Paul Bradley
Reviews By Author
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Battle for the Channel Ports, Then and NowPublished:
Following the Allied advance into eastern France and Belgium in August and September 1944, logistical support for the advancing armies was compromised by the need to rely on the Mulberry Harbour built off the Normandy beaches in the days following D-Day. Invasion planners had counted on being able to use one of the larger Normandy ports, such as Cherbourg, to alleviate the supply chain issues, but the Germans had done such a thorough job of demolishing that port that it wasn’t brought into productive use until late 1944 and in any case was even further from the Front. The top Allied commanders therefore put some emphasis on trying to capture ports further east. Their focus fell on Le Havre and Boulogne, two large pre-War ports. However, both were declared to be “Festung” (Fortresses)… more |
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WWII US Armoured Vehicles Acrylic Paint SetPublished:
Another in ICM’s range of paint sets, this time for use with any WWII US armoured vehicles. The set contains the following 12ml paint pots; I have listed what I believe to be their intended uses, with designations from Specification 3-1 1943:
The back of the box has a couple of drawings showing suggested uses for each colour. ICM’s standard dumpy little pots have deep lids with rims to prevent the paint drying in the screw-top thread, something I appreciate! The paint is very thick which is good… more |
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Supermarine Spitfires Mk.VbPublished:
The UK’s Fantasy Print Shop has released another set of 1/48 decals in their Euro Decals range, this one covering the Spitfire Vb. There are a very generous 11 options available – these are as follows:
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RAF North American Mustang MK.III CollectionPublished:
The UK’s Fantasy Print Shop has released another set of 1/48 decals in their Euro Decals range, this one covering the Mustang III (P-51B/C) in RAF service. There are a very generous 11 options available – these are as follows:
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Vought Corsair CollectionPublished:
The UK’s Fantasy Print Shop has released another set of 1/48 decals in their Euro Decals range, this one covering the F4U-1 and F4U-1A Corsair in US Navy, RNZAF and Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm service. Seven options are offered on a single sheet. These are:
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Montgomery’s Staff Figures SetPublished:
Here’s a new figure set from ICM, this time featuring the British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery and his staff. According to the box top, the four figures represent Field Marshal Mongomery, a Lieutenant General, a Major and a radio operator or soldier. Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery was one of the most prominent and successful British commanders of World War II. In December 1943, Montgomery was appointed as the commander of the 21st Army Group and the overall commander of Allied ground forces in Europe, also participating in the planning of Operation Overlord. In the autumn of 1944, he was promoted to the rank of Field Marshal. A controversial figure for many reasons, he was nevertheless one of the greatest of Allied Generals during the War, guiding the largely conscript… more |
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JASDF F-15J Eagle Aggressor #903 Tactical Fighter Training SquadronPublished:
The F-15C has been license built for and used by the Japanese Air Self Defence Force as the Mitsubishi F-15J since 1981 and is still a mainstay of that force. One unit, currently known as the Tactical Fighter Training Squadron, was formed in 1981 to act as an aggressor squadron and has been equipped with the F-15J for some years. This model is based on one of their F-15Js, airframe 903, with markings from the time when it was based at Nyutabaru Air Base in Miyazaki Prefecture from 2014 to 2016. The Platz 1/72 F-15J has been around for some years now, first being released in 2015, and subsequently released in a bewildering variety of boxings – Scalemates lists 36! - the vast majority of which are unchanged except for special decal options. Such a ubiquitous kit would seem to… more |
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AV-8A/S (Stencel SEU-3/A) Ejection SeatPublished:
The Stencel SEU-3/A ejection seat was used in the US Marine Corps’ AV-8A, later -S, as a cheaper and less capable replacement for the standard Martin-Baker MB.9 seat used by everyone else who operated first-generation Harriers. This new product by Aires of the Czech Republic, will replace the IM seat from the Kinetic or Monogram AV-8A kits, or for anyone wishing to convert their Airfix Harrier GR.3 into an AV-8A (good luck with that). The product has 6 parts moulded in mid-grey resin, two in soft black resin, a small PE fret for belt buckles and other greeblies, plus a short length of very fine copper wire. The PE fret is tiny, but has 16 parts, some of which are barely over 1mm square! Be sure to get your maximum-strength optical visors out! Detail on the parts is… more |
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Tornado GR.1 AntennasPublished:
The PANAVIA Tornado was the RAF’s standard attack bomber from the early eighties until just a few years ago, serving across the World and in combat and proving itself to be one of the finest of Cold War military aircraft. Many kits have been issued of the type, including three 1/32 kits. The initial Revell kit was released in 1985 and was very basic for a kit of its size. This was replaced by an all-new and far better detailed tooling in 1996, one that has been re-released at least 8 times since, including a Revell-Monogram boxing in the US. This has been supplemented since 2020 by a new-tool kit of the GR.4 from Italeri. The Tornado GR.1 was a sophisticated aircraft and as such was festooned by a large variety of antennas and aerials for its multitude of electronic gizmos. The… more |
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WWII Royal Navy Acrylic Paint SetPublished:
Another in ICM’s range of paint sets, which is intended for use with any kit of a WWII Royal Navy ship. The set contains the following six 12ml paint pots; I have listed their likely intended uses:
The back of the box has a drawing showing where to use each color on a generic ship. Unfortunately, ICM doesn’t provide any sort of clue as to what actual RN colors they are supposed to represent,… more |