Frank Landrus
Reviews By Author
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Lockheed F-94 StarfirePublished:
Steve Ginter’s Lockheed F-94 Starfire is one of three of the latest in his Air Force Legends series. This edition is in their standard 8.5” x 11” format softbound publication that is 160 pages (excluding covers). I counted 406 photographs (15 in color) along with 82 drawings and 63 insignias. Author Alan C. Carey is a noted military historian who was born in Orange County, California in a career military family. Carey got to Texas as soon as he could and achieved his Baccalaureate and Masters degree at Southwest Texas State. His interest in military aviation is primarily due to his father’s service from 1942-1966. Carey’s research on his father resulted in his father (and two members of his crew) receiving Distinguished Flying Crosses and Air Medals for their WWII service with… more |
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German Motorcycles of WWII: A Visual History in Vintage Photos and Restored Examples, Part 1Published:
Ampersand’s latest book by David Doyle continues to expand on their Visual History format as this edition follows up on Doyle’s “Kübelwagen and Schwimmwagen: A Visual History of the German Army’s Multi-Purpose Vehicles”. Ampersand got their start in 1993 when Pat Stansell distributed a free issue of Military Miniatures in Review at the IPMS Nationals in Atlanta. Ampersand joined forces with HobbyLink Japan in 2008 and have continued to expand their military AFV publications ever since. True to the Visual History Series name, the focus of this book in on the visual, detailing the development and service history of the German Army’s Motorcycles of WWII. This is slightly expanded from Ampersand’s standard 120 page version of their Visual History format and it runs 128 pages packed… more |
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PianoPublished:
A perfect addition to your diorama is this WWII era upright piano and bench. Hauler provides nine resin parts and eight photo-etched parts to build the kit. The instructions provide a pictorial on where the parts go, but do not contain any guidance for color. A quick internet search revealed that most were painted in black with a few fancier ones showing a fine wood grain for the main body. The resin is packaged in a re-sealable plastic bag with the photo-etc h in a folded plastic bag secured with a staple. Hauler has molded the parts in a tan resin with only a few bubbles that I was able to find. There are no mold seams to sand off. The resin pour plug on the back of the piano is quite large, but was easily removed from the back with a razor saw in about fifteen minutes. As… more |
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F-105 Thunderchief in ActionPublished:
David Doyle’s latest book continues to expand on Squadron Signal’s long standing In Action series that initiated back in 1971. This is actually the third book to cover the F-105 in the In Action series. Lou Drendel authored the first in 1974 (1017) followed by Ken Neubeck in 2002 (1185), both of which are out of print. This edition by David Doyle adds considerably to the material provided in the first two. Veteran illustrator Don Greer provides the artwork for the full page length color profiles within this tome. This follows the normal format of the In Action series, detailing the development and service history of the Republic F-105 Thunderchief. This is slightly expanded from Squadron’s standard 60 page version of their In Action format and it runs 80 pages packed with large… more |
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Model Art Vessel Model Special No. 61, 2016 AutumnPublished:
Model Art Issue 61 is typical of other Model Art magazines in that it is written entirely in Japanese, with occasional English words, usually in article titles or in captions. The Vessel Model Special is a quarterly issue that focuses on naval subjects. Each issue leads off with either short articles on a finished build or an in depth step-by-step ‘how to’ on the build and painting. The finished model photographs are of high quality in brightness, color, and depth of focus. Advertising comprises the inside covers (and back cover) along with another four pages showing what is available and new, always useful for building up that wish list. I counted nearly 600 photos (mostly in color) along with ten 1/700 scale drawings. You will find throughout this journal, period photographs of the… more |
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Model Art No. 950, October 2016Published:
Model Art Issue 950 is typical of other Model Art magazines in that it is written entirely in Japanese, with occasional English words, usually in article titles or in captions. The Model Art magazine is a monthly issue that has evolved from their first issues in 1966 that focuses on all modeling subjects. I’ve attempted to capture the contents below, but please be aware of translation difficulties. There are about 40 pages of advertising, out of the 160 pages, showing what is available and new, always useful for building up that wish list. Nearly all the articles are supported with color photos. A few of the ongoing series are supported with black and white drawings and photos This issue features a discussion of the paint used on the Mitsubishi Zero with build reviews of the… more |
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The Somme: The Epic Battle in the Soldiers' Own Words and PhotographsPublished:
The Somme by Richard Van Emden was originally published in England by Pen and Sword as a hard cover book on May 24, 2016 and a soft cover on June 6, 2016. Casemate released this soft cover edition on August 19, 2016. London resident Richard van Emden has written profusely on the subject on World War One. He worked as a journalist after graduating from Newcastle University in 1988. He books focus on World War I and include: Tickled to Death to Go, Prisoners of the Kaiser, The Trench, Sapper Martin, Last Man Standing, Britain’s Last Tommies, Famous, Veterans, Boy Soldiers of the Great War, The Soldier’s War, and Tommy’s Ark. He has interviewed over 270 veterans of the Great War and many of those interviews are used in this book. Richard Van Emden also is heavily involved in… more |
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The Great War Through Picture PostcardsPublished:
Originally published in the Netherlands in 2014 by S.I. Publicaties BV, this hard cover book covers the four year period of the ‘war to end all wars’. Translated into English by Britta Nurmann, Pen and Sword Books released the first English edition in in January 2016. Osprey Publishing released this reprint edition in August 2016. Dr. Guus de Vries has focused this book on three perspectives:
Dutch historian Dr. Guus de Vries is a noted author of at least eighteen books on firearms and military history (i.e. The Fg42 Fallschirmjagergewehr, The Mg34… more |
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Cross & Cockade International Autumn 2016 Volume 47/3Published:
The latest journal of Cross & Cockade International - Autumn 2016, features a photograph of a captured Sopwith Baby 8153 on the cover. The rear cover features colorful 3-D artwork by Dragan Saler of Serbian aeroplanes in the Balkan Wars with additional detail of the Serbian officers’ cap badges and the flag of the Kingdom of Serbia. If you check out the web site link above, you can get additional sample pics of the current issue. Cross & Cockade International is a non-profit UK based group known as the First World War Aviation Historical Society that publishes their journal four times a year. They also provide a free newsletter (sign up on their website) and occasionally publish WWI themed books like the Sopwith Dolphin monograph I reviewed earlier for IPMS USA. This… more |
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Lawrence of Arabia & Middle East Air PowerPublished:
This book is a compilation of research by members of Cross & Cockade International. Although some of the information has been seen as individual articles in earlier editions of the Cross & Cockade journal, nearly fifty percent of the information presented is new. The front cover features a painting by Stuart Reid “The Arab Welcome the First Handley Page Machine to Arrive in Palestine, 22 September 1918”, featuring Handley Page O/400 C9681 landing at Un el Surab from the collection of the Imperial War Museum. The rear cover features a standing T.E. Lawrence in full regalia. Cross & Cockade International is a non-profit UK based group known as the First World War Aviation Historical Society that publishes their journal four times a year. They also provide a free… more |