German Heavy Armored Car - Sd.Kfz.234/1 (w/2cm Gun)

Published: September 3, 2015
Company: Tamiya

This is a nice kit that is fairly simple to build, yet ends up with a model with good detail. The 3 additional figures have the added benefit of creating a vignette right out of the box.

The kit is a rebox of the Italeri kit to which Tamiya has added three figures, motorcycle, weapons set, and an updated decal sheet. The main kit is the original Italeri issue on four light brown sprues… more

U.S. Cougar 6x6 MRAP Vehicle

Published: August 20, 2015
Company: Meng Model

This is a very nice kit with lots of parts - the engineering and fit is excellent. It’s a tedious build, but the instructions are very clear and the parts fit great.

From Meng’s Website

The U.S. Cougar 6×6 MRAP vehicle, developed by the U.S. company Force Protection Inc., is an armored vehicle which can withstand roadside bombs, attacks, and ambushes. It is powered by a 330hp… more

Da Vinci Arch Bridge

Published: August 15, 2015
Company: Academy Models

This bridge kit is part of Academy’s nine kit series of models of Leonardo Da Vinci’s inventions. These kits are simple assembly with a limited number of parts, but are good instructional models exploring Da Vinci’s inventions.

The kit does not require any painting or cements for construction.

The arch bridge designed by Leonardo Da Vinci uses a self-supporting arch concept to… more

Stone, Woods & Cook ’41 Willys

Published: August 9, 2015
Company: Revell, Inc.

Cleanup on aisle six. That's what I kept thinking as I peeled away layer after layer of flash and mold seams from this kit. Michelangelo once said something like every block of stone has a masterpiece inside. It’s up to the sculptor to discover it. That's the way it is with this kit. Somewhere buried beneath all that flash is a nice kit.

This is a great Revell kit that once was a… more

US Army Driver

Published: July 10, 2015
Company: L.Z. Models

This figure is part of L. Z. Models 1/35 D7 Bulldozer and Tractor Crew series. Other figures in the series include US Army Mechanic tuning engine, and US Army Mechanic cleaning track. L.Z. states that another civilian mechanic and a British driver figure will also be released. These figures are intended for use with the new dozers from L.Z. Models, Trumpeter, Commander Models, and the new… more

U.S. Motor Grader - Part 2

Published: July 7, 2015
Company: Plusmodel

This is a great kit, and will build a beautiful model of a unique WWII vehicle. Building this model is a challenge however, and will require lots of resin experience and careful fitting of many delicate parts.

Originally introduced as the "Caterpillar Diesel No. 12 Auto Patrol" in 1938, the grader was renamed as a ‘Motor Grader’ one year later. The U.S. Army used the Cat 12 Grader… more

High Mobility - A Visual History

Published: July 6, 2015
Book Author(s): David DoyleAmpersand Group
Company: Ampersand Publishing

This is another of Ampersand Group’s Visual History Series using high-quality photography to show subjects in detail and in action. These books are excellent resources for modelers looking for formation and details on specific vehicles. This book, by the prolific author David Doyle, covers the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV) popularly known as the Humvee.

The two-… more

The Pacific War

Published: June 19, 2015
Company: Osprey Publishing

This is an excellent book that briefly summarizes many of the major campaigns of the Pacific War, and provides detailed descriptions of the significant sea and land battles. The book is 264 pages, plus 56 pages of black-and-white photographs, and eight pages of colored maps of several of the military operations. Each of the chapters are written by different authors and have previously been… more

B-17F/G Engines

Published: May 25, 2015
Company: Eduard

This kit includes resin and photoetch parts to replace the base kit engines on the Revell Monogram B-17F/G kits. The Brassin engines have extremely fine detail, go together well, but require experience with resin and photoetch pieces. The engines add fantastic detail to the base kits and are a challenging but rewarding build.

This kit is the iconic Wright R-1820 Cyclone 9 American… more

‘Buffalo’ 6x6 MPCV w/Slat Armor & Spaced Armor

Published: December 21, 2021
Company: Bronco Models

This is the third version of the Buffalo 6x6 MPCV to be issued by Bronco Models. This release includes a different armor configuration than the previous two releases, with slat armor and spaced armor. This is an excellent kit that will be a challenging build for even more advanced modelers. The kit has lots of small parts, finicky assembly of the slat armor, but will result in a highly… more