John Thompson

Hello! Is there a possibility that you will reissue MicroMir decal sheet 48-002 for the Yak-1b? I have not been able to find an online shop which still has it in stock; it seems that it became unavailable very soon after it was released. Thank you for any information you can give me! John

I like the weathered aluminum finish, although the builder seems to have missed the ever-controversial puttied panel lines on the wings. John

I wouldn't expect 1/72 right off the bat, as much as I'd like that myself; more likely 1/48, with 1/72 to follow sometime in the misty future. Or not, depending on the whim of the unpredictable Mr Tamiya. There's been so much comment about the "need" for a 1/72 P-51B from Tamiya, I'm surprised that this version isn't next up, but what do I know? John

My thought exactly - the aircraft you're referring to is "Polar Bear" - a recovered Allison P-51 wreck, restored using P-51D fuselage components and a P-51D wing assembly (more wing root LEX hassles!): http://www.warbirdregistry.org/p51registry/p51-436006.html John

I believe Waltersons is either the parent of, or a renaming of, the company called Forces of Valor. Their Spitfire Mk.IX was a serious disappointment; the images on 72 news show the P-51D to have at least what looks like a reasonable cowling cross section, if nothing else. John

Same thing on the La-5FN, if I remember correctly. John

Aaak!!! Please, no 109 images - it looks so good, now I'm wanting one of those!!! Thanks for the photos of the Il-2 sprues. As Jan said, one or two weeks, and then those of us not fortunate enough to be able to visit Hungary will be able to order them on-line! John

Nicely done! I'm envious - enjoy! John

Sorry - yes, you're right. SBS, Quickboost, and Zebrano all make resin corrections for it, so something must be wrong with it! John

Yeah, Dennis, I kind of suspected that politics might have something to do with it, but I didn't want to come right out and say it. John

Now that you've launched the two Il-2 kits at Moson, when will these be available for ordering? I checked your web site, but they're not there yet. Cheers; John

While the Eduard 1/72 La-7 isn't perfect, I'm not aware of any glaring shape problems (the oil cooler housing isn't great, mind you), nor am I aware of a 1/72 La-7 from Gavia. John

Yes, well, welcome to the reality of VVS modelbuilding, in any scale. At least in 1/72 we have a reasonably good La-7, thanks to Eduard. On the other hand, 1/48 has very good kits of the Yak-9DD and Yak-1b from Modelsvit, while these aircraft are very poorly represented in 1/72. It just seems that there's limited interest in Russian WWII aircraft in the "West", so therefore, limited sales prospects. This is regardless of how colorful and attractive the markings and camouflage schemes of these aircraft may be, or of the heroism of their pilots. I've been hoping for something better for 20 - 30 years, but improvements have been few and far between. All I can say is, don't give up! John

FWIW, Eidai (or Arii, maybe reboxed?) did a few 1/72 civil aviation types some years ago - Cessna 172 Skyhawk (wheeled and floatplane versions), Cessna 337/O2 Skymaster, Beechcraft Bonanza, Fuji Aerosubaru, even a Bede BD-5J; probably some others. I have the 172 floatplane and maybe the Bonanza stashed away - I recall that these were decent enough kits, although probably very hard to find now. I'm not suggesting AZ should not release modern kits of these aircraft, I only offer this information in the spirit of the nostalgic trend already established! John

Heresy!!! But otherwise, a very sensible analysis... John