Quickboost has found another item which will enhance a small, but noticeable, part on Trumpeter’s P-40 Warhawk. This particular part is the engine exhaust which is on both front sides of the fuselage.

The Trumpeter part comes in two pieces and needs to be glued. When gluing the parts together, you will notice that the outer edge of each exhaust pipe doesn’t quite fit together and therefore needs to be compressed carefully so as not crush them. After that, it has to be cleaned up as careful as possible so as not to make one shorter than the other.

I would think the reason Trumpeter uses two pieces for each side is because each half can be made like a half pipe then joined together so as to have a hollow center. If this wasn’t done that way, then it would probably have to have been one solid piece, which the builder would have to drill out the center on a curved piece of plastic for each exhaust pipe on each side.

Construction started with the stand and a visit from Murphy. Following the kit instructions, I drilled out holes #3 and #6 and cemented in part Z1. The instructions label the base as Z2 but it is marked Z1, not a big deal, it is obvious what’s what. When I tried to set the lower hull on the stand it did not fit. The pedestals should be installed in holes #4 and #5, NOT holes #3 and #6 (so much for starting with something easy).

Construction was straightforward with no real problems. Some areas that could be better are listed here:

Rumors have been circulating over the past several months that Fine Molds would enter the 1/350 ship model market with a new offering of a Fubuki class destroyer. These appear to be confirmed by the fact that several on-line retailers now offer pre-orders on the Fubuki class DD Ayanami. If potential buyers are curious as to what the quality of this new vessel will be like, they need only take a look at either of these new accessory sets now offered by Fine Molds.

Roll Models has come out with their own brand of aftermarket resin parts, Loon Models and we'll review two sets in this review- a gun pack set and a set to modify G-10 wings and wheels.

The gunboat Messerschmitt Bf-109 contains some of the best looking markings for the 109. So what is unique about this set? Well for one the centerline gun pod. As far as I can recall this is the only way you can get the centerline gun pod without scratch building it. The packaging refers you to the AJ Press #17 for pictures of the actual pod and installation. This will be very helpful. This will make your 109 different from the rest.

The wing gun pods are nicely detailed, but they don’t look much different from the kit offerings.

Everything is molded in blemish and bubble free light caramel resin you get six pieces, two wing pods, one centerline pod and three 20mm cannons. Each piece will require just a quick little cleanup and each pod will need the hole enlarged for the gun.

A product of the brilliant yet practical designer Ed Heinemann, the Skyhawk was a simple lightweight naval attack jet that served the U.S. Navy and Marines far beyond what anyone expected. One of its standout roles was serving as the mount of the U.S Navy’s Blue Angels aerobatic team from 1974 to 1986. These Naval ambassadors dazzled hundreds of thousands of people with their precision maneuvers, which the A-4, with its phenomenal roll rate, was capable of doing. I had the opportunity to witness these aircraft in action at the Pt. Mugu NAS in my teens. I was looking forward to sharing a shiny blue and gold bird with you until I saw the decal sheet. This is the original Monogram kit we all know which, in spite of its raised panel lines, still holds up against its contemporaries. There are decals for the Blue Angel birds 1 thru 4 but the other option is that of Senator John S. McCain’s A-4E as it looked in June 1967 when he was assigned to the Klansmen of VA-45.