Scale Aircraft Conversions has produced white metal replacement landing gear for the recently issued Italeri H-21 “Flying Banana” kit. I have reviewed several of these sets, and purchased a few more on my own, because in all cases they have been superior to the kit items. The white metal gear typically provides a much greater weight tolerance than kit-supplied plastic parts.

These white metal replacements are a clean drop-in for the kits’ plastic parts. The set includes main gear and nose gear struts and supporting hardware. Detailing has been improved over the kit parts (mold lines removed, etc.). The supplied items also include all main and nose gear braces, the nose gear oleo scissor assembly, landing lights and a pitot replacement.

This is Mushroom Model Publications’ seventh book in their Maritime series. A video trailer of the book can be seen on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQq9l4pRwjk. I counted 183 black and white photos and woodcuts, two black and white line drawings, and 33 black and white line ship profiles. Additionally, there are 13 tables and twelve maps. The cover painting is by Grzegorz Nawrocki and is what I believe to be of the Russian armed steamer Vesta and her running battle with the Turkish ironclad Feth-i-Bulend near Constanca on July 22, 1877.

The weekend edition of Eduard’s Bf-109s are for those that don’t want to spend a bunch on their kits. Eduard has started to include markings for two aircraft per weekend edition. This particular release covers the Bf-109G-6 manufactured by Erla. The two aircraft are flown by Hptm. Heinrich Ehrler or Hptm. Gerhard Barkhorn. Erla G-6 are unique in a few ways. The first is that they typically had the extra bulge on the right engine cowling, typical of the G-5 or G-14 variants. Another difference is the ‘sawtooth’ camouflage pattern on the wings.