Gloster Gladiator, Limited Edition

Published: January 27, 2016
Company: Eduard

Eduard has issued this kit based on the Roden model kit with the additional the Eduard accessories.

In the box is:

• 6 x light grey sprues
• 1 clear sprue
• 1 photoetched details parts
• 1 mask set
• 1 decal sheet
• 1 instruction booklet

All the sprues are well-molded, although there is some flash and a few sink marks which are easily fixed. The detail is very fine and crisp.

The kit can be built as any of eight versions, you need to decide between before commencing the built which you are going to do. I went with Version B, one of the Swedish Volunteer force which was sent to Finland to assist in the winter war against Russia in 1940.

Construction

First, based on the order in the… more

Gladiator Upgrade Set

Published: January 24, 2016
Company: Eduard

Eduard continues to release great photoetch sets for many kits and this is no exception. This is for Eduard’s own Gloster Gladiator kit 1145. This set adds a lot of missing detail that really adds to the kit. The photoetch parts are for the:

• Cockpit sidewalls
• Internal guns
• A complete seat
• Cockpit doors
• Control surfaces
• Cowling hinges
• Exterior parts
• And a few more

In the packet is:

• 1 photoetch sheet
• 1 instruction sheet
• Summary

This is a must have set for the Eduard kit as it makes it into a great model with all you need to super-detail the aircraft. The only issue I found was that the seat was not easy to install.

Thanks go to… more

Street Lamps

Published: December 31, 2015
Company: Hauler

This Hauler set allows you to make two nice 1930’s European style Street lamps.

In the box is:

• 3 x Resin groups of parts
• 1 x Photo Etch sheet
• 1 x Film sheet
• 1x Instruction sheet

The parts are all is very crisp and well molded with great detail.

Construction

The build starts by removing the excess resin from all the resin parts using a razor saw.

The next stage is the main body of the street lamp. Then the Photo Etch lamp top which is a little tricky and need to be annealed before bending to shape.

Summary

These would be an excellent little addition to any diorama.

Thanks go to Hauler for providing this kit to review and IPMS USA for allowing me to review it for them… more

Japanese Steel Pillbox

Published: December 31, 2015
Company: Hauler

Hauler has produced a nice World War Two Japanese Pre-fabricated Steel Pillbox. These were mainly used on Betio Island in the Tarawa Atoll. They had two internal levels, the upper was an observation area where the top opened to give a higher view. The lower area had to machine gun ports, a small arms port and a door. This is a very nice resin set.

In the box is:

• 1 x Resin Pillbox
• 1 x Photo Etch sheet
• 1x Instruction sheet

The Pillbox is very crisp and well molded with great detail.

Construction

The build starts by removing the excess resin form the lower part of the pillbox using a razor saw. The next stage is the Photo Etch gun port shutters. The one thing missing from the kit was the door which these Pillboxes… more

Blohm & Voss BV-40 ,,R” German Rocket Powered Fighter (Project)

Published: December 31, 2015
Company: Brengun

Brengun has produced a very nice proposed German Aircraft design by Blohm & Voss based on the all wooden construction of the BV-40 Glider of which several prototypes were flown in 1944. The detail and high quality of this product is very good and the sprue also includes the Glider fuselage.

In the box is:

• 1 x light brown Sprue
• 1 x clear Sprue
• 1 x Photo Etch sheet
• 2 x Resin Rockets and launch rack
• 1 x Decal sheet
• 1x Instruction sheet

All the sprues are well molded with no flash at all.

The detail is very fine and crisp for such a small aircraft.

Construction

The build start with the cockpit which is nice for the scale, the pilot flew this aircraft in the prong position.… more

Heinkel He111 P-2

Published: December 22, 2015
Company: Airfix

Airfix has created a smashing new Heinkel 111 P2 kit, and this one is well worth getting if you like the HE111. The detail and high quality of this product is fantastic.

In the box:

• 5 x light grey sprues
• 1 clear sprue
• 1 decal sheet
• 1 instruction booklet

All the sprues are well molded with no flash at all.

The detail is very fine and crisp. The panel lines on the He111 P-2 are all very well defined.

Construction

First based on the order in the instruction booklet, we start on the interior of the fuselage, which like the cockpit on this kit is extremely well-detailed for a 1/72 kit. In fact the amount of detail is better that a lot of 1/48 kits I have built.

The fuselage halves are… more

Pilot BAC Lightning

Published: December 1, 2015
Company: Plusmodel

One of my favorite aircraft is the BAC (English Electric) Lightning and having a few in my stash I jumped at the opportunity to have this pilot figure.

This resin figure is very well detailed and molded with very little flash as is the norm with PlusModels products.

I do not normally get figures as I am not very good at painting faces so avoid it at all cost normally. But this figure was so good so I decided to do a full paint job as best as I could. When finished, I was pleasantly surprised how it turned although the quality of the figure was the reason it looks good not my painting skills when it comes to figures.

This is an excellent figure and I will get more by PlusModel.

Thanks go to Plus Models for providing this kit to review and IPMS USA for… more

Battle of Britain – Ready for Battle Gift Set

Published: November 22, 2015
Company: Airfix

Airfix continues to impress everybody with the increasingly detailed and high quality of their products. This is a great gift set that can be made and used in a very detailed diorama of a typical RAF World War 2 airfield during the period of the battle of Britain.

In the box is:

• 1 Hawker Hurricane Mk.I - L200 x W255; Pieces 127
• 1 Albion AM463 3-Point Fueller - L118 x W45; Pieces 113
• 1 Bedford MWD - L89 x W41; Pieces 95
• 10 x Ground Crew Figures and Accessories - H38; Pieces 108
• 12 x acrylic paints
• 2 x brushes
• 2 x poly cement
• 1 decal sheet
• 1 instruction booklet

The kits are all bagged individually which helps with assembly; the sprues are well molded with no flash.

Bristol F.2B Fighter (ProfiPack edition)

Published: November 4, 2015
Company: Eduard

I have always liked the look of this British WWI fighter and this kit is the best available version on the market.

In the box is:

• 4 sprues molded in light grey
• 1 film sheet
• 1 photoetch parts sheet
• 1 masking sheet
• 1 decal sheet
• 1 instruction booklet

The sprues are well molded with only very minor flash, well positioned ejector pin marks. The detail is very fine and crisp. The panels are all great. The instruction book is great as usual for Eduard kits. There a few parts on the sprues that are no required for this build and are full defined in the instruction sheet. There are a few optional assembly decisions that you should make before you start and this is based in the aircraft version you want to… more

Vickers Vanguard

Published: October 10, 2015
Company: Airfix

Airfix originally released this kit back in 1962 and I remember building this as a kid. The re-releases has a new box and Decal sheet but the model its self is un-changed from the kit 50 years ago. Some will find the kit un-refined by today’s standards but to many it’s a classic and should be considered as one.

In the box is:

• 4 sprues molded in light grey
• 1 clear sprue
• 4 Wing halves
• 1 decal sheet
• 1 instruction booklet

The sprues molded in the customary slightly soft grey plastic, the panel lines are raised and all the details are basic. There is some flash but not too much considering the age of the kit. There is no interior to the aircraft but that is the norm for this age of kit and at this scale does not… more