What's New

Review Author
Paul Dunham
Published on
Company
Italeri
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$21.99

Italeri’s “Partisans” figure kit (photo 1) is a re-issue of the 1977 ESCI kit “Partisans Resistance Group”. The kit includes two sprues providing parts for six figures and various accessories (photos 2 & 3). The illustration on the back of the box serves as both the assembly and painting instructions (photo 4). The suggested paint colors refer to Italeri’s acrylic paint line. Three of the figures are kneeling, one is standing and throwing, and there is a woman helping a wounded comrade. The weapons included in the kit are: three mauser 98k rifles, an MP-40 submachine gun, a sten submachine gun, a carcano rifle, three stick grenades, a pineapple-style grenade, and four Molotov cocktails. The other accessories included are: binoculars, two knapsacks, two satchels, and a plunger-style power supply for blowing up your 1/35th scale bridges.

Book Author(s)
Ray Rimell with Richard Alexander
Illustrators: Ronny Bar and Juanita Franzi
Review Author
Frank Landrus
Published on
Company
Albatros Productions, Ltd.
MSRP
$61.99

Albatros Productions Ltd. offers the World's largest range of World War One aeroplane and airship books / journals aimed at dedicated scale modelers and aero-enthusiasts. Whether you're a big fan of WWI aircraft camouflage and markings, squadron histories, technical data, rare archive photos, unique scale drawings, the very best 'Great War' aeroplane and airship monographs,or just passionate about modelling WWI aeroplanes. Ray Rimell’s (Raymond Laurence Rimell) latest replaces the “Building the Wingnut Wings” series with a new series called “WWI Scale Model Anthology Series”. Obvious with the success of the prior series and the demise on Wingnut Wings, this makes sense.

Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$22.99

Finding figures in 1/48th scale for Vietnam is a pretty hard chore. Whether you want to depict USAF or Army helicopter pilots your choices in the past have been pretty slim. Well thanks to ICM there is at least a new option.

Inside of the sturdy cardboard box is a single sprue of individually wrapped light grey plastic and a single page of full color instructions.

Book Author(s)
Alan E. Durkota
Illustrators: Juanita Franzi and Bob Pearson
Review Author
Frank Landrus
Published on
Company
Aeronaut Books
MSRP
$34.99

Aeronaut Books is a publisher of aviation history books for enthusiasts by enthusiasts. Aeronaut Books is to publish fun, exciting books about aviation in the Great War for our readers, and also to preserve the history. It is owned by Jack Herris, founder and former owner of Flying Machines Press (which was sold to another publisher in September 2000). Ten years later, Jack Herris jumped back in the publishing pool with Aeronaut Books in November 2010.

Alan E. Durkota has authored Imperial Russian Air Service: Famous Pilots and Aircraft of World War I (Flying Machine Press, 1995) and the first edition of Medal of Honor: Aviators of World War I (Flying Machine Press, 1998).

Review Author
Floyd S. Werner Jr.
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$29.00

With the recent release of many Vietnam era aircraft such as the B-26K, OV-10A and the OV-2 it was inevitable that you would want a variety of armament slung underneath these aircraft, particularly the B-26K. Well, ICM is providing you with plenty of options.

Packaged in a very sturdy cardboard box with a cover, the box contains two of each of two sprues for a total of four sprues. My set was perfectly formed with no blemishes anywhere. The box also contains clear and concise instructions printed on high quality paper. They are printed on a large single sheet folded in half making up four A4 pages. An inventory is on the cover, the actual instructions on the inside two pages and finally the decal placement and painting instructions are on the back. Paint call outs are for ICM, Revell and Tamiya.

Review Author
Paul Dunham
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$23.00

ICM’s new figure kit “USAAF Bomber Pilots and Ground Personnel (1944-1945)” includes three aircrew figures, two ground crew figures, and two flight bags. The colorful box lid (photo-1) is flimsy but covers a sturdy hinged cardboard inner box (photo-2). The packaging won’t get squashed if the box winds up underneath all the other kits you told yourself you wouldn’t buy until you finished something you already have. The included instruction sheet is printed in color with a parts map and paint list on one side (photo-3), and assembly and painting instructions on the other (photo-4). The paint list includes color recommendations for ICM, Revell, and Tamiya brand paints. The painting instructions are somewhat simplified and since I didn’t have the recommended brands of paint, I used the artwork on the box lid as my painting guide. All the parts are included on a single sprue of light gray plastic (photos-5 and 6).

Review Author
Allan Murrell
Published on
Company
Tamiya
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$65.00

Tamiya has produced a new KV-2 kit based on the new tooled KV-1 from a couple of years ago with new tooled KV-2 Turret.

In the box is:

  • 7 x dark green sprues
  • 1 clear sprue
  • 1 small decal sheet
  • polycaps
  • string for cables
  • 1 instruction booklet
  • 1 color guide booklet (in color)

The kit consists of 7 main sprues, the sprues are extremely well molded with great detail; the decals allow you to finish the tank with 2 markings to choose from.

Construction

First is the construction of the lower hull, suspension and road wheels etc. These are stages 1 through 10. The build, as with all Tamiya kits, is seamless and no issues. All the parts go together extremely well

Review Author
Rick Taylor
Published on
Company
Vargas Scale Models
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$79.95

Introduction

Late in WW1 the US determined that there was a problem with current tanks. The British designed rhomboid tanks were good at crossing the enemy trenches but were so heavy that most got stuck or broke down in no-mans-land. The French FT17 light tank usually made it across no-mans-land but couldn't always cross the enemy trenches. The US looked for a tank that could do both.

Pioneer Tractor Company tried to solve the problem by hollowing out the rhomboid. The tank used standard iron pipe and plumbing connectors as a frame with an armored engine/fighting compartment suspended in the frame. Pioneer completed a prototype in October 1918 and submitted it for testing. It was fast by WW1 standards and crossed the trenches well. However, its limited ability to carry armament doomed the project. The single prototype is preserved at Ft. Lee.

Book Author(s)
Lance Cole
Review Author
Jarrod Booth
Published on
Company
Pen & Sword
MSRP
$24.95

Lance Cole is the author of this and many other worthy books detailing numerous aircraft types. This book – Boeing 747 is a timely and fitting tribute to one of the all-time classic aircraft and the very first “Jumbo Jet”. As the 747 is being retired by most airlines and carriers after 50 years of faithful service, plus the fact that I personally have flown as a passenger on every model of the 747, except the 747-8, this was a book that I thoroughly enjoyed reading.

The colorful cover includes three iconic photos of the 747’s grace, power and size, followed at the bottom by a nice image of -300 in Qantas colors. The back cover highlights three models and an overview of what’s inside the book. Throughout the book, colorful photos adorn each page.

The content index includes:

Book Author(s)
Grzegorz Szymanowski, Witold Szewczyk, Robert Wasik, Rafal Z. Lebioda, Vitor Costa, Andrzej Marchwicki & Wojciech Buba
Review Author
Hub Plott
Published on
Company
Kagero Publishing
MSRP
$51.95

This book covers the Polish PZL P.11c and is laid out in seven chapters. The book has text laid out in two columns per page, one on English and one in Polish.