Reviews of products for scale miscellaneous models.

Book Author(s)
Richard A Rinaldi
Review Author
Andy Taylor
Published on
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$29.95

Being combat-ready for operations is our highest priority. The British Army is ever vigilant, always ready and steadfast in its commitment to the defense of the UK and its citizens. The Army on One Page - British Army website

This book covers the British Army after the Cold War and Operations Telic (Iraq, 2003-2011) and Herrick (Afghanistan, 2001-2014) as it transitioned from large, armored formations designed to fight on the plains of western Europe to the counterinsurgency operations that consumed the western world’s military from 2001 to the mid-2010s. The British Army, like its American counterpart, has been struggling against the peace dividends and counter-insurgency requirements to become smaller and more lethal in heavy warfighting against a peer enemy.

Review Author
Ben Morton
Published on
Company
OKB Grigorov
Scale
1:35
MSRP
$15.25

OKB Grigorov is a Bulgarian company producing resin after-market bits, full kits, and accessory items. Some of their most recent releases are some 1/35th scale weapons sets. These include The M1 Garand semi-automatic rifle (35037), the M79 Grenade launcher (35005), a 30K Panzerfaust (35009), and the M16A1 assault rifle with M203 grenade launcher ( 35035).

The weapons sets appear to be 3D printed and are made from dark grey resin. The detail is excellent, with a plethora of detail for each specific weapon. They are packaged in clear, poly-vinyl zip bags, with eight examples for both the Garand and the M16A1. The 30K Panzerfaust has fourteen weapons, and the M79 grenade launcher has ten weapons in the bag.

Book Author(s)
Tomasz J. Kopański
Review Author
Andy Taylor
Published on
Company
Mushroom Model Publications - MMP Books
MSRP
$25.00

At dawn on 22 June 1941, German forces launched an attack along a vast front stretching from the Baltic Sea to the Carpathian Mountains against their ‘best ally’ – Stalinist Russia. The element of surprise, combined with the concentration of powerful formations, primarily consisting of armored and motorized units supported by the air force, allowed the Germans to penetrate deep into Soviet territory.

Barbarossa Victims, Luftwaffe Kills in the East, Vol. 1 is No.34 in the MMP Books/Stratus “Camera On” series of photo albums from the German perspective, typically focusing on weapon systems and vehicles. The beauty of these books are the photos taken by German soldiers during their wartime service. Typically, the “Camera On” series is written by Alan Ranger. This is the first by Tomasz J. Kopański, and he carries the series well.

Book Author(s)
Tom Cooper, Adrien Fontanellaz, Milos Sipos
Review Author
Pablo Bauleo
Published on
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$30.00

Casemate Publishing is distributing Helion & Company’s 6th installment of their series “War in Ukraine”. This series is part of their “Europe at War” collection. “War in Ukraine” covers all aspects of the current conflict in Ukraine, like air warfare, drone warfare, armored vehicles or specific battles. This book is focused on the opening moves of air warfare in Mar-April of 2022.

Book Author(s)
Antonio Luis Sapienza Fracchia
Illustrators: Luca Canossa, Tom Cooper, Antonio Luis Sapienza Fracchia, Anderson Subtil, and Rolando Ugolini
Review Author
Andy Taylor
Published on
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$29.95

This is the second volume in the Operativo Independencia series that outlines Argentinian history since the overthrow of General Juan Domingo Perón in 1955 through the 1976 coup d'état. Operativo Independencia, Volume 1 - Armed Insurgency in Argentina 1955-1974 was well reviewed by Dave Morrissette (Operativo Indepndencia, Volume 1 - Armed Insurgency in Argentina 1955-1974 | IPMS/USA Reviews), and covers the period of 1955 through 1974. Volume 2: Guerilla War, the 1976 Coup D'Etat, and the Dirty War in Argentina continues the story of the government forces’ successful fight against communism from 1975-1976, codenamed “Operativo Independencia”, the military junta that replaced the democratically elected president, Juan Domingo Perón’s wife Isabela, and the aftermath of the “Dirty War”.

Book Author(s)
José Daniel Fernández Dugarte

Illustrators: David Bocquelet, Tom Cooper, Paul Hewitt, and Anderson Subtil
Review Author
Andy Taylor
Published on
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$29.95

This is the first volume of the 1992 coup d'état attempts in Venezuela, focusing on the causes and the opening moves of the February 1992 coup. Author José Daniel Fernández Dugarte’s original manuscript was too large for the @War series, so the editors decided rather than break the book in two, leaving the volumes unbalanced, the book was partitioned part way through. This first volume focuses on the background and history of the Venezuelan armed forces and the beginning of the first coup. As the editors note, “We recognize this leaves the reader with something of a cliff hanger ending to this volume and hope that you will understand this decision and pick up the story and discover the conclusion presented in Volume 2.” The author did a great job relating this complex story, and while the volume does end abruptly, I will be looking forward to the second volume to find out the details of the first coup, and the more important second coup, and its aftermath.

Book Author(s)
Friedrich Georg
Review Author
Scott Hollingshead
Published on
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$39.95

"Hitler’s Miracle Weapons: Secret Nuclear Weapons of the Third Reich and Their Carrier Systems, Volume 1: The Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine" is a meticulously researched exploration into one of history’s most intriguing and chilling periods. Authored by historian Friedrich Georg, this volume delves deeply into the development and deployment of secret nuclear weapons by Nazi Germany during World War II. First published in 2003, this review copy was released as a new edition in December 2024.

Review Author
Tomasz Menert
Published on
Company
ICM
MSRP
$12.99

In The Box

The ICM WWI German Aviation acrylic paint set contains six bottles, 12 ml each. The paints are water-based. The box contains the following:

  • White (1001)
  • Black (1002)
  • Blood Red (1046)
  • Light Earth (1056)
  • US Dark Green (1072)
  • Deep Sky Blue (1076)

The ICM website states that this set is best to be used with #72111 and #72121. These are WWI kits from ICM in 1/72 scale: Fokker E.IV and Pfalz E.IV fighters.

Application And Experience

The following instructions on how to use the paints can be found on the side of the box:

Book Author(s)
Alan Ranger
Review Author
Frank Landrus
Published on
Company
Mushroom Model Publications - MMP Books
MSRP
$22.00

MMP was founded in 1996 by Roger Wallsgrove, to publish "Mushroom Model Magazine". This quarterly modelling magazine was developed from "Mushroom Monthly”, a club newsletter which ran from 1985 to 1995, achieving a world-wide reputation for quality articles, fearless and honest reviews, and a great sense of humor. From 1997 the magazine was produced in collaboration with Robert Peczkowski and Artur Juszczak (Stratus), which meant a big leap in print quality and design. MMP expanded into book publication in 1999 with Stratus, and since then they have built up a list of hard cover and soft cover titles on aircraft and aviation, naval, military vehicles, and military history. Stratus / MMPBooks are distributed in North America by Casemate Publications. One can find additional information available on their Facebook page.

Review Author
Pat Villarreal
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
N/A
MSRP
$12.99

ICM hobby company has provided the IPMS/USA reviewer corps with a six (6) bottle acrylic paint set based on the colors of the Medieval Warriors.

In The Box

The paint set contains six, 12ml bottles with nontoxic, water-based acrylic paint. The following colors are included:

  • Natural Steel (1025)
  • Oily Steel (1026)
  • Tan Earth (1058)
  • Leather Brown (1053)
  • Gold (1017)
  • Rusty Brass (1019)

Straight out of the bottle, the paint viscosity is thick and purposely prepared for brush painting. The instructions do recommend thinning 40-60% with water or thinner for airbrushing. All surfaces are recommended to be primed prior to painting. Volume wise, the paint takes up about 70% of the bottle and has “room” to add thinner if so desired.

Note that the bottles are not the usual dropper style (think Vallejo) but a twist off cap and a large opening to allow paint brushes easier access.