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.

Cover

The Soviet War in Afghanistan 1979-1989
Book Author(s)
Ilya Milyukov
Review Author
Andy Taylor
Published on
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$29.95

The Soviet War in Afghanistan 1979–1989 is a part of Helion and Company’s Asia@War series, No. 50 (HEL 1820). This is not a typical @War series book and is not easy to read due to the author’s incredible research and presentation of facts. It is not written in a narrative format, nor does he shy away from the reality of war and the atrocities this particular war was known. In a rare departure from the almost 200 books in the @War series, an Editorial Note is included before the Introduction. It is so uncommon that a part of the note is highlighted here to put this book in perspective.

Box Top

B-26B Marauder
Review Author
Steven J. Corvi
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$103.99

The Martin B-26 Marauder was a twin-engine light bomber which entered U.S. Army Air Forces service in 1941. 5,000 airframes were built, and the aircraft was used in all theaters of operations for the U.S. during World War II. The Martin B-26 was a medium altitude [10,000 to 15,000 feet] bomber with the lowest loss rate of any Allied bomber! Many Allied air forces flew the Marauder including; U.S., British, Free French, Australian, South African and Canadian in combat. At the conclusion of World War II, B-26 crews had flown more than 110,000 operational sorties and had dropped about 150,000 tons of bombs on the enemy. The Martin B-26 was declared obsolete by the United States Air Force in 1948, but few had even been airworthy by this late date. The B-26 designation was transferred to the Douglas A-26 in June 1948 after the Martin bomber was withdrawn from USAF service.

Book Cover

Pacific Profiles Volume 14: Allied Bombers: B-25 Mitchell Series Australia, New Guinea and the Solomons 1942-1945
Book Author(s)
Michael John Claringbould
Review Author
James Kelley
Published on
Company
Avonmore Books
MSRP
$36.95

With the newest addition to the “Pacific Profiles” series, Michael John Claringbould has done it again. A subject matter expert on all things Pacific air war, he brings to us a treasure trove of the B-25 Mitchell series in the WWII Pacific theatre. The Pacific Profiles series presents the most accurate WWII profiles of Allied and Japanese aircraft which served throughout Australia, New Guinea the South Pacific. ThisVolume 14 covers those B-25, PBJ & F-10 Mitchell models which served in these theatres from March 1942 until the end of the war. Mitchells served a total of 21 USAAF bomber and reconnaissance squadrons, plus others were operated by the USMC, RAAF and NEIAF.

Book Cover

The Battle of Tinian
Book Author(s)
John Grehan, Alexander Nicoll
Review Author
Brett W Scholten
Published on
Company
Frontline Books
MSRP
$28.95

Frontline books cover a small but vital part of the War in the Pacific in “The Battle of Tinian”.

This is another offering in the Images of War series of books. The book is 175 pages long with over 200 photographs and illustrations.

The book starts with the Battle of the Philippine Sea (occurred just before the Saipan operation began) and the great Marianas Turkey Shoot.

Afterwards, the book looks at how both sides approached the upcoming battles. The Japanese High Command was looking for a final battle to defeat the Allied Forces, and stop their advance. The A-Go battle plan. The Japanese initially thought the next allied attack would happen in the Carolinas Island chain, until air attacks on the Marianas Island chain convinced them (correctly) that the next allied attack would occur there.

Book Cover

Frontkämpfer - Wehrmacht Photo Albums from the Front
Book Author(s)
Jeff D. Eberle
Review Author
Andy Taylor
Published on
Company
Fonthill Media
MSRP
$45.00

The author, Jeff D. Eberle, started collecting authentic photographs and albums from World War II. “Sourced from veterans, auction houses, rummage sales, and antique shops”, he accumulated thousands of photographs. The author’s focus over 30 years ago was the Eastern Front, although he also has the Western Europe, Battle of Britain, North Africa, Norway, the Balkans, and the war at sea present in mostly chronological order. A collection of over 400 of these photographs are presented in this magnificent book.

The photographs and their captions are the focus of the book except for the three pages of commonly used terms and a page and a half introduction. This photographic reference book is composed of the following sections:

  • Glossary of Commonly Used Terms
  • Introduction
  • Part I: 1939-1942
  • Part II: 1943-1961

The Introduction is succinct and summarizes the book well: