Reviews of general scale modeling products such as paint, glue, etc.

Review Author
Dick Montgomery
Published on
January 25, 2017
Company
Tamiya
MSRP
$7.00

Tamiya offers a trio of “panel line accent colors”, Black (# 87131) Brown (#87132) and Gray (#87133). Two of these colors were provided to IPMS for review, those two colors being black and gray. All three colors are enamel based and that means that one will need to be aware that plastic and enamel have a love-hate relationship. While the accent paints will really pop out the detail on a model, if applied too generously it can damage the plastic. Tamiya understands this issue and provides reminders of this issue to the user.

For test purposes I used the F-14 Tomcat that is currently sitting on my work bench. I picked an area that had not yet previously been highlighted or “accented” and then gave it a coat of Future to seal the acrylic and provide a barrier upon which the Tamiya accent paints could be applied.

Review Author
Paul R. Brown
Published on
January 24, 2017
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$6.95

This set is designed to fit Eduard’s recently released Fleet Air Arm Hellcat Mk. I, but as the Hellcat Mk. I is a F6F-3, the mask will also fit Eduard’s F6F-3 kit.

Since Eduard’s Hellcat includes different parts for the central canopy section to allow you to pose it either open or closed, and these parts are actually a little different, the mask set includes separate masks for each option. I chose the open option as I wanted to show off the nice interior provided in the kit.

Review Author
Dick Montgomery
Published on
January 22, 2017
Company
Tamiya
MSRP
$9.00

Tamiya has long offered a wide range of acrylic paints and acrylic thinners. Recently I experimented with Tamiya’s Lacquer Thinner, item # 87077. As a rule, I tend to use the paint thinner produced by the same company that produced the paint being used.

I found that the Tamiya lacquer thinner worked very well, indeed, although its use is different than the acrylic thinner I’m used to using. Do not let the fact that it is a Lacquer thinner dissuade you from using it with your standard Tamiya acrylics. It works just fine.

The lacquer thinner is noticeably “stronger” than the acrylic thinner, both in how it interacts with Tamiya acrylics and how it smells. And it should be said here that if you can smell the paint you are airbrushing then you should wear a mask. Also, users are strongly advised not to have an open flame nearby as lacquer is combustible.

Review Author
Dave Morrissette
Published on
February 3, 2020
Company
Acrylicos Vallejo
MSRP
$25.95

Vallejo makes several different types of paints- some for hand brushing, some for detailing and some pre-thinned for air brushing. Model Air is a range of liquid acrylic colors developed especially for airbrushing and has very finely ground pigments and an acrylic resin which has been designed for durability.

The set reviewed here is for modern US Navy Colors and contains eight 17ml squeeze bottles of:

Review Author
Dave Morrissette
Published on
February 10, 2020
Company
Acrylicos Vallejo

Vallejo has introduced a series of eighteen metallic colors in their Metal Colors line. This also includes a glossy black primer and a gloss protective varnish. Each bottle is 32ml (1.08 ounces) and has an excellent pour dropper which is angled. MSRP is $10.99 per bottle.

The colors reviewed are:

Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
October 11, 2016
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$12.95

Thanks to Eduard for providing more of their excellent aftermarket parts for IPMS USA to review, and to IPMS leadership for sending it to me!

This set is simple to use; Kabuki tape masks for all the clear bits! Included are masks for all the windows, canopy parts, and gun turrets, and wheels. One benefit of these sets is the ability to mask off VERY tiny windows; in this case, all the 1/8” round porthole windows, and some of the intersecting canopy window bits. These can be less than 1/16” across, and are VERY difficult to mask; same with the turret frames, because of the complex curves. Eduard utilizes multiple small tape masks to make sure you cover all the areas without wrinkling, which leads to paint creep under the tape.

Review Author
Dave Koukol
Published on
October 9, 2016
Company
Hauler
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$7.10

Background

Of the many consumable items available to the modern-day modeler, pre-cut masking aids are perhaps one of the most useful types on the market. Originally targeting aircraft areas of interest, recent years have seen a tremendous proliferation into other genre – including military vehicles.

The Product

A recent and pleasant surprise was to see Hauler offer a masking set for Tamiya’s 1/48 scale US Staff Car kit. Having that model on the near-term build list, I just had to jump at the chance to try some Hauler masks for the first time. The set contains two sheets of finely cut, super-thin vinyl masks for glass areas and wheel hubs, and stencils for national insignia stars. A single sheet of placement diagrams is more than sufficient for applying the masks.

Review Author
Rob Benson
Published on
February 3, 2020
Company
Acrylicos Vallejo
MSRP
$5.99

I am very appreciative of Acrylicos Vallejo (AV) for sending new products for review, and I am equally appreciative of all the Review Corps crew members who take care of all of the legwork to get materials to reviewers and the completed reviews published for the modeling community. It is a privilege to be part of this manufacturer-modeler group effort.

Review Author
Rob Benson
Published on
September 9, 2016
Company
Acrylicos Vallejo
MSRP
$5.99

I am very appreciative of Acrylicos Vallejo (AV) for sending new products for review, and I am equally appreciative of all the Review Corps crew members who take care of all of the legwork to get materials to reviewers and the completed reviews published for the modeling community. It is a privilege to be part of this manufacturer-modeler group effort.

Review Author
Eric Christianson
Published on
September 8, 2016
Company
Acrylicos Vallejo
MSRP
$12.72

Among several integrated sets of Model Air paints produced by Vallejo for common AFV camouflage schemes is their U.S. Olive Drab set, consisting of four color paints, an Olive Drab Primer and a clear Satin Varnish.

Opening the box reveals a vacuform tray holding six half-size (quarter ounce) bottles, each one holding slightly less than half as much paint as one of Vallejo’s standard bottles. The assumption is that the paint set would be one-stop shop, with enough paint for (at least) single project, although my experience with Vallejo paints is that this set could easily be stretched across three or four normal-sized 1/35th scale builds.