Pat Villarreal
Reviews By Author
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A-10A/C Thunderbolt II Aces II Ejection SeatPublished:
ResKit has provided the IPMS reviewer corps with a new 3D resin printed Aces II ejection seat for the A-10A/C Thunderbolt II in 1/48th scale. In the Package and Product NotesThere is one 3D printed resin seat packaged in a small but very sturdy cardboard box. It is printed with a sturdy travel frame along with foam inserts for extra protection. A small decal sheet is provided for the stencils and a well-illustrated instruction sheet for paint and decal placement. Review ProcessRemoval of the seat starts with cutting away the protective frame. Then carefully removing the support piers. The printing is so fine at the contact points that no sanding was necessary to clean up any support nubs. After that, a primer base coat of Tamiya XF-66 thinned with… more |
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Vampire F.3 Landing GearPublished:
Scale Aircraft Conversions (SAC) has provided the IPMS reviewer corps a set of 1/48th scale metal landing gear for Airfix’s Vampire F.3/FB.5/FB.9. These parts are drop-in replacements and provide a more robust landing gear set given its metal properties. In the PackageThe metal pieces are packaged in a clear blister package with cardboard backing. No instructions are provided. Review ProcessThe metal landing gear set is used as drop-in replacements for parts C8, C14, C26 (nose wheel), C29 & C30 (main landing gear for F.3), and C27 & C28 (main landing gear for FB.5/FB.9). The metal used is malleable and has some give to allow for any minor bending if needed. Also, seam lines will need to be cleaned up prior to painting just like the plastic kit… more |
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Silver SpitfiresPublished:
Iliad Design has provided IPMS/USA reviewer corps with a wonderful decal set for the WWII Supermarine “Silver” Spitfires in service for the Royal Air Force, USAAF, and RAAF. There is no specific mention of a preferred model company for this decal set. This 1/48th scale decal sheet covers five schemes:
In the PackageThere is one decal sheet and one page… more |
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U-2R Senior Span Landing GearPublished:
Scale Aircraft Conversions (SAC) has provided the IPMS reviewer corps a set of 1/48th scale metal landing gear for Hobby Boss’s U-2R “Dragon Lady” Senior Span. These parts are drop-in replacements and provide a more robust landing gear set given its metal properties. In the PackageThe metal pieces are packaged in a clear blister package with cardboard backing. No instructions are provided. Review ProcessThe metal landing gear set is used as drop-in replacements for parts E8 (tail wheel), E14 & F22 (nose wheel), and E7 (wingtip “pogo” wheels). The metal used is malleable and has some give to allow for any minor bending if needed. Also, seam lines will need to be cleaned up prior to painting just like the plastic kit parts. For paints, use a good… more |
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F4F-3/4 Wildcat Landing GearPublished:
Scale Aircraft Conversions (SAC) has provided the IPMS reviewer corps a set of 1/48th scale metal landing gear for the Academy F4F-3/4 Wildcat. These parts are drop-in replacements and provide a more robust landing gear set given its metal properties. In the PackageThe metal pieces are packed in a clear blister package with cardboard backing. No instructions are provided. The metal landing gear set is used as drop-in replacements for parts B4, B17, B23, B33, and B50 and can be referenced in the instructions on step 2. The metal used is malleable and has some give to allow for any minor bending if needed. Also, seam lines will need to be cleaned up prior to painting just like the plastic kit parts. For paints, use a good lacquer-based primer… more |
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F-86A Sabre Landing GearPublished:
Scale Aircraft Conversions (SAC) has provided the IPMS reviewer corps a set of 1/48th scale metal landing gear for Clear Props F-86A Sabre. These parts are drop-in replacements and provide a more robust landing gear set given its metal properties. In the PackageThe metal pieces are packed in a clear blister package with cardboard backing. No instructions are provided. However, my review sample did not come with the nose landing gear and came with an extra RHS strut, part H19 (a quality control slip). The metal landing gear set is used as drop-in replacements for parts H19 & H15 (RHS & LHS struts) and the K2 oleo arms are molded with the strut. The nose strut, part K22, was missing from my sample review, but it too should have the oleo arms… more |
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Fairey Swordfish Mk. I/II Landing Gear (for 1/48 Tamiya)Published:
Scale Aircraft Conversions (SAC) has provided the IPMS reviewer corps with a set of 1/48 scale metal landing gear for Tamiya’s Fairey Swordfish Mk. I/II. These parts are drop-in replacements and provide more robust landing gear, given its metal properties. In the PackageThe metal pieces are packed in a clear blister container with cardboard backing. No instructions are provided. CommentsThe metal landing gear set is used as drop-in replacements for parts G18 (tail wheel), G2 & 3 (interior struts), G11 & 12 (folded wing configuration), and G13 & 14 (extended wing configuration). The metal used is malleable and has some give to allow for any minor bending if it is needed. Also, seam lines will need to be cleaned up prior to painting, just like… more |
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MiG-21bis ProfiPACK EditionPublished:
Eduard has generously provided the IPMS-USA reviewer corps with a 1/72nd scale MiG-21bis ProfiPACK Edition. This boxing has markings for six MiG-21bis aircraft from six different countries. The MiG-21 series from Eduard were originally boxed in 2018. Since then, they have produced many MiG-21MF, PF, and PFM variant boxings. This is the MiG-21bis variant, and it contains one new sprue (sprue K). In the BoxThe kit is packaged in a top-opening rigid box with great box art of the Soviet Union jet. Inside there are four gray sprues, one clear sprue, one photo-etched fret, one decal sheet for the different aircraft markings, one decal sheet for airframe data/stencils, and one set of die-cut masks. Decals include the following aircraft options:
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USMC UH-1Y VenomPublished:
In the BoxThe kit is a typical top opening box with 11 gray sprues, 1 clear parts sprue, 1 photo-etched (PE) sheet, and 1 die-cut masking sheet for the clear parts. Academy takes advantage of slide-molding to add more detail in raised rivet and recessed panel lines and the results are impressive. Also of note, sprue B & D comes from the AH-1Z Viper kit (Kit No: 12127) since in real life both helicopters use the same parts. For a list of unused parts, see page 14 in the bottom right of the instructions. The box art is beautiful. For modelers who are wavering on owning this kit, it will help push them over the edge to build this Venom or add it to the collection. Instructions have 22 steps over two separate sheets (Manual 1 & 2). It is well illustrated and… more |
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The Riveter – Single Rivet Wheel 1.10 mm (1/32 & 1/35)Published:
UMM-USA has provided the reviewer core with a riveting tool for 1/32nd and 1/35th scale models. This is a single row rivet pounce wheel with a rivet pitch (distance between rivets) of 1.10 mm. Its main target use is for larger models of 1/32nd or 1/35th scale. The handle is made from a 3-D printer and the filament is colored white and black. An olive-green dot is colored into the handle and correlates to the size on the sheet packaging for 1.10 mm rivet pitch. I used this tool on a plastic sheet and then darkened it with a weathering wash to bring out the divot locations. I also placed a steel ruler as reference to see the pitch distance between divots. ConclusionThis is a neat tool to have which will add more… more |