Jump to content
This site uses cookies! Learn More

This site uses cookies!

You can find a list of those cookies here: mysite.com/cookies

By continuing to use this site, you agree to allow us to store cookies on your computer. :)

What are cookies?
Okay, got it.

Review Content

Showing topics in Aircraft Reviews, Kits, Aftermarket (updates/conversions), Decals & Masks, Reference material, Armoured Fighting Vehicle Reviews, Kits, Aftermarket, Diorama & Accessory, Reference Material, Kits, Aftermarket, Reference Material, Vehicle Reviews, Sci-fi & Real Space Reviews, Figure Reviews, Locos, Trains & Layout Reviews and Tools & Paint Reviews posted in for the last 365 days.

This stream auto-updates     

  1. Today
  2. Collin

    Tornado GR.1 "Gulf War" (03892) 1:32

    Collin replied to Mike's topic in Kits

    Bummer....no JP233's. Believe the standard iron bomb loadout was 8, not 4 at least in the early stages of DS1. Cheers Collin
  3. exdraken
    Oh!!! A must have thanks!
  4. exdraken

    Tornado GR.1 "Gulf War" (03892) 1:32

    exdraken replied to Mike's topic in Kits

    Looks quite impressive!
  5. stringbag

    Percival P.10 Vega Gull (48005) - 1:48 Dora Wings

    stringbag replied to Julien's topic in Kits

    Me too John. Lovely looking aircraft. Chris.
  6. Viking
    How lovely is that! I'm going to put it on my birthday list. Cheers John
  7. Julien
    Percival P.10 Vega Gull (48005) 1:48 Dora Wings The Vega Gull was a development by Percival of their earlier D-Series Gull. The main advantages over the earlier design was the addition of a 4th seat, dual flight controls, and flaps were fitted. The airframe was made wider, the wings longer and the airframe made more streamlined. A feature of the aircraft was the ability to fold the wings for storage. The work was attributed to Arthur Bage's arrival at Percival. The resulting Vega Gull had extended range and payload without sacrificing performance. The aircraft was powered by a de Havilland Gipsy Six engine. As well as civilian operators the Air Ministry ordered 15 Aircraft. 11 were used by 24 Sqn RAF, 2 by the FAA, and 3 by British Air Attaches. At the outbreak of WWII many civilian aircraft were impressed into service in Britain and the Commonwealth. The Kit Dora Wings is a new company to us, and have kindly agreed to send samples for review. As it is this reviewers opinion that Percival Aircraft made some of the best looking Civil Aircraft in the UK, these new kits are more than welcome. Information and help was gratefully received in the production of this kit from John Adams formally of Aeroclub models which can only be a good thing. Following the 1/72 versions Dora Wings now brings us the 1/48 one. The kit arrives on five spures, a clear spure, a sheets of PE and a sheet of masks (not shown). The parts are well moulded with clean spures, there is a tiny amount of flash which should be easy to clean up. The clear parts are clear with no distortion or other issues. Construction is fairly simple just like the real aircraft. Parts for the cockpit including the seats are made first. The instrument panel being a sandwich of plastic, PE & decals is added to the coming. The wheels and their spats are then made up and then put to one side, as is the tail wheel. The rudder and tail planes are also constructed at this time and put to one side. Next up the engine is constructed, this is also left to one side. The wings are now built up. These have separate flaps and ailerons. A landing light is also included for each wing leading edge. The five part canopy is the carefully made up. Once all the sub-assemblies are complete then main assembly can take place. The cockpit floor is added into the lower fuselage part. On to this the seats and flying controls are added. A rear cabin bulkhead is then added. The lower part, engine and internal parts are the put together with the fuselage sides. The wings are then added. Next up the tail planes, rudder, coaming, and canopy are added. At the front the engine front and propeller are added. To finish up the wheels are added. Markings The decals are from Decograf and look good with no registration issues, markings 4 options are provided; L7272 ex G-AFWG Allocated to British Air Attache Buenos Aires, Argentina 1939. ex L7272 Sold to Argentine Government in 1946 P10 Requisitioned by the Belgian Government 1939 N7571 Requisitioned by the Royal New Zealand Air Force 1944 Conclusion It is high time that we had some modern toolings of British Civil aircraft from this period. Very Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  8. Mike
    Boeing 747-8 Lufthansa New Livery (03891) 1:144 Revell At the end of September 1968, Boeing revealed to gathered crowds at its Everett factory, an aircraft that would forever change the world of air travel. Taking advantage of the new generation of high by-pass turbofan engines capable of huge power output compared to the previously available power units, Boeing unveiled the B747 which would become affectionately known as the ‘Jumbo Jet’ due to its immense proportions. Designs for the new Boeing747 had actually been started three years earlier when engineer Joe Sutter approached the airlines to discuss their proposals with the companies that would actually buy the aircraft, and it was to be the Pan Am CEO, Juan Trippe, that had the greatest influence in the final design. Although intended from the outset to be a passenger aircraft, it was decided early in the design phase to ensure that the aircraft should be easily adaptable to a freighter; a decision that was to prove fortunate in later years. The original high wing designs were discounted in favour of the more popular low wing position, and at the request of Juan Trippe, various options in upper deck layouts were explored. These designs led to the now familiar ‘hump’, a feature that in no way detracts from the graceful lines of the aircraft that was finally rolled out at the end of September 1968, and provided the airlines with the first jet powered airliner capable of carrying more than 400 passengers. Over the next three decades, the original design was further modified by the enlargement of the upper deck and the introduction of improved engines and avionics. Probably the most radical change made to the airframe was with the introduction of the 747SP which featured a significantly shorter fuselage and a re-designed wing targeted at the short to medium haul and high density routes. In 1988, Boeing rolled out yet another variant in the shape of the -400 series, but it was not until November 2005 that the subject of this kit, the Boeing 747-8 family was launched. Incorporating advanced technology developed for the 787 Dreamliner, the first -8 model to fly was the freighter with Cargolux being the launch customer and taking delivery of its first aircraft in February of 2010. The 747-8i, the passenger version, made its maiden flight in March of the following year with the first delivery to an undisclosed private customer made in February 2012. Lufthansa, the original launch customer took delivery of their first aircraft in April of the same year. On June 28th. 2014. Boeing reached a significant milestone when the deliveries of the 747 totalled 1,500 aircraft. Deliveries of the 747-8 have been relatively slow with only just over 150 examples of both the freighter and passenger version ordered with only three national carriers taking options on the passenger version at the time of writing. (Preamble text courtesy of @stringbag) The Kit This is a reboxing of Revell's well-liked 2012 era 747 kit with a newly tooled -8i fuselage and new decals depicting the new, modern livery that was first unveiled in May 2018. Inside the top-opening box (yes, you read that right) are two fuselage parts, seven sprues of white styrene, three clear sprues, a long sheet of decals and the instruction booklet. The model is well-detailed, with fine engine components, engraved panel lines, landing gear bays and even a cockpit part, with the copyright marking on the inner wing showing 2012. The fuselage has open windows along the side, with clear parts that are applied inside, so if you plan on using alternate solid porthole decals (some folks do), you'll need to fill and smooth them out. It's probably not all that often a civilian aircraft review starts with the words "construction begins with the cockpit", but this one does. There is a tub that includes seats and instrument coaming moulded-in, plus a rear bulkhead with crew door moulded-in, which you are instructed to paint up with basic colours. If you're building it with the wheels down, you'll need to build the gear bays, which have some nice ribbing detail moulded-in, and add the landing gear legs, which are really well-detailed for the scale, with brake detail and retraction jacks worthy of a larger scale. The windows, gear bays and the cockpit tub are all inserted into the fuselage halves which are then joined together, with a short bulkhead slipped into the wing root area to prevent the weight of the wings from pulling the seams apart later. The underside is covered up by an insert which surrounds the main gear bays, and closes over those areas that are normally shut on the ground with additional parts. The wings have clear light inserts in the root, which are installed before the halves are brought together, with a standard tab and slot fixture to the fuselage, which is repeated on the elevators on a smaller scale. The wings need their flap actuator housings adding, which are all separate parts made up from two halves each, and you will need to take care to get the correct one in the proper recess. The engines are made up from a pair of fans on a central spindle, which is slid into the aft section of the engine which has another set of blades moulded into the rear. The fans can be left mobile by carefully gluing the retaining ring in place, which is then hidden by the tail cone, and then further enclosed in the outer housing with the single-piece intake lip and the two different sized zig-zag exhaust lips that are there to reduce exhaust noises. The engines are all handed, so take care with construction again, as the strake on the bypass housing faces the fuselage. The outboard main wheels are added at the same time as the engines, and then it's just a case of adding some aerials, the main wheels and their brake assemblies, gear bay doors, and the clear glazing for the cockpit. Instructions are also given for the installation of the bay doors for an in-flight model, which requires a little cutting of the parts, but nothing too taxing for even a novice modeller. As an addition, a three-part stand is included on the sprues, which fits between the landing gear into some holes in the belly. A nice addition that will allow you to sprinkle a few smaller models around the 747 on your display shelf. Markings The new livery is a simple tail-band that you will have to mask and paint, with the Lufthansa logo on the tail, and the name on the familiar hump behind the cockpit. The windscreen, window frames and doorframe decals are also included, plus many, many lengths of walkway markings for the gargantuan wings and tail surfaces. A dark blue swatch of the correct colour for the dark blue is included for reference on the sheet, and as usual the colour call-outs are using Revell's own paints with the blue being a 90%/10% mix of gloss midnight blue and black. If you're mixing your paint for this task, it's always best to mix too much and store the spare paint in an empty pot until the project is finished, in case touch-ups are needed at any point. Conclusion It's a great modern tooling of the still-impressive former holder of the largest passenger aircraft trophy, and these new decals will look splendid on a well-painted model. A cockpit and gear bays are good to see, all of which adds extra realism to the model. Highly recommended. Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or
  9. Julien
    German Tank Crew at Work (35285) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Tanks despite looking cool demand a lot of hard work from their crews to work well. This is as true now as it was during WWII. This new set from Miniart shows a crew performing maintenance on their tank (well apart from the Officer taking a drink, so thats not changed either!). It arrives in a standard end-opening box, with three sprues of grey styrene inside plus a small sheet of PE as well as an instruction sheet and sprue guide. The painting and main construction diagrams are printed on the rear of the box, with colours called out in a large number of brands of paint for your ease. From the box you can build five figures, each having separate arms, legs head and torso, plus two caps. Three soldiers are cleaning the barrel, while a is holding some sort of tool. What appears to be an offer its taking a drink. There is a small sprue with two buckets on it, and an accessory sprue which provides various tools and tool boxes, the PE fret provides the doors for the open tool box and additional tools. The painting guide covers Vallejo, Mr. Color, LifeColor, Tamiya, Testors, AK Real Color, Humbrol, Revell, and Mission Models, with the names of the colours given in English and Ukrainian. Additional painted renditions of the accessories are also included for your use. Conclusion MiniArt's figures are excellent, and these figures can be used to give your Panzer a little human scale. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  10. Mike
    They do look identical even down to the accessories, but at £50 plus shipping, the DSPIAE branded ones at £26.80 delivered when I bought them start to look excellent value
  11. AndyRM101

    Single Blade Nipper 2.0 (ST-A)

    AndyRM101 replied to Mike's topic in Tools & Paint Reviews

    You can also get the same clippers with Meng branding, which are identical apart from the logo. Those ones may be a little easier to get hold of (I believe HLJ used to stock them; not sure if that's still the case), but they'll probably cost a little more than the original Dspiae ones. As Mike and others have said, the quality of these clippers is outstanding. I've been using them for about a year now and I've never damaged or broken part since switching to them*. They're also still as sharp today as when I first got them. *Disclaimer: I've damaged and broken many, many parts, just not as a result of using these clippers) Andy
  12. Mike
    I've ordered two of the cutters now from the UK directly from AliExpress, and both have got through unfettered. I couldn't tell you whether it was due to what was written on the waybill, as I didn't look at the time, but there you go
  13. Julien
    SEAL Team Fighter #2 ICM 1:24 24112 The US Navy Sea, Air and Land teams (SEALS) are the US Navy's Special Operations forces under the Special Operations Command. They are organised into Teams and have reportedly one of the hardest entry courses of Special forces as it includes a great deal of water borne elements. Full training can take over a year. Recently Seal Team 6 was in the news as part of the Osama bin Laden operation. This second figure depicts a seal kneeling after emerging from the water. There is a main sprure of the figure, one of equipment, a rubber spure with flippers and hoses; and a small clear spure with a dive mask lens. The torso is two parts (front & back). The left and right legs are one part each and are added to the torso. There is a mould seam on both sides of the leg to clean up. The arms are added and again these have mould seam to clean up, the shield then attached to one arm. The head is then fitted and a choice of a masked figure or with the mask up can be modelled. Additional swim equipment and other tactical equipment is then added. Conclusion This is a new kit of a modern Special Forces figure in a large enough scale for the detail to pop out. Review sample courtesy of
  14. Yesterday
  15. Tbolt
    Very tempted by these now. I bought their circle cutter at Telford and it's a beautiful piece of kit. I won't buy them direct though as everything I buy outside Europe over the £15 limit gets hit with import VAT ( even when the cost was under £16! ) so I'll buy from the UK or Europe.
  16. prowler0000

    Single Blade Nipper 2.0 (ST-A)

    prowler0000 replied to Mike's topic in Tools & Paint Reviews

    Been sniffin' around these for months. Read review..... SOLD! & as a new member, I saved 3 bucks! (however much >that< is! )
  17. Mike
    TBH, the hassle of ordering them online is negligible once you've created your account. I'm currently trying to resist the drill set and numerous other things
  18. BikKit

    Single Blade Nipper 2.0 (ST-A)

    BikKit replied to Mike's topic in Tools & Paint Reviews

    Great to read this as I just ordered a pair on Monday
  19. goon
    I've had mine for a few months. One of the best purchases I've ever made. Top quality.
  20. cmatthewbacon

    Single Blade Nipper 2.0 (ST-A)

    cmatthewbacon replied to Mike's topic in Tools & Paint Reviews

    +1 here. I’ve heard people complain about the price or the hassle of ordering (get them at a show if you can), but that’s like complaining about the price of a Ferrari vs an Audi TT(Xuron) or Mondeo (Modelcraft). They just work at a different level: I’ve reduced clean up time dramatically, and not lost a single, however fragile, part to breakage or the carpet monster since I got mine as a birthday present last year... best, M.
  21. Mike
    Single Blade Nipper 2.0 (ST-A) DSPIAE I'd never heard of DSPIAE until a friend of mine was muttering about the new sprue cutters he'd bought at Telford (thanks Dan), and how awesome they were. I was in the market for a set, as my old Xuron pair weren't looking too good, and I was sick of the crush-marks that were being left in parts when I removed them from their sprues. Post-Telford they were only available from the AliExpress shopping platform, so I took my life in my hands and ordered a pair. It wasn't too painful, and after I got over an initial inability to pay by card, the order was completed and I was kept apprised of progress toward delivery by email from the AliExpress platform. About a week later and a small box arrived with the DSPIAE logo on it. Inside the box was a shrink-wrapped black box with an overlapping lid made from sturdy card. Inside the lid is a card insert with a small holster for the blade visible, with cleaning cloth, plastic cover and instructions hidden inside. Removing that shows off the final layer containing the nippers and an adjustment wrench in a card-topped custom foam surround. The interior of the lid is a bright red, in keeping with the overall black/red theme that carries on a feeling of quality. Each nipper is also individually ID coded, which enables the buyer to confirm their purchase's authenticity and access product support if necessary. The adjustment wrench has a rounded Allen head that you use to change the limit of closure of the jaws, to ensure a clean cut with no stragglers, whilst maintaining the sharpness of the single blade by preventing it from mashing unfettered into the non-cutting jaw. The handles are 90mm across when open, and the length from stem to tip of blade is 110mm, so they're quite a compact set of cutters, but don't let that put you off if you have large hands. My mitts are fairly large, and I have no trouble using them, with the red foam grips making maintaining a good grip on them simple. Afterall, the last thing you want to do is drop them on a hard floor. I could show you some pictures of pieces of sprue that I have cut with the nippers, but that's not going to tell you much other than it's a clean cut. What a picture will not tell you is that the cutting process is smooth beyond all belief and almost effortless. I can honestly say that it has completely changed the way I cut parts from sprues, and has given me increased confidence that the result will be clean and require much less in the way of clean-up than previously achieved with side-cutters. Simply place the cutters close to the part, and lightly scissor the jaws closed. That's it. A beautiful, clean cut that is close to the part, and has not harmed, stressed or crushed the surrounding styrene in any way. It also applies much less pressure to the parts when cutting, so you're less likely to have any breakages as a result. For example, when cutting off fine tubular parts with multiple sprue gates, the sideways and lateral pressure of a standard cutter squeezing the gate can cause the parts to shatter as the gate widens by the thickness of the blade. This shouldn't be an issue with these nippers, and I have successfully cut a number of parts that would have otherwise been subject to this concern. With very small parts, you need to be careful to place the blades properly against the sprue gates, as the slightly wider nature of the non-cutting jaw can conceivably push the blade off course. With that in mind however, it should no-longer be an issue. That's the only caveat, and you'd only do it once! Note the comparative smoothness of the cut on the left compared with that of the right The instructions name all the components of the nippers and also give names to the accessories, such as the "nipper holster", which will be useful if you are storing your nippers in a tool box or transporting them. This will protect the blade, and also protect the world from tiny amounts of grease that are lubricating the pivot. There is also a plastic cover for the blade, which is very tight-fitting, but would protect your blade from much greater impacts than the leatherette holster, so it has a use. The little microfibre cloth is wrapped in a foil bag, and is DSPIAE branded in one of its radiused corners – very nice quality too. The instructions are a little "Chinglish" in places, but the jist is plain to see, with a final warning that you should under NO circumstances attempt to cut anything other than styrene, ABS or polyurethane resin with the blade, or it will damage it. Shortening polyurethane to PE may not have been the best idea however, as someone is bound to think that's the hobby's de-facto standard shortcut for Photo-Etch instead, with resulting damage. If you've read this however, hopefully you won't. Conclusion I wouldn't think you'd catch me enthusing about a simple sprue-cutter in such a gushing manner, but these things really are that good. Their performance when compared to other brands is like that of chalk and cheese, so they are most definitely worth the extra cost in my opinion, which when you remove the shipping cost makes them pretty good value. I have purchased two from DSPIAE now, plus a couple of pairs of their tweezers, and so far they have not been stopped by customs (presumably due to their low value), but always bear this in mind when purchasing from overseas. Oh, and before you ask. At this stage I have no idea what DSPIAE stands for - other than really good quality tools. Extremely highly recommended. This link and the one below takes you to DSPIAE's AliExpress shop, with lots of interesting tools for the modeller. Britmodeller cannot be held responsible for the amount of money you spend when you see what's available. Review sample purchased from
  22. Julien
    SEAL Team Fighter #1 ICM 1:24 24111 The US Navy Sea, Air and Land teams (SEALS) are the US Navy's Special Operations forces under the Special Operations Command. They are organised into Teams and have reportedly one of the hardest entry courses of Special forces as it includes a great deal of water borne elements. Full training can take over a year. Recently Seal Team 6 was in the news as part of the Osama bin Laden operation. This first figure depicts a seal emerging from, or just out of the water. There is a main sprure of the figure, one of equipment, a rubber spure with flippers and hoses; and a small clear spure with a dive mask lens. The torso is two parts (front & back). The left and right legs are one part each and are added to the torso. There is a mould seam on both sides of the leg to clean up. The arms are added and again these have mould seam to clean up, the shield then attached to one arm. The head is then fitted and a choice of a masked figure or with the mask up can be modelled. Additional swim equipment and other tactical equipment is then added. Conclusion This is a new kit of a modern Special Forces figure in a large enough scale for the detail to pop out. Review sample courtesy of
  23. DByrden
    You wrote "Only one Tiger (P) was ever built to completion". Actually, ten of them were completed. The first eight were a match for this kit; the final two had a different turret. It was one of these two that served on the Eastern Front. Its turret had a side hatch and a different roof, and its hull had extra armour, so it can't be made from this kit. David
  24. Julien
    F-101B Update sets, Seatbelts & Masks 1:48 Eduard for Kitty Hawk Kit The new tool F-101B from Kitty Hawk was welcomed in this scale. Eduard are now along with some sets for it. Get what you want for the areas you want to be more of a focal point. As usual with Eduard's Photo-Etch (PE) and Mask sets, they arrive in a flat resealable package, with a white backing card protecting the contents and the instructions that are sandwiched between. Interior Set (49941) This set has one pre-painted fret, and one brass one. You get cockpit details, instrument panels, and side panels. Parts for the seats & rails, canopy rails & mirrors, rudder pedals, and many other smaller cockpit parts. Zoom! Set (FE941) This set contains a reduced subset of the interior set (the colour fret) set, namely the pre-painted parts that are used to improve on the main aspects of the cockpit, as seen above. Whatever your motivations for wanting this set, it provides a welcome boost to detail, without being concerned with the structural elements. Exterior Set (48979) This set contains as the name would suggest parts for the aircraft exterior. This set is one sheet of PE. There are new landing gear doors and new parts for the landing gear bays, links and brake lines on the gear legs. There are new parts for the weapons pallet. For the prominent rear air brakes there are new internal parts and complete new air brakes to make up. There are new burner rings for the engines and a few external panels as well as fillers for the fuel tanks. Seatbelts (FE942) This set contains one pre-painted fret. There are seatbelts, in the now familiar steel material for both seats. Masks (EX631) Supplied on yellow kabuki tape, these pre-cut masks supply you with a full set of masks for the exterior glazing and wheels. Tface Masks (EX632) Supplied on yellow kabuki tape, these pre-cut masks supply you with a full set of masks for the interior & exterior glazing; plus the wheels. Review samples courtesy of
  25. Mike
    WWII German and Soviet Figures Paint Sets (A.MIG-7021 & A.MIG-7023) AMMO of Mig Jiménez Mig Jiménez's company AMMO has been producing acrylic paints now for some years, and they have a deservedly good reputation in the hobby. There are an ever-widening range of shades, available singly and in sets to bolster your collection and make painting specific themes easier. These two sets are under the Figures Sets banner, and are designed as a one-stop pack to permit you to paint uniforms with the addition of a brush and a little skill. Each set arrives in a blister pack with four 17ml dropper-type bottles that have a white cap, but still have the little metal mixing balls that you'll find in all the new paints from AMMO. The header card has a figure on the rear with the colour call-outs showing where they have been used in painting the examples, although you'll have to visit the AMMO website for a little more assistance with techniques, where you'll find lots of help in video and step-through form. Furthermore, a new set of encyclopaedia books for figure painting are underway, so if you're a little clueless on how to achieve the superb results you see online and at shows, prepare yourself to be enlightened. We'll bring you some reviews of these books and the other figure-related products that are being released to coincide with the books in the near future. German Field Grey uniforms (A.MIG-7021) AMMOF512 FIELD GREY FS-34159 AMMOF513 FIELD GREY HIGHLIGHT FS-34414 AMMOF514 FIELD GREY SHADOW FS-34086 AMMOF502 OUTLINING BLACK Soviet Uniforms WWII (A.MIG-7023) AMMOF503 DARK OLIVE GREEN FS-34130 AMMOF504 YELLOW GREEN FS-34259 AMMOF505 PALE YELLOW GREEN FS-33481 AMMOF506 MEDIUM RUSSIAN GREEN FS-34092 More sets will be along soon, so we'll expand this review as time goes by. Review sample courtesy of
  26. Mike
    Bristol Beaufighter – Airframe Album 14 A Detailed Guide to Bristol's Hard-Hitting Twin Valiant Wings Publishing Based upon the Beaufort bomber, the whittled-down heavy fighter became an excellent nightfighter, ground-attack and maritime strike in European and South Pacific theatres, with many variants and improvements along the way. Entering service in time for the Battle of Britain, it quickly fell into the nightfighter role, with its ability to carry heavy armament and equipment without unduly affecting its performance endearing it to the pilots and strategists alike. After being re-engined early on with Hercules radial engines to gain the extra power needed, it became a common sight behind German bombers at night, raking them with four 20mm cannon and wings full of six additional machine guns. The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) were also fond of the type, as it was able to carry enough munitions in either free-fall or rocket-propelled forms to deal a substantial blow to any enemy shipping it happened upon. The Mosquito coming on-stream took some of the limelight away from the Beau, and it was eventually replaced by it in many roles, most notably the night fighting arena. The Book The fourteenth volume of the popular and interesting Airframe Album series by Richard A Franks details this pugnacious heavy fighter, its versions, trials and tribulations. It spans 178 pages and is perfect bound in an A4(ish) portrait format. If you are familiar with the series you will know what to expect, with the book broken down into sections, as follows: i. Introduction A brief narrative history of the development and operation use of the Beaufighter by Fighter & Coastal Commands and the FAA, as well as those by the USAAF and supplied to other nations. 1. Technical Description Detailed coverage of construction and equipment 2. Evolution – Prototype, Production and Projected Variants 3D isometrics illustrating differences between variants 3. Camouflage and Markings Colour side profiles, notes and photographs 4. Models A build of the 1:72nd scale TF.Mk.X from Airfix by Libor Jekl and the all-new 1:48th scale TF.X from Revell by Steve A Evans. Appendices I Beaufighter Kit List II Beaufighter Accessory, Mask & Decal List III Bibliography As usual with Valiant's books, the pictures are both high quality and unusual, with lots of "behind the scenes" shots of production, testing and their ultimate capture by the Allies, plus plenty more pictures of museum examples for those needing reference pictures. I always find the 3D Isometrics very interesting to discern the differences between variants, especially as I have the memory of a goldfish. I particularly enjoyed the teaching installations that consisted of the front end of a Beaufighter, inner wings and nacelles, and behind the wing a scabbed on shed (yes – a garden variety shed) that was used as a classroom. What a brilliant diorama that would make! Conclusion Valiant Wings publish a good book about interesting subjects, and this is another one that tweaked mine right away. If you're a modeller, aviation buff or even just interested in engineering, this will make an interesting read, which you'll come back to again when you need it for references. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  27. Last week
  28. Viking
    Albatros D.III OEFFAG Overtrees 1:48 Eduard (8241X) Albatros D.III OEFFAG 153 PE-Set 1:48 Eduard (8241-LEPT) Albatros D.III OEFFAG 253 PE-Set 1:48 Eduard (8242-LEPT) Plastic ‘Overtrees’. From time to time Eduard offer some of their kits as ‘Overtrees’ editions. These contain just the plastic parts for the particular model with no instructions or decals, and come in a plain white box. The idea is that with the multiple options for markings in most Eduard kits, you can use these overtrees to build another of the options provided in the original kit. Also, you can use them with aftermarket decals, as even if you don’t have the original kit, Eduard provide the instructions in pdf format on their website. This release offers all five plastic sprues from the OEFFAG 152 / 153 kits, and will enable you to build one or the other, with the options of ‘prop & spinner’ , ‘blunt’, or ‘snub’ noses, and internal or externally mounted machine guns. It is therefore compatible with any of Eduard’s previous OEFFAG releases and can be used with any of the optional decals within them., for example the recently reviewed 'Viribus Unitis Dual Combo reviewed here. which contains two kits and nine finishing options! Note that this overtree box contains one aircraft. It is beautifully moulded with fine and accurate detail, and builds up very nicely with no issues. It is certainly one of the best 1:48 biplane kits available. Often when you buy a new kit, it can be hard to decide which option to finish it in, and you can find yourself dithering between your two (or three!) favourite choices. These overtree releases are a great idea, and offer a cheap and effective way to get another set of sprues, and build all the options you want!# Etched sets. Should you want to add the set of etched items to your overtree kit, fear not for they are also available to accompany it. There is a set each for the OEFFAG 152 and the OEFFAG 253 with quite a lot of differences between them, so you may need to decide which one you are going to build before you order. Two frets are supplied in each, and like the overtree kit they do come with any instructions. In both sets the smaller fret is pre-painted and holds the instruments and seatbelts, but the seatbelts are quite different styles. The main frets are unpainted and share some common parts, but the 153 has a complete seat, ‘blunt’ nose plate, and undercarriage mounting strap. Both have parts for the engine, inspection covers, elevator control horns & wires, propeller hub, wheels, and several minor details. Conclusion. A great idea, these sets are only available direct from Eduards own website. Get them while you can, they are always popular and sell out rapidly. Review samples courtesy of
  1. Load more activity
×