Kurganets-25 IFV (Object 695)

Published: December 11, 2017
Company: Panda Hobby

Russia seems to be having a surge of military development these days, suggesting some expansionist policies which go far beyond the scope of a model review. What this offers for the modeler, however, is a wide range of interesting equipment never seen before. The Kurganets-25 IFV is a good example of this. Heralding back to the BMP-2 and -3 of the previous generation, this new machine seems to… more

Vought F4U-1D Corsair

Published: November 5, 2017
Company: Tamiya

When I was a kid of about eleven living in Lincoln, Nebraska, I used to regularly visit one special park there. That's because not only did they have an open Sherman tank you could crawl around on, but a real live ex-Korean Corsair. I spent many a happy Saturday afternoon inside the cockpit or wandering over the wings of that aircraft, and ever since then I've had something of a love affair… more

Sd.Kfz.250/7 Atle 8cm Mortar Carrier w/ Full Interior

Published: September 13, 2017
Company: Dragon Models

The Germans of WW2 were notorious for multi-tasking vehicles, and this one is a good example. In this case, they mounted an 81mm mortar in a standard light armored half-track. I’m old enough to remember the last time a plastic kit manufacturer took a shot at this particular make – a motorized version by Arii back in the early 1970’s. The older kit was pretty poor by even the standards of the… more

T54 E1 - Smart Kit "Black Label Series"

Published: February 3, 2020
Company: Dragon Models

You’ve got to give Dragon Models some real credit – they’re willing to put out the oddball kit now and then, and to do it with class. The U.S.-made T54-E1 tank (not to be confused with the Russian T54) was one of the several attempts in the mid-50’s to upgrade the M48 from its 90mm gun to something with a bit more punch. Three different approaches to this idea were initially attempted,… more

Finnish Tank Crew

Published: July 21, 2017
Company: MiniArt

Over the relatively short time that MiniArt has existed, I have been consistently impressed by the imagination and daring of their figure releases. They have released wonderful civilians, troops and tank crews, often filling gaps no other manufacturer has been able to do. I’ve had wonderful results from their French and Italian tankers, and look forward to getting their Hungarian tank crew… more

Dangerous Curves Series - Sloane, Vegas Baby

Published: June 26, 2017
Company: Master Box Ltd

Masterbox Models in the Ukraine has been at the forefront of the figure end of the modeling business for some time now, never fearing to take some interesting chances on the market. This latest series of figures, designed to accompany most car models with some lovely ladies, has been no exception.

Of all model companies which produce figures, Masterbox may have a truly unique approach… more

T-54-1 Mod. 1947

Published: May 26, 2017
Company: MiniArt

I've always had a fascination for the Russian T-54/T-55 series and have been building models of it all my life, beginning with the ancient Tamiya T-55 from the 1960's. As each new incarnation came out, I leapt on it eagerly, including the Lindberg kit, the AMT/ERTL kit all the way to the latest Takom offering.

MiniArt has been expanding its armor stable dramatically lately, with the… more

U.S.S. Excelsior

Published: May 25, 2017
Company: Round 2 Models

The U.S.S. Excelsior has been a Star Trek favorite for quite some time now – one of the most elegant designs ever made for the Star Trek universe. I didn’t notice this at first, but the designer was strongly influenced by the 1930s Art Deco Streamline Modern style, which features rounded shapes with straight fluting – quite a retro look when you stop and think about it. I remember a friend of… more

Excelsior Aztec Decals

Published: May 18, 2017
Company: Round 2 Models

Round 2 Models has released a large 3-sheet decal set to accompany their newly revised and released U.S.S. Excelsior kit from the Star Trek series. Printed by Cartograf, these decals are commendably thin and for the most part, feature little to no carrier film to deal with. They respond quite well to MicroSol, which I used to help them conform to some of the compound curves found on the model… more

Sea Hurricane

Published: June 23, 2021
Company: Fly Models

Like many limited-run model companies, Fly Models’ first kits were fairly small. I had the distinct pleasure of building one of their Ba-349 Natters when they first came out, and was impressed by the level of effort expended on this design by this fledgling company. It’s still one of the prides of my collection.

Fly has started thinking a lot bigger, and their new series of 1/32^{nd… more}