Gino Dykstra
Reviews By Author
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Gloster Gladiator Mk. 1 with British Pilots in Tropical UniformPublished:
Gloster’s elegant Gladiator biplane was a staple of the British Air Force through the 1930’s and soldiered on through some of the tougher early campaigns of the Second World War in such places as Egypt, Libya and the Maltese Islands. Battling against often superior and newer opponents, it nonetheless distinguished itself before itself being replaced by newer, faster, and more heavily armed aircraft. It also made its presence known in a number of foreign services including Finland, Greece and the Netherlands. ICM has released a number of variants of the Gladiator, including both Mk. I and Mk. II versions as well as the Sea Gladiator with arresting hook. All of these have proven to be thoroughly enjoyable builds and really do a fine job of representing this noble little aircraft… more |
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WWII French Tank CrewPublished:
ICM continues to please with their latest figure offering – three French tank crewmen showing off their pride and joy to a couple of typically bedazzled kids. Not surprisingly, the sculpting is first-rate, with distinctive character to every face. As the figures don’t come with a lot of equipment, assembly is very straight-forward with no real glitches. A wee bit of putty here and there is definitely called for, especially around the officer’s coat tails. Although the box art shows them gathering around ICM’s new FCM-36 French tank, the seated tanker can fit into almost any French tank. The standing figures, of course, are appropriate for just about any vignette you can think of. One of things I particularly like about this set is that despite its title, all of these… more |
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Les Suisses au Service de la France 1715-1820Published:
I didn’t really know this, but the Swiss have a long and distinguished history of serving as mercenaries in other country’s armies, especially France, from as far back as the Late Middle Ages all the way through the Age of Napoleon and beyond. The last vestige of this type of Swiss service remains in the Swiss guards at the Vatican today. In some ways, these mercenaries were the harbingers of today’s professional soldiers – men dedicated to a life of arms rather than the temporary civilian levies standard up until that time. This book by Heimdal studies the history and uniforms of a century of service to the French, starting with the Louis XV and ending with the incredibly colorful period of the Napoleonic Wars. The book is entirely in French, which may prevent one from… more |
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Les Italiens de L’Emperur: Les Armées de la Péninsule Italienne 1800-1815Published:
I’ll be the first to admit it – I’m getting hooked on these Heimdal uniform books. Any dedicated figure modeler is well aware of the fact that the period roughly 1790 – 1815 constitutes the highlight of colorful uniforms worn by any belligerents in any war, before or since. The development of coal tar dyes led to the creation of a bewildering range of bright colors, almost immediately employed by all the major military powers of the time, as they regarded the quality of their military attire to be a direct reflection of the power and majesty of their particular countries. Napoleanic uniforms in particular reflected this obsession, with an almost unbelievable range of military costumes. For figure modelers, the fact that almost all of them were based in large part on standard… more |
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FCM 36 WWII French Light TankPublished:
I’ll be honest. When I first saw pictures of this upcoming kit I assumed it was some kind of prototype. Every other French tank of the period that I’m familiar with – the Renaults, Hotchkisses, Somuas and Chars – all have a fairly consistent look to them, mainly because large castings were prevalent is each design, sometimes with a little bolting. This one is so radically different that it really threw me. But not only is this definitely a French design, but it is also NOT a prototype. A surprising number of these were actually built and saw combat. There’s a fascinating story to this vehicle. Designed by the same team that built the massive Char 2C tanks in the 1920s, this one was engineered to take advantage of the electro-welding capabilities of the Forges et Chantiers de… more |
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The Normans in Italy 1016-1194Published:
Normans, the direct descendants of Viking marauders who finally settled in France and the Low Countries, were a restless bunch. Due to population pressures many of the more ambitious traveled far afield, looking for conquest or new lands to call home. Italy was one such location. Here, they established a number of kingdoms, even going so far down the “boot” of Italy to settle on the island of Sicily, where many of their descendants remain to this day. The story of this migration and the military events associated with it is the basis of this new book from Osprey. As is typical of Osprey works, this one is carefully researched, using surviving artifacts and stories to fill in the details. I know for my own that I was quite surprised to see what a cultural crossroads this area of… more |
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P-38F/G Lightning Gun Barrels var.BPublished:
Call me old-fashioned, but I consistently find myself being floored by the level of modeling detail available these days, especially with resin aftermarket materials. In the old days, you could only dream of this kind of quality. Quickboost scores another one with their release of this outstanding set of P-38 gun barrels. Designed to fit the Trumpeter kit (although I suspect they’d fit the venerable Revell kit in the same scale). The set includes four .50 caliber barrels and the 20mm cannon barrel. Each machine gun barrel has the lightening holes beautifully represented completely around the barrel as well as an open muzzle. The cannon barrel displays the minute recoil spring and an open muzzle as well. Designed to be drop-in pieces, they should require no additional… more |
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Gloster Gladiator Air IntakesPublished:
ICM’s Gloster Gladiator series in 1/32nd have to be one of the most anticipated kits of the year, and having built all of them (so far) I can honestly say they are a delight and a wonderful addition to my collection. However, the small air intakes associated with the detailed engine build were a bit of a trial. Consisting of three parts each, they were a fiddly assembly and due to the nature of the sprue attachments, it was all too easy to damage the thin nozzle rim on removal (I speak from experience). Quickboost’s replacement engine nozzles eliminate both the fiddly build and the potential damage scenario. Consisting of two small handed replacement parts, they are extremely easy to remove from the molding block and to clean up. They also feature some really fine… more |
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Messerschmitt Bf 109-F-4 PropellorPublished:
I can’t count the number of times I’ve read of someone complaining about the props or spinner on a later 1/32nd scale Messerschmitt. Apparently, these specific parts are particularly hard to reproduce in styrene accurately (or so I’ve been led to believe). Enter Quickboost to the rescue with a beautifully cast spinner and props for the F-4 version of this classic aircraft. This one comfortably fits either the Revell or the Hasegawa rendition of this aircraft and may even prove a good fit for the Twentieth Century Toys replica. As always with this manufacturer, the parts are molded in an absolutely flawless grey resin which captures every nuance masterfully and is also easy to carve and prep. I think it took me all of ten minutes to clean and assemble my… more |
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Bf-108 Wheels and Paint Masks - EarlyPublished:
Aires, a company out of Czechoslovakia, continues to create wonderful detail parts with the release of their Bf-108 wheel and mask set, intended for the Eduard kit. This set includes replacement parts for all three wheels, which are cast in a grey resin which captures the fine detail extraordinarily well. In addition, masks are included to aid in painting the wheels, along with detailed illustrated instructions in their use. The casting is flawless and displays details right down to the molded lettering on the tires. There is literally nothing I can fault with this set, and they should add to the Eduard kit immensely. This is aftermarket quality at its finest. I really don’t think you can go wrong with this detail set – it will simply enhance your work and add that “… more |