Osprey Above and behind

MV-22B Osprey

Tomcat almost ready

Carrier Deck Section

Right front

F-15E Strike Eagle

Left-rear view

MIM-104F Patriot Surface to Air Missile System M901 Launching Station

Finished

WW1 US Pioneer Skeleton Tank

Clean Up Needed

MaxxPro Dash with SPARK II Mine Roller

Right front

McDonnell Douglas FG.1 Phantom

100_5423

Japanese Refueling Cart

Dragon rear deck detail

Churchill Mk. III

Finished model

Stan "Long Haul" Thompson

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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.

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

Product Picture

Helicopter Crew Vietnam
Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
PJ Production
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$13.75

Figures in 1/48th scale, in particular helicopter figures, are like hen’s teeth. So when a new set comes out I am all over it. The latest of these releases is from PJ Production out of Belgium.

Packaged in a small end opening box, with a ziplock baggie inside of that, are three pour blocks of light grey resin and a tiny M-60 machine gun. The small M-60 is loose in the baggie so be careful you don’t lose it when opening the bag. There are no painting instructions inside, but the cover photo of the finished figures is adequate for the job.

The three resin figures represent two pilots and one door gunner. This would seem to indicate that it for a Loach since they sometimes flew with a crew of three and Hueys flew with a crew of four. All the figures have chicken plate body armor and SPH-4 type helmets, but in this scale they could easily be APH-5 helmets. The one thing that stands out is that the heads have microphones molded on. Great job.

Product Picture

Retribution - The Soviet reconquest of Western Ukraine 1943-44
Book Author(s)
Prit Buttar
Review Author
Allan Murrell
Published on
Company
Osprey Publishing
MSRP
$35.00

This is book is a follow up to Prit Buttar’s On the Knife’s edge and begins after the battle of Kursk that turned the tide of the Eastern front in favor of the Russian forces. Retributions goes in to detail of the massive Russian offensive that forced a now desperate and shaken German forces out of Western Ukraine.

The author gives accounts of the many little-known battles that were constant throughout the Russian offensive. The this comes from the first-hand accounts are from the German and Russian soldiers that bring this to life.

I learnt so much from this book that I was not aware of and the information and writing really draws you in. The book is 480 pages and there are only a few illustrations, and these are battle maps.

Cover Art

USS Skipjack Class Submarines
Review Author
Allan Murrell
Published on
Company
OKB Grigorov
Scale
1/700
MSRP
$25.00

OKB Grigorov has provided a super USS Skipjack submarine which represent this classic class of American Submarine. The Skipjack class first entered service in 1974.

Included is:

  • Five resin parts
  • One photoetch sheet
  • One resin submarine
  • One resin stand

The detail quality is great; The parts are very delicate parts that need careful removal from the resin bases.

There was no instruction sheet in the box I received to review, this was not a problem as it was a simple build.

The assembly is quick and easy.

The resin stand is an awesome addition to the kit.

I would like to have seen some small decals.

The final part is painting.

Thanks go to OKB for providing this kit to review and IPMS USA for allowing me to review it for them

Cover Art

Rommel’s Mammoth DAK AEC Armored Command Vehicle
Review Author
Michael Reeves
Published on
Company
AFV Club
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$79.99

AFV Club kits for me have always been a bit of a challenge - multi-part assemblies that could easily be presented as lower part count builds are usually the norm for me. This particular build for the most part avoids this issue, except for the undercarriage. The only real issues encountered for me was in the order of assembly in some cases which will be outlined as we go. The kit is a rebox of the AEC Dorchester kit from 2012. Obviously these three examples were basically captured Dorchesters so the only changes were in the interior equipment and schemes of the three examples captured by the Germans as we will soon see.

What’s Inside the Box

The kit has an assortment of different media-plastic, resin, and PE, but not in overwhelming amounts. Inside we get:

Packaging

North American B-25 Mitchell Decals, Part 4
Review Author
Dave Morrissette
Published on
Company
Lifelike Decals
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$16.39

Lifelike Decals from Japan is one of those hidden gems people need to hear more about. With a large selection in the most popular scales, they have decals for WWII era planes from Japan, Europe and the US. This set covers Part 4 for the B-25C/D/J in 1/72 scale and is meant for the Airfix B-25C/D and Hasegawa B-25J. The first two markings are for the famous Air Apaches of the 345th BG.

Inside the package, there a three small decals sheets covering the roundels and markings for four aircraft. The decals are a mixture of Cartograf and Microscale which is great. A separate page has information on the roundels used at specific times. There is a profile page containing the instructions and details about the four planes represented. Lastly is the cover with the top and bottom profiles and a detailed reference page.

The sheet covers four aircraft: