F-14A Tomcat, VF-111 Sundowners, "Miss Molly"

Published: March 22, 2015
Company: Hasegawa

OK, let me start by admitting it – this one kicked my modeling butt.

But before we go there, a little history of the personal and Tomcat varieties. When Dave and Dick put this kit up for grabs, I made an impassioned plea to be the reviewer. Several drivers – first of all, I worked for Grumman for 21 years, starting straight out of college as a mewling infant of an engineer. I was quickly disabused of any thought that I knew anything about designing airplanes by the curmudgeonly, yet avuncular grizzled old pros who took me under their wings to teach me about aircraft structural design. My first F-14 assignment, several years after the airplane entered Navy service, was designing formed armor plate to be installed in strategic locations inside the engine nacelles. Turns out… more

F-14 Tomcat Landing Gear (Has)

Published: March 11, 2015
Company: Scale Aircraft Conversions

I was in the midst of building Hasegawa's 1/72 F-14A Tomcat when a new list of review items came out and SAC's gear for the mighty 'Cat was one of the available goodies. Having already done some work on the kit landing gear, it provided a great opportunity to do a side-by-side comparison.

SAC's gear come in an attractive clear bubble/card packaging emblazoned with the (USAF) SAC logo. I opened the package, removed a small amount of flashing from the 3 white metal parts, and went immediately to paint – flat white as a primer coat followed by gloss white out of a rattle can. Score one point for SAC, as I had spent a lot of time with needle files, blades and sandpaper removing a whole lotta flash from the kit parts (this is a theme that will repeat in the kit review).

The… more

MOTORAMA – GM's Legendary Show and Concept Cars

Published: February 19, 2015
Book Author(s): David Temple
Company: Specialty Press

GM's Motorama was a 12-year (1949-1961) marketing extravaganza designed to showcase the current line of GM products while dazzling the target audience with some amazing prototype and dream car exercises. Ultimately curtailed due to rising costs, Motorama was nonetheless a major “hit” for The General,

29 domestic and 23 GM-Canada Motoramas took place, at venues ranging from NY, Los Angeles. San Francisco, Boston and Miami domestically and Montreal, Winnipeg, Vancouver, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Calgary and London, Ontario in the North. GM used the Motorama show not only to woo customers for the latest model year in each participating division, but also to gauge consumer reaction to a wide range of concept cars incorporating mild to wild styling and design features (rain-sensing… more

Tom Daniel's "Cherry Bomb"

Published: October 8, 2014
Company: Revell

Fans of 60's and 70's custom show cars will recall that prolific period when it seemed that every week a new car – prototype and/or model – rolled out on display. Many of these vehicles were designed to augment a popular TV show (The Munsters Coach and Dragula, the Monkeemobile, Batmobile, etc); others hit the show circuit, and still others landed on the shelves of our friendly hobby shop where hordes of kids (like me) spent our allowances. Tom Daniel's Cherry Bomb falls into that category. I'd never built it the first time around so I jumped on the opportunity to do so this time.

The kit actually contains three vehicles – the gas turbine-powered car, a surfboard-derived trailer, and a chopper style motorcycle whose gas tank replicates the explosive device in question, which… more

Wrecks and Relics – The Indispensable Guide to Britain's Aviation Heritage

Published: September 12, 2014
Book Author(s): Ken Ellis
Company: Crecy Publishing, Ltd.

If you ever wish to locate an aircraft in Great Britain that is on display in a museum, in the hands of a private collector, undergoing restoration, or moldering away in a field, this is your go-to reference. Author Ken Ellis has obviously made it his life's work to locate, document, and track the 5000+ aircraft that fall into one or more of these categories within the bounds of the British Isles. Over 700 types – ranging from front line Lightnings to obscure one-of-a-kind homebuilts – are found within, sorted by geographical location. Of course, all the great museums – Duxford, the FAAM in Yeovilton, the RAF Museum in London – are represented, but who knew that a Westland Wasp was being kept in the hands of a private collector in Kirkham (“on the A583 between Blackpool and Preston”, p… more