Image 8

FJ-2 Fury

Resin Templates

F-4J Phantom Hypersonic Models Stabilator Upgrade, Part 3

assembly of main airframe complete

Hurricane MK IIc Trop

Forward left side seams

MiG-25 PU

Aircraft installed

USS Oriskany

Pilot_House

Vosper MTB 74 with Crew (Part 1)

Chukar 3D parts

MQM-74A Chukar Target Drone

Tail wheel strut detail

F4U-1 Corsair, Part 2 – Engines, Wings, and Things

I-46 Stern

Imperial Japanese Navy Submarine I-15/I-46

Cockpit

J2M3 Raiden ‘Jack’ Part 2

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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.

Product Image

SUPERgloss
Review Author
Scott Hollingshead
Published on
Company
ScaleFinish
MSRP
$9.99

To start my review, I want to thank Phil Peterson for his efforts at the IPMS Nationals in reaching out to vendors for products for the IPMS Review Corps. As a result of his work this year, I can review for you the ScaleFinish SUPERgloss clear coat, which I had great results with, and would highly recommend. Spraying the product at 20 psi using my airbrush, I had no issues getting the results I wanted.

Packaged in a plastic 2-ounce bottle, SUPERgloss only has the following instructions on the label, “pre-thinned” and “Shake well before use. Spray at 20-30 psi.” The product is an acrylic enamel, so it does have a mild aroma when used, but nothing too bad.

Box Art

F6F-5D/K Hellcat "Target Drone"
Review Author
Scott Hollingshead
Published on
Company
Platz
Scale
1/144
MSRP
$19.49

Platz Hobby produces several kits in 1/144 scale (currently 394 to be exact), and I was fortunate enough to receive this two-plane kit for review. In addition to the parts for two aircraft, there are markings for four different planes included. Construction was quick, and the detail is very good for this scale. Modelers familiar with working with small parts should not have issues building this release, and I would highly recommend it.

There have been many releases of the F6F in its variants over the years, so I probably do not need to mention much more on the history of a plane that had over 10,000 copies released during WWII. The dash 5K planes featured in this release were used following WWII as drones, drone controllers, and to tow targets. The final combat missions seen by these planes were as radio-controlled air-to-ground guided weapons used in Korea against well defended targets in the North.

Package

Zimmerit Set for Tiger II Henschel Turret
Review Author
Eric Christianson
Published on
Company
Monroe Purdue Studios
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$20.00

Perusing the website of Monroe Purdue Studios (MPS), out of Simi Valley CA, will uncover a variety of unusual modeling products, including a growing set of very affordable laser-cut wood and paper Zimmerit sets, among a lot of other interesting items. Visiting their booth at the 2021 Las Vegas IPMS Nationals, I looked at a dozen or so build-ups in various stages of completion, demonstrating the uniqueness of their products. I came home with two sets; one a complete zimmerit set for the 1/35th scale HobbyBoss King Tiger II (the subject of this review), and a 1/35th scale laser-cut wood set for cases of wine (the subject of a separate IPMS review).

Description

The set for the King Tiger is purpose-designed for the HobbyBoss (Henschel Turret) kit, but also closely fits the Tamiya kit as well, parts of which I used for this review since I do not own the HobbyBoss offering.

Package

Glu-Budy
Review Author
Ben Morton
Published on
Company
Tiger Werke
MSRP
$10.50

Tiger Werke Resin’s latest entry making modelers life easier is the “Glu-Budy”. As with almost all their products, the Glu-Budy is cast in a light gray, urethane resin and requires neither assembly nor painting. [However, you do have to take it out of the box. :)]

This lightweight resin glue/paint holder will help eliminate that dreaded problem of the errant tipping of your modeling supplies. The “Glu-Budy is sized for square bottled modeling supplies (glue, panel line accent colors, decal solutions, etc.) from various providers (Tamiya, Mr. Hobby, etc.) This item has one square orifice and another round one sized for 10ml paints or other finishing supplies (Testor's, AK Interactive, etc.)

Tiger Werke Resin also has another Glu-Budy (#35227) that features two square receptacles should one prefer. Anyone (that would be all of us) who has ever tipped over a bottle of glue or paint can appreciate the utility of either Glu-Budy. You may want several....

Cover

Presentation Spits, Part III: Spitfire Mk.IX Decals
Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
Foxbot
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$24.13

Let’s face it, British aircraft are pretty standard as far as camouflage goes, however, they sometimes exercised some individualism in personal aircraft. This release from Foxbot decals deals with just that.

Inside of the resealable baggie, is a single sheet of 8.5 x 11 heavy stock paper folded in half to provide some protection. The instructions are printed in full color and feature the profile view for six aircraft. On the backside of the instructions are stencils and the color callouts using FS numbers, Humbrol, Model Master and AKAN paints. The plan view is also shown with both the A and B scheme.