and feature nice details for the cooling jackets and muzzle. The parts are designed to be used on the Italeri release of the old AMT/Ertl A-20G, which means they can be used on the AMT/Ertl kit if that's in your stash.

Application

When compared to the barrels supplied in the kit, I really feel that it would be a no brainer to use these wonderful barrels. The installation of these barrels require no cutting or modifying the kit parts. Pretty much glue them in and its done. Quickboost provides a quality upgrade for minimal price.

I would like to thank Aires - Quickboost and IPMS/USA for allowing me the opportunity to review this set.