This latest tool from CB Model Products is one of the best yet. This high precision punch and die set consists of 12 hardened steel punches and a clear acrylic/metal guide plate assembly. There is a desiccant included to help keep the rust off the metal parts. These pieces are contained in a compact plastic case with a nice hint and procedure sheet.

The steel punches are machined with a slight angle. These punches are designed to be used on up .030 styrene. The punches come in .040”, .051”, .058”, .069”, .080”, .088”, .101”, .110”, .119”, .127”, .140” and .151”. That should take care of most needs in 1/72, 1/48, 1/32, and 1/35th scales. You may want to wipe the parts down with some WD-40 and a rag to preserve these delicate parts for the long term.

After receiving them for review from Badger, I was very pleasantly surprised at the ease of use and quality of these paint sets. For years, I was a Gunze Guy but the supply of Gunze dried up. I transferred to Tamiya and have used it since the Gunze sunset. I had never used Badger paint until I was given the opportunity to review some of Badger’s paint contained in some of their color sets.

Being an HO scale model railroader, I was very interested in Badger’s “RAILROAD ROLLING STOCK #1701,” which contains Engine Black, Reefer White, Reefer Gray, Reefer Yellow, Reefer Orange, Dark Tuscan Oxide Red, and Light Tuscan Oxide Red. I am now a fan of this particular set of paints and, in particular, like the Engine Black and Tuscan Oxide Red. Both are easily airbrushed and give that wonderful flat and aged color that I treasure when working on a piece of rolling stock or motive power.

Badger also provides several other Railroad related paint sets. They are:

For those who are familiar with Model Art Modeling Magazine, it never disappoints and the June 2012 issue is not an exception. The quality of the images and the wide range of subject matter covered is a hallmark for this magazine. Keep in mind that the publication is printed in Japanese but, as we all know, “a single picture is worth one thousand words” regardless of the language.

This issue begins with a stunning diorama entitled, “Mogami’s Broken Beak”. Using a Tamiya Mikuma, a Pitroad Akashi (Repair Ship), a Fujimi kit of a Japanese naval special auxiliary tanker, and a Hasegawa Japanese sub, this diorama shows a very busy day in the life of the repair crews and their vessels as they struggled to repair the damaged Mogami. This diorama is absolutely fantastic!

The title of this book is somewhat misleading. Very little of it has to do with “handgun skills,” with that taken to mean skill with a handgun. A look at the cover indicates this, showing a target, shooting glasses, and three pistols, but also a couple of cartridges, ear protectors and cleaning materials. It's really a personal look at handguns, attempting to cover all of the bases and not delving too deeply into any of them.

We think of General George S. Patton Jr. as one of our greatest combat leaders in World War II. Certainly our “fightingest” General, and someone who must have been a constant threat to the enemy. Did the Germans fear this hard-charging tank commander and watch his every move? The answer may surprise you. There have been many books written about General Patton, but the author says “This is the book that hasn’t.” And one would have to agree with him, as Fighting Patton is more about German generals than it is about Patton. Author Harry Yeide has searched German archives for reports from the men who faced Patton on the battlefield to see how they fought him and what they thought of his leadership skills.

German generals such as Hasso von Manteuffel, Paul Hausser, Gerd von Rundstedt, and many more appear in this book. It’s interesting to note that all of Patton’s counterparts had much more combat and leadership experience than Patton did.