Review Author
Jim Pearsall
Published on
May 16, 2015
Company
Brengun
Scale
1/144
MSRP
$15.00

The Hermes Program was a post WW-II American program which utilized German missile designs. Best known of this series was the Hermes A2, which was the A-4 (V-2) copy. The Hermes A1 was based on the Wasserfall, a surface to air missile developed at Peenemunde in 1942, but which never reached production. General Electric developed an built the Hermes A1, which was about ¼ the size of the Hermes A2.

The other big difference between the A1 and A2 was that the A1 had 4 extra fins on the sides of the rocket body. This was to allow greater maneuverability when the rocket was being guided to a target aircraft. The guidance was done visually during daylight and with radar assist at night. Steering from the ground was done with a joystick.

Five A1s were successfully tested at White Sands Range in New Mexico in 1950 and 51. The entire Hermes program was canceled in 1954.

Review Author
Roger Rasor
Published on
May 16, 2015
Company
Quickboost
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$6.50

Quickboost has added a pair of detailed Spitfire Mk.V cannon barrels to their aftermarket parts line that can be used to replace the ones that come in the new Airfix 1:48 scale kit. The barrels have a slightly more delicate profile than the ones in the kit and no seam lines to clean up. They also have open ends so there’s no need to break out the pin vice and # 76 drill bit. The base of the Quickboost barrels are molded to match the shape of the Airfix barrels so they will fit into the leading edge recesses as drop-in replacements. (see the comparison photo below of the Quickboost parts and the kit parts). The detail closely mirrors the kit parts, but the Quickboost barrels capture the look of the prototype with crisp and more refined recoil springs that appear less pronounced. With some adjustment, these barrels also may be used on kits other than Airfix.

Review Author
Paul R. Brown
Published on
May 16, 2015
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$8.00

The set consists of two finely cast reproductions of the F-16’s speed brakes in the extended position. Installation of the speed brakes is very straight forward once they are removed from their respective casting blocks. I labeled the gluing edge of mine with a ‘L’ and a ‘R’ as they are not interchangeable. To install each one, you will need to cut off the molded speed brakes once the fuselage halves are together. As the actuator housing for each speed brake is on the bottom of the aircraft, I removed the kit part from the bottom up by cutting at the seam on the actuator housing. As a result the top is cut off just forward of the top hinge, which is good as it gives you some space to blend in the new piece without interfering with the top hinge.

While most pictures show the speed brakes fully retracted when the jet is parked, the set looks great and will help your F-16 stand out from the crowd.

Highly recommended.

Review Author
Steve Collins
Published on
May 16, 2015
Company
Master Model
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$5.00

This is one of a prolific series of very fine brass replacements for pitot tubes and gun barrels from Master Model Poland. They do ranges in 1/24, 1/32, 1/35, 1/48 and 1/72 for aircraft as well as guns in all the major scales for ships and a few guns in 1/35 for our armor-building friends. They are all very well made, being very petite and usually more in scale than their plastic counterparts. And, once installed, they’re much harder to accidentally break off than plastic. Yes, some of them are sharp enough puncture the less than vigilant. Ask me how I know.

Review Author
Pablo Bauleo
Published on
May 16, 2015
Company
Kinetic Model Kits
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$63.00

The long awaited Kinetic Mirage IIIE was released a few months ago. It is a full package meal as with the parts in the box you can build the IIIE/OE/EE/EA/R/RD/ and very likely the RS version too, although the last one is not listed in the instructions.

The box is full with parts (15 sprues) including a fair amount of offensive ordinance (bombs and missiles) plus different drop tanks. The markings include French, Spanish and Australian airframes. Among the French markings there is the option of finishing your model as the airplane flown by Jaqueline Auriol when she broke the feminine speed record.

If you never heard of Jaqueline Auriol, you should read about her. She was a female French aviator and test pilot. She set 5 speed records and won the Harmon International Trophy 4 times among other professional achievements, not to mention having been the daughter-in-law of a French president, with all the political and State duties that it implies.

Review Author
Paul R. Brown
Published on
May 17, 2015
Company
Scale Aircraft Conversions
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$13.95

This set is designed for the Zvezda/Revell Mi-26 Halo helicopter kit. The set includes seven replacement pieces, a nose strut and three pieces for each main landing gear. As with most SAC sets the replacement parts are one-for-one replacements for the kit parts and have been cast to fit the existing mounting holes on the kit.

The nose gear simply pops into the hole for the kit part and will add a little bit of weight to the nose area, but also some strength as this is not a small helicopter.

Review Author
Paul Mahoney
Published on
May 18, 2015
Company
Scale Aircraft Conversions
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$15.95

A newer addition to Scale Aircraft Conversions ever-expanding line of metal landing gear is this set for the Zoukei-Mura 1/48 scale Focke Wulf Ta 152.

Like most of SAC’s sets, this is meant as a drop-fit replacement for the kit’s plastic landing gear. The set comprises of both main gear legs, the tail gear (with molded-in wheel/tire), and the accompanying actuators. All are made out of sturdy, white metal.

I could see no appreciable difference in the detail between the kit items and those in this set. They look to be almost exactly the same. All the brake lines and other details present on SAC’s gear are there on the original kit items as well. The kit and SAC both include the tail wheel molded onto its strut, something I am not a fan of.

Book Author(s)
J. Richard Smith and Eddie J. Creek
Review Author
Steve Collins
Published on
May 18, 2015
Company
Crecy Publishing, Ltd.
MSRP
$89.95

Have you ever started making a base for one of your models and tried gluing, say, photo matte material to the surface of the base to simulate concrete? After applying the adhesive, you need something nice and heavy and flat to set on top of the base while the adhesive dries, right? Buy this book. It’s perfect for that. I mean, it’s 9” x 12.25”, about an inch thick and weights about a ton. Secondarily, it also serves as an excellent resource for black and white and original color photos of late war Focke-Wulf Fw190s, including factory and construction work. It also includes close ups, drawings, and illustrations of most of the Rüstsatz field modifications and variants plus special and/or experimental weapons used during the period, plus copies of Focke-Wulf factory handbook drawings. There are many color side profiles of select examples of these variants.

Review Author
Dan Brown
Published on
May 18, 2015
Company
Tarangus
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$98.00

The SAAB JA 37 Viggen was designed during the Cold war to be a rugged short take-off and landing interceptor for the Swedish Air Force. It first flew in early 1967 and production ended in 1990 after 149 airframes were delivered. It has always been a favorite of aircraft enthusiasts and modelers due the distinctive delta wing and canard design. This highly anticipated new kit from the Swedish company Tarangus is the first new kit of this awesome fighter in 1/48 scale since the old ESCI kit from the 80s.

Tarangus is a small Swedish company that specializes in new, beautiful kits of very interesting Swedish subjects. Most of their kits are short run kits but this new Viggen is not. The kit was taken back into development for nearly a year to make mainstream moldings that would be more durable. I am a huge fan of the Viggen so I had high hopes for this kit and it did not disappoint.

Review Author
Dan Brown
Published on
May 18, 2015
Company
Scale Aircraft Conversions
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$19.95

Scale Aircraft Conversions is a company that specializes in producing white metal drop-in replacement landing gear parts for a number of aircraft kits. The white metal is much stronger than injection molded styrene and if needed can bent slightly without breaking.

This set is made to replace the kit gear for the new Tarangus 1/48 Scale SAAB JA 37 Viggen. As usual with SAC landing gear the parts you are supplied are beautifully cast replacements for the kit’s plastic gear. Due to the extremely complicated gear arrangement on the Viggen, this is one of the most extensive SAC sets I have ever seen. There are 6 small frets, three large struts and a few more smaller miscellaneous pieces included in the usual SAC blister pack.