Bill O'Malley
Reviews By Author
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Plasticator Thick & ThinPublished:
AMMO by Mig describes their new acrylic Plasticator as formulated for sealing porous surfaces such as wood, plaster, or ceramic to provide a plastic-like finish. The Plasticator is applied directly from the bottle with a brush. AMMO’s website provides demonstrations of how Plasticator can be used over plaster, wood, and foam to allow finishing with enamels, oil paints and washes. The instructions say to let the product dry for 24 hours before priming and painting, but it seemed to be fairly dry after an hour or so. Plasticator comes in two consistencies, thin and thick. The thick product is about the same consistency as fresh white glue. The thin Plasticator is more like the consistency of white glue mixed one to one with water. By comparison, Future floor finish is a little… more |
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Building a 1/35th Scale Caterpillar Sixty Tractor, The Marmo Method Modelbuilding Guide # 16Published:
Marmo’s Model Building GuidesRichard Marmo publishes model building guides for specific kits that provide greater insight than is usually included in the kit’s basic instructions. Richard uses photographs plus thorough written descriptions of his actual build to aid the modeler step-by-step building the kit. Richard‘s writing style is very informative and often includes humorous advice on how to avoid the pitfalls of model building. His written narratives go into much more detail than can be provided in the basic kit instructions. The photographs are high quality and because they are in a digital format can be zoomed in to magnify detail. This is particularly useful when a kit has many small parts like the one reviewed here. The guides provide additional tips on modeling… more |
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Ford GT40 Mk.II ’66, Part 2, ChassisPublished:
This Part 2 of the review of Meng’s GT40 Mk.II ’66 focuses on the chassis & suspension assembly of the Meng kit. Part 1 of the GT40 review included ‘What’s-In-The-Box’ and a comparison of the Meng kit to the previously released Trumpeter GT40 kit. Ford GT40 Mk.II ‘66Developed by the Ford Motor Company and Carroll Shelby to end the dominance of Ferrari in the preeminent 24 Hours of LeMans, the Ford GT40 Mk.II become an iconic American built race car. After failing to finish the race in 1965, the Ford GTs finished 1-2-3 in 1966 in a humiliating loss for Ferrari to win at Le Mans. This also… more |
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Phoenix Scale Modelling, April 2022Published:
Phoenix Scale Modelling, April 2022, is the third issue of a new modeling magazine printed in the UK. Phoenix also publishes Scale Aviation Modelling, which focuses on aircraft models, and several series of books on aircraft, including modelers guides. Scale Modeller is also available in a digital format. The magazines are currently available at 250 Barnes & Noble stores for $12.99 with Issue 1 currently on the shelf. I would describe Scale Modelling as a general interest modeling magazine as it includes six different categories of models.
Each section has its own Contents page with a listing and photo of the kits included. Each of the categories in… more |
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Ford GT40 Mk.II ’66, Part 1Published:
Ford GT40 Mk.II ‘66Developed by the Ford Motor Company and Carroll Shelby to end the dominance of Ferrari in the preeminent 24 Hours of LeMans, the Ford GT40 Mk.II become an iconic American built race car. After failing to finish the race in 1965, the Ford GTs finished 1-2-3 in 1966 in a humiliating loss for Ferrari. As three GT40s took the lead in the final laps. Ford executives ordered race leading Ken Miles in the No. 1 car to slow down and let the other two GT40s catch up, for a photo of all three cars crossing the finish line together. When everyone thought Miles had won, the race officials announced that the No. 2 car driven by Bruce McLaren was the winner. Though the two cars crossed the finish line at the same time, the No. 2 car had driven a longer distance as it… more |
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Jet Fighters of the U. S. Navy and Marine Corps, Part 2: Mach 1 and Beyond - Digital VersionPublished:
This is a review of the digital version of the Details & Scale’s Jet Fighters of the U. S. Navy and Marine Corps book which has been released concurrently with the hard copy that is reviewed here. The digital version of the Jet Fighters book is available in both Apple’s iBook and Amazon’s Kindle formats. The digital edition has a few more pages and photographs than the hard copy. I have a MacBook Pro computer, so I decided to try the iBook on my computer. Most people use the iBook app on an iPad… more |
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Benz Patent-Motorwagen 1886 with Mrs. Benz & SonsPublished:
This kit is the second release in 2020 of the Benz Patent-Motorwagen 1886. This release includes three figures of Mrs. Benz and her two sons in addition to the Motorwagen vehicle. The vehicle was previously reviewed by IPMS so this review will focus on the three figures included in the second release. Mrs. Benz is posed sitting on the Motorwagen with her hands on the tiller, and the two sons are alongside the vehicle, maybe pushing to get it started? The poses look realistic and natural, but the detail is a little soft for a 1/24 scale figure. Instructions are provided… more |
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The Final Archives of the FührerbunkerPublished:
This book vividly describes life in Hitler’s Führerbunker below the German Reich’s Chancelleries as the Soviet Red Army closes in on Berlin at the end of WWII. Two French officers secretly entered the bunkers in November 1945 and gathered hundreds of documents that describe the living conditions and actions of the bunker’s inhabitants at the end of WWII. These documents form the basis for this book. Führerbunker is divided into chapters that chronologically describe the last few months of Germany’s Reich at the end of WWII. Each chapter contains written text, sidebar narratives with first-person accounts, B&W and color photos with descriptive captions, photos of historical documents, and color illustrations. The chapters are: Prologue: Berlin 1945The… more |
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Construction Yellow & Concrete ColorsPublished:
This review looks at Mission Model Paints Farm Tractor Yellow (MMP-126), Hiway Yellow 1930/1990 Heavy Equipment (MMP-041), New Construction Yellow 1990 to Present (MMP-125), and Concrete 1 (MMP-127). This is a comparison of the paint colors to actual vehicles or materials. Check out my earlier review on the use and performance of MMP Paints. Mission Models Paints are non-solvent base organic acrylics that produce a flat finish. Construction Equipment ColorsMMP has released three yellow colors for construction equipment:
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U.S. Army Ambulances & Medical Vehicles in World War IIPublished:
IntroductionThis book covers the search for and the development of all types of ambulances, medic jeeps, medical trucks, and litter carriers used by the US Army during World War II. The book details many modifications made in-theater to vehicles, and other missions for medical vehicles including use by the American Red Cross and American Field Service. US Army Ambulances & Medical Vehicles in World War II is part of Casemate’s Illustrated Special Series that uses hundreds of B&W photographs, color illustrations, and diagrams to provide a wealth of information for the historian, modeler, or researcher. Author Didier is passionate about military history, in particular American vehicles of World War II. He has accumulated an impressive… more |