Subassemblies

MK44H-0 Whiteknight

Right front

IJN Submarine I-20

Enigma parts sprue 2

T-55 Enigma

Tractor With Decals

MD-3 Carrier Fire Tractor

Exhaust Pipe 2: Issue 1

Se.5a Scout Royal Class: Dual Combo

Completed wing & fuselage

Arado Ar 234B-2/S3

Finished Model - Stern

USS New York LPD-21

Tree

Soko J-22 Orao

Left rear

VW New Beetle

Legs

Gladiator

Previous Next

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.

Package

Bf-109F-4 Wheels
Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$7.95

The Eduard Bf-109s are some of my favorite models to build. They look great when done up. Of course there are limitations that plastic can do. So that is one of the reasons that we do resin aftermarket parts. Brassin is the Eduard resin line. It combines resin and photo etch in perfect harmony.

This set is designed for the Eduard Bf-109F series. Contained in a typical vacuformed plastic container you get five pieces of perfectly cast light grey resin and a masking set.

Removal of the parts from the sprue is easy enough. Nothing dramatic except the molded in detail which is impressive to say the least. I did have to sand down the spokes for both wheels. Each wheel is beautifully rendered. The tail wheel assembly is a single piece and looks great despite being a single piece.

Adding the parts to the kit is fairly straight forward. Don’t forget to add the tail wheel before you close up the fuselage.

Box Art

USS Missouri BB-63
Review Author
Scott Hollingshead
Published on
Company
Academy Models
Scale
1/700
MSRP
$35.00

When is the last time that you really had fun building a model? Taking a cue from kits like the Bandai Gundam series that my son built several years ago, Academy, and some others manufacturers, are beginning to release kits that are molded in multi-color plastics. The benefit is that without the use of paint, and only a minimal amount of glue, a modeler can realistically create a kit beyond a simple monochromatic representation of their subject. In addition, the fit and finish of kits like this are also beyond what is found in a typical snap-tight kit. In their latest release, Academy has produced a WWII era USS Missouri that really is fun to build, and will bring the joy of modeling to anyone that is able to work with small parts.

Product packaging

Bf-109F-4 Canopy Masks
Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$9.95

The Eduard Bf-109s are some of the best engineered models ever. I’ve enjoyed building them from the get go but there are parts of modeling I don’t overly enjoy. The main one is masking the canopies. Eduard has designed the kit and the canopy masks.

The Eduard masks are made out of Kabuki tape similar to Tamiya tape. I think this is some of the best masking material available. It is pliable and conforms to compound curves.

Since Eduard makes the kit and the masks they fit perfectly. The Eduard masks for the G-5/6 gives you the inside mask for the rear canopy. This set does not. No big deal just an observation.

Product packaging

Bf-109F-4 Photo Etch
Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$19.90

With the release of the new Bf-109F-4 from Eduard we are treated to numerous ways to upgrade the kit should you want to. Eduard has always been known for their photo etch so it is to be expected that they would offer something in photo etch for this kit.

This set of photo etch comes in the normal Eduard resealable package with card stock keeping the photo etch safe. The actual fret is brass with really good detail. The primary areas addressed by this set is the wheel wells, landing gear doors and the flaps.

The wheel well portion offers an accurate rendition of the wheel well insert with the appropriate cutouts. The landing gear doors provide you with two different styles of landing gear covers. I chose to use the ‘normal’ doors. They worked out just fine but you will need to curve them slightly to be accurate. They are suitably thin too. Also to the landing gear are the brake lines and the tie down rings on the bottom of the landing gear strut.

Product picture

B-17 Pilot and Copilot Seats

Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
RESIN2 Detail
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$9.99

This upgrade provides a 1//32 scale improved seat for the HK B-17. It comes in three different options, with two seats to a package. One is the plain seat, one has basic seat cushions and backpad, and one has seat cushions, backpad, and the lap-belt. As the B-17 was (from my references) rarely equipped with over-the shoulder harnesses until later versions, the lap belt is the ultimate in final detail. As you can see in the side-by side view, the kit seat (in basic gray plastic) is about 3/8” taller than the Resin2detail seats. I believe the Resin 2 detail seats are more accurate.