PE Installed 1

RN R Class Submarines

Engone 2

Mercedes Benz Actros MP4 Giga Space

Finished model underside of model

P-39K/N

Right

U.S. Scooter - Airborne

Tread detail

M4A3E2 'Jumbo'

Complete 2

Sopwith Snipe (late)

Finished 4

Fw 190A-2 ProfiPack

Cockpit assembly installed in fuse half

P-51 Mustang w/Rocket Tubes

Fuselage and wings

Bf-109E-4, Part 2

Floor panels

Ford GT40 Mk.II ’66, Part 1

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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

Universal Carrier Mk.1 w/Crew
Review Author
Andrew Birkbeck
Published on
Company
Riich Models
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$66.95

I will start this review with a simple statement: this is one of the most complex, highly detailed, and simply wonderful models I have ever had the pleasure to encounter. It has 13 sprues of plastic parts with exquisitely fine details. Additionally, there are three frets of photo etch brass parts, 32 metal springs, 8 tiny metal shafts, and a length of metal chain. The small set of decals covers 4 different vehicles from three different nations’ armed forces. And, despite all this complexity, the kit assembles, with a few notable exceptions, extremely well. So read on!

Box Art

Pz.Kpfw. 35(t)
Review Author
Andrew Birkbeck
Published on
Company
Academy Models
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$39.00

In the mid 1930’s, the nation of Czechoslovakia had one of the most sophisticated military arms manufacturing industries in Europe. Upon the German annexation of the Czech territories known as the Sudetenland in 1938, and the occupation of the entire country in 1939, the Czech armament factories fell into the hands of German forces. Two main tanks originated from these factories, known as the Panzer 35(t) and Panzer 38(t) to the Germans (“t” is short for the German word for Czechoslovakia, “Tschechoslowakei”). The Panzer 38(t) chassis soldiered on throughout World War Two as the basis for a number of tank destroyers and self propelled flak guns, while the Panzer 35(t) had a shorter career.

Product Picture

AD-4 Skyraider
Review Author
Jim Fry
Published on
Company
Trumpeter
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$130.00

As The Douglas Skyraider series was arguably the most effective and all-around aircraft of the Vietnam War, I won’t go into any history. If you don’t know about the Skyraider but are reading this, you should be aware of this versatile aircraft which was used by both the US Navy and US Air Force.

When I received the kit for this review, I first spent time going through the plans and the many sprues to get a feel of the fidelity to scale and detail level of the kit. I was excited by what I saw and anxious to get started with the build.

Product Picture

Watchtower
Review Author
J.R. Sharp
Published on
Company
MiniArt
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$43.00

The Kit

This kit is cleanly molded in the standard multicolored plastic offered by MiniArt. Using the same parts as with the other kits, there are no surprises; all parts are cleanly molded with crisp detail and free of flash.

Construction

Assembly was followed in the same manner as the Townhouse kit, building the corners first and then attaching the walls. Once again, I feel as if this is the preferred method for a better construction. All parts went together without issue on the main structure. Next, it was time to tackle my bane/failure from one of the previous kits…the stairs. I honestly cannot give a whole lot of complements to the stairs due to lack of alignment/attachment points for the entire assembly. I ended up just making the stairs look close to correct and moving on. The manner in which the railings attach on the balcony and stairs is not very sturdy. I found that my cement melted the holes closed in no time.

Product Picture

U.S. Modern Infantry (Iraq War)
Review Author
Chris Graeter
Published on
Company
Tamiya
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$29.00

Kit

The kit comes with two sprues, one for the four US Army figures and one for the four US Marine figures. There is a paper sheet with printed US food ration boxes that can be cut, folded, and glued up to represent these ration boxes. Also there is and instruction sheet for assembly. The first thing you will notice about this kit is that it is not a Tamiya mold, but instead a Master Box Mold. In fact the kit contains two Master Box figure sets into one. Why Tamiya used, Master Box Molds instead of producing their own is beyond me (could be a distributor relationship- Ed). Tamiya has a history of producing excellent figures, so I was a little dumb founded as to this fact when I received the kit. The figures have excellent detail with little to no flash to clean up. There are a few options for some of the figures. There are different weapons and equipment for some of the figures to choose from, but most build up to what you see on the box art.