SSN 687 bow

USS Richard B. Russell SSN-687

Sprues

HMS Illustrious

Cockpit Detail

Yokosuka MXY7 OKHA Model 11

9

CR.42 CN WWII Italian Night Fighter

Fuse

FW 190A-8 - Royal Class

Skirt Detail

Soviet T-35 Heavy Tank - 1938/1939

Fuselage assembly

Academy B17E "Pacific Theater"

Overhead view

Academy B17E "Pacific Theater"

Belgian (11)

WW1 Belgian Infantry

Finished intake

F4D-1 Skyray Part 2 – The Build

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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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Book cover

Aircraft of the Aces #136 - Allied Jet Killers of World War 2
Book Author(s)
Stephen Chapis, Andrew Thomas
Review Author
Eric Christianson
Published on
Company
Osprey Publishing
MSRP
$23.00

Osprey Publishing, out of Oxford, UK, is back again with another Aircraft of the Aces series entitled Allied Jet Killers of World War 2, by Stephen Chapis and Andrew Thomas. Jim Laurier was commissioned to illustrate the various allied aircraft via original color artwork. Anyone familiar with aircraft modeling literature and research will recognize this authoritative series, and this latest release won’t disappoint.

Allied Jet Killers follows the format of the previous Aircraft of the Aces volumes, containing beautiful (original) color plates and numerous black and white photos with detailed captions, although much of what is contained in the captions is also reflected in the main text.

The photos are credited, and while I’ve seen some of the images before, most are new to me.

Packaging

Vietnam Ace Captain Steve Ritchie and Friends
Review Author
Dave Koukol
Published on
Company
Werners Wings
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$16.00

Background

The air war in Vietnam was a departure from what the United States had experienced in prior conflicts. The over-dependence on air-to-air missiles, micromanagement of operations from the White House, and countless constraints and rules of engagement put American aircrews at a distinct disadvantage against North Vietnamese adversaries. Despite those limitations, the US forces adapted to circumstances, exercised some good old American ingenuity, and managed to generate several aces and some legendary missions based on unorthodox tactics. A common thread in the making of these aces and employment of these tactics was the F-4 Phantom II.

Box Art

F-4S Phantom II: Part 2, Completion
Review Author
Rob Benson
Published on
Company
Zoukei-Mura
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$75.00

I am honored and privileged to review a beautiful new scale model offering in the Super Wing Series from Zoukei-Mura, Inc. I also wish to extend a very deep appreciation to the IPMS/USA Reviewer Corps for choosing me to review the F-4S variant of the famous McDonnell Phantom II.

The kit was released on 26 JUL 17, following on the heels of a previous F-4J release in the same scale and series. This review is the second of two sequential reviews, including my adventures in completing the kit build. This final review dovetails with the previous IPMS reviews of the Zoukei-Mura F-4 kits. I am not a subject matter expert (SME) on the F-4x family, but I sure enjoy a well-designed kit and fun build, learning about the real thing as I go. The Zoukei-Mura F-4S does not disappoint!

Cover

British Destroyers 1939-1945 Wartime-built Classes
Book Author(s)
Angus Konstam
Review Author
Bill Kluge
Published on
Company
Osprey Publishing
MSRP
$17.95

This is Angus Konstam’s follow-up volume to his earlier work on Pre-war Royal Navy destroyers. As he explains, the real division between “pre-war” and “war-built” destroyers came in 1938, when the new “Tribal” class destroyers came into service. Between the First and Second World War, the Royal Navy operated many destroyers, but by the mid-1930s it was obvious that the Admiralty’s older destroyers were being outclassed by those of foreign navies. Thus, a new series of destroyers was designed to compete directly with potential foreign adversaries, the first being the 8-gunned Tribals, built directly in response to the Japanese Fubiki class. Follow on classes were more balanced designs, with fewer guns and more torpedoes and ASW weapons, and finally, the War Emergency Program classes specialized in simplicity of design for quicker mass production, with lighter surface weapons and more depth charges for escort work.

Product Picture

M60A3 "Patton" Main Battle Tank
Review Author
Andrew Birkbeck
Published on
Company
AFV Club
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$79.99

Background

The M60 series of tanks replaced the M48 as the main combat tank of frontline US armored combat units, first entering production in 1960. Instead of the 90mm main gun of the M48, the M60 introduced a 105mm gun. This was deemed necessary to defeat the latest Soviet T-54/55 tanks that entered service with Warsaw Pact forces in the mid to late 1950’s.