AOA Decals has a good reputation for quality decals, and I was thrilled to have the opportunity to review one of their newest releases, the US Modern Letters & Numbers Decals (35-014).

The decals come in two sheets of the same page, so there are plenty of numbers, codes and colors available for 1/35 modern subjects. As it is a generic set, there are no instructions provided.

From the AOA website

This sheet offers number and letter variations as seen on US "modern" vehicles - both in black and green for most styles.

A full alphabet is provided for one of the most common US stenciled styles, including multiple "M" variations.

Other styles are primarily numbers for USMC/USN vehicles (M-ATV, JLTV, MTVR, M1 Abrams, LAV-25, etc.). Also includes USMC vehicle plate decals.

What is in the Box

• 4 gray injection molded plastic sprues [247 parts total]
• 1 clear sprue
• 1 decal sheet with 6 markings options
• 1 3d printed instrument panel (three parts)
• 2 Etched Brass frets
• 1 canopy & wheel hub masks
• 1 elastic vinyl tubing
• 1 brass wire
• 1 instruction book in FULL color

Construction

The construction begins with the cockpit and the fuselage interior and this makes up the majority of the early construction sequence. Extra time spent here will pay dividends later in the build and I recommend a thorough reading of the instructions since they will alleviate most if not all construction problems. The sprue gates are on the mating surfaces, so it is imperative to cut them from the sprues with care and be sure not to over sand the sprue gate nubs. Now I have noticed this trend in manufacturers. The cockpit has nice set of 3-D decals which dress up the cockpit nicely.

During World War II, the concept of creating airfields in days, rather than months or years, came about with the use of what was called “Pierced Steel Planking”. These were segments of metal, linked together to form runways, taxiways, and parking areas, to name a few. Its modern day equivalent is the M8A1 Landing Mat.

This is a fairly simple, straight-forward kit. Six sprues, each containing one section of matting, comprised the entire kit. The instructions show two different ways of creating a rectangular mat, and I build the 2^nd version.

The only downside I have to mention is that when I assembled the kit, there was a minute gap down the center seam – although I cannot discount the possibility of an erroneous assembly procedure on my part.

Painted and weathered well, this would be a great little addition to any diorama in 1/72 scale. Best of all, each kit can combine with other landing mat kits for bigger aprons and parking spaces.

This ResKit 3D printed resin set includes three crew members: pilot, copilot, and a rear facing crew chief or flight engineer that controls the hoist. The figures come in three incredibly detailed resin blocks. The first includes the three figures seated in CH – 54 seats. The second block includes four heads for the figures. There are options for the pilots’ helmets to have visors down or up. The headsets on the helmet are printed with a gap between the figure’s face and the headset. The crew chief head is molded on the body with the visor up. The third block includes the control levers for the CH – 54.

The ResKit figures are produced in cooperation with ICM so they will fit perfectly into the ICM cockpit.

Scale Aircraft Conversions has been creating parts for modelers since 1990 and has long supported the IPMS-USA Review Corps with their items for review. The white metal parts are meant to replicate the original kit parts, but with the additional strength of being metal instead of plastic. There is also an advantage in that the metal gear can be slightly bent, if necessary, once installed to allow for improved positioning.

After reviewing the Scale Aircraft Conversions metal landing gear for the Fine Molds Ki-43 III I knew exactly what I was getting into with this set. My sample had castings that seemed rough along with mold part lines and parts slightly bent in the package. I cleaned up one main gear leg and the tail wheel leg as best I could. A coat of Mr. Surfacer black followed by a layer of Testors Steel Metallizer did not seem to completely cover some issues I had identified. A few layers of watercolors highlighted the details.