Review Author
Pat Villarreal
Published on
February 6, 2024
Company
AMMO by Mig Jimenez
MSRP
$39.95

Ammo isa company founded by Mig Jimenez and based out of Spain. It provides products for the modeling community by way of paints, weathering effects, tools, and various modeling merchandise. Ammo has provided IPMS-USA a twelve (12) bottle acrylic paint set for review.

In the Box

The paint set contains twelve (12) 20 ml bottles with nontoxic and odorless water based acrylic paints.Inside each bottle is an agitator ball to help mix when shaking. These paints are presented in a new clear container featuring a new cap that can be opened and closed with one hand. The following colors are provided:

Book Author(s)
Ravi Rikhye
Review Author
Gino Dykstra
Published on
February 6, 2024
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$29.95

Human beings sure like to squabble, and the more history they share, the more enmity they seem to feel. America is little over 200 years old, and has had only one internal conflict during that time, and yet it still impacts the country to this day.Imagine, then, a region occupied for millenia2, and the potential only increases.

India and Pakistan have been at each other’s throats since the day of partition, and the author Ravi Rikhye, does a good job of explaining the incredible complexities of the hostility for the average reader.Suffice it to say that my head was buzzing after reading the introduction. It’s very hard for someone not born in that part of the world to really understand what the grievances are. The author himself states flatly that writing history is a subjective experience, and that there are no “bad guys” or “good guys” in this struggle. After reading the entire book I have to agree.

Book Author(s)
Tom Cooper, Dave Watson and Dimitris Vassilopoulos
Review Author
Gino Dykstra
Published on
February 6, 2024
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$29.95

I’ve read a number of books about 20th century so-called brush wars, and it becomes fairly obvious over time that these small, relatively isolated conflicts often serve as relief valves for larger nations who dare not directly confront each other. In the nuclear age, such aggressiveness would almost certainly be fatal.

Review Author
Rod Lees
Published on
February 4, 2024
Company
Special Hobby
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$74.98

It has been an honor to review Special Hobby’s new AH-1G kit, and hereby express extreme thanks to them for providing IPMS USA with this new release. We continue to be fortunate with their ongoing support of the reviewer corps!

Special Hobby continues to provide subjects avoided by others… as a business model, this ensures they continue to exist and thrive on the concept of “do what others can’t or won’t”.

(Note: the Air Force Reserve unit here in Oklahoma has always had “SH” as their Fighter unit tail marking, meaning what everyone should know it does. In the case of this review as a transplant Okie I shall use SH as an abbreviation for Special Hobby, intending it to mean “S-Hot” in their case for untouchable ability and a quality product)

Review Author
Pat Villarreal
Published on
February 4, 2024
Company
ICM
MSRP
$12.99

ICM is a hobby company based out of Ukraine. They have provided IPMS-USA a six (6) bottle acrylic paint set for review.

In the Box

The paint set contains six (6) 12ml bottles with nontoxic water based acrylic paints. The following colors are provided:

  • Camouflage Green (1071)
  • White (1001)
  • Olive Green (1068)
  • Aluminum (1023)
  • Black (1002)
  • Varnish Satin (2002)

Straight out of the bottle, the paint’s viscosity is thick and purposely prepared for brush painting. The instructions do recommend thinning 40-60% with water or thinner for airbrushing. All surfaces are recommended to have primer applied prior to painting. Volume wise, the paint takes up about 70% of the bottle and has “room” to add thinner if so desired.

Note, the bottles are not the usual dropper style (think Vallejo) but a twist off cap and a large opening to allow brushes to enter the bottle.

Review Author
James Kelley
Published on
February 4, 2024
Company
Hobby Boss
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$58.99

Hobby Boss first released their new-tooled F4U-1A Corsair back in 2012. Thirteen years later in 2023, after numerous reiterations and re-releases, they have produced a 2 in 1 release with extra parts to provide a kit of the -1A and -2, respectively.

Construction, as is the norm, begins in the softly detailed cockpit. There is no provision for any type of seat harness, so I used a set from a Warbirds Decals sheet. Overall detail in the cockpit is soft, and the instrument panel decal is lacking in detail.

Step 2 has the modeler construct the engine, replete with a full exhaust collection ring and exhaust. The instructions are confusing in this step (as with many other steps), so the fitting of the exhaust system was done by trial and error. Parts of this subassembly are nicely detailed, such as the exhaust system & transmission housing, while the cylinder heads are soft.

Review Author
Pablo Bauleo
Published on
February 4, 2024
Company
Tru-Color Paint
Scale
N/A
MSRP
$41.95

Tru-Color Paint is a US-based model paints manufacturer. They have an extensive line of railroad and car paints and are continuously expanding their military line (aircraft, naval, armor).

This set includes the following colors (all of them already available in their line).

  • TCP-433 Matte Black
  • TCP-1226 Titanium
  • TCP-1272 FS-33531 Middlestone
  • TCP-1274 FS-30219 Brown
  • TCP-1275 FS-34424 Sky Green
  • TCP-1277 FS-36375 Light Compass Ghost Gray

Based on my research -use it at your own risk. The colors included in this set are all the main colors used in the camouflage for the F-16, F-15 and some Kfir C2 (late service) and most Kfir C7 (late service).

You can still use the Middlestone and Brown for other IAF aircraft (like Super Mystere, Mirages, F-4 Phantom, A-4 Skyhawk) but the underside color and/or green color used in these airframes are different than the ones included in the set.

Book Author(s)
Edward Crowther
Review Author
Andy Taylor
Published on
February 3, 2024
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$29.95

This is the third book in the War in Ukraine series (currently at five volumes). The previous two volumes were reviewed by Orlando Reyes of the IPMS/USA Review Corps:

Review Author
Phillip Cavender
Published on
February 3, 2024
Company
ICM
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$49.99

ICM boasts a rich heritage within the modeling community, establishing itself as a well-established Ukrainian-based plastic modeling company. Expanding its selection of modeling kits, ICM presents its newest 2023 release, the 35410 V3000S/SSM Maultier “Einheitsfahgrerhaus’ WWII German Truck. While this kit is a reissue of the 2012 version, it includes additional new parts.

The term “Maultier” (mule) or Sd.Kfz 3, designates a series of half-track trucks utilized by Nazi Germany during WWII. The term “Einheitsfahrerhaus” translates to “standard driver’s cab.”

The following is a brief history of the kit taken directly from ICM’s website.