IPMS/USA thanks the Aires Aerobonus team once again for sending us this simple, excellent items for use in a diorama setting. And thanks to Phil and John for obtaining the sets for the team…

This set consists of one perfectly cast figure of a Kettenkraftrad driver. These vehicles were used on many German airfields later in the war to move smaller aircraft around the local flughafen. (One of these also served as a “Rabbit” decoy in the movie “Saving Private Ryan” in the last battle scene).

Not much to say here: It’s simple but can be done to excellent standard if you have the tools, time, and skills. With my painting ability, I could do a lot better, but I’m on deadlines. You get the idea. Paint, wash, highlight, done. I just love micro photography too: shows up every grain of resin dust that I can’t see with my old eyes…

The Do-335 has been well represented in 1/48th scale with the old, but venerable, Monogram kit and the more recent Tamiya one.

Master has had a long held reputation of producing some extremely accurate turned metal barrels and this set is no different. Packaged with a card stock protective backing inside a little ziplock bag are the five beautifully rendered pieces. The nose blast tube is in the front spinner, along with two 30mm cannon barrels on top of the fuselage is included. There is also a pitot tube and FuG-25 antenna. All of them are thin and have no mold lines and are perfectly round. Something I cant do in plastic. The best thing about these sets is that they are stronger and thinner than plastic.

The instructions are easy to understand and follow. You will have to drill some holes but the size and location are clearly shown.

The options for the Tamiya kit are plentiful. What more could you ask for? Well how about opened panels, such as the 20mm Gondola gun pods? Having built up both the Eduard and the Tamiya Bf-109G-6s I think the open gun pods on the wings adds visual interest. When accompanied with the positionable cowling arrangement on the Tamiya kit these little gems will set your kit apart.

Packaged in a typical Brassin blister pack with the contents protected by foam and cardboard are twelve pieces of grey resin and one fret of photo etch. The instructions are on two small double sided pages with line drawings that show everything you need to do and the order that you need to do it in.

The set is actually easy to use. Easier than you would have thought. Removing the parts from the pour blocks is simple enough and fitting the parts to the model is simple a matter of aligning and gluing them in place.