Complete

GeeBee R2 Racer

Finished Frame 1

Russian Air Defense Weapon System 96K6 Pantsir-S1

Engine exhaust

Bf-109F

Right Front

Albion 3 Point Fueller

Finished Left Front

P-39L/N US WWII Fighter

Frame assembly with rear drive wheel

Yamaha YZR500 (OWA8) "Team Lucky Strike Roberts 1989"

Finished

1969 Mercury Cougar Eliminator

Sprue back

German Luftwaffe Pilot WWII for Bf 109 Late Version

Sprue T

Soviet JS-4 Heavy Tank

Zoom in on missle boxes

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

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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 packaging

Large Circular Airfield Display Base
Review Author
Rob Booth
Published on
Company
Coastal Kits
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$15.13

Coastalkits from the UK has produced a line of model display bases in various designs, shapes and scales from grass airfields to modern hardscapes. This particular design is a replica of the join line between an asphalt and concrete light line and taxiway in a circular cutout. The diameter is 300 mm (about 11&3/4 inches) and is suitable for small to medium sized 1/72 scale aircraft.

The resolution of the printing is excellent, and provides a realistic setting as an added presentation touch for your latest masterpiece at contests, or in your display case at home. The artboard core of the base makes for a lightweight addition to your contest take-along accessories that will make your model stand out from those that are simply placed on top of the standard entry paperwork.

Product packaging

Crusader Air Intakes (For Afterburner Cooling)
Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$7.95

Extreme appreciation to Eduard for their having once again provided a sample copy of a long-awaited product, the F-8E Crusader, and the usual wave of thanks to the IPMS USA leadership for ensuring I received it!

This upgrade provides additional detail for the recently re-released Hasegawa F-8E crusader under the banner of Eduard, in the form of a hollowed out intake with visible depth to the intake. Just four parts here; two very thin PE baseplates with rivet detail, and the scoops themselves.

Installation steps: drill the two mounting holes in the afterburner position on the model at the pre-located drill hole wells from the inside, then carefully remove the PE baseplates from their fret. Dress the cut marks with your favorite method, then set aside.

Package

SE.5a Propeller Four-Blade
Review Author
Bill O'Malley
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$7.95

Eduard has issued a four-bladed resin propeller to upgrade the propeller in their SE.5a kit. The upgraded propeller includes resin and photoetch parts with much finer detail than the kit propeller.

The Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5 was introduced in 1917 with a 150 HP V8 Hispano-Suiza 8A engine with two-bladed counter-clockwise (left) rotating propeller. The SE.5a was an improved version of the SE.5 and was one of the fastest fighters of WWI. The SE.5a aircraft was originally produced with a 200 HP Hispano-Suiza 8B gear-driven engine (‘Hisso’), with a counter-clockwise (left) rotating four-bladed propeller. The gear-driven engines proved unreliable, and were quickly replaced with the 200 HP Wolsely Viper direct drive engine with clockwise rotating (right) two-bladed propeller.

Box Art

USMC F-4B/N VMFA-531 "Gray Ghosts"
Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Academy Models
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$62.00

Extreme appreciation to Academy and their USA distributor Model Rectifier Corporation for sending out this new version of their venerable F-4B/N kit, and the usual cheerleading wave of thanks to the IPMS USA leadership for sending it to me.

This kit sat a while in the link. I’ve built two of the Academy F-4’s, a “B” and a “J”, and had impressive results from even MY feeble modeling skills. Kits like this take a bit of time to construct, but are well worth it in the end.

What’s in the box are the same parts from the previous Academy Rhinos, with the exception of single color gray plastic, with no white, black, and gray parts. Yes, also clear parts. The decal sheet is new, for two plain-Jane gull gray over white F-4B’s from the Vietnam era for VMFA 531, The “Gray Ghosts”. The last version is the overall Light Gull Gray scheme with a Dark blue fin and markings. Yep, I went for some original color!

Package

F-100 Super Sabre Pitot Tube
Review Author
Jim Pearsall
Published on
Company
Master Model
Scale
1/144
MSRP
$3.20

Master Model of Poland produces small brass parts for detailing models, be they aircraft or ships. They have parts for aircraft in 1/32, 1/35, 1/48, 1/72, and 1/144, mostly pitot tubes, refueling probes, and gun barrels.

This “add-on” is a single pitot tube. It’s very fine turned brass. The detail is so fine that I had to use my magnifiers to determine that there are three different diameters on the pitot, getting smaller at about 1/3 and 2/3 of the length.

The instructions are to the point:

  • Remove the kit pitot from the mount.
  • Drill a hole in the mount.
  • Glue the new pitot in the hole using CA
  • Put the mount under the F-100’s intake.

I was able to skip step 4, as the kit pitot was already mounted under the nose.