Timothy Funnell
Reviews By Author
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Panzerjaeger II fuer 7.62cm PaK 36 (Sd.Kfz.132) "Marder II D"Published:
Bronco Models has released a kit of the Marder IID, so let’s take a look at what's in the box. This was my first Bronco kit, and I was pleased to find the box was completely full. Inside you will find:
The steps are pretty self-explanatory in the instruction book and are easy to follow. One thing to note, there are a lot of… more |
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Panzer III (5cm) Ausf. G Early ProductionPublished:
Quick summary, this is not Dragon’s first Panzer III kit released but it might be one of their finest. Upon opening the box, you will find the following items, all 650 parts (about 70 of which are not used):
There are a few variations to decide upon for he build. After looking over the instructions a few times, I decided to start building a vehicle from 2nd Panzer Division, Russia 1941. The kit has different cupolas to choose from and the 2nd Panzer Division had late model cupolas which I prefer over the early cupolas used by the 16th Panzer Division. The build is straightforward… more |
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Jagdpanzer Elefant Exterior Detail SetPublished:
Since Tamiya released their version of the Elefant, it had been on my wish list. Upon obtaining the kit, I noticed that it needed some more details. Italeri and Dragon both make a 1/35th scale Elefant and with proper adjustments they can be make into nice models. The Tamiya detail set from Eduard contains two frets and nice, readable instructions. The fenders are really well detailed compared to the kit parts. It is a shame to have to cover them up with zimmerit. Thinking about this, I plan on putting their fenders on a Ferdinand kit, since the Ferdies didn’t wear zimmerit. There are also a bunch of small PE tool clamps and clasps. When applied, they look so much better than the kit’s molded-on ones. In my opinion, this is a well-detailed set on PE which will make it… more |
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Pz.Kpfw.IV L/70(A)Published:
Upon receiving this kit in the mail, I looked over the artwork on the box top to see which paint scheme I thought would be cool to do. I noticed a camouflaged scheme that had a blue pattern. Immediately, I questioned the blue color. I checked the instructions and yes, there it was – sky blue color callouts. The other thing that I noticed, aside from the standard Dragon instruction, was there were nice decals, 23 grey sprues, 2 clear sprues, a PE fret, and 2 bags of magic tracks. The instructions show quite a few sprues with the majority of unused parts (which I included pictures of). I was still wondering a few days later which scheme to do. I was really intrigued by the sky blue scheme. At this point, I decided to post on Hyper scale about its validity. Tom Cockle, one of the… more |
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8.8cm PaK-43 WaffentragerPublished:
Upon receiving this kit, I was thinking why was Trumpeter making one of these? I didn’t know anyone else made one until doing some research, and I found a few companies did. ARK models from Russia makes a Waffentrager, along with Alan Models. Whether or not this is the same mold, I can’t say. Upon opening the box, you get 10 sprues of orange plastic (very similar to that which ICM uses), 10 sprues of gray plastic link-to-link tracks, 5 PE frets, a steel tube, an aluminum barrel, and a sheet of decals. A 16-page black and white instruction booklet, with easy-to-follow directions, and a painting reference sheet with one scheme are also included. The color reference has call outs for Mr. Hobby Vallejo, Model Master, Tamiya, and Humbrol paints. The instruction booklet has 19 steps… more |
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Messerschmitt Bf-110E WheelsPublished:
Another finely detailed aftermarket upgrade from Eduard on their Brassin product line, these 1/72 wheels are made of resin and are more detailed than the kit parts. They come packaged with an instruction sheet and wheel masks for easy painting. The wheels fit perfectly onto the landing gear of the new Eduard kit. All you need to so is detach the excess resin and, with a little cleanup, you’re all set. I would have liked to use these on the new kit but that would defeat an out-of-box review. The only thing I would have liked to see was tires supporting a load. But what the heck, these are pretty darn good as they are. I would like to thank Eduard and Steve Collins of IPMS-USA for the chance to review this product, and thanks to you for reading this article. |
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Messerschmitt Bf-110E Nose GunsPublished:
One of Eduard’s Brassin line of upgrades is nose guns for their new BF-110E. This upgrade set is all resin with 12 highly detailed resin pieces and a small PE fret with 4 pieces. Also, it comes with a comprehensive instruction sheet with advertisement for other Eduard BF-110 products. In a very neat plastic package, you will receive 4 Mg15’s, 4 ammo boxes, a lower nose, a gun tub, 4 PE covers for ammo boxes and 2 neat variations -- one a camera, and the other the top side nose, were the camera is mounted. If you use the resin upgrade guns, you will use the kit’s upper half (E-17) nose part. Alternately, if you decide to build the E-3 recon version, you need to use the kit’s lower nose half (A-6) to finish the fuselage. While I did not use this set on the Eduard 110E… more |
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Messerschmitt Bf-110E DecalsPublished:
In my opinion, Eduard makes some of the best decals on the market, and this set for the BF-110 looks superb. In this set of decals, you get color plates for 4 different 110’s – a 7/ZG Z6 Mediterranean 1941/42, a 1/ERG.Zerst. GR. Debln-Irena, Poland December, 1942, a 5./NJG1, Deelen, Holland, spring, 1941, and lastly for W.NR.3866, Hans-Joachim Jabs, Staffel/Kapitan, 3/ZG76, Argos 1941. Of the decals for these four aircraft, only one of them is for a E variant. Two of them are D-3 versions, and the last is for a D-1 night fighter. This isn’t really a problem since Eduard is releasing a C/D version kit and the E kit # 7083 has an optional fuselage and Dackel Bauch belly tanks included. Overall, this decal set gets two thumbs up from me. I would like to thank… more |
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Messerschmitt Bf-110EPublished:
The Bf-110 went though not only technical changes throughout its career, but also through a development of its operational use. It entered the war as a heavy escort and attack fighter. By the time of the Battle of Britain, it became apparent that the aircraft, in the role of escort fighter, had been pushing the envelope of its capabilities. On the contrary, as a defensive weapon against British bombers, the Bf-110 made an extremely good showing of itself and remained a deadly foe through the end of the war. The placement of RAF bombing operations within nighttime hours from 1941 brought the Bf-110 into the realm of night fighting on the Western Front. On the Eastern Front, they excelled as fast fighter bombers. Their earlier role as a day attack fighter was still fulfilled not only on… more |
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Sd.Kfz.167 Sturmgeschutz IVPublished:
Sturmgeschutz, abbreviated StuG, was the weapon of the Strumartillerie, the branch of the German Artillery tasked with close fire support of infantry. StuGs were very successful in their intended support role and destroyed, among others, many bunkers, pillboxes, and other defenses. The StuG is not generally considered to be a true tank because it lacks a turret. The gun was mounted directly in a casemate-style fashion, with as low a profile as was possible to reduce vehicle height, and had a limited lateral traverse. Omitting the turret made production simpler and less costly, enabling greater numbers to be built. By late 1943, improved Allied tanks and tank destroyers with improved guns, rotating turrets, and superior mobility forced the StuG into being primarily an ambush weapon.… more |