Dick Montgomery
Reviews By Author
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Mosquito Landing GearPublished:
I purchased an Airfix Mosquito kit, (A25001) in 2010 while attending the IPMS National Convention in Phoenix. After waiting for over 5 years after the purchase I decided that it was “Mossie Time”. The short version of the story is that while the Airfix kit was a fun and enjoyable project, through impatience and clumsiness I managed to trash one of the main gear to the point that it would not support the weight of the model. Having learned a valuable lesson, and having a timely opportunity to review the 2nd release of an Airfix Mossie in 24th scale, I decided that I would incorporate the SAC gear into the Mosquito review of the Airfix A25000A kit. (The primary difference between the two Airfix kits is that the 2nd release does not contain parts… more |
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De Havilland Mosquito FB.VI Final PartPublished:
In this final installment of the review of this superb kit we will look at the engines and we will get the airframe assembled and get the decals applied. The engines are really models unto themselves. I took my Mosquito to a club meeting and displayed it as a Work In Progress, and most of the comments and questions about the kit dealt with the engines and the plumbing for the engines. There is a great deal of detail and plumbing, and the best part is that the cowls can be left open to show off your handiwork. As with other aspects of this kit, you are strongly advised to study the instructions, and to follow the sequence of construction laid out in the instructions. This is especially important when it comes to the tubes and pipes that are attached to the engines, and… more |
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Figure Modelling 16Published:
Mr. Black Publications offers a very thorough and comprehensive series of books which feature “Figure Modelling”. This book is the 16th book in that series. The book is not a Beginner’s Guide to Figure Painting, although there is much “foundation skills” information that is in the book. Rather, there are eight chapters, each featuring a specific subject, each with a different contributing author. Each article is accompanied by a number of excellent photographs showing the project “in progress” and “completed”. A list of paints, brushes, primer, glue, and other materials used in the project are provided. This “shopping list” is something that I, as a rookie figure painter find extremely important. In each article, the author describes specific techniques such as base… more |
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Mercury AtlasPublished:
Following on the heels of the release of the Mercury Capsule model, Horizon Models is breaking ground with the release of a 1/72nd scale model of the Mercury-Atlas. This release includes parts to construct one Mercury capsule with the addition of the parts needed to build the Atlas launch vehicle. In the way of a preview of things to come, Horizon has also announced the release of an Atlas ICBM version in the near future. It will use the same basic parts as the launch vehicle in the Mercury-Atlas kit. Something of historical note, Horizon Models shared that while (or “whilst”) if you speak “Aussie”, the previously released Mercury Capsule kit, 2003, was designed in Australia, it was tooled in China. However, we are informed that the Convair Atlas rocket itself, was… more |
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Republic P-47B-D RazorbackPublished:
Authored by Robert Peczkowski, with color profiles by Zbigniew Kolacha, this book, is a comprehensive text and photographic/image guide to the Republic P-47B-D. The book thoroughly covers the “B”, “C”, and “D” versions of this famous World War II aircraft. This story is told in excellent text, accompanied by period B&W photographs, excellent color images of surviving airframes, extracts from official manuals, and a superb collection of color profiles by Zbigniew Kolacha. Of particular interest to the hobbyist is the excellent color artwork which depicts many of the camouflage schemes and markings found on the P-47. Of particular interest in the list of chapters are those which feature “Detail Photos” of the fuselage, wing, engine, canopy, cockpit, tail,… more |
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De Havilland Mosquito FB.VI BuildPublished:
In Part 1 of this review, one of the “come away” conclusions was that this model is massive. Think in terms of a 1/48th B-29 or a C-130. And yet, even a very large model starts out as just a collection of small pieces, with a set of instructions to guide the building through the project. In the case of this Mosquito, there are some 600+ of those pieces and not all of them are small, thus the rather large box in which the kit is presented. As Part 1 of this review ended, I was about to begin the fun stuff….the gluing, and sanding, and painting, and the last few weeks working on the Mossie have been enjoyable, but not without some challenges. Remembering that this is a kit review and not a “how to build it” article, let’s take a look at some of the properties and… more |
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De Havilland Mosquito FB.VIPublished:
This kit is the 2nd release of a 24th scale Mosquito by Airfix, the first being the Mosquito kit, A25001 released toward the end of 2009. Note that the box art for the two releases is not the same and the item numbers are slightly different. The original release is “25001” and this new release is “25001a”. Opening the box, one will find 14 plastic bags containing 18 sprues loaded with 617 parts. Having some experience with the original release, a very cursory inspection leads me to conclude that the new release is the same, or very similar to the original release. I noticed the same pattern of ejector pin marks that appeared on the original release, and that is a bit of a disappointment. Many will not be visible when the model is complete, but those that are visible can prove… more |
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Mosquito Airframe Stencil/Data SeriesPublished:
Please note that Aviaeology has a website that is currently under revision. Aviaeology requests that purchases be made through their eBay store. For those who have purchased decals from Aviaeology before, you are already aware of the high quality of their products, and you are also aware of the excellent documentation that Aviaeology provides to its customers. For first-time buyers, here is a summary of the process followed by Aviaeology. At the time of this review the Aviaeology website is under renovation, so please go to their eBay store at https://www.ebay.ca/str/aviaeology. Once a purchase is made, an automatically generated email will appear in your inbox. Attached to that email will be the… more |
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RCAF Mosquitoes-Canadians in Fighter Command, #1Published:
Please note that Aviaeology has a website that is currently under revision. Aviaeology requests that purchases be made through their eBay store. For those who have purchased decals from Aviaeology before, you are already aware of the high quality of their products, and you are also aware of the excellent documentation that Aviaeology provides to its customers. For first-time buyers, here is a summary of the process followed by Aviaeology. At the time of this review the Aviaeology website is under renovation, so please go to their eBay store at https://www.ebay.ca/str/aviaeology. Once a purchase is made, an automatically generated email will appear in your inbox. Attached to that email will be the documentation portion… more |
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Photo-Etch Tool KitPublished:
One of the lessons that I’ve learned over my years of modeling is that it is wise to use the tool best suited for the job at hand. I have a number of high quality tools and many of them have the label, “Xuron” on the handle. My latest acquisition is the Xuron Tk 3600 Photo Etch Took Kit. The Xuron webpage featuring the TK 3600 states that this kit was designed for scale model builders working with delicate photo-etch. Is there any other kind of PE? The kit contains three tools for cutting, bending and holding PE parts. Model 9180ET Professional Photo-Etch Scissor cuts the PE, Model 450 TweezerNose™ Plier holds the PE, and the Model 575 Micro Bending Plier bends it. I have two different and very useful PE benders, but sometimes the PE part is simply too… more |