Cockpit Doors and handles

Sikorsky CH-54A Tarhe with Universal Military Pod

Kit Contents - Side View

British Sea Harrier Pilot, Falklands War, 1982

Full cutaway view

SKYMECHMAN TRENT 900 LED Turbofan Engine Model Building Kit Aircraft Engine for Kids

Folded right outer wing

F4U-1 Corsair, Part 3 – The Finale

Photoetch

TBD-1A on Floats

Finished model of Countach

Lamborghini Countach 5000 Quattrovalvole

Painting body

UH-60A Black Hawk, Defence intelligence of Ukraine

Nose turret

Short Sunderland Mk. I

Fuselage Assembly Front

B-17E, F, and Early G: Part 1 - First Look and Interior

Finished Bottom

Horten Ho-229 Night Fighter

Previous Next

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.

Book Cover

U.S. Army Signal Corps Vehicles 1941-45
Book Author(s)
Didier Andres
Review Author
Tim Hortman
Published on
Company
Casemate Publishers
MSRP
$37.95

The latest title in Casemate’s Illustrated Special series is U.S. Army Signal Corps Vehicles 1941-45 by Didier Andres.

Chapters

  1. Introduction
  2. Evolution of the Model K
  3. Radar Trucks
  4. Radio Trucks
  5. Multi-Purpose Vehicles
  6. Specialized Vehicles
  7. Specialized Trailers
  8. Telephony
  9. Special Cases
  10. Sources

This hardbound book was of great interest to me, as my Great Uncle was with Co C, 4th Signal BN in WWII. This book follows a few others by this author on similar subjects which are also of interest to the modeler.

Package

Airbus A321 Neo Landing Gear for Revell Kit
Review Author
Chris Smith
Published on
Company
Scale Aircraft Conversions
Scale
1/144
MSRP
$13.95

With the success of its A320/321 Airbus has proven a worthy competitor to the Boeing 737. This set replaces the gear parts in the Revell A321 New Engine Option (NEO) kit. Six parts are provided and the casting is directly from the kit parts including runners with kit part numbers on them. No doubt, there are advantages to metal parts supporting a model of this size but there are some issues. Removing the parts from the sprues was difficult to do without distorting the parts. The metal used is very pliable so they can be straightened out. In this scale, I don't know how precise the parts prep would have to be but the sample had some offsets in casting that needed a lot of material removal to make level joints. Once the struts are glued to the main gear, it makes a pretty stout assembly. I did not have the kit to compare too but photos references do match the parts fairly well.

Cover

British Bombers of the 1970s and '80s
Book Author(s)
Chris Goss
Review Author
Ron Bell
Published on
Company
Key Publishing Ltd
MSRP
$24.95

This book covers only the Blackburn Buccaneer and the Avro Vulcan. The author was intimately involved with the Buccaneer as a pilot and instructor, so most of the volume concerns this aircraft. In fact, he states that he spent most of his career avoiding the Vulcan so is not really the man to write about that aircraft. It is not really a reference book as no background, historical or technical information is supplied in the text, and the only text besides that on the five pages of the Foreward, Introduction and Appendix consists of the captions of the numerous photos, which are the real heart of this short work. Many of the Buccaneer photos are from the author’s collection and it is obvious that this volume is an homage to that aircraft, with the Vulcan taking rather a back seat. The photos, and there are many, many of them, are of value to the modeler for the different markings shown rather than detail shots of landing gear, ejector seats and such which some may be looking for.

Book Cover

Images of War Panzergrenadiers 1941-1945
Book Author(s)
Ian Baxter
Review Author
Andrew Manriquez
Published on
Company
Pen & Sword
MSRP
$22.95

With every major conflict or war there are new developments on how fighting gets executed. The German use of the Panzergrenadiers is one such development that came along to support their novel Blitzkreig tactics of the Second World War. If a charge was to be ‘lightning’ fast, it could not be done with the traditional walking pace of infantry following fast moving armor. By motorizing troop movements via armored carrier and piggybacking personnel on tanks, German troops could move quickly to take advantage of the rapid changes in the battlefield.

Spooks Cover

Spooks From the Beach – USMC F-4B/F-4J Phantoms in the Vietnam War
Review Author
Phil Peterson
Published on
Company
AOA Decals
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$22.50

The United States Marine Corps were a major operator of the F-4 Phantom during the Vietnam war flying both the B and J versions.

AoA’s very comprehensive set covers six Marine Fighter Attack Squadrons with more than 15 possible schemes. There is also a full set of stencils included for one aircraft.

The squadrons are:

  • VMFA-115 Silver Eagles which include some neat looking metallic eagles
  • VMFA-212 Lancers
  • VMFA-232 Red Devils with their distinctive squadron markings
  • VMFA-314 Black Knights
  • VMFA-323 Death Rattlers which also includes helmet decals
  • VMFA-334 Falcons

There are left side profiles and top views for all aircraft and multiple pages for the stencils which cover all sides of the aircraft. There is also a small sheet that covers details for each airframe including paint specifics and instructions if certain decals need to be applied before others.