Book Author(s)
Bojan Dimitrijevic
Review Author
Gino Dykstra
Published on
August 12, 2020
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$21.97

Some time after the end of World War 2 and the establishment of the U.N., one of the first opportunities for the fledgling organization to flex its peacekeeper muscles was on the heel of the 1956 Arab-Israeli war. This serious flare-up between Israel and its neighbors – the first really serious conflict of many to come – was seen by the world as a definite threat to the stability of the entire region. A multinational force of British, French and numerous other participants was hastily assembled and dispatched to try and create a safe zone between the hostile forces.

Tito of Yugoslavia, who was even then trying to establish international recognition and legitimacy for his communist government, looked on this multinational effort as an excellent prospect for increasing his country’s standing, and volunteered a small contingent of Yugoslavian troops to go to the Sinai Peninsula and help serve in this laudable effort.

Book Author(s)
Simon Forty
Review Author
Allan Murrell
Published on
August 12, 2020
Company
Pen & Sword
MSRP
$26.95

The book is another in the great Casemate Images of War series. This book covers images from the invasion of Sicily through the invasion and progress up Italy until the wars end.

The images in the book are excellent and inspire ideas for dioramas for modelers.

The book is full of amazing photos of the Italian campaign, it is very much an overview as the subject is very large. It does tend to focus on the US forces.

I recommend this book to everyone with an interest in WWII.

Thanks go to Casemate Publishing for providing this book to review and IPMS USA for allowing me to review it for them

Review Author
Allan Murrell
Published on
August 12, 2020
Company
OKB Grigorov
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$45.00

OKB Grigorov has provided a very unusual kit in the form of a British post war Paper Tank. The Nuffield Assault Tank A.T.1. Which was one of 9 various of a design proposed by Nuffield. As a Paper tank it was only a design and never left the drawing board.

Included is:

  • 128 resin parts
  • one photoetch sheet
  • one instruction sheet

The detail quality is great; The parts are very delicate that need careful removal from the resin bases. The instructions need a lot of experience to work with to get a great model.

Some of the parts were a little twisted but can be corrected if you’re careful.

The assembly is good but needs a little patience and time to get the running gear built correctly. Also, the resin tracks are very fragile so this needs a lot of accuracy to get them fitting and looking right. There were a few gaps that needed filling.

I would like to have seen some small decals.

Review Author
Allan Murrell
Published on
August 12, 2020
Company
OKB Grigorov
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$45.00

OKB Grigorov has provided a very unusual kit in the form of a British post war Paper Tank. The Nuffield Assault Tank A.T.3. Which was one of 9 various of a design proposed by Nuffield. As a Paper tank it was only a design and never left the drawing board.

Included is:

  • 142 resin parts
  • one photoetch sheet
  • one instruction sheet

The detail quality is great; The parts are very delicate and need careful removal from the resin bases. The instructions need a lot of experience to work with to get a great model.

Some of the parts were a little twisted but can be corrected if you’re careful.

The assembly is good but needs a little patience and time to get the running gear built correctly. Also, the resin tracks are very fragile, so this needs a lot of accuracy to get them fitting and looking right.

There were a few gaps that needed filling.

Review Author
Will Kuhrt
Published on
January 4, 2022
Company
ICM
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$67.99

Thank you to Phil and to Bill for all the work that you do!

History

In the end of the 60s the Mikoyan Design Bureau developed the world’s first interceptor fighter with a speed of Mach 3—the MiG-25. At the same time high-reconnaissance bomber modifications were developed and designated the MiG-25RB. Using the MiG-25RB frame, the strike anti-aircraft Mig-25BM was produced in 1977. It had a new nose with radar and four anti-radar X-58U missiles. These planes served in the Soviet (later Russian) Air Force. From ICM.

Review Author
Will Kuhrt
Published on
August 15, 2020
Company
Scale Aircraft Conversions
Scale
1/32
MSRP
$19.95

Thank you to Phil and Bill for all that you do managing and providing review opportunities!

Recommended kit: Wingnut Wings

Reviewer’s Comments

I do not own any WW kits, and due to the high demand for the now defunct company, the prices have soared. A good friend was kind enough to loan me his Gotha G.1 kit for the purposes of comparing the SAC landing gear to the kit parts.

This landing gear set from SAC is a direct replacement for the kit parts. The white metal casting is superb as is usual for SAC, but a few parts did have a little bit of flash, which was very easy to remove. The kit consists of 12 parts. Three parts need to be removed from their pour rod (see photo).

Book Author(s)
Przemysław Skulski; Colour Profiles: Andrzej Olejniczak; Scale Plans: Dariusz Karnas
Review Author
Frank Landrus
Published on
August 15, 2020
Company
Mushroom Model Publications - MMP Books
MSRP
$35.00

MMP was founded in 1996 by Roger Wallsgrove, to publish "Mushroom Model Magazine". This quarterly modelling magazine was developed from "Mushroom Monthly”, a club newsletter which ran from 1985 to 1995, achieving a world-wide reputation for quality articles, fearless and honest reviews, and a great sense of humor. From 1997 the magazine was produced in collaboration with Robert Peczkowski and Artur Juszczak (Stratus), which meant a big leap in print quality and design. MMP expanded into book publication in 1999, and since then they have built up a list of books on aircraft and aviation, naval, military vehicles, and military history. MMP Books are distributed in North America by Casemate Publications.

Book Author(s)
Jon Diamond
Review Author
Dick Montgomery
Published on
August 15, 2020
Company
Pen & Sword
MSRP
$22.95

Jon Diamond is an accomplished author with a number of published books to his credit. His previous works include “Stilwell and the Chindits”, War In the South Pacific, Invasion of Sicily, Invasion of the Italian Mainland, Anzio and Victory at Cassino, and now MacArthur’s Papua New Guinea Offensive 1942-1943. These and other books by Mr. Diamond are published by and available through Pen and Sword.

The Japanese strategy was to threaten northern Australia by capturing Port Moresby. In this publication Mr. Diamond lays out the strategy that MacArthur put forward to thwart this Japanese plan. The text that Mr. Diamond provides is comprehensive in its coverage of the theatre of operations, the impact of the geography in which the campaign took place, and a study of the commanders and combatants involved in the fighting.

Book Author(s)
Bert Kinzey, Chris Sakal and Rock Roszak
Review Author
Rob Benson
Published on
August 15, 2020
Company
Detail & Scale, Inc.
MSRP
$12.99

Thank you to Bert Kinzey, Chris Sakal and Rock Roszak for continuing to bring back a tremendous resource for the modeler and aviation historian, in a digital format. Thank you to the IPMS Reviewer Corps for allowing me to test out this new and exciting method of researching history, details, and versions of the iconic F6F Hellcat. This new digital volume is a must-have!

Overview

The publication is a thorough and up-to date documentation of the F6F Hellcat, well-suited for modeler and the aviation aficionado. Detail & Scale has always set a high standard, but Digital Volume 10 has exceeded even this high standard. The first Hellcat volume was released in 1987, followed by a revised second volume published in 1996. The third revision includes much more information from historically accurate F3F-3 restorations, more photography, and an expanded modeler’s section. As always, I certainly learned a thing or two during this review!

Review Author
Gino Dykstra
Published on
January 4, 2021
Company
ICM
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$26.00

You have to give the former Soviet Union credit – they didn’t waste time coming up with something new IF something available would do the trick. They did it with the U.S. B-29 bomber (Tupelov Tu-4) and they didn’t with this series of post-war sedans – making a carbon copy of Germany’s Opel Kadett from 1946 on.

ICM has previously made a closed-top four-door sedan version of this lovely little vehicle, and now offer the somewhat rarer convertible version. The kit offers a couple of options – open or closed convertible top and free spare tire or encased spare tire. It comes with a detailed engine and drive train and a truly exceptional level of detail in the interior. It also comes with all the parts to make the standard sedan if you desperately want to go in that direction. Being the kind of modeler I am, I chose to do mine with the open top so I could show off all the lovely inside workings.