Allan Murrell
Reviews By Author
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Confession Before the FlightPublished:
ICM has released this kit, which uses the older release American Made truck G7117, now with the addition of the Mobile Field Chapel, figures and accessories. Such chapels were used by British Army Chaplains to perform their duties in all theaters of war. The kit contains:
The detail quality is excellent in every way with this kit -- crisp and detailed molding has become the norm for the latest ICM kits. The assembly is quick and easy as we have come to expect from these kits. It was seamless in every way, so I will not spend time writing about each stage. Instead, here are just a few points and comments. The assembly begins with the chassis and the only… more |
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F-35: In Service with Air Forces Around the WorldPublished:
This book tells the story of the development, aircraft specification and service history of the F-35 and all its variations. The book is lavishly illustrated with photographs and line drawings, many of which are stunning, and I have not seen anywhere before. The history covers all areas from concept and development to meet the needs of the modern air forces. It shows the various prototypes and programs that directly lead to the F-35. The chapters on the engines were very interesting and provided a lot of information. The various chapters on the various operators give insight into the variations for the air forces modifications for their missions. This gives great insights and how they incorporated them into their existing squadrons. I highly recommend this… more |
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Colour and Scale 06 Henschel Hs 126Published:
The book is number 6 in a series of books covering aircraft. This book covers World War II German Luftwaffe Henschel Hs 126. This was a twin-seat Parasol wing reconnaissance and observation aircraft. It saw service from 1937 through to 1944. It first saw action in the Condor squadrons in the Spanish Civil War. This book was informative and full of great profiles and 1/72 scale outline drawings. It was a little lacking at 16 pages and could have been done with a few more unusual schemes that would have been added to the book. Thanks go to MMP Publications for providing this book to review and IPMS USA for allowing me to review it for them. |
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F-4F-4 Wildcat – Operation TorchPublished:
Arma has released their F4F-4 with the addition of Operation Torch marking and two bases in this very nice offering. The F4F-4 was originally released ea few months ago and this is a great option, I personally have a connection with Operation Torch as my father was part of this.
The detail quality is excellent in every way with this kit, crisp and detailed molding has become the norm for Arma Hobby kits. The assembly… more |
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B-26B MarauderPublished:
ICM has provided this great new release for review, in 1/48 scale model of the B-26B Marauder. This is based on the original release from a few months earlier this is the D-Day Anniversary version with addition ground and flight crew included.
The detail quality is excellent in every way with this kit, crisp and detailed molding has become the norm for ICM. The assembly is quick and easy. The assembly starts on the left-hand side of the main fuselage. The few ejector pin marks should be filled/cleaned up on both halves of the… more |
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BMW R75 German Motorcycle Spoke WheelsPublished:
These are a set of two Aftermarket BMW R75 Motorcycle spoked wheels. The R75 was a very popular motorcycle with eth German Army in WWII. These wheels can be used with most of the currently available model of the R75 on the market currently. I have a Master Box kit and used that as a comparison for the kit wheels and used in the final build using the UMM wheels. The wheels look great and are far superior to the kit standard parts, although the kit did come with optional photo etch parts which would be a lot of work to use. The second picture shows the Kit standard wheels with the UMM parts. The final assembly is with the UMM parts. I do highly recommend these aftermarket wheels as they are far better than the standard kit parts and I am sure better than the photo… more |
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Civil Aviation Acrylic Paints SetPublished:
This is a paint set primarily meant for Civil Aviation on the 1930-50’s. I decided to use a 1/450 scala Heller DC-10 paint mule I had on my bench to use the paints on. Then I used each paint to see its finish and application. All the painting I did was with the Airbrush. These paints would also need to be thinned if brush painting. The paints are best thinned with the ICM thinner, which I did not have, so I tried the following –
Contents
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IJN Bombers, Transports, Flying Boats & Miscellaneous Types 1943 - 1944Published:
The book is a series of books covering all of the Pacific in World War Two used aircraft. It goes into great detail of the types squadrons, service & variants, I found this book very informative and was full of facts and details of very little-known aircraft. The articles on the variants that were explored during the development, were especially interesting. The book is full of extremely interesting photos of the aircraft and markings. The many profile pictures are great when deciding on decals for model builds. The inclusion of the chapter on Greater Japan Airways is something I did not expect and is great addition. I was amazed at the amount of information and history found in the pages of this extremely enjoyable book. The profiles alone are worth… more |
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Vickers Viking, Valetta & Varsity in Military ServicesPublished:
The book goes into great detail of the development, service, variants, and full history of a classic British World War Two and post-war aircraft manufactured by Vickers under the names Viking, Valetta, and the Varsity. These were aircraft developed in response to the British review of the post-war Civil transportation needs. Later to be known as the Brabazon Committee. I found this book so informative and full of facts and details of very little-known aircraft. The articles on the variants that were explored during the development were especially interesting. The book is full of extremely interesting photos of the aircraft in development, manufacturing, in service, etc. These would be great as references for aircraft enthusiasts. Another nice touch is the… more |
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Italian Soft-Skinned Vehicles of the Second World WarPublished:
The book was written by Ralph Ricco, Mario Pier and Danielle Guglielmi and is the first volume in a series on an area not covered very well before. This volume covers military vehicles from 1920’s until the end of WW2 within the types of Motorcycles, Cars, and Light Trucks. The book has so many great pictures and technical drawings. The details covered are very in-depth even including tire types and treads. Every vehicle is covered as to its development and service history, technical description, and full specifications. There are also a few color profile pictures in the center of the book. There are so many vehicles that I was not aware of and gives a lot of ideas for kits for the future. I must admit I was amazed at the content of the photos. I highly… more |