Pablo Bauleo
Reviews By Author
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Visual Modelers Guide #2 – IA 58 PucaraPublished:
AMMO by Mig has recently started a reference guide line “Visual Modelers Guide”. This is the second installment on the line and is devoted to the IA 58 “Pucara”. The release of this book is matched with the 1/48 Kinetic Pucara and given that the Pucara reference guide material is pretty succinct, this book is a God-send, even more when considering the very affordable price of it (other reference materials for this airplane -being out of print- cost at least 5 times if not 10 times the price). This book has a very brief historical section of the airframe in the first few pages before it turns into a “walk-around” book, with both external and internal pictures of wings, landing gear, fuselage, tail canopy and cockpit. All images are in full color, with very sharp and well-defined… more |
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F-104A/CPublished:
Kinetic Models is expanding its line of F-104 Starfighters. Having released the late markings already (-G, -J, -S, including some trainers) they are adding to their line the early variants: -A and -C. The kit arrives in a large sturdy box (where you can comfortably keep the model in between sessions while you are working on it) with a total of 4 sprues -one molded in clear- and a small photoetch fret. There is a brand-new sprue for the fuselage and the wings. Two of the sprues have already been released as part of their latter markings boxings. This means you get extra parts, like ejection seats, a radar set and a few other details for the spare box. The decal sheet is printed by Cartograph and it is designed by 104Graphs. It includes markings for 4 aircrafts, two in… more |
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39/40M Csaba Armored Cars in World War 2Published:
Casemate Publishers has released a book on the Hungarian Armored Car Csaba 39/40M. The book is organized as follows.
The flow of the book is chronological by the nature of how it was written, starting with the design of the vehicle by Nicholas Straussler (while living in the United Kingdom) and quickly moves on the production, units organization and operational history with the Hungarian Army. There are some color profiles which highlight the different camouflage schemes used by the… more |
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SU-76MPublished:
Casemate Publishers is the distributor of MMP Books and they have started a new line on their series “Single”. This new line is focused on vehicles and the first installment of the series cover the self-propelled artillery SU-76M, a mainstay of the Soviet Army during World War 2. As all the books in the “Single” series, it is devoted to a unique subject. The book has some period pictures of the SU-76M in service during World War 2 and it has an extensive walk-around style section, including detail images of the running gear, gun, hull, fighting compartment, etc. The book also includes a 3-view line drawing in 1/35 scale and some color profiles as well. Recommended. I would like to thank Casemate Publishers and IPMS/USA for the review sample. |
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D-704 Buddy Tank Early TypePublished:
Brengun continues to expand its line of accessories this time with a resin set for the air-to-air refueling system known as the “Buddy Tank”. This set represent the “Buddy Tank” used in A-1, A-4, A-6, A-7, and S-3 airplanes. Given that some of those airplanes were exported, this ordinance was also exported to many countries. This set is cast in grey resin, free of bubbles and surface imperfections. There are a total of 12 parts, some of which are small and delicate. The cast plugs are of reasonable size and the attachment points are minuscule for all the small parts, only the two larger part (which represent the fuel tank) have medium to large attachment points. Cleaver design of the molds means that even with medium to large attachment points to the parts,… more |
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MB-339A Pan CD MLUPublished:
The MB-339 is a trainer/light-attack aircraft designed for the Italian Air Force by Aermacchi. The reliability, simplicity and capabilities of the airframe meant that it was successfully exported to 8 other countries. The author of the book (a pilot himself) clearly tells the history and characteristics of this airplane, with the detail and insights that only someone that has flown the aircraft could tell. The relationship between author and machine runs deep and it shows in his writing. Through the book, the author describes the evolution of the aircraft in its main versions (A/PAN, CD, MLU). The first version was a basically an analog trainer, later the CD version was a digital electronics trainer where Tornado crews got their first lessons and finally the MLU (Mid-… more |
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Handbrake! - Dassault Super Étendard Fighter-Bombers in the Falklands/Malvinas War 1982Published:
Casemate Publishers is distributing the latest installment of the Helion & Company’s Latin America @ War series, which focuses on the combat actions of the Super Etendard during the Falkland War in 1982. “Handbrake!” was the code word used by the British Task Force when an Exocet attack was identified on their radars. The book is organized in a chronological order, with the first chapters devoted to the acquisition and limited training of the Argentinean pilots in France (in late 1980 and through 1981). At the outbreak of the conflict, France halted the delivery of aircrafts, pilot training and Exocet missiles - only 5 were delivered. Although some limited technical support was still provided in the early phases of the war by French technicians in Argentina, before they… more |
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The British Aircraft Carrier HMS FuriousPublished:
The HMS Furious started its service with the Royal Navy towards the end of WWI, converted from a “great light cruiser” as it combined a flying-platform (for take-off) and one very heavy gun of 18-inches. In the interwar years it was modified and the flying platform was extended to allow both for take-off and landing, including a brief period in which the take off and landing platforms were installed but the superstructure was still in place. Eventually the superstructure was removed and reinstalled on the starboard side, the funnel was rerouted to the side and in this configuration the carrier saw service during WWII mainly with the Home Fleet and in Norwegian waters. Considering all the different configurations this ship had during its career there are multiple options for the… more |
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Tracks for Tiger (P), Ferdinand and Elefant (Early)Published:
OKB Grigorov specializes in resin, photoetch and turned metal barrel conversions for armor. One of their latest releases is the tracks for the German Tiger (P), Ferdinand and Elefant (Early) This aftermarket set includes parts in grey resin. As you can see from the pictures, the casting of the parts is pretty good, without any bubbles in the resin and small attachment points. This set provides 6 sections of track and the pictures show the fantastic level of detail of the tracks, both inside and outside sides. To my surprise, there were also some wheels included in the set, even when the set name only lists “Tracks” being part of it. The sections of track been casted flat, so you would have to gently bend them to shape, using the wheels from the kit to get the… more |
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Wheels for Tiger (P), Ferdinand, ElefantPublished:
OKB Grigorov specializes in resin, photoetch and turned metal barrel conversions for armor. One of their latest releases is the wheels for the German Tiger (P), Ferdinand and Elefant (Early) This aftermarket set includes parts in grey resin. As you can see from the pictures, the casting of the parts is pretty good, without any bubbles in the resin and small attachment points. This set provides 12 double wheels (running wheels) and the pictures show the fantastic level of detail of the tracks, both inside and outside sides. Only the running wheels are provided in the set. No sprocket wheels are provided in the set, although the Tracks set includes them (see review elsewhere in this website). Overall, this set is well done and will require minimum cleaning… more |