Squadron is one of the mainstay companies in the United States for our hobby, and they have been making great strides in providing customers great items at reasonable prices. In this case, their release of the Avionix-range of resin accessories is proving quite valuable. We cannot thank Squadron enough for their support of the hobby, and IPMS USA in particular by providing us new releases. On to the subject of this review: The Avionix front cockpit for Hobby Boss’ 1/32 P-61!

I’m a bit tardy on this review; I received the Avionix review item a month or so ago, but the reason is I needed to purchase a kit to use it on, (I thought the backorder would arrive before the review item) and they keep selling out! Once I had it, I could use it to review the upgrade while meeting the reviewer corps requirement of “Use the set if you can…” I thought it would be an easy to find one, but no… I finally got one about two weeks ago, and here we are.

One of the only complaints I have seen regarding the superlative 1/48 F6F Hellcat released by Eduard a few years ago was with respect to the wheels provided in the kit. The kit parts are considered to be too thin, most likely representing the wheels/tires fitted to the prototype and very early Hellcats.

Ironically, Eduard themselves have now release a Brassin wheel set for the F6F that fixes this problem with their own kit. This resin accessory comes with a pair of crisply molded wheels/tires, with a separate pair of hubs and a set of Eduard kabuki masks to ease with painting. The tires have a diamond tread pattern (as opposed to the smooth tires of the kit-provided pieces), and the detail is extremely crisp.

1/72 scale builders should be happy to hear that Iliad Design has reduced their 1/48 ANG Mustang decal sheet to 1/72 scale...and added one more option! ANG Mustangs are interesting subjects that, in my opinion, have not been covered very well by domestic decal companies. There are five subjects on the sheet provided in this set. These options provide builders a choice of National Guard Mustangs in a somewhat dulled natural metal finish with Olive Drab anti-glare panels, colorful unit emblems, and prominent code numbers and serials. The aircraft served in units in five Midwestern and Western states in the four years following WWII. Some may have gone on to serve in the Korean War.

The five options are:

This book takes a look at colors and markings of fighter aircraft of the Hungarian Air Force from 1930-1945. This is the first of two volumes. The following aircraft are covered in Volume One: Fokker D.XVI; Fiat CR. 20 and CR. 20B; Avis I-IV; Fiat CR.30, CR. 30B, and CR. 32bis; Fiat CR. 42 and CR. 42CN;, and Messerschmitt Bf 109D-1, E-3, E-4, E-7, F-2, and F-4. There are many black and white photos used to illustrate these planes, as well as beautifully drawn color profiles. Most of these are side views, but some also include top views. The authors also include quite a few wartime color photographs as well as color photos of aircraft parts and relics that have survived into modern times.

Quickboost makes another addition to its sets for the Kinetic 1/48th EA-6B Prowler with a replacement set of air scoops. There are 10 different scoops cast perfectly in the expected gray resin.

There are three different varieties of scoops:

• Part 1 replaces kit parts (two scoops) C15+C17/C17+C18
• Part 2 replaces kit part C11 in six scoops
• Part 3 replaces kit part C21 in two scoops

Using the set is simple – cut from the casting block, make sure the bottom edge is good, and glue in place and paint. The Quickboost parts have good depth to the openings, which is not the case with all the kit parts. Also, the kit’s two large scoops have to be glued together and sanded, which is not done with the Quickboost set.

Overall, a good upgrade for the kit parts. Simple and easy to execute, reasonably priced, and also an improvement in accuracy. Recommended to all fans of the Prowler and those wanting that extra detail.