US Heavy Cruisers 1943-75

Published: November 30, 2014
Book Author(s): Mark E. Stille, illustrated by Paul Wright
Company: Osprey Publishing

Thank you very much to the wonderful folks at Osprey Publishing for providing this new publication for review.Thanks are also due to the IPMS Reviewer Corps for allowing me the opportunity to explore a fascinating historical documentation and description of the last class of heavy cruisers. The book was particularly interesting to me, since my father and one of my college professors served aboard the Newport News. This volume follows a previous release by the author describing the pre-war heavy cruisers, also published by Osprey.

In typical Osprey style, you will find a balance of detail, data, and photographs in a small package that gives a succinct and in-depth overview of a complex subject. The book is formatted in standard Osprey layout with 48 glossy pages filled with text… more

A-4E Skyhawk USS Midway

Published: November 27, 2014
Company: Hasegawa

Thank you to the wonderful folks at Hasegawa and Hobbico for an excellent kit of one of my favorite USN jets, the A-4 Skyhawk. The kit was a joy to build. Thank you also to the IPMS Reviewer Corps staff members who do the hard work in getting us kits to review.

This re-release from Hasegawa as a “Limited Edition” provides a very nice building experience of a very unique aircraft. I remember sitting in the cockpit of the full-size version feeling like I was in a sports car, marveling at where the panel would detach my lower legs in the event of an ejection. I am very pleased with the results produced and the kit is an excellent value. There are markings options for 2 different Skyhawk aircraft assigned to VA-23 aboard the USS Midway, with options for pylons and wing tanks.… more

TF-9J Cougar

Published: December 8, 2021
Company: Kitty Hawk

First, thank you to the wonderful folks at KittyHawk Model for providing a welcome addition to early US Navy jet modelers, the TF-9J Cougar. This new release from KittyHawk fills a long-standing gap in 1/48 scale USN jets. KittyHawk subjects are starting to fill out my collection more and more!

Presentation (how the kit looks in the box)

The kit arrived in a stout 14 x 10 x 2.5 inch cardboard box with a colorful lid showing a TF-9J of H&MS-13 on a mission over Vietnam. The five gray sprue trees, as well as the single clear sprue, were enclosed in separate, loosely stapled poly bags. The photoetch fret was well protected, and the decal sheets were protected in plastic. The decals included options for four different aircraft in a variety of configurations and… more

Metal Landing Gear for Kitty Hawk TF-9J

Published: October 6, 2014
Company: Scale Aircraft Conversions

Many thanks to Mr. Ross MacMillan of Scale Aircraft Conversions and the IPMS Reviewer Corps for allowing me to try this neat conversion and replacement set for the new Kitty Hawk TF-9J. I am delighted to report on another sweet add-on and upgrade.

The 7 white-metal parts arrived in a blister pack, backed by the distinctive SAC company logo. The heft of the parts is very noticeable. All parts are free of sprues with the exception of the main mount retractors and nose well equipment. The parts require very little buffing, cleanup and polishing. The TF-9J kit gear struts directly replace the SAC parts. The main mount parts and nose strut parts attached to the kit fuselage with no difficulty. Kit parts that are replaced by SAC parts are D4 and E31, 33, 34. No replacement is… more

Valve Hand Wheels

Published: September 6, 2014
Company: Hauler

My thanks to Hauler-Brengun and the IPMS Reviewers’ Corps for allowing me to review this excellent detailing accessory set.

Valve hand wheels are everywhere, found on many different kinds of equipment. Plastic valve wheels are often mediocre, so helpfully, Hauler has produced a photo-etched brass sheet of valve hand wheels in several sizes and shapes.

The valve handles arrived in a 5.5 x 2.75 inch plastic pouch on a 1.65 x 1.5 inch photo-etched brass sheet. No instruction sheet was included in my sample. The photo-etched sheet is bright brass and has etched part numbers, but the handles themselves are flat. There are three diameters included in five- and six-spoke varieties. The diameters are roughly three, four, and five inches in 1/48 scale. There are 24 three-inch… more

Shopping Cart

Published: September 6, 2014
Company: Brengun

First, I’d like to offer my thanks to Hauler-Brengun and the IPMS Reviewers’ Corps for allowing me to review this unique diorama accessory.

The modern full-scale shopping cart has a fairly long development history, which is well documented on Wikipedia and other internet sources. The 1/48 scale Brengun shopping cart (or trolley, in many European markets) represents one of the smaller, tactical carts, as opposed to the larger plastic behemoths that swallow impulse purchases without end. My personal experience with this type of cart has often occurred at manufacturing sites. There, I have witnessed impossible amounts of parts and tools being cheerfully wheeled about in similar carts. Certainly, this excellent cart from Brengun could add an eye-catching detail to many potential… more

Kitty Hawk SH-2F Masks

Published: August 26, 2014
Company: Eduard

Thank you to the ever supportive folks at Eduard Model Accessories for providing a yet another great finishing tool. Thank you to the IPMS Reviewer Corp for letting me evaluate one of Eduard’s products. I always enjoy working with Eduard’s offerings and this mask set is no exception.

Kitty Hawk Models recently released a newly tooled 1:48 model of the SH-2F Sea Sprite, a common USN helicopter for a good part of the later 20^th century. The design of the helicopter provides excellent visibility for the aviator, which for the modeler means there are lots of clear parts to protect. The masking set reviewed here allows the modeler to easily protect those clear parts during painting.

Eduard provides 26 mask pieces die-cut into translucent yellow masking… more

F9F Cougar - Digital Volume 2

Published: November 25, 2021
Book Author(s): Bert Kinzey, Illustrated by Rock Roszak
Company: Detail & Scale, Inc.

Thank you to Bert Kinzey and Rock Roszak for bringing back a tremendous resource for the modeler, this time in digital format. Thank you to the IPMS Reviewer Corps for allowing me to test out this new and exciting method of researching the F9F Cougar.

Overview

This review of an exciting new format of a familiar product will take three parts; 1) content coverage, 2) how effective and useful the digital e-book format is from a modeler’s perspective, and 3) evaluation of a kit using the modeler’s section. I certainly would expect the first question a reader would ask is, "Why do I want an e-book format?" I like reading through traditional books as much as anyone else, with the page-by-page discovery of storyline or new information. I also have tons of books in my library… more

SH-2 Seasprite Landing Gear (KH)

Published: July 23, 2014
Company: Scale Aircraft Conversions

Many thanks to Mr. Ross MacMillan of Scale Aircraft Conversions and the IPMS Reviewer Corps for allowing me to try this neat conversion and replacement set for the new Kitty Hawk SH-2F. I am delighted to report on another sweet add-on and upgrade.

The 7 white-metal parts arrived in a blister pack, backed by the distinctive SAC company logo. The heft of the parts is very noticeable. All parts are free of sprues and require little buffing, cleanup and polishing. The gear struts of the SH-2F kit are directly replaced with the SAC parts. The main mount parts attach to the kit fuselage with no difficulty. Kit parts that are replaced by SAC parts are D 20, 21, 23, 24 and E 24, 25, 26.

Note that you will need to use kit part E 27 along with the SAC replacement for kit part E… more

U.S. Navy UCAS X-47B

Published: February 10, 2020
Company: Freedom Model Kits

Thank you to Freedom Model Kits for providing a review copy of an excellent new release of a very unusual aircraft. Thank you to the many Reviewer Corps people who make the IPMS review system work. It is a continuing honor and privilege to be part of the team.

This first release from a new company is a welcome addition to UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) subjects in the scale model world. Freedom Model Kits (FMK) maintains an excellent Facebook presence (see the vendor link above), hosting much good information including corrections, and they set a very high standard with their first offering. I thoroughly enjoyed building this kit for review. The part fit is excellent, construction is very straightforward, and a very nice model may be produced directly out of the box. The model… more