Pablo Bauleo
Reviews By Author
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M8/M20 Walk AroundPublished:
I have always admired armored cars crews. I think their vehicles are fast enough to get themselves in trouble, but not armored enough to get themselves out of trouble. The M8 started its life as a “tank destroyer” vehicle. Very quickly, it was realized that the 37mm cannon wasn’t enough to take out a tank, and the vehicle got re-assigned mainly to cavalry and reconnaissance units. The M20 is a spin-off of the M8, based on the same hull but with a different top and used, for the most part, as a command vehicle, fitted with different radios and a folding map board. The book is profusely illustrated with over 250 photographs, a dozen line drawings, and six color profiles. The drawings are very helpful in learning to distinguish the features of M8 vs. M20. Almost all… more |
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Gladiator vs. CR. 42 Falco (1940-41)Published:
Osprey Publishing continues to expand the Duel Series with the 47th installment of this collection, Gladiator vs. CR.42 Falco. This book has the typical sections of the previous books in the series – i.e., Development, Strategic Situation, Combat, Statistics, and Analysis and Aftermath. The book is well written and incredibly well researched. The main adversaries fought each other in what some historians would consider secondary theaters of war. However, those theaters expanded from sand dunes of North Africa and the Mediterranean to the green fields of Eastern Africa and into the Middle East and Iraq, certainly an area much larger of than the main theatre of operations of WWII. The authors delved into the RAF and Regia Aeronautica doctrine of the pre-war years… more |
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Italian Medium Tanks (1939-1945)Published:
Osprey Publishing continues expanding its New Vanguard Collection. This is the issue 195 of this line and it is devoted to the Italian Medium Tank. The book sections covers the characteristics of the Medium Tanks (M 11/39, M 13/40, and M 14/41), plus a brief section on the Heavy Tank (P 40). It also includes the self-propelled guns that were based on the above-listed chassis. Later in the book there are two sections devoted to Italian armor in combat (both with the Italian Army and under German service). It finalizes with a brief chapter devoted to camouflage and markings and a section on surviving vehicles at different museums. The Italian Medium tank design during WWII was greatly affected by the military thinking of the pre-war years. During the 1930s, the Italian Army… more |
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Seafire Mk.Ib – Limited EditionPublished:
The Seafire Mk.Ib was basically converted from the Spitfire Mk.Vb. The kit follows the heritage of the actual subject, being a “regular” Hasegawa Mk.Vb with a resin plug for conversion into a Seafire Mk.Ib. Be aware this model is a conversion; that means you will have to cut and replace some parts of the plastic fuselage with the resin replacement parts. But as conversion goes, this is an easy one to get your feet wet in the world of conversions. The boxing includes decals for 4 different finishes on 3 different airframes. The instructions only list 3 camouflage styles, but actually there are markings provided for two different finishes (blue gray/green/sky) of the same airframe (MB 345), before and after being assigned to the HMS Formidable. The other two finishes are for a… more |
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Il-2 Sturmovik Single Seat Ski VersionPublished:
Academy has re-boxed the rendering of the Il-2 originally released by Accurate Miniatures in 1997. The box shows a “Mold by Accurate Miniatures” on the cover, so no doubts about it and that is a good thing. The Accurate Miniatures Il-2 model is a nice one that is now available again in the market. This boxing has decals printed by Cartograf, including seatbelts and instrument panel details. A bonus you get in this boxing is that all the standard parts for the landing gear with wheels are included, in addition to the landing gear with skis. So, you can build either version (wheels or skis) with the parts in the box. Construction of this kit, like with most aircrafts, begins with the cockpit. It is nicely detailed, with raised detail that makes dry-brushing simple and… more |
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Wessex UH.5Published:
The Wessex family of helicopters has always been popular among modelers. There has been only one kit in 1/48 before and it has been out of production for a few decades, so this newly molded kit is certainly creating some positive ripples in the modeler community! Italeri brings a brand-new mold of the Wessex UH.5. Surface detail is good, with most of the detail being recessed, but in some areas –where it should be – it is actually raised detail. The kit includes 4 sprues, nylon mesh for the intakes, and a small photoetch fret for cockpit detail plus some external detail, too. Clear parts are very transparent, but a bit thick. Decals are glossy and allow you to finish your model in 4 different finishes, either in Royal Air Force or Royal Navy service. Construction begins… more |
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Soviet KV-1S Heavy TankPublished:
I want to begin this review with a disclaimer. I am not an armor guy. I am an airplane guy. But I just wanted to try out – at least once – building an armor kit. This kit has about 440 plastic parts, about half of which are individual links for the tracks. It also has a small photo-etch fret and a turned metal barrel for the cannon. The surface detail is superb and there was no flash whatsoever in my example. Assembly of the hull and rolling wheels is simple. I had all the body and wheels assembled in about 4 hours. Fit is good, with little need for filler in the body. The turret is molded in two halves, which leaves a large seam that needs treatment with filler. It is not difficult, just a bit surprising, given that the rest of the engineering of the kit is really good… more |
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Hurricane Mk I AntennasPublished:
Quickboost continues to provide simple, yet effective, ways to improve the Italeri Hurricane Mk. I. This set is named “antennas,” but it covers the radio mast, pilot step, and pitot tube. The parts are finely casted in cream-colored resin, easy to release from the pouring stub, and they would automatically enhance your model. The only minor drawback is that the pilot step has a bit of flash, though it is very simple to clean up. These parts designed to be drop-in replacement to kit parts. There is no need for any cutting or sawing of kit parts and it is very simple to use the replacement ones. Recommended to modelers of any level who have minimal experience with resin parts. I would like to thanks Aires, Quickboost, and IPMS/USA for the review sample. |
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Space Shuttle AtlantisPublished:
Tamiya has re-released its Space Shuttle Orbiter kit. It has included a few new sprues to depict more modern payloads, like the “Raffaello” multipurpose module, the Orbiter Docking Systems, and a few others. Even when the kit boxing is called “Atlantis,” the boxing actually provides markings for the whole Shuttle Fleet and for all the program stages (early, mid, and late). The markings plus the extra parts makes this boxing the best value of all the Tamiya Space Shuttle boxings. Given that this is a re-release, you get a 20+ year-old molds and kit engineering with a combination of recessed and raised detail. There is almost no flash, but some significant sink marks, mainly on the bottom of the model and around the nose. This kit has been criticized for not having tile… more |
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Hurricane Rotol Propeller (with Rotol and Spitfire spinner) and toolPublished:
QB 48446 (Rotol Spinner) and QB 48447 (Spitfire Spinner), each $6.50 The Italeri Hurricane is getting a lot of attention from the aftermarket manufactures. Quickboost has released two resin Rotol propellers for it. One of the sets has the typical Rotol spinner (more pointed); the other set has a Spitfire spinner (more blunt). I’ve read that during the Battle of Britain there were some Hurricanes fitted with Spitfire spinners. A nice feature of these aftermarket sets is the provision of a “tool” to ensure the proper pitch of all the propeller blades. After sanding off the back of the spinners, the tool provides you with a “seat” for the spinner, and then you only need to tack the propeller blade in place with a drop of superglue. A simple way to ensure perfect axial… more |