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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.

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To learn more about IPMS/USA, please see our About Us page.

Review Author
Mark Costello
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/24
MSRP
$99.99

ICM is a Ukrainian manufacturer and this kit is a 1/24 scale model of the 1886 Benz Patent-Motorwagen, the first patented production motorized automobile. The kit is all new for January of 2020.

Kit

The kit comes packaged in a sturdy box that once the liftoff lid is removed, reveals another foldup lid on the box bottom. There is 1 bag consisting of 4 sprues of grey plastic parts, 77 in total. There is also a cardboard envelope containing a sheet of 12 brass photoetch parts for the wheel spokes and chains with sprockets. There are no decals or clear parts needed for this vehicle. Also included in the box is a printed copy of part of the patent application from 1886. It is printed on heavy cardstock and is weathered to look old.

Book Author(s)
Leroy Thompson
Review Author
Frank Landrus
Published on
Company
Osprey Publishing
MSRP
$22.00

Osprey Publishing has been providing books for enthusiasts since 1968 and since then it has grown, evolved and taken on new challenges until it stands today as one of the most successful examples of niche publishing around.

Leroy Thompson trained and advised military and police special operations units around the world, focusing especially on the tactical use of firearms. He has had over 50 books published and more recent titles include The Hostage Rescue Manual, The Counterinsurgency Manual and Secret Techniques of the Elite Forces. He has also had various firearms books published including Great Combat Handguns, and appeared as a weapons expert on documentaries for Discovery, National Geographic and the BBC. He lives in Missouri, USA.

Book Author(s)
Krzysztof Wolowski
Review Author
Paul R. Brown
Published on
Company
Mushroom Model Publications - MMP Books
MSRP
$29.00

This book is one of MMP’s Spotlight series and deals with the Me 163 Komet.

The book begins with a brief two-page history of the development and deployment of the Me 163.

The bulk of the book consists of 40 color plates illustrating many of the color schemes used on the Me 163 with a couple of plates for the DFS 194 development aircraft and the Me 263. The Me 163A test aircraft and many of the Me 163B prototypes were painted in overall RLM 76. Several of the plates show different prototype configurations and some of the aircraft have dark red anti-corrosive paint patches on them evidencing either repairs or places where the paint has worn through to the underlying primer. The plates also include Me 163B V41 in overall RLM 23 Red flown by Maj. Wolfgang Spate.

Book Author(s)
Justo Miranda
Review Author
Pablo Bauleo
Published on
Company
Fonthill Media
MSRP
$45.00

Fonthill Media has released the latest book from Justo Miranda, covering the “Panic Fighters” of World War Two. The definition of a panic fighter relates to designs that were rushed into service, due to the high likelihood of being attacked by a larger, more powerful country (hence the “Enemy at the Gates” title).

In this book there are three countries listed as “Aggressors”: Germany, the Soviet Union and Japan. Almost all the other countries are the ones that react with some sort of ‘panic fighter’ design/prototype. Each reacting country has its own chapter with a description of their military situation and a description of the different airframes in their air forces.

Given that most of these airplanes were designs, or even conceptual designs, some of the drawings are speculative (clearly listed when that is the case) or based on educated guesses.

Review Author
Allan Murrell
Published on
Company
Hauler Brengun
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$13.50

This is Brengun has released 1/72 US 300gal Fuel Tank mainly used on US Navy aircraft. These were commonly used on A-6 Intruders, AV-8B Harriers, A-7 Corsairs, A-1 Akyraider and S-3 Vikings to name a few.

In the box is:

  • 4 x light grey resin main body of the fuel tank
  • 3 x light grey resin tail unit
  • 1 photoetch sheet of the tail fins
  • 1 light grey resin mounting part
  • 1 instruction sheet

In the review copy the resin mounting parts were missing and I have two Photo etch sheets rather than one. The kits still build nicely without the mounting parts.

The resin is well molded with very little flash and are well detailed. The resin parts are to allow you to make the four versions of the fuel tank used on the aircraft.

Construction

First is the removal of the parts from Resin. You should be careful removing the main fuel tank as these are easy to damage.