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Review Author
Mike Van Schoonhoven
Published on
Company
Model Art
MSRP
$14.75

The September issue of Model Art Modeling Magazine is just another fine example of this publication. The text may be in Japanese, but the pictures clearly tell the story. All this time, people have told me that all I had to do was get a book that had plenty of pictures and I would be set. Well, I may have found my book!

This issue starts out with an article about the IJN Aircraft Carrier Akagi, and if it had survived to 1944, what she may have looked like. We all know that she met her demise in the Battle of Midway in 1942. The modeler (Yamauchi Takashi) used the Hasegawa 1/350th scale model and converted it. All I can say is -- wow! This model is amazing.

The next article is dealing with 1/700th scale model kits of IJN large aircraft carriers. The carriers shown are the Akagi, Kaga, Syokaku, Zuikaku, Tahio and Shinano. There are thirteen pages that review the different kits of each of these carriers.

Review Author
Dan Mackay
Published on
Company
Dragon Models
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$23.50

The Sd.Kfz. 263 Funkspahwagen (8-rad) is part of Dragon’s 1/72 “Armor Pro” series. You get 91 medium gray hard plastic parts on five sprue trees with minimal flash. The instructions are very well illustrated with six sequences of assembly and painting guides for 5 marking options. The detail is exceptional and is consistent with other armor kits in this range. The decals are in perfect register and allow you to customize the license plates numbers.

Review Author
Mike Van Schoonhoven
Published on
Company
Model Art
MSRP
$24.00

Having limited exposure to Model Art Magazine except for thumbing through them occasionally in a vendor room, I was more than eager to do a review on this product. Even though the text is in Japanese (except for some English text sprinkled in), the photographs are excellent and really make it easy to follow along. Even though this is a magazine, the print quality and binding is more like a softcover book.

This is a special issue dedicated to airbrushing. It is broken down into four chapters.

The first chapter is further divided into ten stages. In the ten stages you are taken from setting up a compressor through using different diameter airbrush supply hoses and couplings. They also cover setting up an exhaust hood and different types of airbrushes (single action, double action, and a pistol grip type). The last of these stages focuses on getting proper paint-to-thinner ratios and, in conclusion, they cover airbrush cleaning and maintenance.

Book Author(s)
Gordon L. Rottman
Review Author
Marc K. Blackburn
Published on
Company
Osprey Publishing
MSRP
$18.95

Osprey Publishing is without a doubt one of the most prolific publishers of military history on the face of the planet. Whether you build models, teach history, or are an armchair historian, Osprey has something for you. This new release is part of their Elite series which tend to focus on particular units or armies. This title has a tight focus – the US Cavalry Groups that fought in the European Theater of Operations during World War Two. The author makes it clear at the beginning of the book that this title provides a focus on the thirteen cavalry groups that fought in the ETO. The coverage does not include the two that served in Italy or Southern France or remained in the states.