Bismarck Main 38cm SKC/34; Secondary 15cm; and AAA 10.5cm, 37mm SKC/30,and 20mm C/30 Turned Metal Gun Barrels

Published: May 29, 2014
Company: Master Model

Trumpeter’s recent 1/200 scale Bismarck is a gigantic kit at over four feet in length! Using plastic for her guns is, frankly, a serious disservice. Fortunately, Master Model has fired a salvo of several metal barrel upgrade sets aimed squarely at this large-scale Bismarck.

The three Bismarck sets being reviewed are:

• SM-200-06 - 1/200 German battleship Bismarck - main gun… more

US Navy Airborne Mark 13 Torpedoes (Early and Improved Types)

Published: May 29, 2014
Company: Master Model

Master Model has a knack for making impossibly small upgraded detail “kits” that are assembled from turned-metal parts and photoetch (PE). Previous highlights included the 1/72 scale six-barreled M61 Vulcan machine gun found in most modern US fighters, and the 1/72 GAU-8 Avenger gun tip, found at the business end of an A-10.

Now, Master has somewhat outdone themselves with two “kit”… more

HMS Dreadnought 12in and 12pdr Turned Metal Gun Barrels

Published: February 10, 2020
Company: Master Model

Master Model, maker of some amazingly detailed metal replacement parts, offers a new turned-metal barrel upgraded set for the 1/350 scale Zvezda kit of the HMS Dreadnought. The set consists of ten turned-aluminum 12in main gun barrels and twelve turned-brass 12-pounder secondary gun barrels. Both barrel sizes are spectacularly cut.

Using the Master Model barrels couldn’t be… more

US Navy 16"/50 caliber Mark 7, 14"/45 caliber, and 5"/51 caliber Turned Metal Gun Barrels

Published: May 29, 2014
Company: Master Model

Master Model has turned out quite a few turned-metal parts in the last few years. They’ve recently sighted in on some common US Navy guns with three new turned-metal barrel upgrade sets as part of their Sea Master line of products:

• SM-700-37- 1/700 USN 16in/50 Mark 7 barrels (9 pcs) - Iowa and Montana battleship classes- $7.00
• SM-700-38 - 1/700 USN 14in/45 (12 pcs) - New… more

HMS Belfast

Published: May 7, 2014
Company: Trumpeter

Many ship modelers have been puzzled as to precisely why this World War 2 era heavy cruiser has never seen plastic. Belfast currently resides in London, permanently berthed as a museum and memorial. Her status as intact leaves a few decisions Trumpeter made with this kit rather puzzling.

This kit comes packaged as many Trumpeter kits these days, with foam protecting styrene… more

USS Indianapolis

Published: September 12, 2013
Company: Trumpeter

History Brief

The USS Indianapolis is a ship potentially more famous for her loss than her life. On July 30, 1945, after delivering components for the first atomic bomb, the Indianapolis was hit by two torpedoes from the HIJMS I-58. Her loss was not discovered before August 2nd, after many of her survivors met grisly ends at the hands of the elements and… more

Imperial Japanese Navy Destroyers 1919-45 (1), Minekaze to Shiratsuyu Classes

Published: April 24, 2013
Book Author(s): Mark Stille
Company: Osprey Publishing

Being an avid fan of Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) destroyers, I was eager to get my hands on this book. The Japanese had two major advantages on the US Navy during the early days of WWII: a superbly trained and equipped air arm and their excellently equipped and crewed destroyer flotillas that made themselves utterly terrifying weapons during engagements like the Battle of the Eastern Solomons… more