Frank Landrus
Reviews By Author
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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 |
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Martin PBM MarinerPublished:
Steve Ginter’s Martin PBM Mariner is one of more recent in his Naval Fighters series and was actually initiated after hearing that Minicraft was really, really, really going to finally put out their 1/72 PBM-5A kit. This edition is in their standard 8.5” x 11” format softbound publication that is 256 pages (excluding covers). I counted 760 photographs (5 in color) along with 61 drawings. Author Steve Ginter is a noted military historian who publishes the Naval Fighter series that was founded in 1980. After graduating from California State University-Northridge, Steve Ginter became a US Navy pilot, serving from 1966 to 1972. Upon leaving the US Navy, Steve Ginter held a series of management positions within the Thrifty Drug chain for the next twenty-one years. In 1996 in became… more |
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US Navy F-4 Phantom II Units of the Vietnam War 1964 - 68Published:
The newest in Osprey's Combat Aircraft series is authored by Peter E. Davies. A noted author with over twenty-six aviation books published, Peter E. Davis' focus has been on Vietnam War era aircraft. He has had a long relationship with Osprey and has authored 13 titles and co-authored another two. Illustrator Jim Laurier, a native of New England, provides the color profiles. Jim has been drawing since he could hold a pencil and throughout his life he has worked in many mediums creating artwork on a variety of subjects. He has worked on the Osprey Aviation list since 2000, and has been featured in hundreds of aviation books. Gareth Hector is a digital artist of international standing as well as an aviation history enthusiast. Gareth Hector provides the cover artwork of… more |
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Fw 200 Condor Units of World War 2Published:
The newest in Osprey’s Combat Aircraft series is authored by a retired Royal Air Force logistics officer, Chris Goss. Specializing in Luftwaffe air operations, Chris Goss has built an impressive collection of original photographs, interviews, and correspondence with WWII veterans and their families. His aviation photograph collection alone exceeds 50,000 images. This material has been placed into the public sphere in over twenty-three books that Chris Goss has authored, not to mention being a contributor to magazines like Flypast, Aviation News, Fan D’Aviation, and Aerojournal. Chris Davey provides the side profile color plates as he has for more than thirty titles from Osprey. Chris Davey, living in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, is one of the last traditional aviation airbrush… more |
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Saab J 29F TunnanPublished:
BackgroundThe Saab 29, colloquially called Flygande tunnan (English: "The flying barrel"), was a Swedish fighter designed and manufactured by Saab in the 1940s. It was Sweden's second turbojet-powered combat aircraft, the first being the Saab 21R. Despite its rotund appearance, from which its name derives, the J 29 was a fast and agile aircraft for its era. It served effectively in both fighter and fighter-bomber roles into the 1970s. The initial prototype of the Saab Tunnan made its first flight on September 1st 1948, with the British test pilot Robert Moore at the controls. The Tunnan was powered by a Swedish license built DeHavilland Ghost DGT3 gas turbine engine named RM2 by company Svenska Flygmotor and armed with 4 powerful Bofors 20 mm aircraft guns.… more |