Finished model

Churchill Mk. III AVRE Combat Engine

Kit Seat on Left with Eduard Seat

Ki-84 Special Attack Units

Engine

WWII RAF Airfield

18

Tom McEwen's Mongoose Rear Engine Dragster

Complete 2

German Submarine Type 201

Limber assembly

Russian Maxim Machine Gun (1910)

Left front

Mitsubishi A6M5a Zero Type 52 Koh Fighter-Bomber

Left

U.S. Scooter - Airborne

Assembled kit

Mechatro WeGo Aka and Kiiro (2 Kits)

28

M1 IP Abrams MBT

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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.

Parts Package

P-61B Cockpit and Gunner Station Detail Set
Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Avionix
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$39.99

Squadron is one of the mainstay companies in the United States for our hobby, and they have been making great strides in providing customers great items at reasonable prices. In this case, their release of the Avionix-range of resin accessories is proving quite valuable. We cannot thank Squadron enough for their support of the hobby, and IPMS USA in particular by providing us new releases. On to the subject of this review: The Avionix front cockpit for Hobby Boss’ 1/32 P-61!

I’m a bit tardy on this review; I received the Avionix review item a month or so ago, but the reason is I needed to purchase a kit to use it on, (I thought the backorder would arrive before the review item) and they keep selling out! Once I had it, I could use it to review the upgrade while meeting the reviewer corps requirement of “Use the set if you can…” I thought it would be an easy to find one, but no… I finally got one about two weeks ago, and here we are.

Parts Package

MiG-3 Seat with Safety Belts
Review Author
Roger Rasor
Published on
Company
Quickboost
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$8.50

Trumpeter’s 1/32 scale MiG-3 kit is quite nice and needs only a few changes to improve it. Some kit reviews have pointed out that number one on the list is enhancing cockpit details, and the seat is the most conspicuous item noted. Quickboost has now addressed that issue by offering a two-piece resin replacement that includes a high level of detail and nicely molded safety belts (the photos below show the level of detail on the front and back of each part). The two-piece seat is designed to fit in place of the kit’s three-piece seat parts. In the comparison photo below, the Quickboost seat (on the right) exhibits superior detail and avoids the ejector pin repair issue found in the kit’s seat back (on the left).

Parts Package

F6F Hellcat Wheels
Review Author
Paul Mahoney
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$7.95

One of the only complaints I have seen regarding the superlative 1/48 F6F Hellcat released by Eduard a few years ago was with respect to the wheels provided in the kit. The kit parts are considered to be too thin, most likely representing the wheels/tires fitted to the prototype and very early Hellcats.

Ironically, Eduard themselves have now release a Brassin wheel set for the F6F that fixes this problem with their own kit. This resin accessory comes with a pair of crisply molded wheels/tires, with a separate pair of hubs and a set of Eduard kabuki masks to ease with painting. The tires have a diamond tread pattern (as opposed to the smooth tires of the kit-provided pieces), and the detail is extremely crisp.

Parts Package

F/A-18E/F Landing Gear
Review Author
Mike Hinderliter
Published on
Company
Scale Aircraft Conversions
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$13.95

Scale Aircraft Conversions makes various landing gear sets from lead-free white metal. Some come with the wheels attached, if needed. Others might have the wheel bay included to help with added weight, but most only come with the new landing gear struts.

The detail of the metal parts is much crisper and looks flawless. The advantage to these parts is their strength, and that they won’t warp under the kit’s weight over time. They will also hold up well while you work with them – no accidentally snapping them apart. To attach the new landing gear, you will need to use CA glue. On SAC’s website, they recommend a gap-filling CA glue so the gear can be positioned the way you want it, and then using an accelerator to bond the parts instantly.

Decal Package

Air National Guard Mustang Decals
Review Author
Roger Rasor
Published on
Company
Iliad Design
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$12.00

1/72 scale builders should be happy to hear that Iliad Design has reduced their 1/48 ANG Mustang decal sheet to 1/72 scale...and added one more option! ANG Mustangs are interesting subjects that, in my opinion, have not been covered very well by domestic decal companies. There are five subjects on the sheet provided in this set. These options provide builders a choice of National Guard Mustangs in a somewhat dulled natural metal finish with Olive Drab anti-glare panels, colorful unit emblems, and prominent code numbers and serials. The aircraft served in units in five Midwestern and Western states in the four years following WWII. Some may have gone on to serve in the Korean War.

The five options are: