Crusader III (Naval Fighters # 87) is a paperback book measuring 8-1/2” X 11” and consists of 92 pages. The cover and pages are printed on polished paper. The book is full of sharp black and white photographs only with accompanying text. Also included are 3-view drawings, comparison tables, line drawings and performance charts.

The author begins by setting the stage for one of the closest aircraft selection competitions the Navy ever experienced. It began in 1953 when Vought’s F8U-1 Crusader beat out McDonnell’s entry for a high-performance day fighter. When the Navy went looking for an all-weather (night) fighter, the competition began.

Thompson states, “The Navy also preferred to deploy two different carrier-based fighters with complementary attributes…” In addition, having different fighters with different engines in a carrier group ensured a degree of safety in case one engine or aircraft type had a problem.

It is refreshing to see a quality publication dealing with an airplane that is little known and rarely publicized. This certainly applies to the Parnall Panther, an airplane with as obscure a service history as any I’ve heard of. Conceived during the latter stages of World War I, the Panther was produced in some numbers at the end of the war, approximately 150 being constructed by several manufacturers. In addition, the U.S. Navy procured two for flight testing, the Japanese obtained a dozen, and one was briefly on the British Civil register, flying in the 1922 Royal Aero Club’s Easter meeting.

The concept of the UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) is not a new concept. But UAVs have been hot-points in the news from many parts of the world over the last decade. “Birds of Prey” is an absolutely fascinating, current, and in-depth description of the wide variety of these vehicles. The author skillfully intertwines factual information with almost "Tom Clancy" descriptions of combat action. The huge variances in the size, style and missions are covered extremely well. To put the size variance into a modeling perspective, the smallest winged UAV, the Scan Eagle has a 1 inch span in 1:48 scale! Compare this to the Global Hawk Block 20⁺vehicle with a wing span of 32.5 inches in the same scale.

Let’s take a journey, a journey into the mind of a scratchbuilder. Not just any scratchbuilder, not one who takes an actual object that existed and builds a replica from scratch. But one who gives three dimensional shape and form to an idea in a novel or a picture in his head. Author Andy Pearson is just such a modeler. He is regularly featured in Sci-Fi and Fantasy Modeller magazine.

In this book’s eleven chapters; Andy will show you how to take an image in your mind or a book and give it form and substance. Each chapter is a walk through the building of project. From futuristic construction equipment, cybernetic whale, a cross sectional far away planet’s seascape, space ships and much more, Andy takes you on the journey from idea to model.

Publisher: Model Art Co., Ltd, 1-12-30, 1Chome, Kudankita Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, 102-0073 Japan

Thanks to Model Art and Dragon Models - USA for the review copy.

Model Art No. 804, September 2010 issue features new armor model kits, which take up the first 52 pages of this issue. The focus is on WW2 German armor on the Eastern front, and includes some Russian armor as well. Oddly, the Table of Contents is on page 10 after the feature on a Russian BT-7 tank build. After that, you get kit and diorama features on German Figures, Cyber-Hobby’s Tiger I in snow camouflage, Cyber Hobby’s Sd.Kfz.165 Hummel diorama, a Dragon Elefant with Zimmerit, Trumpeter’s German 21cm Morser 18 artillery piece, and lastly, Tamiya’s 3 ton 4X2 Cargo truck diorama.