Reviews of products for scale aircraft models.

Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Res-Im
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$9.43

A new company to me: Resin Improvements (RES IM)… THANKS VERY MUCH Lukas for sending IPMS USA this wheel and tire set to review, and thanks also to IPMS USA leadership for trusting me to use them on my model….

This is a very simple set for the Trumpeter 1/32 SU-25 kit. Three fully-assembled wheels and tires for the kit! The wheels are extremely well done, with deep radial treads on the main tires, and extremely well done wheel details. Bolts, brakes and associated wheel bits are there.

The improvement over the basic kit items is extreme; the kit wheels are injection molded plastic and, although detailed, do not come up to the same level as the RES IM parts. Also, the vinyl tires are a very loose fit on the plastic kit wheels, and hollow to boot, so that means over time you will have flat tires unless you fill them with a plastic ring or some other method to keep the “flat” from occuring

Review Author
Rob Benson
Published on
Company
Hypersonic Models
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$10.00

Many thanks to Hypersonic Models and the IPMS Reviewer Corps for allowing me to review this excellent engine exhaust enhancement set for the EA-6B kits by Kinetic and Italeri. Hypersonic Models (HM) is a new contributor to the IPMS Reviewer system and is based in the UK, with a Facebook presence established 17 JUL 12. The operation is a one-man show, focused on well-researched products generated from quality CAD artwork and 3D- printed molds. HM has a specialty offering of modern-jet resin accessories, decals, canopy masks and reference drawings, with an X-15 emphasis.

Book Author(s)
Tom Cooper, David Nicolle, Lon Nordeen, Patricia Salti, and Martin Smisek
Review Author
Frank Landrus
Published on
Company
Harpia Publishing
MSRP
$64.95

Tom Cooper and David Nicolle's Arab MiG series is an incredible history that addresses the Arab air forces of Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen after the June 1967 Six Day War until 1973. Although MiG aircraft dominate the story, all Post-WWII Arab aircraft are included. The authors have been able to access official archives as well as the combatants involved to provide a unique perspective of the Middle East conflicts. Volume one in this series, published November 19, 2009, covered the background of the Arab air forces from 1955 focusing on MiG-15 and MiG-17 fighters. Volume two, published October 19, 2011, addressed the Arab air force supersonic fighters from 1956 through 1967. Volume three in the Arab MiGs series focuses on the Arab air forces in the June 1967 War and was published October 24, 2012. Two additional volumes follow in this series, all with the same thick 256 glossy page count.

Review Author
Rob Benson
Published on
Company
Hypersonic Models
MSRP
$5.62

Many thanks to Hypersonic Models and the IPMS Reviewer Corps for allowing me to review this elegant fin tip correction part for the Hobby Boss A-6. Hypersonic Models (HM) is a new contributor to the IPMS Reviewer system and is based in the UK, with a Facebook presence established 17 JUL 12. The operation is a one-man show, focused on well-researched products generated from quality CAD artwork and 3D-printed molds. HM has specialty offerings of modern-jet resin accessories, decals, canopy masks and reference drawings, currently with an X-15 product line emphasis.

Review Author
Timothy Gidcumb
Published on
Company
Aires Hobby Models
MSRP
$3.54

Recently I was given the opportunity by IPMS USA to review Aires Messerschmitt Bf 109G Gun Barrels for the 1/48 Eduard 109G series of kits. One of the first things to notice with this product is the excellent presentation of the packaging with the sealed flap on the back of package to allow for easy access to parts.

The molding on the resin gun barrels is excellent and they come off of the resin block with little effort. You receive 2 sets in the packaging, one set is of the MG 151/20MM canon that was used on the Bf109G. The G series 109 was designed to accept a variety of field conversion sets that allowed the changes to be made in the field. These were numbered from R-1 to R-7 with the MG 151/20MM canon under each wing being labeled R-6. These barrels make a good addition to the Eduard 109G series although there is not much difference in the look of both the resin and the one provided in the kit.

Review Author
Timothy Gidcumb
Published on
Company
Aires Hobby Models
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$7.54

Recently I was given the opportunity by IPMS USA to review Aires Messerschmitt Bf 109G Flaps for the 1/48 Eduard 109G series of kits. One of the first things to notice with this product is the excellent presentation and packaging of the product.

The contents of the package contains 1 right and 1 left flap for the Eduard Bf109G series of kits. The flaps are easy to remove from the resin base by simply scoring the flap with your hobby knife and sanding the area smooth with some fine sandpaper or a nail file.

There are some small differences between the resin flaps and the flaps that come in the Eduard Bf 109G kit. The rivet detail on the Aires flap is a lot less pronounced and finer in detail than the kit part, and the fit is tighter to the wing right out of the package while the flaps that come in the kit need a little bit of sanding to get a similar fit and feel that you would want for the final representation of your model.

Review Author
Dave Morrissette
Published on
Company
Zoukei-Mura
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$75.00

Zoukei-Mura first showed this kit at the 2015 IPMS Nationals and again this year in Columbia. Well, the kit has finally arrived and its beautiful. Many might have been a little skeptical with the other kits but it’s a Phantom and one of the most iconic planes made so a new kit is always welcome. In this part, we’ll look at what’s in the box and then get some parts built and painted starting with the cockpit.

Review Author
Mike Lamm
Published on
Company
Quickboost
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$6.57

Quickboost is known for producing high quality, resin replacement parts for many model kits from most manufacturers. One of their newer offerings is a set of resin replacement propellers for Revell’s B-17 Flying Fortress.

Revell’s kit propellers are typical of what you’ll normally find, four three-blade propellers molded in plastic. They look alright, but lack that extra level of detail resin molding can produce. Not to mention, the kit parts have a thin piece of flash running around the length of each blade, which will require some delicate clean up prior to assembly and painting.

Quickboost;s replacements pieces include four spinner hubs, and a dozen new propeller blades, as well as a small jig to ensure proper fit. There is a simple drawing to show how to prepare the jig, and how to properly use it for aligning and building the propellers.

Review Author
James Corley
Published on
Company
Academy Models
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$34.99

One of the latest offerings from Academy is their new tooling of a Super Hornet in 1/72 scale. Academy is known for well-designed and sharp tooling, and this kit is no exception.

The kit comes molded in 3 colors: gray, white and black. The gray parts include most of the airframe and other parts. The black parts include the vertical stabilizer, burner cans, tires, seat and instrument panels. Don't fret over the black verticals, however, as they are included in gray as well. The white sprue includes intakes, main gear wheel hubs and landing gear struts.

Review Author
Allan Murrell
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$29.95

This Eduard Brassin set is for the Eduard Fw 190A-5 kit. The set includes detail parts to add to a highly detailed kit. The resin and photoetch parts inside the box looked great and very well molded and etched.

In the box is:

  • 28 x resin parts in two shades of grey
  • 2 x photoetch sheet
  • 1 instruction booklet

All the resin parts are very well detailed, and are extremely well molded.

The assembly instructions are very clear and detailed.

Stage 1 through 6 is the fuselage gun bay structure, ammo boxes, and engine mounting structure. This all went together very well with no problems on fix or location.