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Reviews of products for scale aircraft models.
Box art

German Military Bicycle, WWII era
Review Author
Scott Hollingshead
Published on
Company
Master Box Ltd
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$19.00

If you are looking to add something unique to your collection of 1/35 scale German military vehicles, or to spice up your next diorama, you may want to consider the bicycle that was recently released by Master Box Limited. Although it is a challenging build, those modelers with photo etch parts experience will be able to turn out one of the implements used by the German Army throughout World War 2 that does not get a lot of press.

Box Top

Deperdussin 1911
Review Author
Chris Smith
Published on
Company
Round 2 Models
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$14.99

Background

Armand Deperdussin made a living as a silk broker but with the help of his technical advisor and designer Louis Bechereau, he built a number of interesting aircraft including the subject of this kit. The 1911 Deperdussin shared some similarities with its contempories such as a monoplane layout with conventional control surfaces except for wing warping in lieu of ailerons, its very shallow fuselage section characterized the Deperdussin. The pilot looked more like he was sitting on top of the aircraft then in it. This particular example was powered by a 50 HP Gnome Omega rotary engine. The really cool thing about this aircraft is that a real example survives in the Shuttleworth collection in England and numerous utube videos show it in flight.

Product Picture

Luftwaffe JG73 Operation Sniper 2003, Mig-29-12
Review Author
Matt Quiroz
Published on
Company
Great Wall Hobby
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$90.00

I need to preface this review by saying I had a major setback towards the end of this build. All of the in progress pictures I had been taking were deleted on my computer somehow. I was able to recover some of them, but not all. I did my best to capture what I thought was important during the build. Hopefully the review will still be of use even without those photos’s I lost.

Exterior photoetch

A3D-2 Skywarrior Big Ed Photo Etch and Mask Set - Part 3
Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$140.00

Once again, thanks up front to Eduard for sending us this set; It’s been a great upgrade, (as you will be able to see) and a worthy investment. Thanks also to IPMS USA leadership for entrusting such a massive endeavor to my feeble skills…

Here’s the final two sets for the build!

Box Art

Mirage IIICJ Weekend Edition
Review Author
Pablo Bauleo
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$39.95

The Eduard 1/48 scale Mirage IIIC is a well-known kit, and it is nice to see it re-released. Despite some known issues, it still builds into a nice replica of the French interceptor.

The kit comes molded in light gray plastic, with a total of 167 parts on eight sprues, plus a small sprue of clear parts. The decals are printed by Eduard and are opaque and in register. There is neither PE nor masks in this Weekend Edition boxing. However, this particular review model was built in conjunction with another reviewed item, Eduard's Mirage IIICJ Weekend Photoetch Set #49659, which provided photoetch for the cockpit.

Manufacturer's Illustration of PE Fret

Mirage IIICJ Weekend Photoetch Set
Review Author
Pablo Bauleo
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$19.95

I have built the Eduard 1/48 scale Mirage IIICJ in the Weekend Edition boxing (Mirage IIICJ Kit Review), and while it is a nice model out-of-the-box, it actually can be enhanced by using Eduard’s supplemental photoetch set. The single-fret set concentrates on the cockpit interior and adds just a handful of exterior details.

As you can see from the pictures, the cockpit looks much more realistic and has a great depth due to the sandwich of photoetch parts representing the instrument panel. While it might sound complicated, it is actually very simple to assemble. I only used a pair of tweezers and a #11 blade to position the parts. I used Future as my glue, which also provided a bit of a glass look to the dials.

Manufacturer's Illustration of Mask Set

Mirage IIICJ Weekend Masks
Review Author
Pablo Bauleo
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$9.95

Eduard has nice line of 1/48 scale Mirage IIICs and IIICJs. Their line also includes many different sets of aftermarket add-ons, including mask sets. A mask set is an excellent investment in your model, as it will save you time and grief while delivering very clean lines for your finished model.

The mask set includes pre-cut masks for the canopy, the navigation lights, and landing gear, including the line between the tire and the wheel hub.

The canopy mask provides you with only the edges of the canopy. You are expected to fill-in-the-blank, which is very simple and straightforward to do. I chose to use tape, but the instructions recommend using liquid mask. I did have a very limited amount of paint bleed underneath my tape, which I had to polish off afterwards, so using liquid mask is probably the best way to go.

Quickboost Package

T-38A Talon Air Scoops
Review Author
Matt Quiroz
Published on
Company
Quickboost
MSRP
$6.50

There isn’t much to say with this one. These are a direct replacement for the Trumpeter kits air scoops; parts C-18/19. As you can see they are well cast and feature a hollow opening as opposed to the kits solid appearance. The kit piece is on the top in the picture. Well packaged at an affordable price. Highly recommended.

Thanks to Quickboost for providing this review item

Bomb Bay Package

A3D-2 Skywarrior Big Ed Photo Etch and Mask Set - Part 2
Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$140.00

Once again, thanks up front to Eduard for sending us this set; It’s been a great upgrade, (as you will be able to see) and a worthy investment. Thanks also to IPMS USA leadership for entrusting such a massive endeavor to my feeble skills…

Here’s what’s was next in the envelope after I worked the interior sets…

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