Frank Landrus
Reviews By Author
|
Soviet and Russian Military Aircraft in the AmericasPublished:
Yefim Gordon was born in 1950 in Vilnius, Lithuania (then part of the Soviet Union) and graduated from the Kaunas Polytechnic Institute in 1972. He has been researching Soviet and Russian aviation history for more than 40 years. A professional photographer, Yefim Gordon has published hundreds of features and photographs in Russian and foreign aviation magazines. He has authored and co-authored more than 120 books on Soviet and Russian aviation. Dmitriy Komissarov was born in 1968 in Moscow and graduated from the Moscow State Linguistics University in 1992. He has worked as a translator ever since, with the most of his work associated with his interest in aviation. Dmitriy Komissarov has authored two books and translated or co-authored more than 50 others. He has also written… more |
|
British Secret Projects 5: Britain's Space ShuttlePublished:
Dan Sharp studied history at the University of Liverpool and has worked as a writer and editor since 1998. As a hobby he began doing primary source research that has resulted in quite a few historical aviation books. These include Cold War – Sex, Spies and Nuclear Missiles (2013), Messerschmitt Me 262: Secret Projects and Experimental Prototypes (2013), Messerschmitt Bf 109: Secret Projects and Experimental Prototypes (2013), Dueling Above the Trenches – Sopwith Aircraft of the Great War (2014), D-Day Operation Overlord and the Battle for Normandy (2014), Luftwaffe Secret Jets of the Third Reich (2015), Spitfires Over Berlin (2015), The Hated Volksjäger: Histories of the Heinkel He 162 (2015), and Luftwaffe –… more |
|
Wine Bottles and Wooden CratesPublished:
MiniArt has released a nice set that would look great in your WWII dioramas in their Buildings and Accessories Series. MiniArt provides twelve trees representing the crates composed of eleven parts per tree. The crates appear to be molded in light brown soft styrene as the parts are somewhat flexible and are easily cut. The twelve trees for the two different styles of wine bottles contain sixteen wine bottles out of a transparent green and transparent brown styrene. The transparent plastic seems to be a bit harder than the styrene for the crates. The waterslide decals provided offer markings for French and German wine companies for both the crates and the bottles. Packaging is quite nice with the finished product depicted on the top of the box and the contents / instructions / paint… more |
|
Drone Strike! UAVs and Unmanned Aerial Warfare in the 21st CenturyPublished:
Bill Yenne has authored over 75 historical books and ten novels to date. He grew up inside Montana’s Glacier National Park where his father was the supervisor of back country trails. Bill is also a nationally recognized artist and illustrator with his work being showcased in many national magazines and some of his paintings on display in the official collection of the US Air Force. Bill graduated from the University of Montana in 1971 and founded the American Graphic Systems company. He later graduated from the Stanford University Professional Publishing course in 1989. The AGS BookWorks division has produced some 200 large-format, illustrated books. He has contributed to encyclopedias of World War I and II (for you youngins, this was Wikipedia before the internet came along). He has… more |
|
AMK L-29 Flaps and Control SurfacesPublished:
Aires provides you with the capability to replace your control surfaces on the L-29 Delphin. The packaging is the standard polyethylene bag secured to a header card with staples. There are no supplied instructions but then again, the six parts are a direct replacement for the kit’s control surfaces. Although most paints will adhere to resin alone, I would recommend that you wash the parts to remove any remaining mold release and prime them first. The parachute and parachute housing will need to be installed with your favorite CA (super glue) or epoxy, as the normal plastic glues or solvents will not react with the resin. Aires has molded the control surfaces perfectly in light tan resin with no apparent bubbles. Be very careful removing the part from the resin block, it… more |
|
Soviet Cold War Guided Missile CruisersPublished:
Soviet Cold War Guided Missile Cruisers by Edward Hampshire is his third book and first for Osprey Publishing. Edward Hampshire earned his PhD in War Studies from King’s College in London with a thesis on British naval equipment of the 1960s. His focus is Cold War era navies and British defense policy since WWII. Dr. Hampshire has taught at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and has worked at the National Archives. He has been featured on television and radio, including the BBC, ITV, ABC, and NBC. Dr. Hampshire’s previous book was published in 2013, East of Suez to the Eastern Atlantic, British Naval Policy 1964-70. He also co-authored British Intelligence: Secrets, Spies and Sources, published in 2008. He has been a Senior Lecturer at the Royal Royal Military Academy Sandhurst since… more |
|
U-2/Po-2 Control SurfacesPublished:
Quickboost provides you with a product to replace your one-piece Po-2 horizontal tail surfaces with the capability of displaying the elevators in alternate position. Please note this set does not depict elevator tabs that are present on some aircraft. The packaging is the standard polyethylene bag secured to a header card with staples. There are no supplied instructions but then again, the three parts are a direct replacement for the kit’s horizontal tails surfaces. Although this product is designed specifically for the ICM 1/48 kits (48251, 48252, and 48253) it should take zero- to minimal-modification effort to mount this set in the Admiral kits (4807, 4808, 4809), the Gavia kits (002/0399, 004/0600), the AZ Model kit (AZ4870), the Jadar-Model resin kit (48 001), or even the… more |
|
MiG-21 Parachute PackPublished:
Quickboost provides you with the capability to open up your MiG-21 parachute housing and display the tail end of the packed parachute. Of note is the re-sealable packaging that Quickboost uses that makes the parts easy to review and then stuff back into the package securely. The supplied instructions graphically depict where you cut off the existing closed parachute housing and add the three resin parts included in this set. Although most paints will adhere to resin alone, I would recommend that you wash the parts to remove any remaining mold release and prime them first. The parachute and parachute housing will need to be installed with your favorite CA (super glue) or epoxy, as the normal plastic glues or solvents will not react with the resin. Quickboost has molded… more |
|
Light Trucks of the Italian Army in WW IIPublished:
Enrico Finazzer currently lives in Trento Italy. This is Enrico Finazzer’s fourth book, and second with Mushroom Model Publications. You can find Enrico Finazzer on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/people/Enrico-Finazzer/100006056238933 and on LinkedIn at https://it.linkedin.com/in/enrico-finazzer-14045a27 . This is Luigi Carretta’s third book, and first with Mushroom Model Publications. This tome focuses on series of light trucks designed to operate specifically in the Saharan desert. A key feature was the four oversized tires that enhanced the vehicle’s ability to navigate sand. Enrico Finazzer and Luigi Carretta kick it off with… more |
|
The Fairey BarracudaPublished:
Matthew Willis was born in the historic naval town of Harwich, Essex in 1976. Matthew studied Literature and History of Science at the University of Kent, where he wrote an MA thesis on Joseph Conrad and sailed for the University in national competitions. He subsequently worked as a journalist for Autosport and F1 Racing magazines, before switching to a career with the National Health Service, where he wrote everything from press releases to consultation papers. His first non-fiction book, a history of the Blackburn Skua WW2 naval dive bomber, was published in 2007. He currently lives in Southampton with his University lecturer wife Rosalind, and writes both fiction and non-fiction for a living. This is Matthew Willis fifth book, and fourth with Mushroom Model Publications. Matthew has… more |