Gino Dykstra
Reviews By Author
The Winter War 1939-40Published: October 10, 2023 Before World War 1, Finland had been part of Russia. However, during the Russian Civil War that followed, Finland was largely dominated by the non-Soviet White Russians, who successfully broke away from Russian to become their own independent country. This situation was to rankle Stalin, who still regarded the territories of Finland as belonging to his country. Three months after the… more |
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Fierce Battle: American Civil WarPublished: October 8, 2023 I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for the Civil War era, as this is the period in history that my father taught at the university. ICM has really delivered in this area, offering no less than four different infantry figure sets, each with a superb sprue of associated equipment, making it very easy to convert these figures as you choose. ICM has now taken this a step further in… more |
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Journalists in WarPublished: August 2, 2023 No one can argue that being a war correspondent is anything but dangerous work. Journalists who choose this branch of their profession face death, kidnapping, torture and more on a regular basis, as well as dealing with the repercussions this activity can have on their family lives back home. All of this is especially true in this age, where the “Press” label affords far less protection than… more |
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Normadie-Niemen: Plane of Roland de la PoypePublished: July 20, 2023 The story of the Normandie (later, Normandie-Niemen) Escadrilles makes for fascinating reading. Originally recruited by DeGaulle himself, these French pilots flew for the Soviets in Soviet-made aircraft at more than typical risk to themselves. The Germans saw this development as a breach of the French Vichy government’s surrender agreement and made it a policy to execute any French pilots… more |
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The Crew of “Stugna-P” Anti-Tank ComplexPublished: May 31, 2023 Listed as the first in their “Brave Ukraine” series, this is a small diorama set with four figures servicing an indigenous Stugna-P antitank missile system. The Stugna-P is essentially the equivalent of the U.S. TOW missile system and was developed around 2010 and is effective against most forms of armor (including reactive) up to about 160 feet. It can fire two different calibers of missile… more |
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Yak-9K WWII Soviet FighterPublished: April 17, 2023 The Yak-9 was a development of the successful Yak-7, which was itself a development of an advanced trainer in use by the Soviet Air Force. Fast and robust, it came into fighter regiments on the Eastern Front in late 1942 and directly challenged the best the Luftwaffe was able to throw at them, although it suffered at first due to poor training. The Yak9K was certainly the most heavily… more |
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P-40E Quick Set 3D Acrylic Instrument PanelsPublished: February 23, 2023 I don’t think I’m alone in the feeling that when building an airplane kit, the most challenging aspect (at least in terms of painting) is inevitably the cockpit. And within the cockpit, the most challenging aspect is almost always the instrument panels. Over the years I’ve developed a pretty steady hand at this kind of work, but that doesn’t mean I actually enjoy it. It’s usually with a sigh… more |
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Hawker HunterPublished: January 12, 2023 It’s always been my opinion that the well-known and well-liked Hawker Hunter is one of the most elegant jet aircraft to ever take to the skies. I’ve built dozens of models of this lovely aircraft over the years, from the 1/72nd scale offering by Airfix when I was a kid up to several iterations of the impressive 1/32nd scale Revell offering. There’s just no beating that look! Tony… more |
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Victory: 100-Gun First Rate 1765Published: January 12, 2023 If you’re even just a passing fan of classic sailing ships, you should be familiar with the unforgettable H.M.S. Victory, the famous ship-of-the-line that Lord Nelson commanded at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. More readily recognizable by the novice than even the U.S.S. Constitution, this ship has been a subject for virtually every major model maker in the last century, manufactured in… more |
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Laffley V15T with Hotchkiss Machine GunPublished: December 15, 2022 In my last review concerning this interesting French vehicle, I described how the prototype was developed in 1938 with some of the most advanced mechanical technology of the day. The distinctive look of the machine is based on a double set of “bumper” wheels placed both in the center and the front of the chassis, designed to make the vehicle far more capable in an off-road capacity. Overall,… more |