“Martin’s Mistake”, “Martin’s Murderer”, “The Flying Prostitute”, “The Baltimore Whore”, and “One a day in Tampa Bay” are all some of the derogatory nicknames and phrases used to describe the Martin B-26 Marauder. This outstanding aircraft was never able to get out from under the bad reputation it got early on. The early versions with the short-span wings and other ticks that come with a new design contributed to the type’s undeserved reputation. A really “hot ship”, it could be difficult for a newbie to handle, but once mastered it then demonstrated its full potential. And when the longer improved wing was installed on later variants, the crews felt that almost all of the ship’s vices disappeared.

Books on the Martin B-26 are not all that common, so it is good to see one that does its level best to dismiss the bad reputation this aircraft garnered in training. As the author state, crews loved the Marauder.

This book takes a look at the most famous of the Polish bomber type in WWII and its developments. The PZL 23 was known as the Karas (or Carp, according to Google translation) to the Polish Air Force and, along with its offshoot variants PZL 42, 43 and 46, did the lion’s share of bombardment work for Poland.

The majority of the book (65 pages) gives us a brief history of the main variant, the PZL 23, and its service with both Poland and Romania. There are many previously unpublished black and white photos used to illustrate this aircraft, along with gorgeous color profiles. The Poles had some of the best group insignias I have ever seen. Who could resist doing a model of a Karas with a flying fire breathing dragon with a bomb clutched in his talons?!

These are two of the most iconic fighter aircraft that came out of World War II. They’re the Mitsubishi A6M Zero-sen and the Grumman F4F Wildcat. This book covers the ways in which these two contemporaries, with very different design influences, each possessed its unique strengths and weaknesses. The book includes information on the pilots who flew them and technical data including performance specifications. The author explains in plain English how each of these aircraft was developed in a side-by-side chronology. He further explains how these two enemy aircraft existed in the harsh, war-ravaged Pacific Ocean and jungle island environments.

The book itself is well printed with a hearty gum binding. The print is easy to read and the photographs are very clear. The artwork and cutaway illustrations are colorful and honestly represented. The maps and charts are rendered so that any layperson can understand them.

The US M10 was originally developed as a tank destroyer while the StuG III was a turretless, low-profiled tracked vehicle developed for direct fire support for infantry formations. This book discusses how these two fighting vehicles went beyond their respective design missions when called upon. It also covers how they fought one another during the 11 month campaign on the battlefields of northwest Europe in 1944-45.

I found the book to be well thought out with a very coherent outline. It’s well written with easy to understand explanations. It has beautiful color maps, paintings, cutaway artwork, and a wide range of period b&w photographs.

The book itself is well printed with a gum binding. The print is easy to read and the photographs are very clear. The artwork and cutaway illustrations are colorful and honestly represented. The maps and charts are rendered so that any layperson can understand them.

The Trumpeter F-100 series of models is nice. If you are like me, it is really tough to get rid of the mold line on the round parts such as the refueling probe. I can get rid of the mold line, but keeping it round is not my forte. Quickboost offers a quick and easy upgrade. This set provides three pieces of resin molded perfectly in light grey resin.

The probe comes in three pieces. One is the fuselage mounting point with a perfectly hollowed out tip. Then there is the long probe itself. I was amazed at how straight this part was and, best yet, no mold line. The part is removed from the base. Then the final part is the probe end. This is really a nice looking piece. It is an accurate representation. It will require a sliver of resin to be sanded off the end, but that is an easy operation.

While designed for the F-100, the probe tip can be used on any US aircraft that has an in-flight refueling probe.

The Trumpeter MiG-23 is a nice kit, but the seat and the whole cockpit is simplified. It may be just the limitations of plastic molding technology, but now you don’t have to scratchbuild the cockpit. The Aires set comes in their normal packaging in a plastic container, with foam securing the parts in place. It is effective. I did have one piece fall off the sprue, but that is to be expected in shipping, sometimes.

There are nine exquisite resin parts perfectly molded in light grey resin. The amount of detail in this set has to be seen to be believed. The cockpit is perfection. The undercuts on the side walls are impressive. The same can be said for the instrument panel coaming. The pour blocks are small and will be easy to remove.

Having just finished the Eduard Royal Class Spitfire Mk.IX kit, I can say that this kit is absolutely perfect; however, that is the Royal Class kit. The Weekend Edition of this kit will be lacking two essential items in plastic – the ballistic bulkheads. The Weekend Edition won’t have the PE parts that the Royal Class kit has. Quickboost calls them bulkheads, but they are actually the ballistic protection plates behind the cockpit.

Molded perfectly in thin light grey resin, these two pieces are easy enough to remove from the pour block, and just need paint to upgrade your cockpit. Your other option is to cut your own bulkheads. We all know what a pain it is to get them perfect. Quickboost does that for you.

This set is essential for the Weekend Edition of the Spitfire. If you have the Royal Class or the Profipack, you will not need it unless you don’t want to deal with the PE parts in the kit.

Highly recommended.

The Squadron Detail In Action series was started in 1971. This series covers the development, testing, and production of aircraft, armored vehicles, and ships. The focus of this book is on the M3 Gun Motor Carriage.

At the beginning of World War Two, the United States realized the need for an effective antitank weapon. Through this need, the Military used the M3 halftrack as the base and married it to the M1897A4 75mm gun to create the M3 Gun Motor Carriage. In October, 1941, the first production contract began. By October, 1944, the Gun Motor Carriage was considered obsolete by the U.S. Army. During its career many of these units were used by Great Britain and U.S. Marines well into 1945.

I am sucker for old kits. While I don’t collect vintage kits, I certainly relish every new special release from Revell. I was very happy to see that the Nike Missile got the green light for a re-release. The missile depicted in this kit is, in fact, the Nike Ajax. First fielded in 1954, it was a two-stage, supersonic anti-aircraft missile with a range of 25-30 miles and a ceiling of 65,000 ft. It remained in service until 1964 in the continental US and was superseded by the Nike Hercules, a much more robust and capable missile.

History

The Curtiss F11C-2 was one of the last of the Curtiss Hawk series of biplane fighters that began with the F6C-1 and P-1 series of 1925. Although later models used different wings and powerplants, the F11C series reverted back to the tapered wing. While the later F11C-1 had a metal wing, the F11C-2 wings were wooden. Power was provided by a 575 hp. Wright R-1820-78 radial engine using a two bladed metal prop. Known as the Goshawk in service, only 29 production F11C-2’s were built during 1933, and they were all issued to VF-1B, who operated them off the USS Saratoga along with some Boeing F4B-3s. In 1934, all of the F11C-2’s were upgraded, the most notable improvement being a raised turtledeck behind the cockpit and a small sliding canopy which partially covered the cockpit. These planes were known as BFC-2’s and they were considered to be a dual-purpose aircraft, fulfilling both the fighter and dive bomber roles.

Aircraft and History

NATO Tiger Meets started around 1961 with the Royal Air Force (RAF) and grew into a large multinational military exercise over the years. The aircraft that participate usually sport distinctive tiger stripe markings and unique tail art. The model depicted is a Turkish Air Force F-16C (Block 50), 192 squadron “ Filo,“ which became a member of NATO Tiger society in 1980. The last F-16C version produced is the block 50/52 aircraft (block 50 GE engine and block 52 Pratt & Whitney engine). Turkey has operated F-16’s since 1987, starting with the block 30, and as of 1996 Turkey received block 50 Vipers.

The Product

My sample arrived packaged in the familiar orange-topped poly sleeve with the typical card insert. After close inspection of the parts, I found them to be perfect. These little beauties are just what the doctor ordered. They’re a drop-in replacement for the kit parts. They were easily detached from the pour block and cleaned up with a few swipes from my trusty sanding stick. How easy is that?

The Bottom Line

I recommend these babies to anyone wanting to enhance his P-38 build. Thanks to Quickboost and IPMS/USA for the opportunity to review these nice little castings.

I’ve always loved the look of the Fw-190A-5/U12. Designed with two cannon pods containing two cannons each, it’s one mean machine. For those of us who are old enough to remember, we had the Monogram Fw-190 in the ‘70s, and in that kit they included the gun pods. While not totally accurate, it did make an impression on a little red headed kid. I built it with my kid. Fast forward a few years (okay, so more than a few), and we are blessed with accurate Fw-190s all around, but no U12 versions…until now.

Hasegawa’s Fw-190 kits are easy to build and really accurate. Inside this one, there are five sprues of light grey plastic with no flash or blemishes. The panel lines are recessed and display typical Hasegawa fine quality. Amazingly, the parts count is low at 81 pieces. A sprue of clear is also provided. Some poly caps are included for the prop. This makes a very good A-5 version.