Sometimes experienced modelers get so bogged down with the extensive projects we are working on, we forget to lift our over-taxed heads from the work bench, remove glasses and opti-visors, and smell the sweet success of a quick, easy build. So, while browsing the IPMS review list one day, I came upon this kit and “snapped” it up. My thought was to have my wife build it, but she took off in our (real) ’65 rag top Mustang instead, and left me to it.

The Revell Snap-Tite 2018 Mustang GT is a nice representation of the styling changes being made to the existing 2017 Mustang. The car will soon to be released this Fall. The main omission on the Snap-Tite model are the rear vision door mirrors.

Masking canopies, even 109 canopies, is a pain in the butt to me. Thank God that Eduard sees fit to make canopy masking sets. This latest one is designed for their Bf-109F-2.

Cut out of Kabuki tape, the masks are able to conform to the curves of the canopy. There are masks for the inside framework on the aft canopy, like the real thing, as well as, the external framework. This set also contains masks for the wheels and the wing tip lights.

All is not perfect though. The center canopy framing should be a single piece instead of the two piece per facet. It is easy to add the center piece of the canopy so it still saves you time. Eduard insists that there should be framework on the center canopy but that is not on the Friedrich. Strangely Eduard provides masks for painting the wingtip lights. These should be clear pieces but Eduard has molded them with the wing in grey plastic. You are supposed to paint them silver and then with the appropriate clear green and red.

Jared Zichek continues his in depth look at the US Navy Convoy Fighter competition of 1950 with this in depth look at the Lockheed Model L-200. As a bit of background, the US at the time was nervous about protecting convoys between the US and its allies after the rough go that convoys had early in WWII. The proposal was a request for a high-performance turboprop fighter to be based on those convoys and to protect them. Five companies participated including Convair, Goodyear, Martin, and Northrop as well as Lockheed. The most famous of this group was the Convair Pogo but thankfully Mr. Zichek has dug in to review the remaining one s and with that, this book focuses on Lockheed’s efforts.

The set provides eight resin replacement wheels and tires, molded as one piece, for the Russian BTR-60 APC. The tires are slightly wider than the Trumpeter rubber tires. The Hauler wheels are a different style and much smaller than the Trumpeter wheels. The Hauler tires have a crisper tread pattern than the Trumpeter tires and are molded without a center seam. They do not have a flattened portion for the weight of the vehicle.

Each of the wheels is molded with their own casting block. The mounting hole for the wheel is much larger than the Trumpeter axle so it needs to be drilled out. Mounted on the vehicle, it becomes apparent that the Hauler wheels are smaller and the tires have a larger profile.

The profile and size of the Hauler wheels provide a good option to the Trumpeter kit wheels. The tire tread is much crisper, even at this small scale.

Thanks to Hauler for continuing to produce these nice add-on parts and providing review samples to IPMS.

History

The Avia B.534 was one of the major achievements of the Czech aircraft industry during the late thirties, and their biplane fighter was as advanced as any European fighter during the middle thirties. Numerous variations were produced, and Eduard has seen fit to produce kits of just about all of them. I have written several reviews of earlier issues of this kit over the past several years, and I refer you to these for a detailed historical account.

The BK.534 variant differed from previous production models in that it was armed with an Oerlikon 20 mm cannon firing through the crankshaft and mounted between the cylinder banks of the Hispano Suiza 12Ycrs. Engine. Two of the fuselage mounted machine guns were removed to save weight. The installation did not prove successful, and later the aircraft were modified by replacing the cannon with another machine gun. Otherwise, the aircraft was nearly identical to the production B.534 Series IV.