Dave Morrissette
Reviews By Author
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Porsche - Classic German Sports CarPublished:
Pen and Sword’s Car Craft Series focuses on some of the more exotic cars and covers both their history and the variants. This volume covers the iconic Porsche 911. My personal first experience with the 911 came when my roommate bought a used 911 and we tooled around in it (plus I got to drive it). Even used, it was a thrill with the acceleration of a rocket and the brakes to stop a freight train. When this book came up for review, I had to jump at it. The book is soft cover and is lavishly illustrated with pictures and drawings. One thing that makes this series of special interest to modelers is that it has two specific modeling sections. This is shown in the table of contents:
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Hawker Hunter GA.11 ConversionPublished:
PJ Productions from Belgium continues with their simple conversions allows the Airfix F.6 to become a GA.11 single-seat training version for the Royal Navy. Looking around the Internet, there were 40 GA.11 airframes converted by adding an arrester hook, adding a Harley light to the nose and eliminating the guns. The starting kit is the Airfix Hunter F.6. I am sure the Academy F.6 could also possibly work. The conversion set contains three grey resin parts and one clear resin light. Casting is excellent with no pinholes and minimal casting blocks. Preparation is simple by removing the casting block on the parts for the arrestor hook and filling the one lone gun port. Washing of the resin is also recommended. A small instruction sheet shows the location of the arrestor hook under… more |
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Hawker Hunter FR.10 Nose ConversionPublished:
This simple conversion from PJ Productions in Belgium allows the Airfix F.6 to become a FR.10 reconnaissance version. Looking around the Internet, it looks like the FR.10 is a single-seat reconnaissance version with 33 made of rebuilt F.6 airframes. The starting kit is the Airfix Hunter F.6. I am sure the Academy F.6 could also possibly work. The conversion itself consists of six parts- a new nose, four cannons and a clear resin nose tip insert for the cameras that fit into the nose. The first step would be to remove the parts from the casting blocks wash the parts. Instructions show that the cannon barrels need drilled out with a 1.6mm drill and shows the exact position of the barrels when attached. After reviewing the kit, the nose would be direct replacement for the Airfix… more |
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Hawker Hunter F.58 Conversion KitPublished:
One of the latest conversions from PJ Productions in Belgium is the set to convert the Airfix 1/48th Hawker Hunter F.6 to a F.58 which is the export version for Switzerland. A total of 88 were built and 12 converted for an even 100 airframes. Changes addressed by this conversion include a new nose to the aircraft, under wing rocket option, Side blister under the cockpit, change to tail fairing, fuel tanks and various antennas. All this comes from 34 resin parts which are very well cast. There are no decals for the markings and those will need supplied elsewhere. The parts prep is simple, remove the casting blocks and wash to eliminate mold release. Conversion can start with the nose which is a direct replacement. You will need to drill out the gun holes and add the cannons but… more |
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F-4E Phantom EarlyPublished:
Zoukei-Mura started there 1/48th scale F-4 Phantom series with the F-4J in 2016 and since then they have issued an F-4S, F-4C, F-4D, F-4J Marines, another F-4J and this latest release, an F-4E Early…we finally have a gunned version and it is magnificent. Let’s look in the box (and it is packed). There are well over 400 part in the box with lots of options and parts not in use. These are on 14 perfect gray sprues with one clear sprue included for canopy parts, etc. There is one set of marking included for F-4E-35-MC, 67-0308, 469 TFS/388 TFW, Ubon RTAFB, 'Betty Lou' which has two full color sheets. Most of these is taken up with the 400 stencils that go onto the plane- more on that when we get to it. There are a lot of optional position items to chose from when you build also… more |
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Milk TrikePublished:
Round 2 has reissued the 1/25th scale Milk Trike kit and it is great to see it again. MPC was a very popular model company in the 1960’s and 70’s and thankfully, Round 2 has saved their molds. The Milk Trike was one of six trike kits which came with different window colors and extensive decals to customize your build. Inside the box, there are 57 easy to build parts molded in white, chrome and three colors of windows- clear, transparent purple and transparent orange. There are preprinted black tires and a large decals sheet giving many options. I decided up front to stick with the Milk Trike theme and try to duplicate the purple color in Alclad Candy colors. Construction starts with the body. I glued it together and made my first mistake and glued the part of… more |
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Fighting Ships of the U.S. Navy 1883-2019, Volume One - Fleet CarriersPublished:
Fighting Ships of the US Navy is a series dedicated to exploring each ship in the US Navy’s inventory since 1883. In Volume One, the author, Venner F Milewski, Jr., starts with the Fleet Aircraft Carriers in the beginning. Overall, the book has a plethora of data and information of each aircraft carrier used by the US during the last 100 years starting with the USS Langley. Taking a look at the Table of contents shows what I mean:
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AH-64A ANG "South Carolina"Published:
The AH-64 Apache helicopter is very recognizable from its unique shape and visibility from both Gulf wars. First flown in 1975, over 2400 have been produced. Academy has released a kit of the AH-64A Apache in large 1/35th scale. Based on the instructions, this a rerelease of the Kangnam kit as the instructions are very similar. That’s not a bad thing either as all new decals for the South Carolina ANG are included in an overall gray scheme. Inside the box, there are five flash free gray sprues with nicely engraved or embossed detail. The rivet detail is especially nice. There is one clear sprue, a rubber fret with the tires on it, decals and a complete set of masks. Markings are included for:
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FJ-2 FuryPublished:
Whew, this was a strange one and I apologize up front to Kitty Hawk. They were nice enough to send us a sample and somewhere between them and us, the USPS lost the kit. Every effort to find it or get it back failed. In the end, I bought the kit as I really wanted it. More importantly, let’s look at the kit! The FJ-2 Fury was the result of an effort to convert the USAF’s F-86 Sabre to a carrier-based plane. It included folding wings and a longer nose gear strut. Kitty Hawk has come out with kit KH80155. Inside the box, you will find three well-made gray sprues with recessed panel lines, a clear sprue, a small photoetch set for details and seat belts plus a decal sheet. With this initial release, Kitty Hawk also included two resin figures which are very nicely done. Looking at… more |
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Lockheed P-38G-15-LO LightningPublished:
MMP continues its “Single” series of books with no. 18, the Lockheed P-38G-15-LO Lightning. As you can see by the title, this is a very specific version of this plane and this book only covers that variant. There is no coverage of the H or J version of the P-38, just the one listed. This is also one of the versions covered in the new Tamiya 1/48th P-38. Let’s look in the book- it is only contains 24 pages but they are packed with scale line drawings in 1/72nd scale with plan views and cross sections for the main fuselage as well as the tail booms. This is followed by operations photos in several WWII theaters of operation. There are detail drawings of the cockpit bays, landing gear, boarding ladder and engines. Exploded views of most parts are included so… more |