Thank you to Master Model and the IPMS Reviewer Corps for the privilege of reviewing this excellent replacement part set offered by Master Model in the Sea Master Series for 350-scale ship models. The replacement masts will add a crisp eye-catching detail in a highly visible part of any modern ship model. Master Model is continuing an excellent line of replacement brass parts for ship models.

The zipper closure package has 4 smoothly tapered, turned brass masts in a variety of sizes. A small spec sheet is included. The masts taper evenly and symmetrically from the base upward to the tip. Each mast is 100 mm long, with mast base/tip diameters of 2.2/0.7 mm, 2.5/0.8 mm, 2.8/0.9 mm, and 3.0/1.0 mm. This size range is effective for larger-size modern ships. The brass has a nice smooth sheen, with no sign of cutting oils. A major bonus of these masts is the rigid character of the brass. Temperature changes and subsequent rigging tension are much less likely to bend the masts.

This is a very nice photoetch set for the Kinetic Su-33 Kit. This set adds a lot of extra detail to the interior of the kit, plus additional exterior parts as a bonus.

The photoetch parts are for the:

• Cockpit side panels
• Instrument panel, pedal and various control details
• Seat belts, seat arms and placards
• Canopy guides and mirrors
• Access panels
• HUD parts
• Static discharge strips

In the packet is:

• 1 Photoetch sheet
• 1 Colored photoetch sheet
• 1 Clear plastic printer sheet
• 1 Instruction sheet

Summary

This is a great Photo etch set. It is a must for the Su-33 Kit as it makes it into even greater model with all additional interior and exterior details for this aircraft. The cockpit and seat parts are extremely detailed.

The LaCrosse missile was one of the first tactical missiles designed and operated by the U.S. Army during the early years of the cold war. Put into production in 1959, the missile was capable of carrying a variety of warheads, including nuclear, and was fired from the back of a modified cargo truck. Apparently there were numerous problems with maintenance and the system was dropped from the inventory by 1964. Looking back over fifty years, it gives me pause to reflect how casually we regarded the possibility of nuclear conflict back then. That Armageddon could be initiated by a couple of guys in a truck seems lunacy now, but that was the world in those days.

This publication is the 2^nd Edition of the book which was originally released in March, 2008 and out of print since 2011. You can view the book on Youtube.

Authored by Matthew Willis and Robert Michulec, illustrated with color profiles by Simon Schatz, this edition covers all variants and versions of the Stuka from inception of the Stuka program through the last variant.

The Big Yellow Series, of which this book is the latest release, is known for high quality color illustrations that feature camouflage and markings, walk-around color photographs, and black & white archive images. The book is chock-full of 1/72^nd scale profile drawings and also some exceptional color profile illustrations.

Hauler has provided another addition to the great Diorama releases with this Modern Hand Pallet Truck. These were used to manually transport single pallet loads in commercial and military logistics operations.

The detail quality is great; there is a lot of easily removable flash and no other noticeable imperfections. The parts once removed from the mold base are ready to assembly. There is also a small Photo Etch sheet with some very delicate parts that need careful removal and adding to the assembly.

The Assembly is quick and easy. The final part is painted yellow and looks great as an addition to any diorama.

Thanks go to Hauler for providing this kit to review and IPMS USA for allowing me to review it for them.

This set in designed as a replacement for the kit wheels and hubs of Eduard’s new 1/72 FW 190A series of kits. The set includes two resin wheels with the hubs integrally cast and a mask set for the wheels.

When the wheels are removed from the casting block, Eduard’s careful planning comes to light as it turns out the attachment point is also a flattened area of the tire, establishing a realistic sit of the aircraft on the ground. While the tires are not bulged like some other replacement sets are, they really should not be in 1/72 scale as the tires are so small.

I painted the tires Tamiya NATO black with flat black hubs to create some contrast between the two shades of black. The enclosed mask set includes masks for the tires, but instead I painted the hubs first and then used the central circle of the mask to mask the hubs, followed by airbrushing the tires. I like this method as I tend to distort or tear the tire masks as they are very narrow.

Background

Developed in the 1970’s and first fielded in the early 1980’s as the US Air Force’s lightweight multirole fighter-bomber to replace the F-4 Phantom and A-7D Corsair II, the F-16 Fighting Falcon established itself as one of the most capable, reliable, and cost-effective aircraft in US Air Force history. One of the specialized roles the F-16C inherited from the F-4 was that of Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD), in Air Force parlance known as “Wild Weasel.” F-16C Block 50 and 52 aircraft equipped as Wild Weasels began production in 1991, and still serve as USAF’s primary SEAD platform.

Background

Developed in the 1970’s and first fielded in the early 1980’s as the US Air Force’s lightweight multi-role fighter-bomber to replace the F-4 Phantom and A-7D Corsair II, the F-16 Fighting Falcon established itself as one of the most capable, reliable, and cost-effective aircraft in US Air Force history. One of the specialized roles the F-16C inherited from the F-4 was that of Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) - in Air Force parlance known as “Wild Weasel.” F-16C Block 50 and 52 aircraft equipped as Wild Weasels began production in 1991, and still serve as USAF’s primary SEAD platform. Since the inception of the Weasel mission in 1965, the unofficial motto of Weasel crews has been “You Gotta Be S(poofin’) Me” (the polite version), or just “YGBSM.”

History Brief

The Harley-Davidson WLA motorcycle was nicknamed the 'Liberator' because it was used by U.S. soldiers liberating occupied Europe. Harley-Davidson began producing the WLA for the U.S. military in 1940, later entry of the United States into World War II saw significantly increased production, with over 90,000 being produced during the war. The US Army motorcycles were used for police and escort work, courier duties and scouting. They were almost never used as combat vehicles or troop mobility, it was a single-rider design and rarely equipped with sidecars commonly found on the German motorcycles.

According to Wikipedia the model designation breaks down as follows:

This set in designed for Trumpeter’s new Su-24MR “Fencer E” and includes masks for both the clear parts and the wheel hubs. The masks for the clear parts include two part masks for each of the canopy hatches which are nicely curved to match the contours of each hatch. They also include masks for the inner edges for each side of the windscreen, leaving the centers open to be filled in with liquid mask, or as I did with scrap masking from the edges of the set. There are also three small masks for the windows in the ventral strike camera fairing. All of the masks fit great and will make painting the clear parts much easier. I am going to see if I can reuse the hatch masks on the insides of the hatches by swapping sides with the masks after painting.

I believe in the past few years Revell has offered a few of these pre-finished model kits in order to stir the modeling beginner’s pot. First they did this with the NASCAR Snap kits and most recently with offers like the 2017 Chevrolet Corvette. Confronted with no serious painting task to do and well pre-finished body, these kits should stroke the modeling urge of just about any entry level modeler.

This 2013 Dodge Challenger in Foose motif should be a popular subject among muscle car fans sporting Foose custom wheels, Foose custom graphics and sharp two-tone Sublime Green and Gloss Black paint job.

Parts Count (45 total parts):

IPMS USA is grateful to Eduard for kindly providing yet another magnificent example of one of their new items to review, and to the IPMS USA reviewer corps leaders for sending it to me..

This add-on release is designed for the new and vastly improved 1/48 ME-109 series. This propeller and spinner set is designed to be used on the ME-109G-6, but also works on the G-5 and probably others.

The six-part set (including the prop installation Jig) makes easy work of a tough task. The spinner is better defined than the kit plastic, as are the propellers and the hub and backplate. Also included is a prop shaft with a highly-detailed castellated installation nut and hollow gun tube. This would be a great set for a diorama!