You may remember I was a bit confused by the extra 8 pages in the middle of the last issue I reviewed. This month my habit of reading everything in a magazine paid off. In the Editorial Gary indicated that the extra 8 pages are for subscribers as a extra thank you for fronting up for a year’s sub. This month the extra pages cover the Sub-Cutaneous which is not the name of the 8 pages but an article on Colour. A build of a couple of 1/144th scale Vampires. A page of aircraft model pics from the US Nationals in Omaha (I would have liked these to be part of the regular magazine, but I might be a bit biased). The last 3 extra pages cover a nice build of the Hasagawa 32nd scale A6M5c Zero.

So what is in the rest of the magazine? Quite a bit as usual.

This update set is typical Aires, coming in a sturdy plastic package with foam backing and instructions tucked in between the cardboard back and plastic. First impression is how crisp the detail is on the internal afterburner nozzles and after burner cans. Mold release is non-existent however I still recommend washing the resin before use.

Compared to the Revell kit parts, the Aires set has a finer detailed afterburner fuel manifold & flame stabilizer at an astonishing degree of detail. One word or warning as you will see in the pictures, be very careful when removing the excess material. I used a belt sander and trimmed to what appears correct in the instructions and it gets very thin. Portions of the burner ring backing vanish just leaving the fine webs of the fuel manifold. This will allow you to see right through the part until it is installed on the kit. I fine-tuned removing the back of the part with 600 grit wet/dry sand paper so be very careful.

Quickbost has produced replacement exhausts for the Hasegawa 1/48 F-190 kits. The resin replacements are a simple drop-in substitute for the kit’s plastic parts. The supplied items include all three separate exhaust stacks. There is no modification required to the kit parts to use these resin replacements. The resin parts will need to be cut with a razor saw close to the base of the stacks to fit properly, so use care when removing the stubs.

A side by side evaluation (see photos) indicates a replacement of superior detail that will provide a more accurate rendition of the Butcher Bird’s exhaust assemblies. Check your references for the appropriate placement. Be sure to wash the parts in soapy water to remove mold release agents and prime prior to using your favorite modeling paints.

Highly recommended.

Thanks to the IPMS Reviewer Corps and Quickboost for the opportunity to review this item.

AMK’s 1/48 Mig-31 is a kit that, once you see one built, it grabs you. Phenomenal engineering of a large subject is a real show stopper. Even as well designed as the kit is, there is always some room for improvements. Aires to the rescue with a set of speed brakes and pistons as replacements.

Inside the package, you will find a left and right speed brake (they are handed so watch for location) and two pistons for support. There are no instructions as these are direct replacements for the kit parts.

Preparation consists of freeing the pistons from the casting block and webbing which is easily accomplished with a sharp knife. You can see that the Aires parts (also available from Quickboost as a standalone set) are cast finer especially in the piston parts. A small difference but noticeable.

The Tamiya F-14A Tomcat set a standard for plastic model kits. If there is a drawback it is that the aircraft can only be built as a very early Tomcat. Well Quickboost has addressed most of the options to upgrade your Tomcat’s chin pod. All these chin pods were used on later F-14As and F-14Bs.