Dana Mathes

IPMS Number
43781

Reviews By Author

Product

M1A2 SEP V2 Strong Europe Tank Challenge 2018 Decals

Published:
Company: AOA Decals

The Company

AOA is a relatively new decal manufacturer that has become known for their aircraft decal sets (several popular scales). Their product offering has placed special emphasis on Vietnam-era US naval aircraft. AOA’s products are available from the larger distributors such as Sprue Brothers, Hannants, BNB, etc. This product is their first offering for an armor model subject.

The Subject

This decal set’s subject is rather unique: 1/35 M1A2 SEP V2 Abrams in a 2018 NATO training competition configuration. The Strong Europe Tank Challenge (SETC) was an annual, multinational tank platoon competition held from 2016 to 2018 at the Grafenwöhr Training Area, Germany, and hosted by the U.S. Army Europe and the German Army. At the SETC, crews from NATO and non-NATO… more

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Fighting Ships of the U.S. Navy 1883-2019 - Volume Four, Part One: Torpedo Boats and Destroyers

Published:
Book Author(s): Venner F. Milewski Jr
Company: Mushroom Model Publications - MMP Books

Venner Milewski Jr. has undertaken the monumental task in cataloging each and every US Navy vessel commissioned since 1883, the year congressional funding was approved for America’s first four steel warships. His encyclopedic work is titled Fighting Ships of the U.S. Navy 1883-2019. Milewski Jr.’s compilation provides the physical details of each ship, its specifications, propulsion, armament, etc. as well as the important milestones of its service life. Most of the articles include at least one, and sometimes as many as four high quality photographs of the vessel described. To date, four multi-part volumes have been published, with each part focused on a specific time period. Volume One addressed aircraft carriers while Volume Two covered battleships and New Navy monitors. Volume… more

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Dodge WC54 Ambulance

Published:
Book Author(s): Fabien Raud
Company: Casemate Publishers

Over 26,000 American Dodge WC54 ambulances served in all theaters of WWII. Fabien Raud’s attraction to these van-like vehicles led him to personally invest over 15 years in the restoration of a WC54 to a factory fresh condition. With translator Alan McKay, Raud shares his love for the vehicle and his authoritative knowledge of its details in this work, which overflows with crisp photography.

Dodge WC54 Ambulance is a handsome hardcover book. It is lavishly illustrated with over 450 color and black & white photographs. Raud begins with an introductory section which provides a short history of the ambulance’s development and an explanation of its manufacturing “Build Card” tracking system. This work highlights the critical role of the US Army’s Medical Department during WWII… more

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U.S. Vehicles & Heavy Weapons of the Vietnam War

Published:
Book Author(s): David Doyle
Company: Pen & Sword

Author David Doyle was recently awarded the coveted Bart Vanderveen Award by the Military Vehicle Preservation Association in recognition of his contributions to the preservation of military vehicles. He has written more than 100 books and has most recently applied his formidable talents to documenting the many vehicles used by US forces in the Vietnam War.

U.S. Vehicles & Heavy Weapons of the Vietnam is a handsome hardcover book, lavishly illustrated with over 250 color and black & white photographs. This work catalogs 36 types of American equipment: wheeled vehicles, tracked vehicles, towed artillery, and self-propelled guns.

The sections are organized by the ascending size of the vehicle. Each vehicle’s chapter consists of a table(s) of specifications, a… more

Product

Universal Stowage Set No. 2

Published:
Company: Value Gear

Value Gear has produced a complete line of stowage items that are useful for adding those finishing touches to armor projects or dioramas of all types. This set contains 25 cast resin stowage items for armored vehicles, although some of these items could also be useful in aircraft, sci-fi, or automotive dioramas.

There is a lot of variety here. This assortment includes backpacks, bedrolls, duffle bags, toolboxes, cardboard boxes, equipment bags, and sleeping cots. The vendor’s website claims that all 25 items are unique. That may indeed be true, but the six backpacks supplied seem to be of two types, with only subtle differences among them. The resin is a neutral, medium-dark gray color. The surfaces are slightly textured, again with variability. The sculpting of these parts is… more

Product

Cardboard Boxes

Published:
Company: Value Gear

Have you ever needed some items, like cardboard boxes, to add that finishing touch to a modeling project? Value Gear has just what you need. This company has produced a complete line of stowage items. They are great supplements for armor projects or dioramas of all types.

This set contains 25 1/35 cast resin cardboard boxes. There is a lot of variety here. The boxes come in three sizes: small, medium, and large. Each box has a different level of wear and tear. Some are smushed, while others are dog-eared. Others are fresh and new. Some are even shown as taped shut. The resin used is a medium brown color, approximating the color of dark cardboard.

The castings are nicely done. Only minor sanding is needed to clean up the edges. Generally, the surfaces are smooth, but a… more

New Issue Cobra

AH-1G Cobra Helicopter (Early)

Published:
Company: ICM

Summary

ICM has produced an excellent model kit for the fearsome Vietnam-era AH-1G Cobra helicopter (early version). With new molds, this kit is engineered and molded to contemporary standards. ICM has provided the modeler with many options for ordnance, service bay access, as well as open canopies. Markings have been provided for 4 schemes. The kit has eliminated most of the constructability problems of the old Revell/Monogram kit, but it still has a couple of spots that require special attention. The instrument panel details provided are inadequate for a kit of this quality.

Overall, this is an excellent kit. Aftermarket kits are already available to address its few weaknesses and enhance its already excellent detail. Anyone interested in modeling helicopters or… more

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The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 Volume One: Indian Military Intervention in East Pakistan

Published:
Book Author(s): Ravi Rikhye
Company: Helion & Company

Ravi Rikhye is an international affairs and military historian with a remarkable academic background. He holds seven master’s degrees and is currently working on his doctorate. His career has also included the completion of more than thirty books. For the first offering in the Helion and Company’s new Asia@War book series, Rikhye has authored a two-part history of the 1971 Indo-Pakistani War. This review looks at the first book about the Indian Military Intervention in East Pakistan (now known as Bangladesh). The second work addresses the contemporaneous Showdown in the West (along the current Indo-Pakistani border).

Most historians have looked at this conflict as a short, two-week war between India and Pakistan in December 1971 that precipitated the independence of East… more

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Stryker Interim Combat Vehicle: The Stryker and LAV III in US and Canadian Service, 1999-2020

Published:
Book Author(s): David Grumitt
Company: Pen and Sword Books Ltd

David Grummitt is an accomplished historian, author, and scale model builder. With his 2020 work, Stryker Interim Combat Vehicle: The Stryker and LAV III in US and Canadian Service, 1999-2020, he has given the modeling community a comprehensive reference for this vehicle. More than a simple photographic history, this book is tailored to the needs of an armor modeler as it provides many photographs, drawings, kit reviews, and variant details.

Grummitt begins by skillfully telling the story of how the Stryker armored vehicle was conceived and positions its development within the never-ending tension of wheeled and tracked vehicle doctrine, a debate that stretches back to WWI. He helps the reader to see the Stryker as an icon of the tumultuous post-Cold War world, with… more