Scott retired from the commercial nuclear industry with over thirty years of experience in Maintenance, Engineering, and Training. Prior to that he served on two aircraft carriers during his time in the U.S. Navy. He has been building models for over 50 years with his first kit being purchased with money from his grandparents for his sixth birthday. With a stash that consists of more aircraft than anything else, Scott still enjoys building a little bit of everything (including but not limited to tanks, cars, show cars, military vehicles (aside from tanks), ships, figures, real space, and some science fiction), which keeps his stash growing. Scott and his wife Fern reside in southwest lower Michigan, not far from South Bend, Indiana, and have three adult children and currently three grandchildren as well as a small dog and a large cat.
One of the latest releases from the photo etch masters at Eduard is a BIG ED set meant for use with the Kinetic release of the Grumman A-6E TRAM Intruder. The set consists of seven different Eduard offerings that include the following:
A-6 electronic equipment (item 48730)
A-6 undercarriage (item 48731)
A-6 wing fold (item 48732)
A-6E TRAM exterior (item 48733)
Remove Before Flight tags (item 49009)
A-6E TRAM interior S.A. (item 49597)
A-6E 1/48 canopy masks (item EX351)
Purchased separately, the seven items would set the consumer back $161.65 according to the Eduard web site, so the BIG ED set saves the buyer an impressive $46.65.
Although not every part in every set can be used… more
If you are looking for a fun, easy to assemble kit to fill some of your time during the dog-days of summer, I would suggest that you consider looking towards the folks at Dragon and one of their latest releases, a 1/72 scale Flakpanzer that is based on a Panther chassis. Aside from the road wheels, there are a minimal number of parts for this kit, which allows for quick assembly. The fit of the parts presented no issues, and the builder ends up with a nice-looking late-war paper-Panzer. A person with relatively little modeling experience can have very good results with this kit.
Designed late during World War II, the idea of the Flakpanzer V “Coelian” came from Rheinmetall-Borsig, and their project to install a pair of 37 millimeter Flak 43 guns in a turret that would be… more
If you are interested in building some of the older kits that you may have missed when they were first introduced, you have a friend in Round 2 Models, who is re-releasing kits from the likes of AMT, MPC, and Polar Lights. One of their latest releases is the AMT F-14A Tomcat that includes vintage kit packaging and some nicely produced decals. The kit has parts included to add up to four Phoenix (AIM-54) missiles, two Sparrow (AIM-7) missiles, two Sidewinder (AIM-9) missiles, TARPS (Tactical Air Reconnaissance Pod System), and has the markings for two different early F-14A aircraft. The built-up kit is a respectable looking early F-14A Tomcat; just keep in mind that, being an older kit, there will be some fit issues to overcome, and there are some items not mentioned in the instructions… more
In their third release of the Science World series of kits, Hasegawa has reproduced the Japanese manned research submersible Shinkai 6500 in 1/72 scale with upgraded thrusters that were added in 2012. The company previously released the original version of the submersible as SW01 (54001), and parts for that version are contained in this box as well. The kit builds up nicely, with many of the items fitting snugly enough that you might almost consider not applying glue. With the exception of just a few small parts, model builders of any age can complete a very respectable looking model from this kit, and more experienced builders should enjoy the level of detail provided by Hasegawa.
The Shinkai 6500 is a manned research submersible that is designed to reach depths of up to 6500… more
If you have been waiting for a great way to display your favorite 1/72 scale modern US Navy aircraft, your wait is officially over. I have personally been waiting for at least two decades for someone to release a molded plastic version of a modern aircraft carrier deck section, and Italeri has answered my prayers. This kit provides a large portion of deck showing a section of the catapult, jet blast deflectors (JBD’s), and JBD control station for what appears to be a Nimitz-class carrier, number 2 catapult area. Measuring an impressive nine and a quarter inches wide and about 15 and three quarter inches long, this base will hold any aircraft launched from a US Navy carrier deck since the Nimitz was first introduced. In short, I cannot recommend this kit highly enough for a more… more
This is the second Cyber Hobby ship model that I have been privileged to build as a reviewer (the first being the USS Virginia), and I will say that this was just as enjoyable of a build, representing a cruiser that saw service over five decades. There were no real complications with the build itself, but know going in that there are several photo etch items to add, and there are many small parts in the kit. The most challenging part of building this kit for me was the decals that are applied on the deck. If you have a fondness for the USS Chicago, or want to build a Baltimore-class heavy cruiser, I would highly recommend this kit for you.
After the loss of the USS Chicago CA-29, a Northampton-class heavy cruiser, in the Solomon Islands on 30 January 1943, a new Baltimore-class… more
As a member of the IPMS/USA Review Corps, I have had the wonderful opportunity to review a few items now from the Polish company Master Model. The topic for this review is a new set designed to upgrade your 1/32 scale Tomcat. Unlike most of the sets that I have reviewed, there is no one recommended kit to use these new parts on, so I compared the items to what Revell, Tamiya, and Trumpeter kits offer in plastic. As I have these kits sitting in my stash, I decided to show how all three big-scale Tomcats can be improved with these new parts.
Once again, I have fallen upon the opportunity to review something related to my favorite aircraft, the venerable Grumman F-14 Tomcat. When I saw this item hit the review list, I knew that I could make a comparison to several different kits,… more
Published: Book Author(s): David Doyle Company: Squadron Signal Publications
A new item recently sent to the IPMS/USA for review by the folks at Squadron is the fourth release in their Squadron at Sea series, and this edition covering the USS Saratoga (CV-3). The book is dedicated to “the crew of the Saratoga – the Ship of Happy Landings – who helped pioneer naval aviation in peacetime, fought valiantly in wartime, and who brought many of the comrades safely home…” The publication is 160 pages long, and as one would expect from the publishers at Squadron, it is filled with many black-and-white photographs as well as a few color pictures and some color drawings. Author David Doyle once again does an outstanding job of telling the story of the Saratoga, from her beginnings in New York Shipbuilding in Camden, New Jersey, to her current resting place at… more
For those who have been longing to add an early F-102A to their collection, or just a more modern release of a Delta Dagger in 1/72 scale, I would highly recommend gazing in the direction of this new release by Meng. The kit goes together well with only a few minor seams needing a light application of your filler of choice, and will not challenge modelers with some experience in dealing with small parts. Options for this kit include open or closed canopy as well as weapons and landing gear bays, and extended and retracted missile rails. There are also AIM-4C and D Falcon missiles to select from when arming your plane. This was my first experience with a kit by the newcomer Meng, and I will have no hesitation in purchasing their kits in the future.
Should you be looking for a little something different to build, I would like to point you in the direction of this one-quarter scale instrument panel that is being offered as a Limited Edition release by the folks at Eduard. The kit assembles with relative ease, and is a good representation of the instrument panel used in the Messerschmitt Bf-110C variant, although the variant is only mentioned once on the side of the box. The needles used in the various gauges are the only tricky items to handle during construction, so this would be a good item for modelers fourteen and up, as the box recommends.
Upon opening this kit, the builder will find a one-piece instrument panel along with ninety-nine parts spread across two sprues, all made of a medium gray plastic. In addition, there… more
