Rod Lees
Reviews By Author
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B-17G Exterior 1/32Published:
This is the final part in the long review of Eduard’s PE for the HK B-17G. We are sincerely and eternally grateful for their support; it’s been a long, rewarding couple of months doing these reviews! This final set is also a simple one; exterior details that make a noticeable difference in the appearance of the surface sections. Included are oil cooler intake screens, panels, and overwing fuel doors and hinges for the aircraft. Certainly you can modify and open all the refueling doors (remember to keep the cigarettes 50 feet away) to add a lot of life to the model, particularly in a diorama setting. Small point; the square latch always is toward the tail of the aircraft, in case the door latch failed or was not fully closed. This prevented the door ripping… more |
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Bomb Rack Details for HK B-17Published:
This set covers what is not included in the bomb bay set: the racks themselves, latches and placards in color etch, bomb carry racks, tail section cover plates for the bombs, fuse propellers (front and back), and some cats and dogs for the lift mechanisms. This was one of the more difficult sets to review, in that you must remove plastic side rails on the racks without destroying the racks themselves, and then fit the cover sheet metal plates over the bomb release shackles, (which also require modification before the PE will work). It took a while, but I got there, just no magnifiers when viewing, please. I will be installing the bombs toward the end of the build, but it’s pretty self-evident these parts will make a difference in the appearance of the bombs… more |
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Consolidated B-24 Liberator Decals, Part 1 and 2Published:
Thanks very much to Lifelike decals for providing IPMS USA these review sets. We appreciate your support and look forward to your future efforts! I had heard of Lifelike decals, but normally don’t work in 1/72nd scale. However, when these showed up, I had to throw my name in the hat… and am very pleased I did. The first set, 72-029, covers four B-24’s with four different groups in the pacific region. All have very colorful tail markings, and the nose art is particularly striking. The fact I have not seen these before made them a better value. Markings are included for the following:
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Waist and Tail Gunner Compartment Details for HK B-17Published:
… MORE on of our long review of Eduard PE parts for the HK B-17 kit… thanks to Eduard for providing us these sets…!!!!!!!!!!!!! The waist section on this set contains several similar panels and gauges for the crew oxygen and intercom system. Ammunition feed chutes are provided for both waist weapons, as are crosshair gunsights, and an unusual modification in the form of spent ammo casing bags for the waist guns. These, by the way, are supposed to be installed with the CURVED section toward the fuselage sides… I must have been distracted. The Auxiliary power unit is detailed up with placards, and various bits and pieces. You will have to work to see this on the completed model, unless you open the crew access door on the right side of the aircraft. Moving on… more |
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Bomb Bay Details for HK B-17Published:
Next step in our long review of Eduard PE parts for the HK B-17 kit. Ongoing thanks to Eduard for providing us these sets… ! Having opened one other B-17 many years ago in 1/48th, using the Paragon resin flap and bomb bay sets, I vowed not to do that ever again, not due to the fault of the parts, but because it made it extremely difficult to move the model around. Here I am again, with an even LARGER model… But it’s worth it in the end! This upgrade seriously improves the appearance of the kit parts by having you replace the sidewalls with PE sheet, and styrene truss bracing. Added afterwards are Gussets with excellent rivet detail. What that does is brings the detail level over the top… it just looks a lot better in this scale. The catwalk has improved… more |
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Radio Compartment Details for HK B-17Published:
This is part 4 of our long review of Eduard PE parts for the HK B-17 kit. The usual thanks to Eduard for providing us these sets… The radio compartment on the B-17 had a large clear panel over it. On earlier aircraft, including some “G”s, the cover would drop down and slide forward, providing an emergency exit in case of ditching or belly landing, and was also provided with provision for a .50 caliber hand-serviced weapon. On later “G”,s such as the HK kit, this window could be removed, but was fixed in place, along with a standard “through the plexiglas” gun mount for the gun. Made for a much-less windy situation for the crew at -60 degrees below farenheit wind chill… As the definition of the compartment states, the “radio room” is filled with radios, and… more |
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F-35A Lightning IIPublished:
Thanks very much to MRC for providing us this little gem, and thanks to Italeri for producing it! (and the usual appreciation to Dave and Dick for sending it my way to review...) This model requires a bit of skill, only in that it has many miniature parts which require care in installation. We'll address that more later, but the basic model is excellent in presentation and delivery. This kit was first “out the chute”, as our rodeo friends say, on the market for a decent, accurate F-35 production-representative model. I gave up on another company's 1/48 build, as I did not care for the tail plane inaccuracy (serious dihedral out of the box) and other issues. Italeri's kit is much better overall... now they need to pantograph it out of Braille-scale for us old guys. It… more |
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Sea Vixen Ejection Seats with Safety BeltsPublished:
Thanks again goes out to our friends and suppliers at Quickboost for yet another outstanding upgrade for a good kit, namely the Airfix Sea Vixen. If you are into Vacuforms, you could also use it on the Dynavector kit if you so desire (and have one). These seats are designed for “right” and “left” sides, i.e. the #1 seat is for the pilot (Stick actuator), and seat #2 (as indicated on the pour stub) is for the “right”, or Radar systems operator position (in the “coal hole” as many called it). This took maybe an hour to paint and dry; as there are no color instructions, I found a few internet pictures to determine the information I needed. The back pad was painted in leather brown, and the seat pad in dark green. Drybrush with white, pick out some details in silver, and… more |
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SAAB 37 Viggen Pitot Tubes and AOA ProbePublished:
Master Models is one of those companies who have stepped up to deliver what we really need; durable, accurate metal pitot tubes and probes for our fast-mover jets. THANK-YOU VERY MUCH for filling the void! The only thing I will say is to be careful with them, as they can turn your house into a doctors’ office for injections in little time! These 3 little (and I mean tiny, miniscule, actually “Scale”) bits are perfect to add to your model. First, they are made of brass, which makes them durable but not “unbendable” like stainless steel or actual needles; they have a bit of “give” when “tweeked”, but return to shape. That means you won’t have the same issues as resin pitot tubes where the cat breathes on the parts and they go flying off into the netherworld! … more |
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Plain Wheels and Offset Tread Tires for MosquitoPublished:
Ultracast is one of those companies that we AMS modelers can’t live without… Thanks up front for this excellent set, and to IPMS USA for sending it my way…Now to figure out which Mossie I’m gonna build… These, like the previous set reviewed a few weeks ago, are simple replacement items for the Tamiya wheel and tire sets in their Mosquito kits. As previously done, I have assembled one of each, the Tamiya kit item on the left, and the Ultracast wheel/tire on the right. Again, small details matter. There are no wheel spokes on this set, but the tire radial lines and it’s excellent “Offset Z” tread stands out. No seam filling; just carefully removing the tire from the pour stub is required. The tire “weight” is simulated in a subtle way, not overdone like others. … more |