Following directly on the heels of the release of their truly lovely Gloster Gladiator biplane fighter in 1/32^nd scale, ICM has released a figure set to create an instant diorama with the aircraft. Consisting of two pilots, clearly fresh from a flight, and a ground officer taking notes, the figures create a lovely tableau straight from the box. I suspect they’re discussing about exactly who shot down that last Italian fighter that day.

Assembly of these figures is quite straight-forward, as they have little equipment or clutter associated with them. Both pilots have nicely molded separate life vests as well as oxygen masks along with the hoses. About the only modification you may need to make is to bend the hoses a bit to make them sit more naturally. It was unnecessary to use any filler on any of these figures.

I don’t think it’s necessary for me to go into the details regarding the horrific Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster that shook the world in the 1980’s and created the largest uninhabitable radioactive region on the globe, ultimately costing hundreds if not thousands of lives. The Fukishima disaster may ultimately turn out to do more damage, but Chernobyl certainly stands out as one of the top examples of manmade blunders up to now.

On that cheery note, it is with more than a little awe that I examine one of ICM’s latest and perhaps most ambitious products – the Chernobyl #1 diorama-in-a-box. Literally intended to be an entire scene in one package, this kit contains a command center truck, five new figures, a small hut and various bits and pieces to compose a radiation check point outside the recently destroyed power plant. To top it off, a beautifully rendered background is included to help you recreate the box cover in its entirety.

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.

Mission Models Paints Pearl Colors

Mission Model Paints has released some beautiful new Pearl colors to their excellent line of acrylic paints. The Pearl colors have a translucent pearl-like depth and luster. MMP has also issued iridescent color paints that seem to change color when seen from different angles.

The Pearl paints are like Mission Models other water-based acrylics that are odorless, fast drying, don’t clog airbrush tips, and produce a smooth, durable finish. Information on Mission Model Paints is available on their website. Click here for a full IPMS review of Mission Model Paints.

The kit comes packaged in a small zip lock bag with a paper header that has the OKB logo the part number and the scale as well as a description of what is in the bag. In this case a complete set of road wheels for the T-64 type-1. The wheels are very well molded and are free from bubbles and the molding is very crisp. The detail on the wheels is outstanding and looks great.

The resin wheels are a bit more detailed than the road wheels in a trumpeter kit that I compared them to and I will be putting them on the kit. Unfortunately, I do not own a Skif T-64 kit and would like to compare the wheels to that kit as well. But based on the level of detail and molding in the OKB I cannot help but feel they are more than likely better.