Robert Jackson is the author of over eighty books on military, aviation, naval and scientific subjects. He was defense and science correspondent for a major British newspaper publishing group. Among the other books he has compiled for Pen & Sword are Bf-109 in the FlightCraft series and for TankCraft he has written extensively on the T-34, the Panzer I and II, the Centurion and Chieftain Main Battle Tanks as well as the Russian T54/55. 200 color and b/w illustrations

Scale Aircraft Conversions has produced replacement gear for the Academy 1/72 scale F/A-18 E/F/G Super Hornet kit. The white metal replacements are a clean drop-in for the kit plastic parts. The supplied items include two main gear struts, and one nose gear strut with a separate oleo scissor and retraction struts. Some other SAC packages include replacement wheels, as well, but not the case here. You will need to use the Academy or other after-market wheels for your build.

A side by side evaluation (see photos) indicates an identical replacement that should provide a greater strength assembly with a significantly improved weight capacity and abuse tolerance. In some cases where original equipment was left in a natural metal finish, painting may not be necessary. As always, check your reference photos

Highly recommended.

Thanks to the IPMS Reviewer Corps and Scale Aircraft Conversions for the opportunity to review this item.

Brengun Models is a scale model and detailing parts manufacturer located in the Czech Republic. Their lines include limited production run multi-media kits and exquisitely detailed photoetch, turned brass, and white metal replacement parts for aircraft in the most commonly produced scales.

Brengun has produced a set of wheels with a cross tread patterns for any 1/72 scale F4U Corsair. There are no instructions, and any modeler familiar with resin parts will have no issues installing these wheels in lieu of the kit parts. A close-up evaluation of the parts (see photos), indicates a simple cut and replace installation that provides realistic scale-detailed wheels with significantly improved appearance to molded plastic kit parts.

I can’t count the number of times I’ve read of someone complaining about the props or spinner on a later 1/32^nd scale Messerschmitt. Apparently, these specific parts are particularly hard to reproduce in styrene accurately (or so I’ve been led to believe).

Enter Quickboost to the rescue with a beautifully cast spinner and props for the F-4 version of this classic aircraft. This one comfortably fits either the Revell or the Hasegawa rendition of this aircraft and may even prove a good fit for the Twentieth Century Toys replica.

Aires, a company out of Czechoslovakia, continues to create wonderful detail parts with the release of their 4-spoke Spitfire main wheels and masks, intended for the Tamiya kit. Cast in a medium gray styrene, they capture the most minute details, from the Dunlop letters to the exceptionally fine ribbing along the rims of the tires to the air valves.

As always seems to be the case with this manufacturer, the casting is absolutely flawless. A set of vinyl masks with clear, detailed instructions in their use are also included to permit you to make the best use of these detail parts.

There is simply no way to go wrong with these detail parts. They are straight “drop-in” replacements for the original kit tires and definitely add something to the final build. Frankly, they just cannot be beat.

My thanks to Aires Hobby Models for the sample and to IPMS/USA for a chance to add these to my own build of this iconic aircraft.