WWII German Rubber Rafts

Published: September 1, 2016
Company: Bronco Models

The Kit

Bronco has recently released a fun little kit of two German WWII rubber rafts, which come in a small, side-opening box with instructions and painting suggestions on the back. Two identical sprues of soft grey plastic make up the contents.

Expecting a run-of-the-mill modeling experience, I was more than pleasantly surprised by the engineering and design of everything… more

Wooden Boxes

Published: July 11, 2016
Company: Res-Im

RES_IM, a small company out of Czechoslovakia, continues to add to its list of quality aftermarket and modeling supply products, this time with a package of ten generic wooden boxes in 1/35th scale.

The small, sturdy box contains three separate baggies of resin parts mounted on casting blocks. Two large, square boxes, three medium-sized rectangular flat boxes and five smaller, square… more

sWS w/2cm Flakvierling 38 Halftrack

Published: May 27, 2016
Company: Bronco Models

Following right on the heels of their Schwere Wehrmachtschlepper (sWS) IR-Searchlight halftrack, Bronco Models has now offered the same wide-tracked vehicle sporting a four-barreled 2cm Flakvierling anti-aircraft gun.

Like the one before, this ‘new’ kit is actually a reissue of the high-quality Great Wall (Lion Roar) kit from a few years back. Aside from the box art and the color of… more

TBF/TBM Avenger Eggplane

Published: April 19, 2016
Company: Hasegawa

Summary

Hasagawa has re-released their previously out-of-production Tamago Plane Series Egg Plane caricature of the venerable TBF/TBM Avenger, this issue sporting two sets of new markings, including the popular set for USS Mission Bay (Code E16).
The small, sturdy box contains two sprues of relatively hard, blue plastic, a clear plastic canopy packaged separately, one medium… more

sWS 60cm Infrared Searchlight Carrier "Uhu"

Published: March 4, 2016
Company: Bronco Models

Summary

Newly offered in injection-molded plastic by Bronco Models out of China, is a wide-tracked sWS Utility Halftrack sporting a 60cm infrared searchlight and accompanying night-vision IR equipment.

This "new" kit is actually a reissue of the high-quality Great Wall (Lion Roar) kit from a few years back. Aside from the box art and the color of the plastic, the main… more

Gato Class Submarine

Published: February 3, 2020
Company: Revell, Inc.

Revell has re-released their vintage WWII Gato Class Submarine in enormous 1/72 scale – topping off at just over 52 inches in length! Surface detail of the deck and fittings is excellent, as well as their renderings of the 20mm, 40mm, and 4inch deck armament. Also included are three sets of pre-bent, steel wire steps as well as a variety of pre-drilled stanchions for stringing safety… more

PanzerKampfwagon II Sd.Kfz.122 (F) w/UE Trailer

Published: February 10, 2020
Company: Bronco Models

Summary

Newly offered in injection-molded plastic by Bronco Models out of China, the Sd.Kfz.122(F) Flammpanzer is a real gem of a kit. Bronco had previously released an all-new version of the gun tank, but this is the first Flamm version since the discontinued kit from ICM/Alan in 2006. It comes with a (captured) French tracked trailer and enough jerry cans and oil… more

M4A3 Sherman w/T34 "Calliope"

Published: February 10, 2020
Company: Academy Models

Summary

Academy apparently has teamed with Italeri to produce one of the first ‘Calliope Shermans’ to appear in some time. The M4A3 vehicle is produced by Academy, while the T-34 multiple rocket launcher looks like it is from Italeri, based on sprue shots of the rocket launcher parts. As with all of their AFV kits, Academy provides the builder with good value based on fewer parts… more

Tiger I - 131 s.Pz.Abt.504 Tunisia Smart Kit

Published: February 3, 2020
Company: Dragon Models

Dragon Models offers up yet another premium early Tiger I kit for German WWII armor enthusiasts; this time with the famous ‘131’ vehicle captured in North Africa. This particular vehicle was shipped to Tunisia between 12 March and 16 April 1943. The tank was assigned to No. 3 Platoon in No. 1 Company of the 504th Schwere Heerespanzerabteilung (German heavy tank battalion) during the North… more

Hawker Typhoon Mk.IB, Part 3

Published: January 23, 2021
Company: Airfix

Down the home stretch! Last time we had just completed the wings, fuselage, nose and wheel-wells, leaving just the final assembly and finish for this last segment of this three-part review. To recall: I chose to display only the starboard wing’s gun bay and starboard engine detail, and to cover up the lower front end encompassing the oil cooler/air intake.

Continuing with Assembly… more