Rod Lees
Reviews By Author
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AIM-9X MissilesPublished:
Thanks once again to Chris for providing IPMS USA more of his excellent products; in this case, a brace of modern snakes! The AIM-9X program has been yet another joint effort (Navy/AF) intended to provide better weapons to our warfighters. The AIM-9 series is one of the more effective close-in weapons; it’s notoriously accurate, and usually does the job better than radar guided weapons. Of course, you are in a knife fight at this point if you must use these missiles, so effective and accurate are both pluses. The AIM-9X is the latest generation Sidewinder; it is tied in to helmet-cuing sight technology, and goes where the pilot is looking. It’s an excellent follow-on to the AIM -9L (Lima) and -9M (Mike)… both which have extremely successful history as lethal close-in air-to-… more |
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F-102A Delta Daggers Case XX WingsPublished:
Squadron Products/MMD have partnered with Cartograf in providing us with four more new F-102 Decal sheets to go with their previously released Encore F-102 Case XX wing release of the (1992) Monogram F-102 kit. (In case you don’t know, the earlier Case X wing had squared-off ailerons and a “kink” to the wing… The Case XX wing has the curved leading edge which goes out to the extreme edge of the wing, and a diagonal extension of the ailerons. The previously released Monogram/Revell kits had the Case X wing, and the Encore and Promodeller releases had the Case XX wings…) Hats off to MMD for providing us these decal sheets! I won’t go into model construction here; the decals are the stars! I opted to use the 57th FIS markings from Keflavik for this build. The decals:… more |
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Lightning F6 Cockpit SetPublished:
Thanks once again to Aires for providing IPMS/USA the opportunity to review yet one more of their excellent cockpit sets. Included are 10 resin parts for the cockpit tub, seat, instrument panel, and a control stick; there are also a couple smaller resin parts to represent the whiskey compass on the forward canopy framing. A photoetch fret is included to provide realistic seat harness components, including buckles, etc. This is a simple and effective way to upgrade your standard Trumpeter 1/32nd scale Lighting F6 cockpit. While the kit item is ok, this upgrade provides icing on the cake. Having previously reviewed a Quickboost Lightning seat with the seat and belts already cast on the seat, this one took a bit longer as I had to fabricate the belts. I used… more |
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RAF and British Commonwealth Fighter Pilot Mid-late WWIIPublished:
I don’t normally go for installing figures in my models; however, after this one, I may change my stripes and do so more frequently. FirstThanks to master Details for providing this excellent product to us. It was quite a pleasant diversion from just slappin’ together plastic… and an excellent addition to most WWII British kits! What You GetA torso, four different arms, and two legs in resin. And four different heads in white metal, along with an oxygen mask and hose for separate parts. One head with goggles down and no mask, one with goggles up and mask in place, one with mask and goggles in place, and one with mask in place, goggles up. The flight gear is for non-tropical situations, i.e. standard European issue. This is a mid-to-late war flight… more |
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TSR.2 Air IntakesPublished:
Thanks once again to Quickboost for providing IPMS/USA me these review items; these little things make a big difference, and we appreciate it! OK, this is about as simple a review as you can get. These four vents are replacements for the kit items; the new QB vents are already hollowed out, and make a big difference in the appearance of the final product. These vents face backwards, and dump heat overboard. See the scan of the instruction sheet for Items 7F, 8F, 39A and 40A on the upper back of the aircraft. Most of us old school guys use #11 Exacto blades and twirl away, occasionally stabbing ourselves in the fingers, to get hollow intake/exhaust vents. Enter Quickboost! As we have come to expect, a fast one-for-one replacement for the kit items (See the photos… more |
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Mig 23 Intake and Missile RailsPublished:
This build was a perfect storm; From IPMS I received the Mig 23 review items for Zactomodels Mig 23 pylon set, and the seriously improved Intake ramp. I contacted Chris of ZACTOMODEL fame to order missile rails and Aphids; and he sent them on for review. Let’s say it up front: THANKS CHRIS (aka “Zactoman”,) for the cool modeling support items, and providing us these for review. We at IPMS USA appreciate the serious, undying support of distributors like you! First order of business once I learned of my fate in doing aftermarket for a kit I wanted but did not have: I had to buy a Trumpeter Mig 23M. OW! (But it was worth it) Editor's note: No product packaging images were provided.
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Mig 23 Decal SheetsPublished:
For the IPMS build involving various aftermarket parts for the Trumpeter Mig 23, I did not want to do the kit decal markings for the “M”. Therefore, I ordered the Linden Hill Warsaw Pact decal from Linden Hill imports. I told Guy at LHI I was doing the review and he threw in the second sheet (32012) for the ML, MLP, LMA, etc., as flown in Afghanistan and other places. Those will be used in a separate review later. Extreme thanks to Guy at LHI for providing us these items for review. We at IPMS USA appreciate the serious, undying support of distributors like you! I finished the build and proceeded to painting and decals. LHI decals are truly great; they work without setting solutions over gloss, and are accurate. The instructions are particularly well researched, and answer all… more |
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Mig 23 Intake Bypass Doors, and Control SticksPublished:
I received the bypass doors and Control levers from Quickboost via the IPMS lottery for use in my MIG 23 build. THANKS QUICKBOOST for providing us these items for review. We at IPMS USA appreciate your continued support! I started this review with the Quickboost bypass doors; Install the doors in the outer intake duct. All that is required is to remove the mounting lip on the intake, and carefully install them in a partially-open position. Nicely done Quickboost! The control stick is a work of art; three are provided. The three-button stick with the Autopilot “off” paddle is extremely well detailed, and a great improvement over the kit item which doesn’t really look like it should. Final verdict: an excellent effort from Quickboost! |
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Mig 17 Landing gear bays and gear doorsPublished:
The usual thanks go to Aires for providing IPMS USA with yet another great review item. A very simple upgrade to the Hobbyboss Mig 17 kit series; you’ll have to remove the inner details from the kit wings, glue the bay in place on the lower wing interior, and they are done. As to the nose: replace the nose intake splitter/wheel well with the resin item. Nose and main gear doors are also included. It’s worth the cash and time for these parts. Simple modeling skills required; the improvement is seen when the Aires parts are held up next to the kit items. This is a great time to be in the hobby, and Aires had obviously decided they are going to continue to compete for our hard earned paychecks. With sets like this, they are succeeding… well done Aires! |
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Focke Wulf FW-189 A2Published:
Thanks first go to Dragon USA for providing us this excellent new release; Can’t say enough as to how generous our suppliers are who provide these kits, which we at IPMS sincerely appreciate! The Great Wall Hobbies FW189 first hit the shelves last fall/early spring here in the U.S... Previous reviewers in other countries raved about the kit. They were correct… this is a gem of a model. When you open the box, you find five gray runners filled with finely-detailed parts, one extremely clear runner of canopy, armored fascia, and two types of windscreen, hinting at future cannon-armed releases. An excellent photoetch fret is included, with flaps, wiring harness for the engines, gunsights, rudder pedals and seatbelt/harness assemblies. Decals cover two versions, illustrated on a… more |