Thank you PJ Production for providing this elegant accessory gunner figure, and thank you to the IPMS Reviewer Corps for letting me review it! I am very appreciative of all you do for the scale modeling community.
Tru-Color Paint was formed in 2008 by Rick Galazzo and Scott Cohen, both of whom come from extensive backgrounds in formulating paint on the commercial scale. They set out on their own to develop this paint line of solvent-based paint by reformulating the old Accupaint formulation to flow better and give a more glossy appearance after drying. They currently offer over 600 colors offered with more to follow. Sets and single bottles are available and include lines for railroad, automotive, and military aircraft and armament lines.
The specific set I tested was specifically for NATO and modern armor and includes a sample of their masking frisket papers as well as the following colors in 1 oz. bottles:
In today’s review we will be doing a Soviet Union Lend lease M10, This Tank was originally released back in 2014 for the 70th anniversary of the Normandy invasion with that being said this new release does have a few things differently such as the decal sheet and the Soviet figures.
Let’s start will the Hull, This kit does offer the interior which is very nicely detailed. Some of the fit needed some work such as the 4 Sponson containers on the sides of the tank. The diamond blade deck was a very tight fit and required some additional sanding to sit in with ought bending the deck. My only real complaint is the lack of an engine for the build. The outside of the Hull is also very nicely detailed with all the little details that are added plus the molded-in features such as the weld lines and positionable crew hatch’s.
Thank you to Bert Kinzey and Rock Roszak for continuing to bring back a tremendous resource for the modeler, in a digital format with print-on-demand paperback format. Thank you to the IPMS Reviewer Corps for allowing me to test out this new and exciting method of researching history, details, versions, and markings of the F-8/RF-8 Crusader.
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The latest journal of Cross & Cockade International - Spring 2019, features a front cover photograph of Josef Csatek and Andreas Dombrowski of Flik 29 in front of Albatros D.III 53.24
The inside rear cover features three period black and white photographs of the BE 12 airframe construction details. The outside rear cover features an investigation into a possible photograph of Captain R.M. Foster’s Sopwith Camel “C 61” (top). The one verified photograph of “C 61” is included at the lower right, along with two additional photographs of 3N Squadron Sopwith Camels.
Cross & Cockade International is a non-profit UK based group known as the First World War Aviation Historical Society that publishes their journal four times a year. They also provide a free newsletter (sign up on their website) and occasionally publish WWI themed books like the Sopwith Dolphin monograph I reviewed earlier for IPMS USA. This Journal is the sister of the US Journal, Over The Front.
Burt Rutan’s name has become synonymous with innovative, unconventional aircraft designs built with efficiency and safety in mind. Types like the Varieze, Varviggen, and the Voyager all shared a common platform utilizing a canard or small wing ahead of the main wing. Wanting the promote safety, the principal behind the canard was the forward smaller wing would stall before the larger rear wing protecting the pilot from loss of control during the critical takeoff and landing phases of flight. The construction of these designs incorporated a composite structure of a foam core wrapped in fiberglass. This structure was not only strong but it was very aerodynamically clean. These designs could attain cruise speeds faster than most production designs with a fraction of the horsepower. That brings us to the subject of this review. The Quickie was built around an 18 hp Onan engine. Rutan along with Tom Jewett and Gene Sheenan wanted to build a low cost, low power single seat design.
Czech Master Kits, CMK, have released a really nice P-40N kit recently and a ton of aftermarket items for it and other P-40 kits.
This set is one of several replacement tire kits and features the cross thread pattern which resin is probably the best medium to capture this detail.
The set includes two main wheels and tires with alternate hub detail parts. The cross thread pattern is really well done and I could not find a molding blemish or bubble in the castings. These are direct replacements for the kit items.
These wheels will really add detail to one of your P-40 builds. Just make sure to check your references to make sure you use the correct hub and type of threads.
Thanks to Special Hobby and IPMS/USA for the review kit.
CMK, Czech Master Kits, has released several resin seats designed to fit their numerous P-40 kits. This one is designed for their new P-40N. The set includes 1 part, the seat. This is a direct replacement for the kit part. The detail is crisp and it should look nice settled in the cockpit. There are no seatbelts molded onto the seat so you can easily use your favorite option.
This is another quick and simple addition to your P-40N.
Thanks to Special Hobby and IPMS/USA for the review kit.
Czech Master Kits, known as CMK, is one of the prolific model companies out of the Czech Republic releasing full kits and aftermarket parts for aircraft, AFVs, ships, figures, and more.
This includes a series of brass chains which are listed as Fine (72nd scale), Medium (48th) and Coarse (35th). This review covers the Fine version of these products as I build mostly 1/72nd scale kits. What you get is a very nice chain in brass that is 30cm long (almost 12 inches). The links are 2mm long and 1.2mm wide. The quality is high. You can either use the chain at its full length or cut it into smaller sizes for different uses.
Here’s another nifty little “add on” or “fix-it” for your 1/144th Spitfire. The envelope contains 18 main wheels for Spitfires. I had to look closely, but there are 3 different types of tires in the envelope. There are 6 with no tread, 6 with a tread that runs around the tire, and 6 with a diamond tread. When I said I looked closely, I had to use the headband magnifier to see the tread. But they are there.
As far as using these wheels, they’re slightly better in quality than the wheels in the newer Spitfire kits such as Eduard or Mark 1 so you may want to replace the kit items. But if you’re looking at one of the “older” kits (Crown/Revell/Academy), the Brengun wheels are far superior. And then there’s another need for wheels. The wheels are sometimes knocked off the landing gear, or they just get lost. These are the wheels you need.
