Back in the mid-90’s, the late Ed Kinney and I co-founded IPMS Fame Cities in the Akron/Canton area. While many ribald tales could be told of those days, the tenuous link to this review is that the owner of MCW Finishes, Mike Guest, is a member of Fame Cities. I reconnected with Mike after I read about the new line of military colors he’s producing in gloss lacquer. I asked mike to supply us with a group of sample colors and he more than obliged. I was recently building the little Brengun 1/144 Horten 229 night fighter, which called for an RLM 75/76 upper finish, so this gave me my first opportunity to try these paints.

I generally don’t write overly superlative reviews, but I have to tell you that these are absolutely fantastic paints. Mike and crew formulate their own colors using PPG base, and these are provided in ready-to-spray format.

The F-16 has always been a favorite of mine. So when these decals came out I just had to get a set. The Aviano aircraft have been involved in all major campaigns since 2001. This sheet covers from 2002 to 2009.

Packaged in a large ziplock bag are seven double-sided high-quality sheets with full color printings. There are marking options for 14 aircraft. Each aircraft has both side profile views. All the markings are clearly seen. If there was a variation in the markings it is pointed out. Each sheet has two aircraft on each side of the sheet. Some of the aircraft have really colorful markings, including nose art and tail markings. The Wyvern and fin flash are quite colorful. If you like color on your Falcon this is a great sheet. There are mission markings and kill markings.

Eduard has hit a major home run when they went back and redesigned their FW-190 series of kits. The latest version is the FW-190A-2. In my case, I had the Bunny Fighter version which includes decals for Oblt. Frank Liesendahl.

What is the Bunny Fighter Club? It is a discount for buying directly from the Eduard webstore. It is a 15% discount on all items. It also allows the modeler access to special and limited edition releases, both kits and accessories. When you visit a show where Eduard is vending you get an additional discount. You even get a T-shirt and finally if you attend E-Day you get free entry into the show.

The BFC decal instructions are available on the Eduard webpage. The only downside to this release is that this particular marking option does not show up in the instructions as to which bomb rack is required. You’ll have to figure out which holes to open and build up the bomb and rack.

Background Information

Fightertown decals is an online retailer offering decals for the various series of F-14 Tomcats and F-18 Super Hornets. Currently, the offerings are limited to 1/48th scale aircraft and data markings. Each decal sheet includes marking for several aircraft.

Decal Sheet Contents

The decal sheet is big: 8 5/8" by 11 1/2" size. A smaller decal sheet is also included that provides additional windscreen tinting decals, plus smaller items that are somewhat of a mystery to me at this point.

History

The DeHavilland DH-82 Tiger Moth, like the Stearman Model 75 and possibly the Curtiss JN-4 “Jenny”, is one of the standard and best known biplane training aircraft, in terms of numbers built, reputation, and number of surviving aircraft. Like the Stearman, the Tiger Moth began as a primary training aircraft, moving into fame as World War II began and providing the basis for the training programs for the British Commonwealth air forces, including the RAF, RCAF, RAAF, RNZAF, RSAAF, and many other smaller air arms. Originally conceived as a civilian trainer evolving from the DH-60 Gypsy Moth of the late twenties, the DH-82 featured staggered wings and an inverted engine to provide better forward visibility for the pilots. It was fully aerobatic. Wartime versions were equipped with anti-spin strakes ahead of the horizontal stabilizers, although all DH-82’s did not have these.