Pablo Bauleo
Reviews By Author
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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 |
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Tracks for T-34 mod.1942, Factory 112 “Red Sormovo”.Published:
OKB Grigorov specializes in resin, photoetch, and turned metal barrel conversions for armor. One of their latest releases is the tracks for the Russian T-34 mod.1942, Factory 112 “Red Sormovo”. 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 4 sections of track, and the pictures show the fantastic level of detail of the tracks, both inside and outside sides. The sections of track been cast flat, so you would have to gently bend them to shape, using the wheels from the kit to get the proper curvature radius. The resin is very thin, so this should be relatively easy. I would suggest dipping the tracks in hot… more |
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Napoleonic French Military UniformsPublished:
This book is fascinating both from the historical point of view and for the military figure modeler point of view. It consists of a series of watercolor copies of the original lithographs depicting military uniforms of the Napoleonic era. It should be pointed out that the original collection was completed after Napoleon’s death and during a period where anything related to Napoleon was -politically- out of favor. Moreover, the original collection is considered a milestone document as not only images are included, but each depiction also has accompanying text describing details of the uniform or the unit. This particular edition also has 5 illustrations that are not part of the original collection but fit the era and scope of the edition, so they were included to provide… more |
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The Messerschmitt Bf 109 Late Series (F to K including the Z series) – Second EditionPublished:
The excellent books on the Bf-109 by Richard A. Franks have been out of print for a few years now, so Valiant Wings decided to reprint and expand on the original book by issuing the Second Edition of The Messerschmitt Bf 109 Late Series (F to K including the Z series). The book is divided on the following sections
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ICM Paints – 80 Color BoxPublished:
I have been using enamels for many years (a couple of decades) now. Enamel hobby paints are getting hard to find and there are the health considerations on enamels, so I have been exploring different acrylic options out there. I was surprised to find out that ICM Models from Ukraine has released an extensive set of paints that are acrylic and water thinnable. The 80-Color boxing includes 77 actual colors and 3 varnishes: matt, satin and gloss. There is no thinner included in the boxing, but that is nitpicking. The box says that you can thin the paint using water. The full list of colors follows
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Hurricane Mk.I, Ia, II, IIB/C/D, IV Landing GearPublished:
Scale Aircraft Conversions specializes in white metal replacement parts. Its line of replacement landing gear has been expanded to include a set for the Hasegawa (reboxed by Revell as well) 1/48 Hurricane. This set applies to the whole line of Hurricanes: Mk.I, Ia, II, IIB/C/D and IV. The set is including a total 5 parts covering the main landing gear struts and tail wheel. These parts are drop-in replacements for the plastic parts. Considering that the Hurricane is a medium size model -in 1/48- I don’t think the reason to get a metal landing gear is due to the weight (unless you add a lot of resin to it) but rather the reason to get the set might be to be able to ‘tweak’ the landing gear strut for an improved alignment of the parts to achieve a proper stance. … more |