Reviews of scale model kits.

Review Author
Ben Morton
Published on
Company
OKB Grigorov
Scale
1/350
MSRP
$34.12

OKB Grigorov is a Bulgarian company that has been producing resin accessories and after-market bits for several years. My first experience with them was several years ago when I was searching for some embellishments for a 1/72-scale Merkava. I must admit that that was the last experience I had with OKB Grigorov. That was a mistake on my part, and this kit is how I fixed it.

As a member of the Reviewers Corps for IPMS/USA, we have access to several kits and modeling accessories that one might not otherwise have, and best of all, these accessories and/or kits are free if you conduct the review. Anyway, when several kits became available to the Reviewers Corps, I noticed the offerings from OKB Grigorov and thought, why not? Time to see what 'these guys' are up to, and I am delighted to inform you that OKB Grigorov has been up to quite a lot. All of it to a modelers favor. I will skip a full-blown review of their product line and simply suggest that you visit their website.

Review Author
Tomasz Menert
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$65.99

From ICM

The 2 cm Flak 38 anti-aircraft gun began entering service with the Wehrmacht in the second half of 1940. With its reliable design and high rate of fire (up to 480 rounds per minute), it was an effective means of close-range air defense in the Wehrmacht, and its production continued until the end of World War II. In addition to targeting aircraft, the gun could also be used against lightly armored targets. To increase mobility, anti-aircraft guns were often mounted on various vehicles, both wheeled and semi-tracked. One such vehicle was the semi-tracked version of the widely used Wehrmacht truck, the V3000S, which was designated as Sd.Kfz.3b (also known as the V3000S/SSM). The anti-aircraft guns were mounted in the vehicle’s bed and could be placed either on special platforms or without them. For firing, the sides of the vehicle’s body were either folded down or completely removed.

Review Author
Ron Bell
Published on
Company
OKB Grigorov
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$18.00

OKB Grigorov is a modeling company headquartered in Bulgaria. They do 3D printing, resin and photo etch items. Their inventory includes complete kits, track sets, figures and detail sets. I have now built two of their resin kits and have found them to be of the highest quality. There is no flash, no huge molding blocks to remove and the detail is very finely executed. Don’t go here looking for another Panzer IV or Tiger kit as they specialize in some rather esoteric subjects.

The subject of this review is their 1/72 scale kit of the U.S. Honest John missile. This was the first missile the U.S. produced capable of delivering an atomic warhead, although it could also carry a conventional one. It was ballistically “guided”, launched from a truck-mounted launching rail and was used by numerous countries, only coming out of the front-line U.S. inventory in 1983.

Review Author
Keith Gervasi
Published on
Company
Arma Hobby
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$23.50

History

(From the Arma web site): The Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusa (Falcon) fighter, nicknamed ‘Oscar’ in Allied code, was Japan's equivalent of the Spitfire and the Messerschmitt Bf-109 - it was a core piece of the Imperial Japanese Army Aviation throughout the Second World War, and was refined and produced in successive versions during all that period. Although it remained somewhat in the shadow of the naval Mitsubishi ‘Zero’, famous on the Pacific front thanks to its spectacular carrier battles, the Hayabusa played a major role in the battles over the Asian continent: over China, Burma, and Malaya, but also over the Philippines and New Guinea. There, it fought effectively against the air forces of China, the USA, Great Britain, Australia, and the Netherlands, making a major contribution to the initial great victories of the Japanese.

Review Author
Andy Taylor
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$104.98

ICM has done it again with a great combination kit with three early World War II armored vehicles. This boxing Wehrmacht Armored Vehicles (DS3524 – Diorama Set) has three complete kits: Sd.Kfz. 247 Ausf B, Panzerspähwagen P 204(f), and Sd.Kfz. 251/1 Ausf A. From the ICM webpage for the Wehrmacht Armored Vehicles boxed set:

Review Author
Doug Cole
Published on
Company
Revell Germany
Scale
1:24
MSRP
$52.99

Carrera-Revell has re-released its Lamborghini Countach LP500S Model Kit in 2024. It’s 1:24 scale in a European boxing as kit #07730.

Rare for the times, the Lamborghini Countach debuted in 1974 sporting a striking angular wedge shape, a huge rear wing and innovative scissor doors that made it an icon of the 80s supercar set. The LP500S version came with a 4.8-liter V-12 engine and a top speed 182 mph. It literally looked like a jet plane on wheels. Shod with Pirelli P7 tires and Campagnolo cast magnesium wheels, it looks awesome just standing still! There were 321 built from 1982 to 1985. If you can find one for sale these days, it will carry a price tag of around $600,000!

Review Author
Gino Dykstra
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$79.99

ICM continues its tradition of releasing unusual subjects, and this one has never been kitted before – a U.S. Army kitchen truck. Unlike some of the other army logistical services, the U.S. Army in World War 2 did not have dedicated vehicles for delivering hot food to front line troops. Instead, portable equipment was loaded onto vehicles and transported to where they were needed, and normally unloaded on the spot.

This new kit by ICM includes a standard short-bed Chevrolet truck and a good amount of cooking equipment, which can either be displayed on the truck bed or unloaded for a quick diorama. Detail is excellent throughout.

Review Author
Bradley Moreland
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$95.00

I have built and reviewed one other ICM kit, the Kozak-001. The Kozak kit was very advanced for my skills and I did not do that kit justice, by any means. However, the challenge of putting that kit together, while it did not produce the results I was hoping for, it helped me improve on my model building skills and was my most satisfying build of a kit overall. It inspired me to give another ICM kit a try. This time I took on the Nakhon Phanom Airbase kit (DS4804). This kit is phenomenal! It has 2 complete aircraft models, armament, figures and ground cover kits all together in 1 box.

As the Kozak did, this kit has really challenged me. I have once again learned so much while working on this kit. The most important thing I have learned is patience. DO NOT RUSH this kit! Take your time and enjoy it!

Review Author
Marc K. Blackburn
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$33.00

This is one of the newer offerings from the Ukraine based company ICM. The Zil-131 has been reboxed many times by ICM. The original tool, however, dates to the 1990s. Considering the age of the tooling, despite some very minor flash, the details are very crisp for a military truck and trailer at this scale. A note on the trailer, I cannot find any information on the trailer, so I do not know if this an older ICM mold or from another manufacturer. The kit comes in a sturdy ICM box. The sprues for the truck and the trailer are packaged in separate cellophane bags. There are two separate instruction sheets in ICM’s typical style with paint callouts in their own brand of acrylic paint. There are decals for two vehicles.

Review Author
Bradley Moreland
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1:35
MSRP
$55.00

This is my 3rd ICM kit to review. This kit was by far my fastest build out of the ICM kits I have done. This one took me about a week to complete. Quick build, but just as satisfying as the other kits I have done from ICM.

The Humvee has always been a personal favorite of mine and I have always wanted to do a Humvee build. Based on my previous experience with the other ICM products, I was looking forward to this build. As I have come to expect from ICM, this kit was very nicely detailed and very clean. Almost no flash to clean up at all. Had very few issues of parts not fitting correctly, and those few problem spots were easily fixed, either through clamping parts together until the glue was able to set, or very subtle manipulation of the parts to get them to connect correctly.