Clarence Wentzel
Reviews By Author
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FW-200 Condor RadiatorsPublished:
The Fw-200 was an all-metal four-engine airplane that was originally designed as an airliner. As World War II broke out, it was modified for use for long-range maritime patrol, reconnaissance and as an anti-shipping patrol bomber in addition to a transport. This airplane has been modeled twice in 1/72 scale by Revell but recently Trumpeter have added the airplane to their line-up. The Trumpeter kit is a great improvement on the Revell kits in both detail and accuracy but as always, Aires/Quickboost have found some areas to improve the kit. The Condor was powered by four nine cylinder air-cooled engines. Radiators for the engine oil cooling systems were located below and toward the rear of the cowlings. The kit parts show the concern that Trumpeter have designed into this kit.… more |
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FW-200 Condor ExhaustPublished:
The Fw-200 was an all-metal four-engine airplane that was originally designed as an airliner. As World War II broke out, it was modified for use for long-range maritime patrol, reconnaissance and as an anti-shipping patrol bomber in addition to a transport. This airplane has been modeled twice in 1/72 scale by Revell but recently Trumpeter have added the airplane to their line-up. The Trumpeter kit is a great improvement on the Revell kits in both detail and accuracy but as always, Aires/Quickboost have found some areas to improve the kit. The Condor was powered by four nine cylinder air-cooled engines. The exhaust pipes from these engines were routed to the rear of the cowlings and exited under cowl flaps. Probably for better streamlining, the exhaust pipes were divided into… more |
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Fw-200 Condor Control SurfacesPublished:
The Fw-200 was an all-metal four-engine airplane that was originally designed as an airliner. As war broke out, it was modified for use for long-range maritime patrol, reconnaissance and as an anti-shipping patrol bomber in addition to a transport. Revell has modeled this airplane twice in 1/72 scale but recently Trumpeter has added the airplane to their line-up. The Trumpeter kit is a great improvement on the Revell kits in both detail and accuracy, but as always Aires/Quickboost has found some areas to improve the kit. This set consists of new control surfaces; ailerons, elevators and the rudder. The kit parts for the ailerons and the rudder each consist of two parts that must be glued together. The replacement parts are single items eliminating the glue step. More… more |
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Ground CrewPublished:
The PJ Production company from Belgium makes some very nice resin aircraft kits as well as resin aftermarket accessories for aircraft, plus lots of pilot and ground crew figures. This set provides an interesting set of five modern Ground Crew members. This set can be used to upgrade modern aircraft dioramas. These parts are nicely molded in resin, and require very little clean-up. The instructions show the crew with gray uniforms. In looking through some French aircraft references, I found crew members with intermediate blue colored uniforms. I used this color to provide a better appearance. I am not a figure painter, and these crew members are really small, but I found that different flesh colors on the hands and faces, followed by a light coat of dark gray tint, brought out… more |
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Space Pirate Battleship Arcadia - Limited EditionPublished:
BackgroundThis is a kit of the mother ship, Arcadia flown by the space pirate, Captain Harlock from the adventure filled world of Leiji Matsumoto. Originally created in 1977 for a manga TV series, Captain Harlock has appeared in various film and TV shows, most recently a 2013 feature film, “Space Pirate Captain Harlock”. This space battleship is used for his interspace travel. The Arcadia carries a number of Space Wolf fighter planes for protection and offense. The Arcadia is equipped with heavy firepower. The main armament consists of triple-mount pulsar cannon turrets, two on the upper deck and one on the underside. When Captain Harlock’s friend, Tochiro, designed the Arcadia, he must have been influenced by pirate ships of old, because the rear of the Arcadia… more |
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Space Wolf SW-190Published:
BackgroundThis is a kit of the fighter plane “Space Wolf” flown by the space pirate, Captain Harlock from the adventure filled world of Leiji Matsumoto. Originally created in 1977 for a manga TV series, Captain Harlock has appeared in various film and TV shows, most recently a 2013 feature film, “Space Pirate Captain Harlock”. For his interspace travel, Captain uses a mother ship named Arcadia. A number of these Space Wolf fighter planes are carried by the Arcadia for protection and offense. The Space Wolf is a space fighter plane capable of operating in either atmosphere or space conditions. It is armed by two 75 mm pulse laser cannons mounted in the front cowling and two Vulcan cannons in each wing. It appears that jet or rocket thrust can be directed to the tips… more |
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R.P.K. TankPublished:
BackgroundThis is an interesting accessory for Mirage III or V models from PJ Production of Belgium. These R.P.K. tanks are basically 500 L fuel tanks with four 250 kg bombs attached to each. The weapons are used for ground attack. They were used by French aircraft as well as Australia, South Africa, Peru, Bolivia and possibly others. I was able to find a few photos on the internet but very little data. Most of the information came from a request to PJ Production. The KitThe kit consists of three castings. The first contains the two fuel tanks, the second contains the eight bombs while the third contains the sixteen clasps that attach the bombs to the tanks. The pour sprues made it simple to hold the parts while painting. The instructions call for the… more |
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Matra R-530 MissilePublished:
BackgroundThe Matra R-530 is a medium range air-to-air missile. This two stage rocket propelled missile entered production in 1962. Frequently, interceptor aircraft utilize this missile for longer range along with the Matra R-550 Magic 2 short range air-to-air missile. The missile is available with Infrared Homing or with Semi-Active Radar Homing. In some cases, a missile of both types is carried. This weapon is used by at least sixteen countries, most utilizing French sourced aircraft. The KitLike the previously reviewed AS-30, this kit consists of two parts, the missile and its mounting pylon. The parts come in a simple small envelope and the instruction sheet is printed on the back side of the label. The missile has a round pouring sprue attached to the… more |
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Mirage III/5 Weapons SetPublished:
The PJ Production company from Belgium makes some very nice resin aircraft kits as well as resin aftermarket accessories for aircraft and lots of pilot and ground crew figures. This set provides a very comprehensive set of weapons for the Mirage III/5 aircraft. The set includes; Matra R-550 Magic 2 and AIM-9B Sidewinder AAMs as well as JL-100, LAU-32 and LRF-4 rocket pods. Also included are a Barrax, a Barracuda 2 and a Phimat pod. I believe that the first two are ECM pods and the latter is a chaff dispenser. Finally, a pylon is provided for the centerline of the fuselage. This can carry either two STRIM Bombs or two Alkan P-65 Adaptors for bombing practice. In each case, the proper French pylon is included. This weapons set can be used to outfit several Mirage models and other French… more |
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Nord AS-30 MissilePublished:
BackgroundThe Nord AS-30 is an air-to-ground missile. This two stage rocket propelled missile entered production in 1973. The initial booster section of the rocket motor exhausts on each side of the missile at the rear while the longer running sustainer rocket exhausts at the rear center of the missile. The impact speed is over 1000 mph. The missile carries a 240 kg. warhead of the semi-armor piercing high explosive type. Control of the missile is through the pilot using a small joystick to send signals to the missile. This requires the pilot to maintain sight of the missile. A later version of the AS-30 utilizes laser homing guidance for control. I am not sure if there are any visual differences between these variants. This weapon is used by the air forces of over a dozen… more |