Arado Ar-196 Radio Equipment

Published: November 19, 2010
Company: Quickboost

The next set, QB 48 332, for the Ar-196 is a simple set for the radio set up. The kit offering features soft detail in a highly visible cockpit. This is a simple upgrade. Molded in blemish free light grey resin, this upgrade is as simple as remove the part from the pour block, paint and add. This is a direct replacement for part number 21A. I did notice that the kit part looks slightly different than the Quickboost part. As I don’t have my references handy, I’m leaning towards the Quickboost part as being correct.

These parts are quite nice and will make the work for the modeler so much easier. The radios are a nice addition and certainly look more like radios than what is in the kit.

Highly recommended

You can obtain your copy at your local hobby shop or online.… more

Arado Ar-196 Correct Cowling

Published: November 19, 2010
Company: Quickboost

I never expected to see another injection molded plastic Ar-196 but Italeri and Tamiya recently surprised me with their releases. While nice looking kits there are some issues. Quickboost makes a several upgrades for the kit.

QB 48 328 is the corrected forward cowling. Molded in blemish free light grey resin this 10 piece upgrade will aid the modeler dramatically. The kit cowling is a three piece affair with the center section plagued with a seam line all the way around the bulges. This is a big pain in the cowling to clean up and darn near impossible to get right besides the bulges there are also hinges in the way. On top of that this set also provides push rods and a push rod ring. The rods won’t require any cleanup once removed as there are no seam lines. The hardest part of… more

Helicopter Gunships: Deadly Combat Weapon Systems

Published: November 19, 2010
Book Author(s): Wayne Mutza
Company: Specialty Press

Helicopter gunships evolved from the need to provide close quarters combat for the Army. While we think this is a natural thing, the earliest attempts to arm helicopters were frowned upon. It wasn’t until the French started to put guns on some of their aircraft that the US Army took notice. What followed was nothing short of phenomenal culminating with the first purpose built armed helicopter then onto a battlefield essential tool.

This hardback book includes 208 high quality pages with over 360 photos, many in color. Wayne Mutza is well known in the helicopter community for his expertise and vast photo collection. This book is no different. The book is an easy read and follows the development of the armed helicopter from the end of World War II to present day. The entire… more

Hawker Hurricane Wheel Bay

Published: November 19, 2010
Company: Aires Hobby Models

I love the Hawker Hurricane even more than the Spitfire. The Hasegawa kit is a very nice kit but the wheel well is pretty basic. Aires provides a very nice upgrade.

The Aires wheel well comes on two pour blocks. In my example, the larger major assembly is molded perfectly in light grey resin. The detail is impressive and far superior to the kit offering. The pour block will be a little bit of a pain to remove but some simple sanding will take care of that. The other pour block is molded in light caramel with remarkable detail on the eight pieces. Removal of these pieces will be easy enough and clean up will be a breeze.

The instructions are simple enough to understand and should be no problem for most. Online references are easy enough to find if your library is lacking… more

Junkers Ju-87 Stuka Gun Barrels

Published: November 19, 2010
Company: Quickboost

I love the way Quickboost attacks a subject. If something is bothering you and you just want to upgrade that component you don’t need to buy a whole set, just what you want. It is with that philosophy that Quickboost releases these gun barrels for the Hasegawa Stuka. On the heels of their exhaust, propeller blades, control sticks and wing guns for the Stuka, come these MG-81Z barrels.

Perfectly formed in light grey resin, these barrels are very delicately molded with no mold lines. In addition to the hollowed out barrels, the barrels themselves have some beautifully molded cooling fins. Simply remove the kit barrels, paint the QB barrels and add. Did I mention there are enough barrels to do two kits?

Highly recommended

Thanks to Aires for the review copy. You can… more

Hurricane R4118

Published: November 19, 2010
Book Author(s): Peter Vacher
Company: Grub Street

Many of us dream about finding a warbird in a garage and being able to restore it. Well at least I do. Well, that is pretty much what happened to Peter Vacher while traveling in India in the 90s. Not only did he find a warbird, but it was a veteran of the Battle of Britain. A Hurricane Mk.I! This is the story of how he acquired the airplane and ultimately restored it to flying condition.

So now that you’ve found the aircraft, what are you going to do about it? After stewing on it for some years the author decided to purchase it. That is when the real pain began. Bureaucratic red tape consumed six years before the airplane finally left India. The perseverance that the author shows, not to mention the amount of money spent just on airfare, is a tribute to him. Lesser men would… more

Spitfire Corrected Antenna

Published: November 19, 2010
Company: Quickboost

Do you think that the antenna on any of the Spitfire kits looks a little too thick? If you are like me, do you hate to remove the mold lines? Well Quickboost fixes both of these issues. Molded in light caramel color these little gems are bubble and blemish free. You get three antennas for use on any model of the Spitfire. Adding them is so simple; each antenna has a mounting peg which will fit directly into the kit spot.

Highly recommended

You can obtain your copy at your local hobby shop or online.

Our thanks to Quickboost and Aires for the review sample.

Hs-126 Exhaust

Published: November 19, 2010
Company: Quickboost

These simple, yet effective, exhausts are typical of Quickboost exhausts, perfectly formed with hollowed ends. The parts are molded in light grey, blemish free resin. The Hs-126 has two very small exhausts and these are easy enough to add to your ICM Henschel.

Highly recommended

You can obtain your copy at your local hobby shop or online.

Our thanks to Quickboost and Aires for the review sample.

Ju-87D-1/D-3 Stuka Exhaust - Early Type

Published: November 19, 2010
Company: Quickboost

Designed for the Hasegawa family of Dora model Stukas, these little gems are typical of the Quickboost line, simple and inexpensive upgrades for the modeler. Molded in light grey resin these exhausts are beautiful and flaw free. There is the aerodynamic cover on the front but then there is the exhausts themselves. They are beautiful. The exhausts feature the weld seam on the outside and the hollow end which makes these priceless. I can never get the ends to thin out. Well, I can but, they never look great or uniform. Quickboost does all the hard work for you.

Highly recommended

You can obtain your copy at your local hobby shop or online.

Our thanks to Quickboost and Aires for the review sample.

Air Modeller #31, August/September 2010

Published: October 24, 2010
Company: Air Modeller

Air Modeller’s latest issue, #31, contains some of the best looking models I’ve seen in quite some time. The cover photo alone is really impressive, a well worn and weathered F-100. Typical of the magazine, this one contains 64 pages of brilliant color photographs.

The first model highlighted is a highly detailed two color scheme F-104 built by Diego Quijano. This is actually the second part of the build, continued from the previous issue. It in no way detracts from the beautiful job. The scratch building is impressive and the weathering is outstanding. The weathering is explained thoroughly and will help any modeler improve their model.

The next model is part one of multi-part builds of 1/72^nd scale Hasegawa B-26 by Andrea Vignocchi. This highly detailed… more