Keith Gervasi
Reviews By Author
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Fw 190A-2 ProfiPackPublished:
HistoryThe first prototype of the Fw 190 took to the air on June 1st, 1939 but due to some minor faults (Ok, so there were enough problems that the RLM halted development) it was not accepted into the Luftwaffe until 1941. June 1941 saw the Luftwaffe accept the first 100 Fw 190A-1s that were armed with four 7.9mm MG 17s. November of 41 saw the next version, 190A-2, introduced with two MG 17s and two MG 151s of 20mm caliber in the wings. Part of this series received an additional pair of 20mm MG FFs. The A-2 was powered by the modified BMW 801 C-2 engine and problems with the engine rear bank of cylinders overheating were finally solved by the simple introduction of a ventilation slot on the two sides of the engine cowling as in the A-1 version. The KitUpon… more |
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Wing Flaps for Hasegawa Ki-61-1Published:
HistoryThe Hasegawa 1/72 Ki-61 dates back to the early 1970s and is still a nice kit, but basic. CMK has come out with some detail sets to spice up these old kits. What You Get4 crisply molded resin parts along with a 9 X 3.5 folded sheet of instructions. These parts are very fragile so please be careful when handling them. ConstructionThe first thing you need to do is remove the flaps from kit part B10 and thin the undersides of the corresponding areas of parts B11 & 12. This 2nd part is where I totally messed this up due to my not paying attention. I removed the areas totally and this made it almost impossible to build. I managed to get these on and make them look halfway decent, but it could have and should have been better. With… more |
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Ki-61-1 Control Surface SetPublished:
HistoryThe Hasegawa 1/72 Ki-61 dates back to the early 1970s and is still a nice kit, but basic. CMK has come out with some detail sets to spice up these old kits. What You Get7 crisply molded resin parts (Rudder, ailerons and horizontal stabilizers) along with a 9 X 3.5 folded sheet of instructions. Some of these parts are very fragile so please be careful when handling them. ConstructionConstruction begins with some surgery to the kit. You will have to carefully remove the ailerons from the kit parts B10 & 11 and the rudder from A1. The rudder was simple and the easiest to do but the ailerons were a bit troublesome. The instructions have you making too deep of a cut and removing too much of the wing. Luckily, I saw this before… more |
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Ki-61-1 Cockpit SETPublished:
HistoryThe Hasegawa 1/72 Ki-61 dates back to the early 1970s and is still a nice kit, but basic. CMK has come out with some detail sets to spice up these old kits. What You Get17 crisply molded resin parts and a clear film of instrument faces are provided along with a 9 X 3.5 folded sheet of instructions. Some of these parts are very fragile so please be careful when handling them. ConstructionThe instructions have you removing the rear bulkhead and thinning the fuselage sidewalls to begin with. I did not have to thin the fuselage halves that much so don’t over do it. I am pleased to say that this set literally fit like a glove and went together with no problems. I guess if you want to, you could consider that the size of some parts a… more |
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Ki-61-1 Armament SetPublished:
HistoryThe Hasegawa 1/72 Ki-61 dates back to the early 1970s and is still a nice kit, but basic. CMK has come out with some detail sets to spice up these old kits. What You Get11 nicely molded pieces make up this set. You are given two gun bays, ammo chutes, receivers’ and doors for the wing guns. Also included are wing tanks which are much better detailed than the ones provided in the kit. The instructions are on a 9 X 3.5 folded sheet of paper. ConstructionThe instructions are pretty much just drawings of the parts and their respective numbers being pointed to where they need to be placed. The problem with this is that in my sample, there were no numbers on the parts. This is a small problem as most of the parts are made to go on the… more |
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US Marine Versus German SoldierPublished:
History: After the US declaration of war on Germany, hundreds of thousands of American troops flooded into France and were thrust into the front line. Among them was the US Marine Corps' 4th Marine Brigade whose first major action was the battle of Belleau Wood in June 1918, fighting elements of Germany's 10th, 28th, and 237th Infantry divisions. Volunteers to a man, the newly arrived Marines faced experienced but war-weary German conscripts whose doctrine had been honed by nearly four years of conflict on the Western Front. During the fighting, the Germans are alleged to have given the nickname "Devil Dogs” to the Marines, and Belleau Wood has become enshrined in the Corps' heritage. The book: For a book with just 80 pages and loaded with illustrations it has a lot of… more |
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McDonnell Douglas FG.1 PhantomPublished:
History(From the Airfix site)With regard to aircraft that have operated from the decks of a British aircraft carrier, there can be little doubt that the McDonnell Douglas Phantom FG.1 was the most spectacular. Purchased to replace the Sea Vixen in the role of all-weather fleet defense, the Phantom was the largest and heaviest aircraft ever operated from a British carrier and required a special breed of airmen to fly them. As one of the most successful jet aircraft of all time, the American McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom was to see service with a number of overseas air arms, with Britain being a significant operator. Originally purchased by the Royal Navy as a modern replacement for their De Havilland Sea Vixens, Fleet Air Arm Phantoms would have the primary… more |
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Gloster Gladiator Cockpit DoorPublished:
If you have a Roden or Eduard 1/48 Gloster Gladiator kit then Quickboost has come through with another nice item to add a little more detail to it. The Quickboost doors are molded well and the detail is a lot crisper than the kit doors. If you are going to detail the cockpit you will want to have the doors posed open so you can see that detail and these will make it look even nicer. I highly recommend these. I would like to thank Aires/Quickboost for supplying this and IPMS for the letting me review this item. |
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Gloster Gladiator Wheels & Paint MasksPublished:
If you have the Roden or Eduard 1/48 Gloster Gladiator, Aires has come through with this very nice item to add a little crisper detail to it. The wheels are nicely molded and, with the masks that are provided, easy to paint. I highly recommend these to anyone with this kit. I would like to thank Aires for providing this fine detail set and to the IPMS for allowing me to review them. |
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B-52D/F StratofortressPublished:
HistoryThe B-52 is arguably the best bomber ever made. First deployed in 1955 as a high altitude “atomic bomber” later versions of it are still in use today. The KitInside the box you will find 8 sprues of light grey and clear injected plastic. An 8-page instruction manual and a nice sheet of decals. Basically, only the fuselage halves and sprue F are new to this kit as everything else comes from, and is marked, for the B-52H kit. The one minor hitch here is that the very fine panel lines in the wings do NOT match those on the fuselage as these are more Matchbox like. The decal sheet is very nice and in register. Construction14 steps are used to make this kit and the first 6 deal with the fuselage, wings, stabilizers and flaps (which you… more |