The origin of Pen & Sword Books is closely linked with its sister company, the Barnsley Chronicle; one of the UK's oldest provincial newspapers, established in 1858, and one of the few weeklies still in private ownership. The first books published by the company were in response to public demand following of a series of articles published in the newspaper: Dark Peak Aircraft Wrecks told the story of crash sites in the Dark Peak area of the Peak District National Park, and a further weekly feature on the history of two Kitchener battalions, known as the Barnsley Pals, aroused a thirst for more information. Following on from the success of those books, a number of local history paperbacks were produced along with a series of battlefield guidebooks. Battleground Europe proved immediately successful, and the company made the decision to launch a book publishing arm of the group.

Number 54 in Helion’s Asia @ War Series is the 4th Volume on the Sri Lankan War, from 1995-2002. Also called the Eelam War III, this Volume covers the Northern Theatre of the war to its conclusion. The author is a Swiss military researcher and has published 20 books on military topics. For this larger than normal Volume, he has done a brilliant and evocative job on bringing this civil war to light.

Sri Lanka (formerly known as Ceylon) is a large island off the southern tip of India, and has a tumultuous history of internecine warfare. This volume is strictly about the military events, and does not cover the political situations, atrocities or human rights violations in detail - these have been manifested in the first three volumes, by Amnesty International and other NGOs.

One of the newest releases from venerable Tamiya is this wide-wheel version of the Schwimmwagen Type 166, which incorporates parts from their previous release (kit 224) back in 1998. The new release includes new sprues C and V which include the wide-wheel parts, new figures, and new weapons. As with any Tamiya kit, the engineering is perfect, which makes this kit ideal for modelers of nearly any skill level, and it is therefore highly recommended.

Upon opening the box, you will find four sprues molded in Tamiya’s tan plastic, a separate lower body, a mesh screen, clear acetate, and decals. Also included are a ten-page instruction sheet, a Tech Tips sheet, and Background Information. The Background Information includes Development, Design, and Production and Deployment information as well as a line drawing for nomenclature and Painting instructions with color drawings for an all yellow and a yellow, green, and brown vehicle.

In researching the company and these products, I found that the Kaleido ColorWorks primers and matte varnish from Gaahleri, which entered the global hobby market around 2023, represent a modern and user-friendly approach to water-based modeling paints. As part of Gaahleri’s ecosystem—a coordinated line of products designed to work together for consistent results—they are formulated to complement the company’s airbrush systems and simplify the overall painting process. On their website, they offer paints, airbrushes, and a range of airbrush accessories and replacement components. Built around RapidAir Technology, which enhances atomization and leveling so acrylics spray more like lacquers, these products provide smooth application with reduced tip dry.

Long-time supporter Ross and his team at SAC Supports IPMS/USA yet again with one of his gear sets to use and review!

This set provides a sound basis for replacing the more delicate parts of the Spindly (in real life and modeling world) Fairey Gannet AEW-3 landing gear. Designed for the newly-released SWORD kit, it definitely addresses the question on whether plastic or metal is better for this task. The metal gear, once carefully installed (it is NOT an easy Geometric construction) is definitely “go metal”.

Made up of eleven finely-cast metal parts, these bits are scale in size and flexible enough for initial installation, while work-hardening if required for additional stiffness. The truss angles and installation are a difficult design to address, and the idea the kit plastic would last was first in my mind. It’s a large aircraft, and unique in design and appearance.