Dave Morrissette
Reviews By Author
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Steel Storage LockerPublished:
Hauler continues it releases of wonderful diorama and vignette pieces with set 35105 which includes all the parts needed to make two lockers. Not foot lockers, think lockers like gyms and high school. The set comes as a single photoetch sheet consisting of twelve parts in brass. Construction takes good folds so I grabbed my Hold and Fold and set out to build it up. The first set of folds is to the four outer walls and top. These fold to make the body of the lockers. I glued the seam tight and moved on to the next step. You fold a front lip to the top divider. This is added to the vertical divider and this slid into the locker frame from the bottom. I used a Glue Looper and thin CA to secure. The bottom was added and same way and secured. The largest problem I had… more |
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Chelomey 16KhA Flying TargetPublished:
First look at this kit and you can see a very close resemblance to the V-1 flying bomb. So a quick check of the Internet and Wikipedia found this- “Reports of the German V-1 flying bomb attacks on London prompted Stalin to initiate a program to develop a Soviet equivalent, commencing in June 1944. Vladimir Chelomey, who had been working on pulse jet engines, was assigned to the project in October 1944 and given control of OKB-52. The program was assisted by the partial recovery of a V-1 by Soviet forces at the Blizna test range in Poland. The initial V-1 copy was called 10Kh and later Izdeliye 10 ("Article 10"). Serial production was scheduled to commence in March 1945 with 100 per month, increasing to 450 per month… more |
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F-14D Tomcat, Part 1 - Kit Review, Cockpit, and FuselagePublished:
When Tamiya released its 1/48 scale F-14A, it was made the new standard in F-14 kits and from the layout, it seemed like the F-14D would be coming and now, it has arrived. First, it’s gorgeous as far as plastic, general engraving, etc. and that should not surprise anyone. Most of the parts for the F-14A are still in the box and won’t be used. The kit comes with four marking options:
Some great markings and plenty of aftermarket decals options also. I went through the instructions and compared them to the F-… more |
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MD3 Ground Power UnitPublished:
The MD-3 Ground Power unit is a portable generator designed to provide either DC or AC power to aircraft while on the ground. It is powered by a 180 hp Continental engine to drive its generators. Its initial design was for the B-47 aircraft but it can also be used for other cold war era planes such as F-84, F-86 through to F-4 Phantoms from 1960 to 1970, and this is by no means an exhaustive list. Videoaviation.com now produces a model of this unit in all three popular scales. This review is the 1/32nd scale unit. There are 21 parts cast well in off-white resin, along with a decal sheet and two lengths of vinyl tube for the wire. Casting is good. I did have to sand a few places as there were some faint lines present possibly due to this being 3D printed. They are very minor and… more |
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German Sprengboot TornadoPublished:
As WWII started going towards its end and the Germans were backed into a corner, they came up with some interesting ideas to try and turn the tide of the war around. Like the Japanese Kamikaze group, the German Kriegsmarine came up with the Sprengboot Tornado. The thought was to take two of the large floats from a Ju-52 Floatplane and add 7-800kg of explosives and provide power with the V-1’s pulsejet engine. The theory was to get the boat up to speed of 53 mph having a pilot guide the ship and when close the pilot would take an attached boat or just bail out while the Tornado was remotely guided to hit the target. One of these was built and tested for sea trials but was destroyed as the allies overtook Europe. MikroMir has produced a kit of this very unusual subject in large 1/35… more |
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MiG-31 Foxhound Speed BrakesPublished:
AMK’s 1/48 Mig-31 is a kit that, once you see one built, it grabs you. Phenomenal engineering of a large subject is a real show stopper. Even as well designed as the kit is, there is always some room for improvements. Aires to the rescue with a set of speed brakes and pistons as replacements. Inside the package, you will find a left and right speed brake (they are handed so watch for location) and two pistons for support. There are no instructions as these are direct replacements for the kit parts. Preparation consists of freeing the pistons from the casting block and webbing which is easily accomplished with a sharp knife. You can see that the Aires parts (also available from Quickboost as a standalone set) are cast finer especially in the piston parts. A small… more |
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USS Thresher (SSN-593)Published:
I have always had an interest in submarines after visiting the USS Cod in Cleveland. When the USS Thresher came up for review from MikroMir, I jumped at the change. The USS Thresher was the first of the new (in 1961) Permit class subs and had all the modern equipment for the time. She was 279 feet long and nuclear powered. Sadly, she was the first of the nuclear subs to be lost at sea during driving trials when she imploded about 350km east of Cape Cod on April 10, 1963. MikroMir’s kit of the Thresher consists of two hull halves split upper and lower, a small PE fret with the propeller and other parts, decals for all subs in this class, two base parts and lastly, a small gray sprue containing the scopes, diving planes and the rest of the parts. Parts are nicely engraved and… more |
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USN Missile Cart w/FiguresPublished:
Videoaviation is an Italian manufacturer of superb aircraft accessories, ground support equipment and figures in all three popular scales. I have had the luck to review a few of these and have always been impressed by the excellent casting and design of their kits. This newest set, a 1/32nd scale US Navy MHU-191 Missile cart and two ordnance man is excellent. The set consists of parts for a MHU-191 cart set up for missile transport. There are two ordnance men in different poses. All parts are cast in light tan resin with crisp details and minimal seams. Parts breakdown is as follow:
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RAF Pilot (1960’s)Published:
PJ Productions from Belgium is well known for their wonderful resin figures and accessories. This instance is a RAF pilot in flight suit from the 1960’s in 1/32nd scale. The kit includes four resin pieces with the body being one-piece cast and the arms and head separate. Casting is good with a slight amount of flash and is all done in cream colored resin. The box is your instructions as far as color for the pilot and his uniform. Assembly is first with the casting lines being removed from the arms and these were attached to the body. The head can remain separate for painting if desired. Fit is good, so it can be added later. There were slight seams at the arm and I used glazing putty smoothed with lacquer thinner to eliminate the seams. Painting the face was… more |
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RAF Pilot in Tropical Clothing (WWII)Published:
PJ Productions from Belgium is well known for their wonderful resin figures and accessories. This latest kit is a RAF pilot in tropical flight clothes from the WWII era and is made in 1/32nd scale. The kit includes five resin pieces with the body being one-piece cast and the arms and head separate. Note that there is a separate piece for the oxygen hose and it is small and between the head and left arm. Don’t mistakenly throw it away. Casting is good with a slight amount of flash and is all done in cream colored resin. The box is your instructions as far as color for the pilot and his uniform. Assembly is straightforward. Get rid of the casting blocks and seams by gently scraping. Glue the arms onto the body. I used glazing putty smoothed with lacquer thinner to… more |