Reviews of products for scale aircraft models.

Review Author
James Binder
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$8,177.00

This kit is a new Profipack boxing of the venerable 1/48 scale Eduard FW 190A series, this time in its Nachtjager guise. It was my first foray into the Eduard FW 190 and I was blissfully unaware of the quirks of this kit. I started working on this kit during a build night at my Local Plastic Model Club and two other members warned me as to what I had gotten myself into. As the build went on I was to see why everyone has a love hate relationship with this kit and why it paid to heed their warnings. The Eduard Profipack is chock full of what we’ve come to expect from Eduard. Superb photo etch for the cockpit and other external parts (in this case the antennae for the FuG 217 Radar). Excellent masks for the canopy and wheels, and enough plastic parts to practically make two full kits. It also comes with an extensive decal set for 4 different aircraft from the a-5 through a-8 series and a sheet of stencil decals as well.

Review Author
Dave Morrissette
Published on
Company
Zoukei-Mura
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$152.00

Diving back in, we'll build the cockpit. It is similar to the frame itself. This starts with the two side walls which are detailed with extra levers and gauges and the throttles. These are painted RLM 66 so it stands out from the RLM 2 frame. The rudder pedals are painted and they are sandwiched between the two side frames and attached to the fuselage. Fit is perfect. The instrument panel is next and there are two choices. One is clear and there is a decal that can be added to the back. The second is solid and you can add the decals to the front. I built the clear version with Elmer's in the glass parts and then painting and adding the decal to the back. Once dry, I sprayed the back of the panel black as it is visible in the plane. To finish off the cockpit, the instrument panels is added to the frame and then added to the cockpit with its bracing. The linkage rods and control stick are added and the cockpit is done.

Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Aires Hobby Models
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$12.00

Thanks again to Aires/Quickboost for providing these excellent review items to review; and to IPMS leadership for shipping the item to me…

Once again, a simple upgrade with serious improvement.

Look at the Kit supplied prop and spinner; if used, they will look OK, but you will have a fillet on the back side of the props that doesn’t exist on the actual aircraft.

Look at the difference on the QB prop and spinners when installed. These took all of ½ hour to do.

First, Cut off the back of the spinner pour stub. I used a razor saw to cut around the circumference, then final cut to the center. Easy to do, and WEAR A GLOVE to prevent personal injury.

Next, use the prop and spinner shaft jig supplied with the QB set. Appropriate drill bits were used to finish the shallow shaft hole, then you put the spinner in the jig, and carefully drill out the shaft hole in the spinner from behind. Blow out the fluff from the prop holes, and….

Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Aires Hobby Models
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$6.50

Thanks go to Aires/Quickboost for providing IPMS USA this review set and IPMS leadership for passing it my way!

Not much to this one; replace the kit items with the Quickboost exhausts and save yourself the serious pain of clearing out the kit exhausts… it’s a no-brainer! I took the QB set, painted them with Testor’s Burned iron metalizer (I used a brush) and cut them off the pour stub… installed with superglue, Fantastic!

This set rates 10 of 10; Worth every penny! Thanks again to Aires/Quickboost for another great review opportunity, and IPMS for allowing me to do the job!

Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$49.95

Having built the Eduard MiG-21PFM and the Spitfire Mk.IXs I had high hopes for the new Eduard Bf-109G, my favorite airplane. The MiGs and Spitfires are some of the finest fitting and most accurate kits on the market. They are about as perfect as you can get a kit. So each kit should get better right? Well not always.

Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$12.95

The underwing gondolas were designed for the Bf-109 to replace some of the firepower lost when the F/G models were designed. The problem with the pods was that they adversely affected the handling of the aircraft. Still the addition of two 20mm cannons was desirable especially when dealing with enemy bombers.

The Eduard kit comes with two gondolas in the kit. They look nice but they are 2mm too long and don’t fit on the wing of the model. Well I’m glad to tell you that this is not the case with the Brassin ones. They fit the wing of the model perfectly.

Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$12.95

The need to blow apart the formations of the American bombers led to the development of rocket carrying aircraft. The biggest rocket widely used was the WGr.21. This was fitted to the Bf-109 as early as the G-2.

Review Author
Clarence Wentzel
Published on
Company
Hasegawa
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$65.00

Background

During the 1970’s Russia started the development of modern carrier borne fighter aircraft. The Sukhoi design team started with their basic Su-27 Flanker and added such carrier items as tail-hook, folding wings and structural improvements plus a set of forward canard wings to produce their proposed Su-33.

Book Author(s)
Craig Kodera
Review Author
Hub Plott
Published on
Company
Specialty Press
MSRP
$24.95

This book covers model kit development during the 1950s and 1960s as well as the collectability of these kits and the current value of some. It gives the reader what to look for and to look out for when delving into the world of kit collecting.

By default all model builders become kit collectors in some shape or fashion. Many of us buy more than we will build to ensure that we have that kit or marking set on hand. Or to be certain with some of the short run or resin kits that we don’t miss out on a subject. But for many they seek to build a collection of kits never to be built but amassed like others do with comic books, autographs. Militaria and the like!

Review Author
Pablo Bauleo
Published on
Company
Twobobs Aviation Graphics
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$14.00

Twobobs Aviation Graphics have released a Typhoon D-Day 70th Anniversary decal set for the 1/48 scale Revell Eurofighter Typhoon. This decal set includes three sheets with markings for a single Typhoon (ZK308) in Royal Air Force service. The scheme features special markings honoring the 70th Anniversary of D-Day, including prominent black-and-white invasion stripes.

The instruction sheet is printed in full color and includes callouts for Testors Model Master, Humbrol, Gunze, and Xtracrylics paints, plus the Federal Standard (FS) color numbers.

The sheets are printed by Microscale and seem to be of high quality, with thin and opaque decals. They are very glossy on the sheet and they have very little transparent carrier film around them, thus minimizing the chances for silvering. They are in perfect register. The sheets include full stenciling and the D-Day invasion stripe bands.