Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
December 1, 2010
Company
Eagle Editions Ltd.
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$17.50

Eagle Editions is synonymous with Luftwaffe research designed for the model builder. Their latest release is for any 1/32nd scale Friedrich. As always with EagleCals, the quality is felt right from opening up the packaging.

You are presented with markings for four Freidrichs. These are quite colorful aircraft. All of them start out with base colors of RLM 78/79, but that is where they commonality ends.

The instructions are printed in color on four 8x10 pages. The front page contains the profile and plan views. The profile views are printed larger on the second page. These profiles are absolutely beautiful. I don’t know for sure but I’m fairly certain they are done by Tom Tullis. The third page is a written description of each aircraft. The fourth page contains the stencil diagram.

Review Author
Mike Hoekstra
Published on
December 1, 2010
Company
Revell, Inc.
Scale
1/25
MSRP
$22.95

My latest kit for review is the new Revell’s '72 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme. Upon opening the box, the first thing I noticed was the very clean molds. The mold seams on the body were scarce and very easy to clean up. Moving on, the kit gives a few different options to build the car. First off is the choice of an automatic or manual transmission (I'll be building the manual version) which also includes an extra set of floor pedals, different center consoles and shifter options.

Review Author
Bill Schwarz
Published on
December 1, 2010
Company
Aires Hobby Models
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$31.00

We just keep getting more and more great stuff from these guys. They are truly one of the best resin casters out there. Their attention to detail is magnificent and the prices are reasonable to boot. This time up is a look at the burner cans for the Hobby Boss Tornado's. They look more towards the ones on the GR/4s then the ones on the Fighter /Interceptor variant but I could be wrong.

There are 6 great cast parts. 3 of each make up the burner assemblies for the Tornadoes twin engines. The engraving is second to none and the fit of the resin parts is superb. Aires gives you a kind of instruction sheet with installation pics and a few notes. Most of you who buy these already know the deal so I won’t dwell on it. No photoetch is in the set, nor is it needed. Just read the simple instructions, then paint and pop them in.

Book Author(s)
David Doyle, with cover art by Don Greer, line Aat by Matheu Spraggins
Review Author
Perry Downen
Published on
December 1, 2010
Company
Squadron Products
MSRP
$16.95

The B-17 is most recognized bomber of WWII and certainly one of the most recognizable airplanes to ever fly. It was an effective weapons system particularly when accompanied by the P-51 Mustang. It dropped more bombs than any other U.S. aircraft in World War II and its survivability was much greater than most other planes of that time. This legendary aircraft has been the subject of many books. It is the subject of the latest offering from Squadron/Signal’s long list of In Action series.

This soft bound 8-1/4” X 11” book consists of 80 pages. The book contains approximately 200 photographs and drawings. The photographs are all period photographs and many are in color. Each photograph is accompanied by a block of text explaining what is depicted. The quality of these period photographs is exceptional.

Review Author
John King
Published on
December 1, 2010
Company
Minicraft Model Kits
Scale
1/144
MSRP
$21.99

Minicraft models has issued another boxing of their KC-97G. I believe this is the second boxing of this kit and is a slight improvement over the first release. The parts are unchanged, but this new boxing includes a gorgeous decal sheet with two different options (more on this later). The kit includes five sprues of light gray plastic and one sprue containing the clear parts, which consists of boomer’s pod and the cockpit windows/part of the front fuselage. No clear parts are provided for the side fuselage windows; black decals represent these windows.

Review Author
Bill Schwarz
Published on
December 1, 2010
Company
Twobobs Aviation Graphics
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$13.00

This time up it’s the Twobobs Decals sheet 48-223 "Gunship Harriers". Though this sheet is 1/48th scale. I believe this is also available in 32nd scale as well as 72nd scale. Check their website as well. The sheet is printed beautifully by MicroScale. This time up it’s for two famous squadrons: VMA 214 "Black Sheep”, and VMA 223 “Bulldogs”.

The artwork is superb and the instruction sheet shows all views as well as pictures of the real aircraft. This sheet covers three birds. Two are from VMA 214, and one is from VMA 223. One of the Blacksheep birds has a splash of color. That is the black tail with white lettering and numbers. The stenciling is first rate too.

These decals respond well to all the major decal solvents. There should be no problems with this sheet and Twobobs’ Bob Sanchez and crew should be commended for prducing these great decals! Now I have to get my Harrier back on the table and get to work. My only problem is which sheet or which Harrier to do!

Book Author(s)
Jim Roeder
Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
December 1, 2010
Company
Osprey Publishing
MSRP
$22.95

The A-26 was a late arrival to World War II but it was the epitome of the medium attack bomber. Designed to replace both the B-26 and the A-20 Havoc, the A-26 was faster and more robust than either design. With crew of two or three (depending on which version) the Invader was a single pilot aircraft that carried fewer crew members into battle with a bigger bomb load. The A-26 would soldier-on through to the Vietnam conflict, quite an accomplishment for a twin-engine medium bomber.

This book is typical of this series of books; a soft bound book contains 96 pages filled with b/w and color photos. Included in the center section are 30 color profiles that will provide plenty of inspiration and information for the modeler. The text is informative and interesting; both easy to read and quite informative. I thoroughly enjoyed the first-hand accounts of the pilots and ground crew.

Review Author
Bill Schwarz
Published on
December 1, 2010
Company
Twobobs Aviation Graphics
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$13.00

This is an out-of-the-envelope review on another of the famousTwobobs line of decals. This time up it's the sheet for the VMA "Yuma Nightmares". The number of this sheet is 48-222, which is 48th scale, but I believe it is done in 72nd and 32nd as well.

The decals themselves are printed in the USA by Microscale, and as always is top notch, responding well to any of the decal solvents. Fast becoming an industry standard, there is virtually no overlapping carrier film.. The sheet is well researched, and includes artwork for 3 Harriers. Two are BII Plus's, one is a BII Night Attack version. One has a blue tail for that splash of color.

Review Author
Bill Schwarz
Published on
December 1, 2010
Company
Polar Lights
Scale
1/25
MSRP
$19.95

This will be a box-review of Round 2/ Polar Lights' Batboat, from the classic “Adam West Years-of-Batman”. Round 2 has been giving us great stuff, and this is no exception! They have taken the old molds and tweaked them: then providing great decals and informative and easy instructions. The box and artwork are nicely done as well.

The breakdown of the parts is simple: 13 chrome pics, a great decal sheet, a full hull, a stand and 25 blue colored plastic pieces that make up the rest of the boat. Adam and Burt are also included in the box! The box and artwork are nicely done as well!

No paint codes are mentioned but colors are. Follow them closely and you will be rewarded. The clear parts for the windscreen are a bit thick, but workable. If you want to have fun, give one of these a try. A beginner could actually build this and not paint it, but it should be done-up to bring this boat to life!

Book Author(s)
Tim Ripley
Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
December 1, 2010
Company
Casemate Publishers
MSRP
$70.00

Middle East: just the term reminds me of fighting. The air forces play a significant part in the balance of power throughout the reason. This hardback book is written by a correspondent from Jane’s Defense Weekly so you know he has access to some great information. Luckily for us he shares that information with us on 256 high quality pages. The photos are mostly full color and very nice, many from the author’s collection.