Gino Dykstra
Reviews By Author
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WWII Pilots of British Naval AviationPublished:
ICM continues to add to its excellent aviation figure series with this latest contribution, WWII Pilots of British Naval Aviation. The title of the kit is a bit of a misnomer as the included figures only feature a single pilot. The other two figures are a sailor and a naval officer. In addition, I was surprised to see that this set only included three rather than the usual four that ICM offers in such sets. All that being said, I’m actually quite taken with the figures provided. The naval sailor and officer are, to the best of my knowledge, the first ever offered in plastic in this scale, and the detail is lovely. The pilot figure comes with a beautifully detailed parachute and harness slung over one shoulder, and with very little modification (mostly the color of his pants)… more |
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Helicopters Ground Personnel (Vietnam War)Published:
In yet another happy move, ICM has now released a set of very nice figures to support their growing line of 1/35th helicopter kits. Set in the Vietnam War era, this set of four figures depicts a typical support crew performing general maintenance on a helicopter, with a commanding officer pointing to an area needing attention. Three are wearing the standard working cap for ground personnel including one bare-headed figure. All four figures are in the casual ground *uniforms for maintenance work and are on the whole relatively easy to assemble. Some attention needs to be paid, however, to the loose hands that attach to wrists – obviously intended to provide some flexibility in positioning for your particular diorama. All four figures are wearing essentially the… more |
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The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, Volume 2Published:
Human beings sure like to squabble, and the more history they share, the more enmity they seem to feel. America is little over 200 years old, and has had only one internal conflict during that time, and yet it still impacts the country to this day.Imagine, then, a region occupied for millenia2, and the potential only increases. India and Pakistan have been at each other’s throats since the day of partition, and the author Ravi Rikhye, does a good job of explaining the incredible complexities of the hostility for the average reader.Suffice it to say that my head was buzzing after reading the introduction. It’s very hard for someone not born in that part of the world to really understand what the grievances are. The author himself states flatly that writing history is a subjective… more |
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Ripped Apart: Volume 1: The Cyprus Crisis 1963-64Published:
I’ve read a number of books about 20th century so-called brush wars, and it becomes fairly obvious over time that these small, relatively isolated conflicts often serve as relief valves for larger nations who dare not directly confront each other. In the nuclear age, such aggressiveness would almost certainly be fatal. That being said, the authors do a good job of detailing the conflict between Turkey and Greece over a single island which happens to have people of both nations living on it. All of this dates back to Greece’s struggle for freedom from the Ottoman Empire, and the ongoing tensions resulting from that struggle. Cyprus as a strategic target seems to be more ideological than tactical. However, this doesn’t stop the people from the two local communities from… more |
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DH. 82A Tiger Moth with WWII RAF CadetsPublished:
ICM has released another combo aviation kit, this one including the ubiquitous Tiger Moth training aircraft and their RAF cadets figure set. The DH. 82A Tiger Moth is perhaps one of the most common light aircraft in the world to this day and really needs no introduction. First beginning production in 1931, it served as the main basic training aircraft for the Royal Air Force well into the 1950s, and was exported to more than 25 other air forces during that time. Now in demand in commercial venues, it continues to fly all over the world to this day. The AirplaneThis is actually the second iteration of this famous aircraft in 1/32nd scale, the first being the venerable Matchbox variant, which came out in the 1970s. This version featured a host of special… more |
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AH-1G Cobra (Early Production)Published:
I was in college when Revell first released their 1/32nd scale rendition of the AH-1G Cobra Helicopter gunship, at that time being actively used in the Vietnam conflict. I am forced to admit that I was enamored with the sleek and deadly look of this machine, and the fact that Revell had released it in my favorite scale only made it more desirable. For those who aren’t familiar with the beast, the Cobra was developed hastily in 1967 for use by the Army in the ongoing Vietnam War. Based primarily on the same engine and transmission as the already battle-tested Iroquois transport helicopter (which was repeatedly being pressed into service as a gunship itself) this was the first totally dedicated gunship helicopter to be put into production for the armed services, taking advantage… more |
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Chernobyl #6: Feat of DiversPublished:
ICM continues to model the Chernobyl disaster and its side effects, and this is the sixth set in that series. BackstoryUnlike the previous, more generic versions of various first responders and/or victims, this is a specific set dealing with a very specific set of men. Here’s the story: In 1986, the Number 4 reactor at Chernobyl in the Ukraine exploded, heralding one of the worst nuclear accidents in history. More than 500,000 personnel were mobilized to contain the disaster. The total cost of the effort exceeded roughly $68 billion dollars overall. Completion of the cleanup will still not be complete until around 2065 and with the current war going on, is likely to take much longer than that. However, ten days after the initial meltdown, another… more |
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Acrylic Paints Set "WW1 British Infantry"Published:
ICM continues to come out with interesting paint sets for their kits, and this one is no exception. As with all of the ICM acrylic paints that I’ve tested so far, I’ve found these to be smooth and creamy with no pigment separation in the bottle. They have excellent opacity and cover nicely with one coat and are clearly intended for hand painting rather than airbrushing. I’m finally overcoming my reluctance to paint figures with acrylics because of the excellent quality of these paints. This set includes all the basic colors necessary to paint British infantry of World War 1. However, it is also applicable to British infantry in World War 2, U.S. Infantry in World War 1, and various Commonwealth forces in World War 1. Here are the paints supplied in the set:
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Acrylic Paints Set "Personal Protective Equipment"Published:
ICM continues to come out with interesting paint sets for their kits, and this one is no exception. As with all of the ICM acrylic paints that I’ve tested so far, I’ve found these to be smooth and creamy with no pigment separation in the bottle. They have excellent opacity and cover nicely with one coat, and are clearly intended for hand painting rather than airbrushing. I’m finally overcoming my reluctance to paint figures with acrylics because of the excellent quality of these paints. This set is a bit different from others in that it includes paints representing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for figures that can be found in several of their Chernobyl series, rather than just the latest Brave Divers set. However, I had already assembled the Brave Divers set for another… more |
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American Civil War Confederate Infantry Acrylic Paints SetPublished:
Anyone familiar with my modeling work is aware of my aversion to water-based paints. When acrylic paints first came on the market, I tested several types and found them indifferently opaque and tending to extreme fragility. As a commercial figure painter, I simply didn’t trust them to stand up to the rigors of customer handling. My fondness for all things ICM led me to try out this recently-released paint set specifically designed for their Civil War range of Confederate troops. I must confess - the paints, which come in 12ml bottles, were quite eye-opening. They proved to have a smooth and creamy texture and were not prone to the separating issues that sometimes forces manufacturers to include shake-balls in their bottles. Clearly designed for hand painting rather than… more |