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.

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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.

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Review Author
John R. Lee
Published on
Company
Minicraft Model Kits
Scale
1/144
MSRP
$12.99

The kit comes in a sturdy top opening box – great for holding the parts as you work on the model. There are thirty-eight light grey plastic parts and two clear sprues, one being from the Minicraft C-47/DC-3 kit that uses only the Astrodome part. The small decal sheet (1¼” by 4½”) manages to include three schemes, one Navy (the only named aircraft) and two Marine.

As I found the PBJ with the radar nose interesting, I decided to make that one. With a little research I found a right rear-quarter picture of the aircraft in the Osprey Combat Aircraft #40 “PBJ Mitchell Units of the Pacific War” book on page 82. This picture and others in this book show that many of the PBJ’s had no fifty cal. package guns on the fuselage sides, so one of the first jobs was the removal of these guns.

I appreciated that the glass nose on this radar-equipped aircraft was painted blue, saving a lot of tiny window frame painting.

Review Author
Ed Kinney
Published on
Company
Fisher Model and Pattern
Scale
1/32

Paul Fisher has continued to expand his stable of exceptionally well done aftermarket products. These are, without exception, beautifully mastered and flawlessly cast in cream colored resin. No warps or pinholes (no surprise there). The four new items are shown in the images. Many thanks to Paul for the review samples. Please visit his website for these and many other quality Fisher Model products.

Review Author
Mike Hinderliter
Published on
Company
Quickboost
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$4.95

Quickboost has added another resin aircraft accessory to their aircraft line. This time it is the tail cone and tail wheel to convert the Hasegawa Brewster Buffalo F-2A-2 into a Brewster Buffalo 339. It is up to their usual standards; molded in grey resin, smooth, seamless, and bubble-free. One thing of note is that they are really easy to remove from the mold block because of a nice perforation.

The Brewster Buffalo 339 was an export version of the United States Navy Buffalo F-2A. The 339 was modified from the naval version to have a lower rpm engine and a larger tail wheel and cone. It was sold to Finland, France and Britain to help bolster their aircraft at the start of World War 2.

Review Author
Mike Hinderliter
Published on
Company
Quickboost
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$4.95

Quickboost just keeps adding to their line of resin aircraft accessories. Another addition is for the Revell F-22 Raptor. It is up to their usual standards: molded in grey resin, smooth, seamless, and bubble-free. One thing of note is that they are really easy to remove from the mold block because of a nice perforation.

The control lever and throttle that come in the Revell kit look okay and would make an acceptable model. The Quickboost replacements really look a lot better when compared to the kit parts. They are very easy to install and they just fit right in. in 1/72, these parts are very small but it is a great relief to know that, if you just fed the carpet monster your kit parts, you are able to replace them. The Quickboost set comes with two sets of control levers and throttles just in case you want to do another kit or give the carpet monster another snack.

Review Author
Mike Hinderliter
Published on
Company
Quickboost
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$4.95

Quickboost just keeps adding to their line of resin aircraft accessories. The latest addition is for the Spitfire. This time they have put out the correct antenna for the top of your Spitfire instead of the usual straight stick that comes in so many kits. It is up to their usual standards: molded in grey resin, smooth, seamless, and bubble-free. One thing of note is that they are really easy to remove from the mold block because of a nice perforation, but still be careful because they are very small and delicate.

In addition to the little “nubs” at the top, the antenna has a recessed groove in the side. Having never seen a Spitfire up close, I don’t know if it’s 100% accurate, but it sure looks good!

This set comes with 3 antennas, which is nice because you can add one to the kit you’re working on and update a couple of other Spitfires you’ve built previously.