F4U Corsairs Whistling Death Decals

Published: July 26, 2021
Company: Fundekals

If you really, I mean really like research, then you know the passion that comes with it. Well so does Fündekals. Their latest release is on the F4U Corsair. This is their second Corsair sheet and it is full of goodies too.

First off, did I miss something? I only got decals. There are no instructions with this sheet. No, that is the norm for Fündekals. To save printing costs, and subsequent costs to you, you can download the instruction booklet online. You can save it and/or print it. The amount of research into the booklet is worth the price of admission.

The decals themselves are printed by B.O.A. so you know they are world class. They are thin, opaque and in register. The sheets are mostly white markings but there are some colorful personal emblems included for the… more

Messerschmitt Bf-109G-6 Expert Kabuki Masks

Published: November 5, 2018
Company: New Ware

The Tamiya Bf-109G-6 is a great model kit. It comes with its own masks but they are not pre-cut nor do they stick to the compound curves very well. Kabuki tape masks work so much better and if they are pre-cut they are the answer to the shortcomings.

New Ware Masks are the answer to those issues. This set is pre-cut on Kabuki tape and provides nearly everything that you’d want to mask off on the kit. More items are included than what is included in the kit. The masks are printed on a 39,5x111 mm sheet of Kabuki tape.

As you’d expect, masks for the canopy are provided as is the normal but unlike the kit masks, this set includes masks for the inside AND outside canopy framing. But this set doesn’t stop there. There are masks included for the spiral, the wheels, the… more

Bf-109F-2 Weekend Photoetch

Published: November 12, 2020
Company: Eduard

Eduard has a variety of options to build their aircraft. There is the Royal Class, ProfiPack, Weekend, and Overtree options, so depending on your budget or what you like to add there is something for everyone.

The Overtree and Weekend releases do not have photoetch parts added. Many, myself included, think that the pre-painted instrument panels are worth the extra cost of these Weekend/Zoom sets.

This set is packaged in the typical resealable packaging with card stock backing to protect the fret from bending. There is a single nickel plated fret with exquisite painted photoetch parts, most notably the instrument panel. This set also comes with the seatbelts and shoulder harnesses. It also features the oil coolers and tropical filter. Various panels and chains for the… more

Bf-109F-2 Weekend Edition

Published: November 12, 2020
Company: Eduard

The Eduard Bf-109F/G series of models are really nice kits. It is nice that Eduard provides a variety of cost options should you want to build one on a budget. The Weekend releases are a bargain, especially if you build it out of the box. Each release has two marking options.

Their latest release is the Weekend Edition Bf-109F-2. It comes with decal for two aircraft, one from JG-2 and from JG-54. Both are quite colorful and choosing which to build will be the difficult part. I elected for the JG-2 machine.

The model comes in a sturdy cardboard box with a colorful top opening cover with profiles of the subject aircraft. The box is about half as deep as the ProfiPack boxing. Inside the box are an instruction booklet with the appropriate parts breakdown. You also get two… more

FW-190A Tface Masks

Published: October 12, 2018
Company: Eduard

For as long as I can remember I’ve always painted the outside of my canopy framing the interior color first and then painted the exterior color overtop of that. This ensured that the interior color showed through the canopy. But there was always one thing that bothered me a little bit, the color was always glossy. Well Eduard has finally fixed that with their new line of TFace Masking sets.

This particular set is designed for the FW-190A series of Eduard models, including the A-8/R2 Rammjaeger. The masks are made of the infamous Kabuki tape so they are flexible and very easy to use. There are instructions to show you which masks to use where, including which is the inside masks and which are the outside ones.

Placing the masks is fairly easy but care has to be exercised… more

FW-190A-5 ZOOM

Published: October 12, 2018
Company: Eduard

So you bought the Weekend or the Overtree FW-190A-5 but you don’t really want to paint the instrument panel and you’d like to have some seatbelts. What do you do? Well Eduard has the answer. They provide you with the pre-painted photo etch brass fret that comes in the Profipack kit.

Personally I think that the ZOOM sets are what really makes it a Weekend or Overtree kit. This fret is typically released when the Overtree kit is released. I think that they are a bargain. You get one pre-painted photo etch with all the parts you need for the cockpit and a few other places. The key is you get the seatbelts and the instrument panel. Those two things alone are worth the price of admission. Also included are the side panels and some various other photo etch pieces for the outside of… more

FW-190A-5 OVERTREE

Published: October 12, 2018
Company: Eduard

So you want to model the Eduard FW-190A-5 but you don’t want to spend a lot of money to do it or maybe you don’t like to work with photo etch. Maybe you have a huge selection of decals and you just need a canvas to use them on. Whatever the reason, maybe Eduard’s Overtrees are the answer for you.

I’ve said it before I love the way Eduard markets their kits. For those that want the whole hog and then some there are the Royal Class kits. Then comes the great value, the Profipack Editions. This is followed up with the less extravagant Weekend Edition, which is just the kit and decals for two airplanes. Then there is the bargain basement, the Overtree Editions. Traditionally these are very inexpensive but just provide you with the plastic parts, no photo etch, no masks, no decals… more

FW-190A-5

Published: November 12, 2020
Company: Eduard

Following on the heels of their gorgeous FW-190A-4 Eduard has released the next variant in the production line, the A-5. The A-5 differed from the A-4 in that its engine was moved forward. This would become the standard position until the D-9 variant came into production.

Having built the A-4 and found it to be simply gorgeous I was anxious to see what the later variants would look like.

Packaged inside of a beautifully painted boxtop with a sturdy cardboard box protecting the parts are some beautiful plastic. There are five sprues of plastic is the light grey kind with no flash or blemishes that I could find. Three of the sprues are the ‘common’ sprues found in all the FW-190 boxings. The other two are aircraft specific with a new fuselage and a new wing. This speaks… more

Ju-87B-2/R-2 Seatbelts STEEL

Published: September 16, 2018
Company: Eduard

The Airfix Stuka is an impressive kit but there is room for improvement. One area that would benefit from aftermarket is the seats. In short, they lack the seatbelts and shoulder harnesses needed to bring this kit out of the ordinary.

Packaged in the typical Eduard resealable packaging with a cardboard stiffener inside is a single pre-painted fret. The cardboard helps prevent bending during storage. The single fret is beautifully represented with ‘shading’ and silver buckles. Since they are thin steel, they are beautifully detailed and bend easily without losing their paint. There are shoulder harnesses for the front seat and lap belts and straps for the other two seats.

The seatbelts are easy enough to add and when seen through the canopy glazing will make a dramatic… more

Ju 87B-2/ R2 Zoom

Published: September 10, 2018
Company: Eduard

The ZOOM series of photo-etch from Eduard features the absolutely essential parts to upgrade your model. Typically, it includes the things in the cockpit that provide dramatic impacts such as the pre-painted instrument panel and various other knobs, buttons, and stuff in the cockpit.

It is packaged in a resealable packaging. The set includes one fret of nickel plated pre-painted brass. The detail contained in the pre-painted parts is phenomenal. The detail that is painted is better than I could ever do. Some like it and some don’t. I love it.

In addition to the instrument panel are rudder pedals, radio faces, and all the little parts that are in the cockpit area. The amount of detail contained is impressive, to say the least. Adding this set to the kit cockpit elevates… more