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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 Author(s)
Jon Guttman
Review Author
Clarence Wentzel
Published on
December 5, 2011
Company
Osprey Publishing
MSRP
$22.95

This book covers Aces of the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). It appears that Osprey will be publishing an additional volume or volumes covering naval aces of other countries. When I heard of this book, I assumed that it would probably cover Raymond Collishaw and other Sopwith Triplane pilots of Naval 10. I was pleased to find that, although Naval 10 was well covered, the history of the RNAS in WWI was surprisingly broad. When we think about British aircraft during WWI, we usually think of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC). However, we must remember that the Royal Navy was called the Senior Service. Both organizations were formed in 1912 and it appears that they both developed in parallel until they were combined in April of 1918. Seventy nine pilots of the RNAS achieved the status of Ace along with another forty seven RNAS pilots who completed Ace status while flying with the RFC.

Review Author
Chris Durden
Published on
December 5, 2011
Company
Master Model
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$14.00

At least to me, Master Model has been putting out some of the most affordable gun barrel upgrades in the industry without sacrificing detail. This set is no exception, providing a quick upgrade to the armaments on what is already a well detailed kit. The set includes barrels for both guns, cooling jackets, ring sights and their mounts (extras included) – don’t overlook the tiny turned bead for the handheld MG either (mine almost was eaten by the carpet monster).

When compared to the kit parts, you can see the difference in refined detail and size. Both of the kit-supplied barrels look clunky in comparison. No other modifications are really required aside from replacing the barrels on the kit parts, so it couldn’t be any easier.

Recommended without reservation.

Thank you to Master Model for the review sample (I just won an AR 196 in our club raffle – so the timing was excellent!) and to IPMS/USA for the opportunity to review this upgrade.

Review Author
Ed Kinney
Published on
December 3, 2011
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$33.00

#32732 – 1/32nd Tamiya Early P-51D gun bay photoetch set, includes pre-painted ammo belts, door placards, gun placards, plus all the goodies to create a winner should you decide to open the bays. Very well done and engineered. MSRP - $ 33.00.

# 32731 – Prepainted seat belts for the 1/32nd Tamiya P-51D. Not much to be said here that the image doesn’t show, except that Eduard is and has been second to none in this arena. If you haven’t used one of their belt sets, you owe it to yourself to try one. MSRP - $ 23.00.

Most highly recommended. Special thanks to Eduard for supplying the review samples and to IPMS for allowing me to review them.

Review Author
Michael Novosad
Published on
September 16, 2021
Company
Trumpeter
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$35.99

History and Performance

The Grizzly armored personnel carrier is part of the Canadian Armored Vehicle General Purpose (AVGP) family. Also included in this family are the Coyote and the Cougar. Originally purchased by the Canadian military in the 1970s, the Grizzly is no longer in front line service. The surviving vehicles have been converted to support vehicles and some were sold to other countries.

Instructions

The instructions are in a twelve-page book form that include 15 construction steps. Each step involves exploded views with parts numbers for placement. The plans are supplemented by a two-sided painting and markings guide. The first is an IFOR vehicle marked in green and black, while the second is an all-white UN vehicle. Paint reference colors are shown for Mr. Hobby, Vallejo, Model Master, Tamiya and Humbrol. The Tamiya colors are noted incorrectly for the IFOR vehicle: each should be moved up one cell on the paint chart.

Review Author
Walt Fink
Published on
September 16, 2021
Company
Platz
Scale
1/144
MSRP
$27.50

Platz kits are noted for their delicacy and true-to-scale thickness of parts, and their Focke-Wulf 190D-9 is no exception. Engraved surface detail and excellent fit make the build easy with little need for putty; the gear legs are scale thickness and even the pitot tube is molded pretty much to scale. The offering is typical Platz – two complete kits in the box, with decals and optional parts supplied for three different Reich birds.

The interior is basic, with a seat and an otherwise bare cockpit space.

Two canopies are provided, the low-profile one and the blown type, along with the appropriate interior headrest structure for each.