Mark Costello
Reviews By Author
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Benz Patent-Motorwagen 1886Published:
ICM is a Ukrainian manufacturer and this kit is a 1/24 scale model of the 1886 Benz Patent-Motorwagen, the first patented production motorized automobile. The kit is all new for January of 2020. KitThe kit comes packaged in a sturdy box that once the liftoff lid is removed, reveals another foldup lid on the box bottom. There is 1 bag consisting of 4 sprues of grey plastic parts, 77 in total. There is also a cardboard envelope containing a sheet of 12 brass photoetch parts for the wheel spokes and chains with sprockets. There are no decals or clear parts needed for this vehicle. Also included in the box is a printed copy of part of the patent application from 1886. It is printed on heavy cardstock and is weathered to look old. The plastic is soft, well… more |
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'78 GMC Big Game Country PickupPublished:
This kit is a modified re-release of the Monogram GMC High Roller kit from 1981 (the parts have a 1978 copyright on them) with differences being different decals and the “Ground Hawg” sidewall markings are missing from the tires. KitThe kit comes packaged in the usual Revell 1/24/25 size cardboard box with 5 bags of white, clear, and chrome molded parts as well as the rubber tires. The tires were floating around in my box, as the bag they were in doesn’t look like it was sealed all the way. The clear parts are bagged separately. There is a total of 5 sprues of white plastic plus the separate cab, 1 sprue of chrome, 1 sprue of clear, and the 4 rubber tires. All this adds up to a total of 92 plastic parts. The parts are molded with good detail and some flash. There are… more |
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F-35A interiorPublished:
This set is designed for the Italeri 1/32 scale F-35A Lightning II kit. This set contains 2 sheets, one is pre-painted and the other is etched brass. Details are included for the seat and cockpit area of the jet. The instructions are the normal Eduard instructions with clear drawings showing where the PE parts go and what details need to be removed from the kit plastic parts. The first step of the instructions covers the seat. There are details to add to the parachute housing and the controls on the side of the seat. You have to supply your own 1mm plastic rod (or equivalent) for the side of the parachute housing. This step also has you replace the kit PE rudder pedals with new ones that also add some detail to the rudder bar. Next up is the instrument panel.… more |
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F-35A MasksPublished:
Although the canopy is not complex, it needs to be masked both inside and outside. The frame lines are faint in some areas and using the Eduard masks make the job much easier. There are 10 individual pieces for the inside of the canopy and 6 for the outside. All follow the frame lines, are easy to place and fit perfectly The EOTS sensor cover on the bottom of the aircraft is also covered in the Eduard set. This piece has molded frames, but once again, they are inconsistent in how sharp they are molded. The pre-cut masks again fit perfectly and are easy to place. Eduard also includes masks for the wheels so you can paint the tires in whatever black you want to use and then apply the mask and paint the wheels. Once again, these fit perfectly to the kit wheels. There is… more |
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F-35A Seatbelts Steel Zoom PE SetPublished:
This set is designed for the Italeri 1/32 scale F-35A Lightning II kit. This set contains 1 sheet of pre-painted, etched steel seatbelts and ejection pull handle. The instructions are the normal Eduard instructions with clear drawings showing where the PE parts go and what details need to be removed from the kit plastic parts. There is only one step to the instructions and the only kit modification is to cut off the ejection pull handle ring from the kit part 42F. I cut a slot in the remaining plastic part and glued the Eduard ring into that slot to make a stronger joint. The instructions show just gluing the ring on top of the modified kit part. I also painted on a coat of Microscale Krystal Klear to the ring to give it more bulk so it didn’t look so flat. After the Krystal… more |
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F-35A Exterior SetPublished:
This set is designed for the Italeri 1/32 scale F-35A Lightning II kit. This set contains 1 sheet of etched brass details for the exterior of the aircraft as well as details for the weapons and weapon pylons. There is an afterburner ring for the engine exhaust, ladder and ladder door details, refueling bay details, screens for the exterior and details for the weapons. The instructions are the normal Eduard instructions with clear drawings showing where the PE parts go and what details need to be removed from the kit plastic parts. The first step starts off with the afterburner. Part 15 is the main afterburner ring and is a single piece that has 16 pedals that need to be folded up to make the ring. I had a lot of trouble with this part. Each pedal needs to be folded twice, with… more |
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F-35A Wheel Bays & Bomb Bay SetPublished:
This set is designed for the Italeri 1/32 scale F-35A Lightning II kit. This set contains 1 sheet of etched brass details for the landing gear bays and weapons bays. There are panel faces for the nose gear bay, boxes for the weapons bay, nose gear doors, main gear and other miscellaneous details. The instructions are the normal Eduard instructions with clear drawings showing where the PE parts go and what details need to be removed from the kit plastic parts. The first step deals with the nose gear bay and doors. There are a few panel faces to be placed in the bay replacing the molded detail. There are also a couple of boxes to be folded up and added to the gear doors. The added details improve the looks of the kit parts. Next up is the weapons bay. There are 2 boxes to… more |
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SR-71 Blackbird "Bododian Express" Limited EditionPublished:
This kit is a special edition, re-release of the SR-71A Blackbird. This kit has markings for aircraft 17964, "Bododian Express", a SR-71A from the USAF 9th SRW Det.4 at Mildenhall Air Base England in 1981. This particular aircraft had to make a landing at the emergency recovery base for European flights, Bodo, Norway in 1981. I found the full story of the emergency at the following website - http://www.wvi.com/~sr71webmaster/bodo.html KitThe kit comes packaged in a large version of the usual Hasegawa cardboard box and contains 1 bag of black parts, 1 bag of clear parts, and markings sheet for the versions in this kit. The black parts consist of 1 sprue of 38 parts and the upper and lower fuselage/wing halves.… more |
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2015 Corvette C7.RPublished:
This new kit from Revell is the 2015 Corvette C7.R that raced at Le Mans and in the IMSA racing league in the United States. KitThe kit comes packaged in the usual Revell 1/25 size cardboard box with 4 bags of white molded parts, 1 bag with a white body, the metal axles, rubber tires and clear red tail lights, and 1 bag with the clear parts. There are a total of 13 sprues of white plastic plus the body, 1 sprue of clear red, 2 clear sprues and the 2 metal axles and 4 rubber tires. All this adds up to a total of 64 plastic parts. The parts are molded with good detail and little flash. There are some ejector pin marks that will need to be addressed, but not too many. The kit also comes with a very nice decal sheet with markings for 1 car, the number 4, that is… more |
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Denso Toyota 88C "1989 Le Mans" Limited EditionPublished:
This kit is a re-release from Hasegawa of the #38 Denso sponsored Toyota 88C that ran in the 1989 Le Mans race. The car finished in 53rd place and did not finish the race due to a crash. This is a curbside kit and has no engine or suspension details. KitThe kit comes packaged in the usual Hasegawa cardboard box and contains 1 bag of clear parts with the tire marking decal sheet inside and 1 bag of white parts with 4 rubber tires and polycaps separately bagged inside of it. There is a total of 7 sprues of white parts plus the chassis and body and 1 sprue of clear parts. All together there are 97 parts in this kit, although 14 of those parts are for other versions of the car. My kit had quite a bit of flash on the parts, but none that was difficult to remove. Just be… more |