Paul Bradley
Reviews By Author
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OV-10A USMC Light Attack AircraftPublished:
The OV-10A Bronco was a light attack/recon/COIN aircraft designed in the 1960s for use by three US services, the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps and amazingly enough was eventually bought and used by all three. First entering service in 1969 in time to serve in Vietnam, the type exited service in 1995, shortly after seeing service in the Iraq War. Some are still flying with civilian operators and as a warbird. To the delight of modellers everywhere, ICM are still turning out quality product despite being in a war zone. Their OV-10A first appeared in 2022 in US Navy guise; it is now the turn of the Marines. Jarrod Booth has effectively reviewed the kit on this website, but I will add my impressions. The kit comes in ICM’s standard white box with colour artwork on a… more |
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Bristol Blenheim, Top Drawings #130Published:
The Bristol Blenheim was one of the most popular British aircraft at the beginning of World War II. It was a very versatile and modifiable machine, and therefore typical bomber, reconnaissance, and fighter (including night) versions were created. Kagero’s Top Drawings series has covered many of the World’s leading combat aircraft and now it’s the turn of the Blenheim to receive the treatment. The book is card-covered and has 20 pages. Typical of the series, there is a solitary page of introductory text; the rest of the book is taken up with pages of plans and colour profiles. The plans in the book are to 1/72 scale, while 1/48 scale plans are included as separate fold-out sheets. The 1/72 plans include all-aspect views of the Mks.I, IV, and V, including Finnish variants. The… more |
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Airspeed Oxford and Consul, Warpaint #136Published:
The Airspeed Company was set up by future novelist Neville Shute Norway in Portsmouth, Britain, in the mid-Thirties, building small passenger aircraft. During WWII, the RAF relied on the twin-engined Airspeed Oxford as a multi-purpose trainer for a wide variety of roles, including pilot and aircrew training, aerial photography, navigation, and even gunnery training when fitted with an Armstrong Whitworth turret. Derived from the earlier Airspeed Envoy, an early executive aircraft, the Oxford was, post-war, also developed into an effective small airliner, the Consul. Over 8,900 Oxfords and Consuls were built, a testimony to its effectiveness in all roles. The Oxford and Consul have now been made a subject of the long-running Warpaint series from Guideline Publications in Britain. … more |
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F/A-18C Quick Set 3D Acrylic Instrument PanelPublished:
Red Fox Studios are a new company to me. Based in Hungary, they are a producer of resin upgrades and decals, including a range of 3D instrument panel decals, of which this review item is one. Designed for the Kinetic 1/48 F/A-18C Hornet kit, this product has a plastic, non-flat surface with a 3D effect. It is best glued with cyanoacrylate, but PVA or other glues can also be used. The product can be washed with both oil-based and acrylic paints. It can also be minimally bent or sanded. Having started the kit, I first painted and decaled the pilot’s cockpit using the kit-provided decals. I used setting solution to help these settle over the kit’s nicely-moulded in detail. These looked OK and would have been perfectly suitable under a closed canopy. After removing… more |
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TOS Galileo Shuttle and Voyager Crew FiguresPublished:
Fans of the original Star Trek series will recall such classic episodes as The Galileo Seven, where one of the Enterprise’s shuttlecraft, the Galileo, and her (7) crew members are trapped on an alien planet and are being attacked by mysterious hairy beasts with weak pole-throwing abilities…. Anyways, while we have had model kits of the Galileo in the past in 1/35, this is the first time I recall seeing one in 1/72 scale. Cozmic Models are a small company in Britain producing science fiction-related items from some of your favourite shows and this kit is one of their range of Star Trek models in various scales. 3D printed resin is the media of choice and the hull is cast/drawn(?) in one hollow piece, with a total of 19 parts including two clear ‘Bussards’. Also in the solid… more |
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Beaufort Mk. IPublished:
The Bristol Beaufort torpedo bomber was developed for the RAF in 1938 using the experience gained from the Blenheim light bomber. Seeing service from 1940 with RAF Coastal Command, the type saw action across the World’s oceans, but most notably in the Channel and Mediterranean, as a torpedo bomber, conventional bomber and mine layer, until replaced in frontline service by the derivative Beaufighter from 1942. At least 1,180 were built in the UK and Australia. This is the first time a conventional IM kit of the Beaufort has been produced in 1/48 and that it comes from the remarkably resilient Ukrainian ICM firm is especially noteworthy – that they can produce and distribute new kits when their country is under threat of destruction is quite amazing! The kit is contained… more |
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Bases of Bomber Command Then and NowPublished:
After the Battle were set up 50 years ago (in 1973) to publish magazines and books presenting the history of the world's conflicts through 'then and now' comparison photographs. Owner Winston Ramsey was a noted historian and his new approach to history presented a novel way at looking at the past. The magazine ran until 2020 when Mr. Ramsey retired and the company was bought by Pen and Sword Books, who announced that no new After the Battle magazines will be published. During WWII, Bomber Command and its bases were concentrated in a compact area of eastern England, such that bases’ landing patterns sometimes overlapped with neighbouring airfields. Some of the bases were long-standing homes to the RAF; others were wartime expediencies that, like the mayfly, were born and died… more |
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DH.82A Tiger Moth with BombsPublished:
Ukraine’s ICM has gone from strength to strength in recent years, and even now with Russia’s invasion threatening their country’s very existence, ICM are still able to produce and export fine model kits, such as this one. Their first boxing of this kit of the universally-known DH.82A Tiger Moth, released in 2021, features the standard RAF trainer version; this new boxing goes a slightly different direction, showcasing a rare combat version of the type. In 1940, the threat of invasion forced the British to improvise defensive systems, and this included developing and fitting small-bomb racks to around 300 of the Tiger Moths then in service with Elementary Flying Training Schools across Britain. Under the codename Operation Banquet, the idea was to have the experienced pilot… more |
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Images of War: The Malayan Emergency – The Crucial Years 1949-53Published:
From 1948 through the 1950s British and Commonwealth forces fought a ruthless communist insurgency on the Malay peninsula. Thanks to sound generalship and the dedication and resilience of the officers and men, the security forces eventually broke the terrorists' resolve. This book charts the service of one particular unit, the 1st Battalion, The Suffolk Regiment, throughout their tour of duty between 1949 to 1953, the most critical years in The Emergency. The book describes in text and photos how the Battalion – which was mostly made up of National Servicemen conscripts – was able to operate in the oppressive climate and jungle conditions of the Malay Peninsula. Its success was built on good leadership and those most elusive of factors, good morale and camaraderie. The… more |
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Fairey Swordfish: Fleet Air Arm Legends #2Published:
The Fairey Swordfish needs no introduction, it being one of those classics of aviation that find themselves famous for being available in the right place at the right time. This new book from Morton Books is the second in their Fleet Air Arm Legends series and is written by noted aviation historian Matthew Willis. Author Willis weaves a tight story of the need and development of the Swordfish in the early 1930’s, the entry into service and the emergency measures taken to ensure that this obsolescent aircraft was made available in the numbers needed by the FAA when it’s replacement – the Albacore – hit development issues. The story of the Swordfish’s wartime service is concise and well written and complemented by numerous well reproduced period photos. The Bismarck… more |