Ron Bell
Reviews By Author
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Medium Mark A WhippetPublished: May 28, 2014 The TankSoon after the tank made it's first appearance at the Battle of the Somme in 1916, a lighter version was requested. This would be smaller, lighter and faster and could be used in the pursuit phase of a battle, although why after what occurred at the Somme pursuit came up at all is a mystery. However, using existing technology, the Whippet, as the light tank came to be known… more |
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"Q" ShipPublished: April 23, 2014 The ShipA lesser-known fact about u-boat attacks is that most came during broad daylight and were conducted with the u-boat's deck gun not at night with a torpedo. The convoy system was yet to be established, so when the u-boats encountered individual unescorted ships rather than waste a torpedo, which they had on board in limited numbers, the u-boat would surface and shell the… more |
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M-47 PattonPublished: February 3, 2020 The VehicleThe American response to the German Tiger tank was the M-26 Pershing. It had good armor and its 90mm gun finally gave the Allies a weapon that could handle the Tiger. However, its engine was too weak and the vehicle suffered in mobility, so after the war a start was made on a replacement, designated the M-42 (not to be confused with the M-42 light tank design). But that… more |
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Avro Lancaster B.IIPublished: January 23, 2021 The AircraftPerhaps the best four-engined bomber of WWII, the Avro Lancaster has earned its place in history as well as in the hearts of the English people. It was instantly recognized that this was no normal aircraft and the time between design, prototype and production was minimized. However, the Lancaster was competing with the Spitfire and Mosquito for the Rolls Royce Merlin… more |
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USS OlympiaPublished: January 27, 2014 The ShipThe USS Olympia was a protected cruiser launched in 1892 with a long and distinguished career that included being Commodore George Dewey's flagship at the misnamed Battle of Manila Bay. Misnamed because it wasn't really a battle. The Spanish squadron never left anchor and the Americans just cruised back and forth shooting them up, even taking time for a lunch break in the… more |
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Sea Vixen FAW 2Published: December 10, 2013 The Vixen was originally developed for the RAF, but was turned down in favor of the Javelin for a missile-armed interceptor. The Fleet Air Arm picked it up and it was tailored to their needs, replacing the Sea Venom. The later versions, the FAW 2 (FAW=Fighter, All Weather) had saddle tanks added to the two booms to increase fuel capacity and thus range as well as better electronics. At the… more |
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Type 2 Ka-Mi Tank w/floating pontoonPublished: August 22, 2013 This one falls in the "that's an odd duck" category. This was a Japanese attempt – and a successful one, at that – to create a truly amphibious tank. The IJN developed the Type 2 Ka-Mi tank for invading Pacific islands that did not have adequate port facilities to handle regular tanks. The tank had removable pontoons fore and aft for flotation and to avoid shipping any water; they added a… more |
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HMS Warspite, 1915 – complete buildPublished: July 14, 2013 A while back, I did an in-the-box review of this kit (click on the link above) that provided the basic info on what's in the box, etc., but I've now completed the model and thought I'd share that information as well. Out of the box, this looks like a really nice kit and it falls into two categories that interest me, World War I and British ships, so I wanted to build it as well as I… more |
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F9F-2 PantherPublished: June 24, 2013 I won't go into the background of the F9F Panther, mainly because I don't know a lot about it and I know there are those out there who, knowing every nut, bolt and hydraulic coupling, would let me know in no uncertain terms if I were to err. Instead, I'll confine myself to the kit itself. Round 2 Models is a collectibles company located in South Bend, Indiana, that has acquired, among other… more |
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Da Vinci's Flying MachinePublished: February 3, 2020 The mind of Leonardo DaVinci must have been an interesting place. There's an entire museum in Milan full of his art work, architectural and biological drawings, and working models made from his original plans for a wide variety of machines, and Academy has released a series of spring-driven working models based on these. The subject of this review, his Flying Machine, contains a series of… more |