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Leopard 2A6 Armed Forces of Ukraine (72820) 1:72 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd The Leopard 2 is the successor to the earlier Leopard Main Battle Tank (MBT), and was developed in the 1970s, entering service just before the turn of the decade. The original had a vertical faced turret front, while later variants had improved angled armour applied to the turret front that gives the tank a more aggressive look and provides superior protection, and more likelihood of deflecting incoming rounds harmlessly away. It has all the technical features of a modern MBT, including stabilised main gun for firing on the move, thermal imaging, and advanced composite armour, making it a world-class contender as one of the best tanks on the market. The original Leopard 2 variant entered service in 1979, but has been through several upgrades through its service life and the current production variant is the highly advanced 2A7+, with the 2A8 waiting in the wings. The 2A6 is still a powerful battlefield resource however, and likely to be so for some considerable time. It sports the Rheinmetall 120mm smoothbore gun with the barrel extended over the A5, which results in a higher muzzle velocity that improves its penetration power over its predecessor, allowing it to reach targets at a greater range and hit harder. It also has an armoured ammunition storage space in the turret that is engineered to blow outward in the event of a detonation of munitions, which again improves the crew survivability further. For close-in defence they are fitted with an MG3 machine gun, and the armour is installed to give it an arrow-head front profile to the turret, as well as several more subtle upgrades that follow on from the 2A5. Sales of the Leopard 2 have been good overseas because of its reputation, and Canada, Turkey, Spain and most of the Nordic countries use it as well as many other smaller operators. Since the unlawful invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2022, many nations have been providing military and other strategic assistance to keep the brave Ukrainians able to defend their nation against the aggressor. Although Germany initially appeared reticent to proffer their leading-edge A6 variants to a non-NATO nation, they eventually supplied A4 and A5 variants, but policy changes led to a small number of the more capable A6s being added to the roster, to be used as “tip-of-the-spear” at the centre of the attack to punch a hole in the front line and give the less capable tanks a helping hand. Unfortunately, there aren’t enough available of the A6 to spare from the nations that are supplying them, or more would doubtless be forthcoming. The Kit This kit is based upon a tooling that was initially released by Revell in 2011, and has since been re-released several times in their boxes, and is now in an ICM box with additional styrene and PE parts. The kit arrives in a top-opening box with a painting of a 2A6 wearing slat armour around its turret, while the lower tray has a captive lid, and inside are six sprues of various sizes in grey styrene, a fret of Photo-Etch (PE) brass, although it has a more coppery tone, a small decal sheet, and the instruction booklet, which is printed in colour on glossy paper and has the painting profiles on the rearmost pages. Detail is good, and the addition of PE slat armour will give it a more realistic look with careful painting and weathering. Construction begins with drilling holes in the lower hull sides, then gluing them to the underside and supporting the structure by adding an internal T-shaped bulkhead into a slot within the hull at roughly the engine firewall position. Much of the suspension is moulded into the hull sides, adding extra parts to enhance this, then fitting the swing-arms, stub-axles and return rollers over the sides, then making two drive-sprockets, two pairs of idler wheels and fourteen pairs of road wheels to complete the running gear ready for installation of the tracks, which are moulded in two lengths per side in styrene. After gluing the four parts into two lengths, the instructions advise heating the tracks in hot water so that they will bend around the rounded ends of the runs, of course taking care not to burn or scald yourself in the process. You are advised to wrap them around the upper run first, hiding the joint on the lower run, cutting superfluous links from the tracks to keep them taut. Once the tracks are in place, the upper hull and rear bulkhead with moulded-in radiator grilles are glued in place, followed by three-part side-skirts, and a set of grousers applied to the fenders above the front mudguard. Towing shackles are fitted low on the rear bulkhead along with the convoy shield, and adding pioneer tools to the engine deck, which includes a pair of towing cables with moulded-in eyes. The glacis plate has the driver’s hatch installed, more towing shackles, and two L-shaped palettes of track grousers arranged around the shackles and headlights, with a two-link run of spare track-links in the centre. A stowage box is applied further up the glacis under the gun barrel, attention then turning toward the massive low-profile turret. Firstly, the single-part barrel is inserted into the mantlet block, bracketing it with side plates, the port side having the coax machine gun moulded-in. A long narrow top plate is then fitted, and the completed assembly is put to one side while the turret body is made, starting with the floor, adding a bustle plate at the rear, and cheek panels to the front, so that the barrel can be slotted between the cheeks on separate trunnions, using no glue if you wish to leave the barrel mobile. The turret roof has an insert added from inside under the TV sighting box, then it is glued over the lower turret, and the side detail panels are fitted, inserting a trio of lifting lugs around the turret roof. Appliqué armour panels are attached to the sides, including an arrow-head part to the sides of the similarly-shaped mantlet armour, adding surrounds to the commander and the gunner’s cupolas, then fitting the two-layer hatches, with a choice of posing them open or closed, plus a wide vision block to the front of the commander’s cupola. The TV sighting box can be posed with the doors open or closed by either placing the single part over the opening, or cutting it in two, positioning the two parts on either side of the box, as per the scrap diagram nearby. Tapering stowage cages are made for the bustle by cutting a small section from the long flat part, folding the styrene around, and securing it with glue and a separate inner face. The smoke grenade barrels are mounted above and below a shallow shelf, making two pairs that fit in the space between the bustle cages and frontal armour, adding an optional MG3 mount to the gunner’s cupola, and a two-part 360° periscope to the commander's. For one decal option, two rectangular PE parts are applied to the rear of the bustle cages made earlier. The turret can be twisted into position in the ring on the hull and locked into place, which is the end of the basic build, to be followed by the new parts. The PE fret includes both slat armour for the turret and additional panels to fit on the side skirts and at the front of the glacis plate. There are styrene brackets for the turret sides, consisting of three sizes, tapering toward the rear, which supports the slat armour after bending the first section slightly inwards. The flat panels are glued in place without bending, but if you check your references, you will notice that they become bent and damaged over time, which is easy to replicate with PE parts. A styrene travel-lock can be slipped over the barrel before inserting the muzzle tip, locking in place between the circular vents on the engine deck, and a pair of wing-mirrors are applied to the front of the vehicle, either deployed, or folded-in for their protection during combat. Markings There are four decal options included on the tiny sheet, all ostensibly camouflaged the same, but with differing individual markings applied to each vehicle. There’s no information given regarding the dates and locations that these units are depicted, but that’s hardly surprising, given the fact that it’s an ongoing conflict. From the box you can build one of the following: Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion A thoughtful reboxing of Revell’s kit, depicting actual in-service machines, rather than a quick reboxing. The base kit is good, and a more accurate build will result from using the extra parts. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Typ 320 (W142) Cabriolet B (35543) 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd In the 30s, Mercedes replaced their 290 chassis with the longer 320 in 1937, offering a standard or longer chassis variant, the latter being the basis for the top-of-the-range Cabriolet body format. The extra length gave the vehicle a sleeker, more sporty appearance, which coupled with a raked radiator grille, lack of light bar, and the canvas roof made it all the more streamlined in appearance. Under the bonnet was a 3.2 litre straight-six side-valved petrol engine that produced 78hp and a top speed over 120km/h or 75mph. Power was delivered via a four-speed manual gearbox with synchromesh on all forward gears, which was a luxury at the time. In military service as a staff car, the 320 was fitted with a shrouded convoy light on the left wing, and could also have a short mast on the same wing to display the occupant’s allegiances, battalion etc., with a spare tyre on both sides, which was a common fitment even in civilian service. In 1938 an updated model was introduced, with displacement bored out to 3.4 litres and adding overdrive to shorten the journey to top speed, although the documented HP wasn’t increased, possibly due to de-tuning of the engine to accommodate inferior fuel quality that was beginning to become a necessity as Germany geared up for war. The Kit This is a reboxing of a partial retool that was based upon the hard-top version released by ICM in 2016, depicted with a retracted hood that when deployed keeps the passengers safe from precipitation or cold. It arrives in a top-opening box with the usual captive lid on the lower tray, and inside are two large sprues and a smaller one in grey styrene, three pairs of black flexible tyres on small sprues, a clear sprue, decal sheet, and instruction booklet, where you’ll find the decals tucked away. The instructions are printed on glossy paper in colour, with profiles on the rear pages to help with painting and decaling. Detail is excellent, and extends to a full engine and transmission, plus a very crisp interior, as well as a very natural depiction of the stowed roof. Construction begins with the engine, the block and transmission being made from two halves with the sump and cylinder head added from above and below. The air box and exhaust manifold along with the down pipe are made and attached to the right side of the motor, adding the dynamo and other ancillaries to the left side, the serpentine belts and pulleys to the front with the fan, and more hoses and the distributor pot on the top. The chassis rails are each made from two parts to achieve the correct length, adding short outriggers to the outsides, and a large cross-member at the rear of the chassis that holds the rails in the correct tapering attitude, as well as having moulded-in details of the rear differential on the lower side. Two more cross-members support the frame, adding the differential, axle and drive-shaft down the centreline, and the front suspension arms with their leaf-spring and coils, plus twin coils and other parts installed over the top of the rear axle. The rear wheels are created by inserting the two sides of the hubs into the holes in the tyres so they can be slipped onto the ends of the axles, adding a two-part fuel tank in the rear at the same time. The motor and bumper are fixed in the front, and joined by a pair of wing supports and the radiator, which plugs into the pipes leading to and from the engine, then the floor pan can be lowered onto the chassis, including the rear panel below the boot in-between the moulded-in rear wings. Before turning the vehicle right-side-up, the single part exhaust and two mufflers are inserted, attaching to the end of the down pipe and a tab just in front of the rear axle. Inside the cab, the pedals, gear lever and hand brake are all installed in the left footwell and transmission tunnel, followed by the firewall that has the windscreen frame moulded-in, fitting the two-pane glazing and the dashboard before it is inserted into the space between the cab and engine bay, adding a few knobs and a binnacle decal before you do. A dash pot is popped into the engine side of the firewall, and the long steering column is threaded through into the cab with the lower end buried deep in the engine bay. Both front and rear seats are bench-type, and their bottom cushions are each made from a main part with a rear edge that has a recess to accommodate the transmission tunnel moulded-in, fitting into the cab on paired pegs at both ends, and they are joined by the rear cushions that have their backs glued into place before fitting. The body sides are next, inserting door cards with handles and winders before they are latched on pegs to the floor pan, fitting the boot panel and a two-part steering wheel, then the radiator grille that is stabilised by an X-brace that fits into holes in the firewall. The side windows front and rear attach to the sides via pegs, and the bonnet covers the engine, but with a bit of surgery it could be posed open. The two spare tyres are made in a similar three-part arrangement as the others, and are locked in place in recesses in the front wings by brackets running between the tyres and body. The windscreen has a rear-view mirror and two sun visors fitted to the top interior, and two wiper arms are added to holes in the outside near the centre of each pane at the bottom, dotting lights, handles, and indicators around the front of the vehicle as appropriate, including a three-pointed star motif on the top of the radiator. At the rear are tiny light clusters and twin handles for the boot, fixing the rear bumper to the rear panel. The folded canvas hood is made two main parts plus two side sections that are moulded with creases and folds for realism, adding the metal outer framework after it is glued to the back of the vehicle. Markings There are four decal options and you’d be forgiven for thinking any colour as long as it’s black, but you’d be wrong, because there are some stylish colour options, and of course you can choose any colour you like for these civilian cars. From the box you can build one of the following: Province of Brandenburg, Late 1930s Province of Hanover, Late 1930s State District Upper Bavaria, Late 1930s Berlin, Late 1930s Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion A sleek Merc for the transport of the well-heeled civilian around the countryside, with plenty of detail that should allow a realistic replica of the type to be made. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Feldküche – Field Kitchen with Cooks (35618) 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd The idiom “an army marches on its stomach” was attributed to Napolean amongst others over the centuries, and its meaning is that without food, an army will be unable to advance after a relatively short period of time, a situation that Napoleon’s army found themselves in when they invaded Russia in 1812. Sustenance is crucial for the ongoing wellness of any person, and for a soldier that is expected to fight when they reach their destination, it is doubly important. With the industrialisation of warfare, the provision of food to keep soldiers fit, healthy and ready to fight was similarly modernised, creating “field kitchens” that were highly mobile, and could be set up quickly at any sensible location, often a field as the name suggests. Once halted, the wood-fired ovens were lit, and a meal was either cooked from scratch or pre-prepared repasts such as stews or soup could be warmed up for expediency and to keep the soldiers warm during winter campaigns. Germany’s WWII Feldküche was sometimes referred to as the Gulaschkanone, due to the way in which its chimney folded horizontally for transport, giving it the look of an artillery piece from some angles if you squinted. The Kit The main sprues of this kit were seen earlier in a boxing that came with a truck to transport the kitchen, so while ICM’s statement of being 100% new tooling might be slightly optimistic, the main sprues are only a couple of months old. It has now been re-released without a vehicle, but with a set of figures to cook up the food for the soldiers, and it arrives in a shallow top-opening box with a captive flap on the lower tray. Inside are four sprues, although in this boxing the two outriggers of one of the sprues have been nipped off in order to fit within the smaller box. A decal sheet and instruction booklet complete the package, printed in colour with profiles on the rear pages for the two decal options. Detail is good, and as usual ICM’s figures are excellent, with realistic poses and sensible parts breakdown. Construction begins with the body of the kitchen that has a large circular cooking area for mixing and keeping the Goulash warm, which is first evidenced by a circular depression in the floor, fitting the rear of the box to it, then adding the sides, and an internal divide, finishing off with the front of the body. The top has a raised edge to a circular cut-out, and this has a large pan with curved bottom edges glued underneath before it too is fitted to the top of the body, creating two raised areas by doing so, which have their own tops that have bases of other storage areas, adding the lids to each one and the central circular lid to keep the goulash warm. The chimney is made from two halves, with a rib around the lower end that shows where it folds, but it is moulded as one length for this boxing at least. It mates to the top of the kitchen on a raised rim, then work begins on the kitchen’s chassis, which is more akin to that of a horse-drawn carriage, which is appropriate, as it was sometimes pulled by horses when vehicles weren’t available. The axle is fitted to the leaf-springs moulded into the curved chassis rails, adding a cross-brace and triangular web toward the towing eye. The finished frame is then glued under the body of the kitchen, fitting three covers to vents under the fireboxes, one having a short ladder that could be folded down or out to add extra working space, or to hang cloths to dry next to the warm ovens. Two one-piece cart wheels are fitted to the ends of the axle, fixing a front rail under the kitchen, which has a V-shaped support to add strength. The final part is a support pole that is used to keep the kitchen level when unhitched, stopping the whole thing from pitching forward due to the weight of the A-frame, or back due to the weight of the goulash. There are several accessories to be made that can be used to create a scene around the kitchen, which includes a metal jug with conical top; two jerry cans with prototypical triple handles; two buckets with separate handles; two wooden crates made from six parts each; four large sacks, six smaller sacks of ingredients with tied tops, and four oval metal storage containers with separate lids. Figures The new sprue contains parts for four figures, consisting of a standing chef, a seated potato-peeler, a man chopping wood on a stump to fuel the fire, and a final figure bringing a Jerry can of water to use during cooking. The parts for each figure are found in separate areas of the sprue for ease of identification, and parts breakdown is sensibly placed along clothing seams or natural breaks to minimise clean-up of the figures once they are built up. The sculpting is typically excellent, as we’ve come to expect from ICM’s artists and tool-makers, with natural poses, drape of clothing and textures appropriate to the parts of the model. Various accessories are included on the sprue, from open bags of potatoes, logs of various sizes for the axeman to chop, a work table, cutting board and several sausages ready for chopping by the chef’s moulded-in knife. He also wears a chef’s hat and apron in case anyone wondered. Markings There are two colour options as you might already expect, either early war Panzer Grey, or later war Dark Yellow (Dunkelgelb). The decals include stencils for the kitchen, and the accessories, plus battalion markings, and on the grey option, a little nose art on the sides of the kitchen. From the box you can build one of the following: Pre-1943 Colour Scheme Post-1943 Colour Scheme Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion A field kitchen without figures is simply a piece of equipment. Once you add figures, it becomes alive with humanity and a sense of purpose, which is furthered by the quality of figures, and the detail of the kitchen itself. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Studebaker US6-U3 in German Service (35493) 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd Before WWII, Studebaker began development of a 2.5-ton truck for military and civilian use, that was capable of working equally well off-road and on, with a 6 x 6 drivetrain giving it good grip in all weathers. It was up against substantial competition however, and other designs were found to have better performance under the conditions prevalent in locations where the type was to be used, the Studebaker being better suited to cold weather operations. The first trucks arrived in the USSR in 1941 under the Lend/Lease agreement, where it was well-liked, resulting in Soviet Russia being the major overseas operator of the type, calling it the ‘Studer’ in their service, where they adapted it to various roles, including most famously as a Katyusha rocket launcher. It was powered by a 5.2L straight-six petrol engine that could output around 86hp and drove all six wheels, while the over-engineered engine boasted a low compression ratio that made it extremely reliable. It was its reliability and ruggedness that endeared it to its operators and drivers, and inspired Joseph Stalin to write a note after the war congratulating Studebaker on the design of the vehicle, and telling them of how useful it had been to their war effort. Many Studers were used post WWII in the Soviet Union, often with their military equipment removed. Even after retirement, the cab and general configuration was also used as the pattern for the GAZ-51 truck, although heavily modified due to technological progress in the meantime. The Kit The origin of this kit stems from 2007, when it was first released, but there have been many variants and additional parts added to the tooling in the interim, and it still gives the impression of being a thoroughly modern kit, with some impressive detail, and a tilt is included in this boxing. The kit arrives in a top-opening box with the usual captive flap on the lower tray, and inside are six sprues of various sizes and a slide-moulded tilt in grey styrene, a clear sprue in a separate bag, and a decal sheet between the pages of the colour printed instruction booklet that has profiles of the decal options on the rearmost pages. As already mentioned, detail is good, and the kit is a full chassis offering, with engine, cab, chassis and bodywork all provided, including a rather complex, single-part transmission system that is found under the ladder chassis. Construction begins unsurprisingly with the ladder chassis, spacing the two main rails apart with six cross-members of various designs, some of which are made from 2, 3 or four parts, plus more dotted around the chassis, and a pair of leaf springs at the front, which locate in recesses in the outer faces of the rails. The chassis is finished at the ends by a large bumper bar at the front, and a pair of sprung R-shaped forms on either side of the towing shackle. The engine is next, basing the work on a two-part block with separate cylinder head, end caps with fan-belt moulded into one end, air intake box and pathway, plus other ancillaries, and the fan itself. The gearbox is created from three parts and is mated with the rear of the engine, lowering the motor into the chassis and coupling up the radiator assembly, which has been made from inner and outer faces, plus header tank and feeder hose that links to the top of the engine, adding the exhaust system under the engine, leading back to a separate muffler that has the exhaust moulded-in, exiting the side of the chassis behind the cab. The monolithic power-transfer system is fleshed out with separate halves of the differential castings, plus half the casing of the transfer boxes between the front and rear wheels. A steering linkage is added to the front axle, and the completed assembly is then installed under the chassis, linking the first drive-shaft to the rear of the gearbox, and locating the three axles onto their mountings. At this stage the rear axles don’t yet have their springs, first needing the central mount between the twin axles, after which the inverted leaf springs, dampers, and tie-bars can be installed, plus more linkages added to the front axle both for steering and damping. Two sets of running boards are attached to the chassis by L-brackets on each side of where the cab will be, accompanied by a three-part fuel tank on the left side, and a two-part spare wheel on the right. The US6 rolled along on ten wheels, four sets of pairs that are made from five parts, and two singles at the front, each made from main carcass and inner sidewall, trapping a disc in the centre, in case you wish to leave the wheels mobile. The completed wheels are attached to the six axle ends with care, then the bodywork can begin. Work on the cab begins with the roof, windscreen frame and scuttle that are moulded as a single part, fitting the shallow-V shaped glazing from outside, and adding supports to the sides, with the dashboard inserted from beneath, applying three dial decals during the process. The firewall and kick board part has the lower sills and bottoms of the A-pillars glued to each side, mating them with the roof assembly once the glue has cured. The steering column has the wheel and separate boss applied to the top, joining it to the underside of the dash and kick board, then adding the three foot pedals around the base, mounting the four controls and gear lever on the floor, and the bench seat after building it from just three parts, including the base. The floor is slid in from behind, followed by the sides of the engine compartment, adding the battery into a recess in the left side after painting it and deciding whether to wire it into the engine. The front fenders are fitted to the sides, and the back is closed after inserting a lozenge-shaped window into the curved panel. Headlights with clear or hooded lenses are mounted on the wings along with side lights, with the grille applied to the front of the engine bay, the side extensions protecting the lights from frontal impacts. Crew doors keep the weather out, and have simple door cards moulded-in, to which the handles, winders and the window glass are installed, and these can be fitted open or closed as you wish. A pair of supports are fitted under the front of the wings, fixing the bonnet over the engine compartment, and adding outer door handles before mating the cab with the chassis, gluing the bottom of the steering column as you do so. This boxing has an optional open load bed with ribbed floor, raised sides, and fold-up benches for carrying personnel, which can be stowed upright with the supports hanging vertically, filling a rather draughty space that would chill the kidneys of anyone sitting on the seats. Flipping the load bed over, two longitudinal support rails and a rear light bar are fitted, followed by the four mudflaps with U-shaped supports that hold them to the correct angle. The bed can then be glued to the chassis, aligning the tabs with the corresponding slots that are found on the top of the chassis rails. Six curved tilt supports are included in this boxing, and they can be stacked in the front of the load bed, or fitted in place by cutting the lower portions from the parts before gluing them in. This boxing includes a covered load area, which is made from just three parts, but has plenty of exterior detail moulded-in to give it a realistic drape and creases. This is fitted over the bed without the formers, which can be consigned to the spares box. The final step involves adding windscreen wipers, wing mirrors and towing hooks to the cab, all in pairs. Markings There are three decal options on the included sheet, with four profiles each and a cab-top scrap diagram for each one, plus a diagram for the tilt for one option. From the box you can build one of the following: Wehrmacht Trophy Truck, Eastern Front, 1943 Wehrmacht Trophy Truck, 11th Panzer Division, probably 1944 Wehrmacht Trophy Truck, Winter 1944 Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion Whilst this kit isn’t as dramatic as a weapon of war, it was an important component of warfare that represented its beating heart – logistics. This boxing is an interesting option that depicts a trio of captured examples, two of which are painted in a non-standard manner by their new owners to hide them from the Allied fighters that roamed the continent after D-Day. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Model A Standard Phaeton Soft Top 1930s (24050) 1:24 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd Phaeton was originally a name for an open-topped, cut-down horse-drawn carriage, which translated into motoring parlance for soft-top, or open-topped vehicles that didn’t possess side windows that could be rolled down, and if they had a roof, it was one that was installed for inclement weather, or removed for sunny days. The name fell out of use in favour of Cabriolet and Convertible, but before it faded into history it became a broad term that could refer to any four-wheeled vehicle with two rows of seats and an open top, although triple-Phaetons and double-Phaetons were also a thing, just to muddy the waters further. After the runaway success of the Model T Ford, it was eventually replaced eighteen years later by the more modern Model A, reaching showrooms at the end of 1927. It was produced until 1932, by which time almost 5 million units had been sold. The chassis ran a 3.3L inline four-cylinder petrol engine that could propel it to a maximum speed of around 65mph, which might seem a little slow to today’s motorists (unless they’re on modern British motorways), but with only drum brakes slowing each wheel, it was probably for the best. There were several body styles available, the Phaeton being one of the most unrecognisable names to us today, other than the fact that the name was recently used by Volkswagen for an enlarged luxury coupé variant of their Passat for a while, and that most definitely had a roof. Ford’s Model A Phaeton was available in two- or four-door format, and the gearbox gave a single option of a three-speed unsynchronised (crash) gearbox, plus one reverse gear. Due to the difference in controls that were offered by most competitors by this time, the quirky layout of the driver’s controls were standardised to clutch, brake and accelerator pedals left to right on the floor, and a shifter in the centre for gear selection. It was replaced by the Model B after ‘32, and just to carry on confusing people, the Model 18. The Kit This is a new tooling of this type, with more variants to come, this being the first. The kit arrives in a top-opening box with a captive lid on the bottom tray, and inside are seven sprues in grey styrene, a clear sprue, a bag of five flexible black tyres with short lengths of runner still attached, and a small decal sheet that is slipped inside the colour instruction booklet that is printed with a glossy cover and matt paper insides, with profiles on the rearmost pages. Detail is up to ICM’s current high standards, portraying the full chassis, engine, interior and bodyshell in glorious detail, plus a removable soft-top that can be fitted or removed at will once complete. Construction begins with the main chassis rails that are set apart by five cross-members of various shapes and widths, adding bell-housings near each end, L-shaped front bumper supports, and a steering column with box at the bottom end attached to the left chassis rail, as this is a left-hand drive model. The engine block is made from two halves and a sump, making the transmission and clutch housing from four parts, emplacing the cylinder head, and ancillaries such as the generator, fan & belt, and the exhaust manifold, bringing the sub-assemblies together before it is inserted into the front of the chassis along with a long drive-shaft to the rear axle, which has the differential moulded-in to slot between the two axle stubs moulded into the chassis. The front axle with short laterally oriented leaf-springs is fixed to the front cross-rail, and a two-part exhaust is slung under the chassis, mating with the down-pipe of the manifold. Rear drum-brakes have small parts fitted to their rear before they are glued to the ends of the axle, adding small pivots and more L-shaped supports along the outer length of the chassis rails, plus a brake actuator rod that fits on a pivot. The front drum-brakes are made from the same number of parts, adding links to the axle, and more control rods running down the outer faces of the chassis rails, plus an extension to the chassis, and two diagonal supports under the rear on either side of the drive-shaft. Two more control rods attach to the brake drums and pivots, linking the hubs together, and adding a V-shaped damper between the two ends. By this time wire-wheels were available, and this kit has five made from two styrene parts that are joined together, trapping a flexible black tyre in position, sliding four of them onto the ends of the axles, and leaving the last for the spare later in the build. The bodyshell is made by fitting the combined arches and running boards to a tapering floor, and strengthening the assembly by adding another layer on the underside, sandwiching the sides between the two layers. This is carefully mated with the chassis, making a small three-part fairing for the front of the car under the radiator, taking care to arrange the two triangular parts with the slots on the outside. The firewall is augmented by adding a diagonal kick-board, steering column, lever and foot pedals, plus a stylish dashboard with lower fairing that slots into place horizontally, applying decals to the central instrument binnacle after choosing a colour to paint the assembly, depending on which decal option you have chosen. Panels are made up from dual layers, fitting to the sides of the firewall and supporting the dash, with a scuttle to the top, a filler cap for the fuel tank, and dash pots on the engine side, fitting it to the growing assembly at the front of the floor. The body’s side panels are fitted with three interior cards per side, adding handles and a rear panel that is best placed on the floor pan during curing of the glue to ensure it sets straight, mounting a three-part radiator and housing to the front, with engine cowlings linking it to the rest of the bodywork, and a pair of catches on each side, plus the top-cowling moulded as a single part. The front and rear bench seat cushions are layered from three parts each, and are located on L-shaped raised marks, fitting a rear shroud to the front seat to support the back, which is a single part, and has a pair of tapered arms added to the sides of the shroud, painted to match the seat cushions. The same style of rear cushion is fitted to the back seat, supported by the rear of the bodyshell, without additional arms, mounting the steering wheel and control stalks on the column, and the gear shifter on the transmission tunnel. A two-part rear-view mirror is fixed in the centre of the windscreen, adding a wiper motor shell to the top frame, which operates the single wiper that is moulded into the windscreen part. The remaining wheel is mounted on a back-plate with a diagonal tube that links it to the back of the car, adding short bumper stubs, light clusters and a number plate holder to the sides, and side-lights on the rear corners of the bodywork. The front of the car is finished off by a full-width bumper, a pair of headlights with clear lenses, horn and number-plate on a curved rod that is placed between the forward arches, adding a pair of clear wind deflectors to the sides of the windscreen, completing the model by building the removable roof from top and rear segments with a small window in the latter, making a frame from five parts that hold it to shape when it is in position between the windscreen and the rear of the car. Markings There are three colour options depicted on the decal sheet, which will also affect the choice of interior colours during the build, so choosing early will be a benefit. From the box you can build one of the following: Ohio, 1930 Michigan, 1931 New York, 1932 Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. As is common now with ICM kits, there is a portion of one page of the instruction booklet devoted to the masking of the windscreen, using the printed shapes on the right of the page and the diagram to create your own masks if you wish. There are two masks, one for each side of the screen to ease painting of the frames. The deflectors don’t have masks, as they are attached to the screen by two small metal clips. Conclusion As 1:24 is the de facto standard for modern vehicle kits, there should be a wide market for this quite regal variant of a relatively short-lived design, when compared to the Model A. Detail is excellent, and its size should make the build a pleasurable experience. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

’The English Patient’ (32053) Movie Aircraft Tiger Moth & Stearman 1:32 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd The movie ‘The English Patient’ was the screen adaptation of a novel by Michael Ondaatje and was directed by Anthony Minghella with a quality cast, many of whom went on to become stars in their own right. It starred Ralph Fiennes as a hideously burned pilot near the end of WWII with Juliette Binoche playing a nurse caring for him until he succumbed to his injuries, after which she would catch up with her unit. Of course, nothing is straightforward, and various other characters appear, muddying the waters and adding intrigue to the piece. I’ve never watched it, so if I’m off beam anywhere you’ll just have to chalk it up to me disliking romance movies, even though they’re set in WWII. Two aircraft make an appearance in the movie, namely the Tiger Moth and the Stearman, which are the subject of this reboxing of two of ICM’s recent large-scale kits. Whether the Stearman would have been in British service at the time is a moot point, as it was used in the film and that’s all that matters. The Tiger Moth The de Havilland Tiger Moth was one of the most important and most widely produced trainer aircraft to have seen service with the RAF. It was designed by Geoffrey de Havilland himself in the 1930s and was based on the Gypsy Moth, suitably redesigned to meet Air Ministry Specification 13/31. In comparison to its predecessor, the Tiger Moth's wings were swept and repositioned, and the cockpits were redesigned to make escape easier. The airframe was also strengthened and the engine exhaust system was redesigned. The Tiger Moth entered service with the RAF in 1932 and remained in service until well after the war. Over 8,000 examples were completed and the type also served with the Royal Australian Air Force, the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Royal New Zealand Air Force as well as a great many other military and civilian operators. In service it proved itself to be ideally suited to its role; easy enough to fly, but challenging enough to weed out the weaker students. It was also cheap and easy to maintain. Further variants would be the DH.82C fitted with an enclosed hood for cold weather operations in Canada; and the Queen Bee which was an unmanned radio-controlled target drone that resulted in a thinning of the herd of surviving airframes. Always popular with civilian users, many Tiger Moths found their way into private ownership after the War, with many maintained in flying condition to this day. This is a reboxing of the recent tool from ICM that was first released in 2020, so it’s a thoroughly modern model. There are four sprues in grey styrene plus one of clear parts, and a shared decal sheet for both aircraft. The detail is excellent as we’ve come to expect from ICM, and providing you aren’t phobic about rigging, should make a straight-forward build. Construction begins with drilling holes in the two fuselage halves, using holes that are pre-thinned from the inside to ease the way. The fuselage halves are then detailed with throttle quadrants, instrument panels with dial decals, and the bulkheads between the two seating areas. At this time there are a couple more 0.3mm holes drilled in the top cowling in front of the cockpit to insert more rigging wires, which you’ll need to supply yourself, along with more threaded through the holes in the fuselage sides that you drilled earlier. Helpfully, the instructions tell you the length of wire that you should plan for, although I’d be tempted to use the numbers as a minimum value, just in case. You can always cut some off, but adding some on is much more of a skill. With that the fuselage is closed up, a firewall is inserted into the front, and an elevator inserted onto a rectangular peg in the rear of the fuselage, with the wider strakes that are fitted to the decal options, followed by the standard rudder fin, which has the tail skid moulded into the bottom. There is a good representation of the four-cylinder Gypsy Major engine that outputs less power than my perfectly normal family car, which makes one stop and think for a second. The block is in two halves that trap the conical drive-shaft inside, exhaust manifold, mounts and other ancillaries, with a baffle on one side, after which it can be glued into the firewall at the front of the fuselage, and have the cowling parts installed along with the open or closed access doors for the crew, small intake on the starboard cowling, and bumper-strips on the forward edge of each cockpit aperture. The lucky crew have a three-faceted windscreen placed in recesses in front of them to keep the bugs out of their teeth, then we move onto the wings. The wings are full-width parts, and the lower wing is made first, drilling rigging holes in the top surface, and leaving off the underside of this and the topside of the upper wing until after the rigging is complete. Whilst that might work for some, I’d be a little wary of gluing big parts such as the wings together after painting, although that’s just my opinion. You may have noticed there were no more cockpit details made up earlier, which is because the rest of the cockpit is built on the lower wing centre, as that’s where you will find the cockpit floor. A narrow control assembly is made first with rudder bars and control columns in duplicate, fitting into the cockpit floor on eight small rectangular slots, then joined by the aft seat, and the weird front seat that is moulded as a deep depression into the bulkhead between the two. The lower wing (upper only) is then mated with the fuselage, completing the cockpit at the same time. The interplane struts are individual parts in the outer wings, with two Z-shaped cabane struts fixed high on the fuselage sides just in front of the cockpit. More rigging holes are drilled into the lower half of the upper wing before joining it to the struts and adding the ribbed fuel tank to the centre of the upper wing. The next two diagrams show the location of the rigging using red lines, dotting them where they pass out of sight, and numbering them in a dot-to-dot fashion. After completion of rigging, the upper-upper and lower-lower wing halves are glued in place, hiding any messy rigging knots that you might have left. It does make for a clean job of the rigging, but I’m no expert at rigging. The upper wing has a pair of slats added to the leading edge, and ailerons to the lower trailing edge, then it’s time to make the landing gear. The wheels of the Tiger Moth are moulded in two halves, and slide over the axle-ends of a single complex W-shaped (ish) strut, which once it is in place is buttressed by four support struts that prevent the gear collapsing on landing. A little L-shaped tube glues to the underside of the fuselage while it’s upside down, and actuators are added under the ailerons, plus a couple of support struts are fitted between the elevators and fuselage, which also have triangular actuators added to small slots that are mirrored on the rudder, with more rigging added there later on. The prop is a single part that snugs into the tapered drive-shaft, and after completion of the final rigging to the tail, a further diagram has a set of shapes printed that you can use to pattern your own masks for the two canopies if you don’t want to spend extra money on a masking set. I like these, but haven’t used them yet, and would suggest reducing the tape’s stickiness by applying it to a clean surface first, to avoid tearing or marring the paper when you remove it. The Stearman The Stearman Aircraft Corporation was founded in 1927 by Lloyd Stearman. then in 1929 it was sold to The United Transport & Aircraft Corporation. This would then split in 1934 due to US Antitrust legislation with Boing which had been a part of it becoming its own business again; Stearman then became a subsidiary of Boeing. At about this time they designed what would become their most famous aircraft the Model 75 Kaydet. The new aircraft was a conventional tail wheeled biplane with an exposed radial engine. The aircraft was selected as the basic primary trainer for the USAAF and the USN, as well as for the Royal Canadian Air Force. In USAAF Service it would be designated the PT-13 with a Lycoming R-680 engine, The PT-17 with a Continental R-670-5 engine, and a PT-18 with a Jacobs R-755 engine. The USN had the NS, and NS2 with a variety of engines. Canadian PT-27 aircraft were USAAF PT-17s supplied under Lease Lend. In total over 10,000 airframes were built, many were sold off post war, and a lot of these still survive today. This is a reboxing of the recent Stearman PT-17 Kaydet kit, and consists of four sprues in grey styrene and another small sprue of clear parts, plus the afore mentioned shared decal sheet, and a shared instruction booklet. Construction begins with the cockpit, which is mostly empty space with a tubular framework holding all the instruments and controls. The sidewall frames are detailed, as is the floor with a pair of linked control columns, then they are joined together and held perpendicular to each other by a triangular cross-brace. The two seats are each a single part with a ladder frame added at the rear, and they slip in between the sides, strengthening the assembly further, then the fuselage is prepared for closure and the insertion of the cockpit assembly. Just a fire extinguisher is (ironically) added to the port sidewall, which has ribbed detail moulded-in, then the two halves are closed up around the tail-wheel, which has a separate wheel part slipped over the axle. An insert with riveted panelling is placed under the fuselage between the wheel struts, which are incidentally moulded into the two fuselage halves, then the cockpit assembly can be pushed in from the front and secured on pins, allowing the ribbing to be seen through the framework. The upper fuselage deck is separate and has the two instrument panels and back rests glued to the underside before it is fixed in place over the cockpit, closing up the fuselage. Another shorter insert fits under the front of the fuselage with another added to the port side, with the firewall closing up the front. The landing gear strut ends are simple affairs with separate scissor-links that slot into the legs after adding the two-part wheels, and are covered over by inner panels that are added to the moulded-in legs. Your model can now stand on its own three wheels for the first time. The flying surfaces are started by joining the two halves of the elevator fins together, and fixing the flying surfaces to the rear, with the ability to pose them deflected if you wish. They fit into slots in the sides of the tail fin, which then receive a single thickness rudder with separate actuator. Both main wings are supplied as full span assemblies, with separate tops and ailerons on the lower wing only. A pair of clear wingtip lights are inserted into the upper wings, then the four cabane struts and two Z-shaped interplane struts are glued in place and the wing is then lowered onto the model, taking care to keep everything correctly aligned. The Continental R-670-5 7-cylinder radial engine of the Stearman is barely any more powerful than the Tiger Moth, and its six exhaust stacks are assembled on the firewall at the front of the fuselage, followed by the intake trunking and push-rods, then adding the carburettor underneath. The cylinder bank is made up from two halves, adding a short prop shaft from inside the front half that is covered over by a circular part to prevent it from falling out of position. The rear portion is glued into place, and a vertical housing is inserted between the bottom two cylinders, after which it can be fixed to the fuselage with a choice of two props, each with two blades. The narrower prop is a ground adjustable steel McCauley unit, while the thicker one is wooden fixed-pitch Sensenich unit. The last page of the instructions detail rigging of the model, spanning three steps that show the wires marked in red over a line-drawn diagram. To the side is a drawing that shows the shape of masks that you can make yourself to help you keep the clear parts from getting marred by paint during the build. Markings There is one option per aircraft as you would expect, as follows: DH.82A Tiger Moth G-AFFC Stearman Model 75 G-AFEA The decals are printed by ICM’s usual partners, and consist of dials, registration codes, and a few other small decals, with good register, sharpness and dense blacks. Conclusion Another good value boxed set from ICM that should appeal to more than just film buffs, but anyone interested in interwar biplane trainers too. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Bristol Beaufort Mk.IA WWII British Torpedo bomber (48315) 1:48 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd The Beaufort was originally designed as a torpedo bomber by Bristol, using the experience they had gained in developing the then-excellent Blenheim. They were ready in time for the outbreak of WWII, and as well as their prescribed role, they were also used as light bombers, undertaking many ‘Rhubarb’ missions over enemy territory in the so-called ‘phony war’, embarking on daylight missions that saw heavy casualties, although the accidental loss tally outstripped combat losses, surprisingly. Roughly 1,200 were built in the UK, with the total being elevated to almost 2,000 by additional Australian-built airframes that were known as DAP Beauforts. They were rapidly overhauled by the German fighters and were withdrawn from frontline service as early as 1942, by which time they had also been tasked with Aerial mine-laying. From then on, they were assigned to serve away from the front, and saw extensive use as a trainer, which might go at least some of the way to explain the high attrition rate due to accidents. The Mk.IA had an improved turret fitted at the rear of the crew compartment spine, that was notable because it was more square in profile, and torpedo bombers were fitted with early ASV radars, the antennae for which were mounted on the leading edges of the wings. A further development of the Beaufort was the Beaufighter, which used important components of the Beaufort that included the wings and engines, with a new cut-down fuselage that was comparatively low and streamlined, with a powerful cannon armament under the nose that was useful in its assigned duties as long-distance heavy fighter, and later nightfighter, where it excelled. Some obsolete Beauforts were even converted to Beaufighters to make further use of the shared parts, which gave many of the original airframes a more honourable end than they would otherwise have seen. In an attempt to improve on the original Mk.I that took up the majority of production, the designers created additional variants that used other engines, had faired over turrets when they were to be used as trainers, and even a project that saw the fitment of a pair of Merlin XX engine that didn’t achieve the desired effect, so was cancelled, in much the same manner as the Merlin powered Beaufighter that managed to be “underpowered” despite the pedigree of the engines that propelled it. The Kit A lot of modellers that build in 1:48 were thrilled when the new tooling arrived from ICM, and now it has been with us for some time, with a few boxings already on the shelves. This new issue includes a sprue of torpedo parts and trolley to sweeten the deal, and it arrives in a reasonable-sized top-opening box with their usual captive lid on the lower tray. Inside are nine sprues in mid-grey styrene, a large clear sprue, decal sheet and glossy instruction booklet that has colour profiles on the rear pages. Opening the resealable bag reveals the detail that has been lavished on this kit that includes lots of internal ribbing, a set of ribbed flap bays and flaps, a representation of both banks of the Bristol Taurus engines, detailed gear bays and bay doors, and a torpedo to complete the package. Construction begins with a narrow torpedo bay under the fuselage that is glued to a section of the aft floor, then detailed with ribs, flipped over and joined to a bulkhead that has a doorway cut in it, then has a chute made up on one side before it is attached to the rest of the interior floor, which is initially free of detail, apart from underneath, where it has bomb shackles moulded-in, and a semi-cylindrical bay toward the front of the fuselage, which will allow the torpedo to nestle into the fuselage semi-recessed. The starboard fuselage half has an insert fitted into the wing-root depression to match the crisp moulded ribbing that is all over the interior as far back as the trailing edge of the wings, with another section in the tail-wheel bay. The side windows are inserted from inside, swapping the rear one out for an opaque cover if appropriate, then the floor is mated on several recesses in the starboard fuselage sides ready for the twin spars and a good quantity of detail. The forward spar is detailed with four parts to depict the radio gear with a plotting table below it, and on the other side a section of fairing is fixed, then the assembly is glued into its slot, joining the bottom of the spar with the starboard fuselage. The cockpit is a two-tier assembly that is started by joining the two halves of the side console together, adding a raised floor panel, the instrument panel with five dial decals and rudder pedals, a short half-bulkhead and the swivelling front seat. Another simple seat is made up and glued to the rear spar along with another step fairing, and it too is slipped into the rear slot in the fuselage and glued in place. The pilot’s seat is made up from two parts and has a bow-tie control column placed in front of it, while to the rear, an Elsan toilet is dropped onto a raised plinth in the rear fuselage floor. The tail wheel bay is made up from ceiling with two small bulkhead ends, and is glued into the very rear, which already has ribbing moulded into the sides. The tail-wheel and strut are moulded as a single part than inserts in the bay ceiling on a peg, so can be left off until after main painting. The port fuselage half is prepared in a similar manner to the starboard, save for the optional rear window, and two 0.9mm holes that are drilled in the ceiling. Just before closing the fuselage, another detail part is fixed to the bulkhead behind the pilot’s seat, with more glued into the nose, and a platform at the rear of the floor, all of which might be better added before you paint the cockpit. The main canopy is glued over the cockpit cut-out, and the nose is glazed by four additional clear parts, and a choice of port-side aft door with a circular porthole or gun port fitted over the hole in the fuselage, which can have a Lewis machine-gun with dinner plate magazine on a spar across the opening. If you are installing the gun, the clamshell door part should be left off. The Beaufort had mid-mounted wings, so each one is separate, and made from two halves. The port wing has a small landing light bay inserted before it is closed, and a small dome is optionally removed from the leading edge, then the clear glazing is inserted once the glue has set up, drilling two holes further outboard. A clear wingtip is fitted, and a one-piece aileron is added and able to be offset if you feel the urge. You must also make a choice whether to fit the wing surface over the inner flaps with a trio of strakes in a nacelle extension, or a straight section with curved root fairing. The same process is carried out minus the landing light bay on the starboard wing, then both wings are slotted over the two spars that have corresponding guides moulded into the inside of the wings to ensure good location. The elevator fins are each two parts and are mounted in the usual slot/tab method, to be joined by one-piece elevators and rudder, the latter having a pair of horns near the hinge. Two flap sections are added to each wing’s underside, then the two nacelles are made up from halves along with a bulkhead near the front, and another that is glued into the wing before the nacelles are put in place. The roof of the bay is free of any detail, and is the location that the twin strut gear legs and their actuators are fixed once they are built up. The main wheels are each two halves, and they flex-fit into the lower section of the main leg, which has a curved tubular framework added to the top section, probably to assist with the smooth opening and closing of the bay doors. The upper section of the main gear forms a twin triangular framework that is linked by several cross-members before the lower section is glued into the sockets in the upper section, and has another pair of actuators added at the rear to brace the top section. Both assemblies are inserted into the bays on each level of the roof, then the twin bay doors with their ribbed inners are added to the sides of the bays on hinge tabs. At the same time, the bomb bay has a small insert attached to the front bulkhead to add detail to the area. Each Taurus radial engine is formed from two well-detailed banks of cylinders with a circular collector ring attached to the centre by three stators, plus a complex system of tubes installed around the circumference in between the cylinders, and another at the rear of the engine that has a square peg at the back for fixing them to the wing through the cooling flaps at the rear of the cowlings. Two holes on the top of the nacelle receive a different two-part intake, then the cowling is wrapped around the engine, comprising two halves and a pair of curved exhausts for each engine. She’s looking very much like a Beaufort now, but needs some defensive armament in addition to the optional Lewis gun in the side. The new mid-upper turret is mounted in the back of the cockpit “hump”, and is built upon a separate section of the fuselage with a circular base that receives the guns’ mount and gunner’s bicycle-style seat below the lip, gluing most of the turret into position along with a fairing lip around the front, then deciding whether to mount the clear glazing in the top of the nose, or the alternative that mounts another two Lewis guns in the nose. The bomb/torpedo bay forms a cruciform shape when viewed from below, as it was lengthened to accept the torpedo, and has the mount fitted into the wider centre section, and if not carrying a torpedo, two inserts close off the bomb bay from its two narrower sections. The bay doors are in three sections, the narrower front and rear sections having one door per side, while the wider bomb bay section has two doors each side that fold together, minimising the aerodynamic drag, as well as fitting in the space below the aircraft when on the ground. If you plan on posing all the bay doors closed, there are three additional conjoined parts to ease your path, which is always nice to see. The torpedo has been seen in a separate box before, and its build is covered on the last page of instruction steps, making it up from two halves, adding a three-part H-tail with twin spinners, and another spinner-plus-spacer at the business end. There are also five steps to create a trolley for moving your Torp about and loading it onto the Beaufort on rising scissor-links if you want to add a bit of diorama appeal to your model. The torpedo is mounted with all bay doors open, and glues onto a long tubular frame in the centre of the bomb bay. While the model is inverted, the underslung nose turret can be built from three parts for the gun and two-part dome, or a blanking plate can be fitted over the opening. A pitot is also mounted under the nose, a towel-rail antenna under the fuselage, and three small outlets are mounted on the wings and just behind the bomb bay. Back on its wheels, the cockpit hump is detailed with two more antennae, and another either flush with the roof or in a typical clear D/F loop fairing. The radar antennae are reminiscent of TV aerials, formed from a main antenna with several dipoles perpendicular, one under each wing, mounted on two brackets that fit into holes drilled in the wings earlier, and another offset under the nose on a single post. These are most definitely best left off until the very end so that they survive without damage. Markings There are three decal options on the sheet, all wearing substantially different schemes, two of them from torpedo training units in the UK, the other an operational unit overseas. From the box you can build one of the following: DX135, No.5 (Coastal) Operational Training Unit, Long Kash, 1943 LR906, No.2 Torpedo Training Unit, Castle Kennedy, September 1943 DW816, 22 Sqn., Ceylon (Sri Lanka), April 1944 The decals are printed using a digital process and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas. This means that the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. As is common now with ICM kits, there is a page of the instruction booklet devoted to the masking of the canopy, using the printed shapes on the right of the page and the diagrams on the left to create your own masks if you wish. It goes up to 64 thanks to the extensive glazing. Conclusion A well-detailed model with Torpedo and trolley to add some interest to or around the kit. A disparate choice of decal schemes adds extra appeal. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Universal Military Pod & M8A1 US Landing Mat (53201) 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd With the advent of the helicopter, their ability to rise vertically into the air led them to be used to lift heavy loads, and by the end of the Korean War, there were already Heavy Lift choppers in service, most using piston-engines as their motive force, which was a limitation both in terms of power and reliability – a very important factor when you aren’t flying in the traditional sense, but are instead beating the air into submission with your rotors. The peculiarly ungainly-looking CH-60 Mojave was reaching the end of its service life, and Igor Sikorsky had already identified the need for a very heavy lift helicopter with the S-60 that was powered by WWII era radial engines. The design was the basis for the Tarhe, but updated and given the more powerful and reliable turbo-shaft engines that were just coming into production. The engines for the nascent CH-54 were created in conjunction with Pratt & Whitney, adapting one of their new JT12 jet engines to their requirements. One of the tasks allotted to the Tarhe was carrying a large purpose-built pod that resembled a cargo container on wheels, which could be slung under the belly of the airframe, and could carry a substantial cadre of troops from A to B, act as a temporary air-transportable hospital ward, or as a mobile command centre. Depending on the task it was allocated, it could be fitted out with seats, litters or admin facilities and could house up to 87 fully equipped paratroopers sat on simple fabric seats, who could air-drop if necessary, through the doors on each side of the pod. Small windows were also sited on the sides, and these were slightly convex to allow easier vision around the aircraft, whilst still being streamlined. The Kit The floor is the starting point of this assembly, adding six rows of tubular legs to recesses in the detailed deck, fixing seat pans horizontally, and back cushions that rest at an angle on vertical posts, the port two rows facing starboard, the other against the starboard facing them. The walls are detailed on both sides, having panel lines and rivets on the outer face and ribbing on the inner face, where you will find a few ejector-pin marks that you may want to fill if you think they will be seen. They are further prepared by installing windows from the inside, plus two vertical tubes, a control panel on one side by the doors, which are fitted later. The floor is laminated with an extra layer that tapers upward at both ends, then the side walls are glued into position, followed by the two-layer back wall, which is covered in surface detail but has no windows or other features. The front wall has a window and a bracket, but the roof is prepared first, fixing seventeen inserts into recesses in the ribbed part, some of which are lights, finishing the main structure by installing the last two faces. The details added to the exterior of the pod are copious, starting with the retractable wheels that give you a choice of two styles, depicting raised or lowered gear by using parts of different lengths. The basic shape of these struts is an inverted T, with the vertical strut extending to give the wheels clearance below the pod so that it can be moved around more easily. The wheels are each made from two halves, sliding onto the stub axles at the bottom of each strut, adding the doors to their cut-outs after mounting the handles at waist-height, then fitting various grab-handles and protective cages to the landing gear, and for ground-handling. Tie-downs are added, with four brackets that accept clips for carriage under the helicopter, plus a pair of dampers that reduce oscillation of the pod when airborne to reduce the likelihood of nausea for the passengers. M8A1 Landing Mat During WWII, temporary airfields were quickly created near the battlefront on flat ground by the linking together of stamped steel planking that had their weight reduced by punching out holes in the centres where it wouldn’t weaken the structure. These were known as Perforated Steel Planking (PSP), and were used commonly in all theatres of war, reducing mud and slurry build-ups, and providing a flat and tough surface for aircraft to land, take-off and taxy along, whilst other vehicles were able to avoid creating ruts in the surface. The holes however led to an element of dust and debris being kicked up, which is known in aviation as Foreign Object Debris or FOD, so the design was changed to reduce the possibility of rocks and soil penetrating the planking. By the time of the Vietnam War, the M8A1 design had been formalised and was used to great effect. It was lightened using corrugations to provide more strength from less material, and was capable of supporting the larger, heavier jet aircraft and helicopters that were becoming prevalent. Lighter and more effective methods were developed later using aluminium, and latterly a honeycomb structure within that is incredibly strong, whilst reducing the amount of material needed. The set is in a separate resealable bag that contains four sprues of parts. The ends of the planks are joined by four pegs that link them together, and the longer edges have a set of simulated joints that are backed up for practicality by a series of small pegs and recesses hidden away on the lower edge, with the base flat and almost featureless to facilitate a strong bond with the substrate you are using as a baseboard. Each of the four sprues have no runners around the edges, containing eight full planks and another four half planks that allow an overlapping layout, totalling 48 planks and 16 half planks. The instructions tell you to paint the planks Gun Metal, number 1027 in ICM’s acrylic paint range. There is of course plenty of opportunity to weather them with rust and chipped/worn paint, so check your references to establish your options. Markings There are three decal options for the pod on the new sheet, depicting them at various points in its career, wearing different colour schemes. From the box you can build one of the following: 295th Aviation Company, 1972 Army National Guard, 1982 113th Aviation Regiment, 1989 Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion Whether you picked up a boxing of the CH-54 Tarhe without a pod, or want another pod to use in your project, it’s good to see it available separately, and with the addition of the M8A1 planking in the same boxing, it’s a sensible choice for a diorama. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

US Aerial Target Drones (48399) 1:48 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd People think drones are a new thing for the military, but remote controlled aircraft began service in simple forms during WWII. The Firebee was developed by Ryan for the newly reformed USAF in 1948 as a jet powered gunnery target, the first flight taking place in 1951. The USAF Designation was Q-2A, and when the US Navy bought them, they re-designated them KDA-1. The original Firebees were air launched from a modified A-26 Intruder, or ground launched using a Rocket Assisted Take-Off (RATO) pack, a system that was later also employed by the US Army. Q-2Bs were fitted with a modified engine for higher altitudes to widen the type’s range of operation and increase their usefulness. They were further developed over time with the KDA-4 being the main USN version, however differences were mainly internal, so once the stencils are removed, it’s difficult to tell apart without unscrewing panels. The Royal Canadian Air Force purchased 30 KDA-4s that they launched from an Avro Lancaster Mk.10DC, giving modellers another option for the use of these models. In the late 50s the USAF Awarded Ryan a contract for a new second generation Firebee that would become the BQM-34A or Q-2C, which employed a larger airframe with longer wings. One of the main recognition features was the fact the original nose intake was replaced by a chin intake for the new Continental J69-T-29A turbojet, beneath a pointed nose. In addition to the USAF and USN, the US Army had a ground launched variant with RATO pack that was designated the MQM-34D, this version having a longer wing than the USAF & USN variants, sometimes air-launched from a modified Hercules, designated DC-130 for Drone Control. While production originally ended in 1982, the line was re-opened in 1989 to produce additional units to satisfy the needs of the US military, and these BQM-34S variants featured improved avionics and a new J85-GE-100 engine. The Kit Comprising one each of the Q-2A and Q-2C kits, which ICM have previously released separately, the kit arrives in a top-opening box with the usual captive flap on the lower tray, and a painting of both airframes on the front. Inside are two individual resealable bags containing a total of four sprues in grey styrene, a pair of separate decal sheets, and two instruction booklets from the original kits. Detail is good as far as it goes on a drone, and it includes a trailer for each airframe, which will make display without an aircraft to hang it from a breeze. KDA-1 (Q-2A) Firebee with Trailer This earlier variant of the Firebee is the smaller of the two, with an intake in the nose and a central bullet that lends itself to nose art. Construction begins with the Continental J69-T-19B intake, which is made from two halves plus a depiction of the rear face of the engine, and a front mounting bulkhead that has the forward compressor fan moulded-in, and a keyed hole for the central bullet, which is also made from two halves before inserting it in the hole. The two fuselage halves have a tapering insert on each side to portray the intake’s inner lip, fitting the motor assembly into the starboard half, then trapping it in place with the other half and dealing with the seams in your preferred manner. Each swept wing is made from upper and lower halves, with a long tab that fits into a slot in the fuselage sides, while the elevators are single thickness and fit in the same way. An insert closes the gap in the upper fuselage, adding a pair of two-part wingtip fairings, the tail fin, and two V-shaped end-plates on the elevators to finish the airframe. The trailer is based on a large rectangular frame with a triangular A-frame moulded-in that has a towing arm at the front. Three castor wheels are fixed to the rear corners and under the tip of the A-frame, turning the assembly over, mounting an inverted V on the rear, and an inverted U at the front, which has a pin that descends and retains the front of the fuselage, while a pin at the top of the V supports the rear. Markings There are three decal options for this part of the kit, all of them a bit bright. From the box you can build one of the following: Q-2A Firebee USAF, Circa 1951 Ryan KDA-1 Firebee Naval Ordnance Test Station China Lake, California, Circa 1960 US Navy XQ-2 Prototype, Circa 1950 BQM-34A (Q-2C) Firebee with Trailer This later mark also comes on two sprues, whilst the trailer is larger and sturdier. Construction begins with the engine again, this time a Continental J69-T-29A, fitting front and rear faces between the two trunk halves, then fitting it on a long tab in between the fuselage halves, cutting off the small moulded-in strakes under the tail for one decal option. Like its stablemate, there is an insert along the spine, but the intake lip is a single part that should be carefully aligned with the fuselage to reduce clean-up later. The wings are wider but thinner for the Q-2C, and as such they are each single parts that match the elevators, the latter having small triangular end-plates added to the tips, along with the tail fin that slots into the rear of the spine insert. The trailer has a U-shaped under-frame, first mating two U-shaped ribs with three rods, then fitting those to the main chassis rails, and adding a cross-brace to the rear. A pair of axles are each made from two parts and glued into recesses in the underside, and they have two-part wheels fitted to the ends, making the towing arm from a two-part beam that has a shallow A-frame linking it to the front axle. The completed Firebee simply drops into the curved frames, locating on a pin at the rear under the tail. Markings There are four decal options for this part of the kit, all of them brightly coloured to make them stand out. From the box you can build one of the following: US Navy BMQ-34 Naval Base Ventura County US Navy BMQ-34 36 Mission markings USAF BQM-34 Wallace Air Station US Navy BQM-34 circa 2000s Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion A compact reboxing that will give you a brace of noticeably different Firebees to build, and as there are no cockpits or gear bays to slow you down, it should make for a quick, fun build. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Flak Bait B-26B 322nd Bombardment Group (48321) 1:48 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd Instigated on the eve of WWII in Europe, the Marauder was a medium bomber developed over two years by the Glenn L Martin company, entering service in early 1942. Due to its high wing and relatively small planform, loading was high, which resulted in a faster than usual landing speed, which could cause problems for an inexperienced crew during final approach, and similarly if a single-engined approach was necessary. Its stall speed would bite the pilots aggressively if they varied even slightly from the documented landing procedures, resulting in excessive losses due to accidents, which earned it the nickname ‘Widowmaker’ amongst crews. To counter this, changes to the aircraft’s aerodynamics and wing length were undertaken, together with additional crew training, a combination that proved successful, and led to the type’s loss rate being amongst the lowest of the Allies bomber fleet. After initial orders, more followed, and improvements led to the B-26A, and soon after the B-26B, which by Block 10 benefited from longer wings and the other improvements that gave its pilots a longer life-expectancy. The type saw extensive service in Europe, flying with the US Army Air Force and with the RAF, where it was known as the Marauder Mk.1 for B-26A airframes, and Mk.1a for the B models. It also saw service in the Pacific, with a total of over 5,000 airframes built, 500 of which were flown by the RAF, with all airframes withdrawn from service by 1947, after which the A-26 Invader was given the B-26 designation, creating confusion amongst many aviation buffs and modellers over the years. Powered by a pair of Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp engine in nacelles under the wings, the rotund fuselage could carry up to 4,000lbs of bombs in a bay between the wings with a range of 1,500 miles at a substantially higher cruising speed than a B-17, giving it a better chance against fighters and flak, which contributed to its low attrition rate. An early adaptation saw the main armament increased from .303 machine guns to .50cals in all four turrets that could take a bigger bite out of any enemy fighters that ventured too close. Flak Bait was a B-26B-25MA Marauder that holds the record for the greatest number of bombing sorties of any aircraft during WWII at 202, often coming home shot-up, and sometimes on fire, but she still managed to make it back. The name was a comedic riff on the first pilot James J. Farrell’s name for his dog “Flea Bait”, and she truly lived up to that name, with over a thousand holes poked in her by shrapnel or rounds during her illustrious career, with two instances of landing back at base with only one functional engine, one of which was still on fire during approach. She took part in many major campaigns after her debut in 1943, ending the war intact, and flying for the last time in Spring 1946, after which she was dismantled and crated to be flown back to the US. Her nose went on display at the National Air and Space Museum Washington, DC in the 70s, while the rest of her stayed in storage until 2014 when she began being restored, a process that continues at time of writing. The Kit This is an airframe-specific boxing of a new tooling from ICM, of an aircraft that has been neglected for many years in 1:48 scale, so there was much joy when the kit was announced, and many of us, myself included, waited as patiently as we could for its release. I fell victim to its pull as soon as the first boxing landed, although I’ve yet to finish mine due to various drains on my modelling time, but check out my build thread here if you’re minded. The kit arrives in a top-opening box with an attractive painting of a brace of Marauders braving flak over Europe, and under the lid is the usual captive flap on the lower tray, and under that are eight large sprues in grey styrene, plus one of crystal-clear parts, a large decal sheet and the instruction booklet that is printed on glossy paper in colour with painting and decaling profiles on the rear pages. Detail is up to ICM’s modern high standards, with most of the fuselage full of detail that includes the cockpit, bomb bay and fuselage compartments around the turrets and waist gun positions. Construction begins with the fuselage halves for a change, preparing the interior by drilling out some flashed-over holes for gun packs used on two decal options, and adding the outer bomb racks plus other small details, along with the windows and hinges for the bomb bay if you plan to pose them open. There are also two decals to be applied to parts of the nose compartment, one on each side. The nose bay is built upon its roof, adding side walls and details to the interior, then the cockpit floor is layered on top, fitting the pilot’s four-part seat and separate rudder pedals, making the centre console from another five parts, and attaching the instrument panel to the rear, both it and the console receiving decals to depict the dials. The cranked control column has a bow-tie yoke, applying them to the floor in front of the pilot’s seat, and a bottle behind it, plus a single-part co-pilot seat, two-part yoke, and a stiff neck from straining to view the instrument panel. In the front of the floor is the bomb aimer’s seat, with a three-part sight for him to look through when the time for dropping bombs arrives. The bomb bay front and rear bulkheads have spars moulded-in and show off the circular cross-section of the fuselage, detailing both with small parts, and joining them together via the roof, which is ribbed for strength. Six bombs are built from two main parts with a separate spinner trapped inside the fin structure, gluing three to each of the central bomb ladders, then mounting those onto a pair of rails that fit into the bottom centre of the two bulkheads during the installation of the bay roof. The completed assembly is inserted into the port fuselage half, hiding the short empty sections of the fuselage by inserting another bulkhead behind the bomb bay and in front, the latter having the cockpit floor slotted into it before installation. Before the fuselage halves can be closed, there is a lot of armament to be built, starting with the rear gun turret, which has two guns glued to a central support, sliding the barrels through the two slots in the rear cover, and adding a tapering bracket to the top. The fuselage waist defensive armament is stowed away inside until needed, mounting the two guns facing aft on a section of flooring via two supports, which is depicted with two options, although I can’t see any differences between the two, but it’s late. The waist guns are glued into the rear fuselage on a flat area, inserting the rear turret in the aft, and fitting an armoured bulkhead forward, which the gunner sits behind on a circular seat that is also included. The top turret has the front section with ammo cans built first, inserting it and the gunner’s seat into the turret ring from below along with the control levers. The twin .50cals are inserted from above with the sighting gear between them, slotting the completed interior into a surround, then sliding the glazing over the barrels and securing it with a non-fogging glue before it is slipped into the cut-out on the upper fuselage. Another ovoid bulkhead with a hatchway is inserted between the rear gunner and waist gunners, suspending a box overhead in the waist compartment, then sectioning off the nose from the cockpit with a horseshoe-shaped bulkhead. If you skipped ahead and prepared the starboard fuselage half to speed through painting and weathering, it’s all good, otherwise the starboard fuselage is drilled out and dotted with detail parts, windows, braces and bomb racks, plus bomb bay hinges if you are leaving the doors open, then closing the two halves after putting 50g of nose weight in the space between the cockpit and bomb bay to keep the nose wheel on the ground when the model is complete. The tail fin is a separate assembly on this kit, starting by gluing the two halves of the fin together, then building the stabilisers as a single unit made from a full-span lower and two upper parts plus two smaller inserts. The two assemblies are brought together at the rear, covering the rear of the fuselage, and adding a curved insert behind the cockpit, covering the nose weight, whilst giving you a last chance to add some if you forgot earlier. The rudder and two elevators are each made from two halves, and can be glued into position deflected if you wish, to add some individuality to your model. The bomb bay has four actuators fitted to each of the fore and aft bulkheads, installing the four doors folded into pairs, or covering the bay with a pair of doors if you intend to close it. Two of the decal options carried cheek-mounted gun packs, which mount on the holes drilled earlier, after building each one from fairing, barrel, and nose cap for each of the four, with the instructions advising to install them after applying decals in that area. The main canopy and tail gun glazing are attached, adding two clear roof panels to the canopy, and making the nose glazing with a rectangular box on one side, and a gun in the centre before it too is glued in place. Two detail inserts are applied between the spars that project from the wing root, with the detail facing inward, so remember to paint those at the same time as the rest of the interior for your own convenience. The wings are each separate, and slide over the spars that are moulded into the bomb bay bulkheads. Before closing the wing halves, the gear bay structure is made, consisting of three parts forming an H-frame, adding two more ribs in the forward compartment, and closing off the rear of the bay with a final stringer, painting everything as you go. A bay insert is also included for the ailerons, and this is fixed to the lower wing as the upper is brought in and the two halves are mated. The two-section flaps are each made from upper and lower halves, as is the aileron, and all three are fitted in the trailing edge of the wing, attaching actuator fairings, detail parts inside the nacelle roof, a landing light in the leading edge, and a tip light over the moulded-in recess, which has a likeness of a bulb moulded into the area. A pitot probe is cut from near the wingtip, then the same process is carried out on the opposite wing in mirror-image, setting the completed wings to one side while the engines and their nacelles are built. Each Double-Wasp engine is made from a layer of six parts, depicting both banks of pistons and push-rods, adding the bell-housing and magnetos to the front, trapping a prop axle between them without glue, and inserting the intake ‘spider’ at the rear, with nine exhaust stubs mounted behind the engine. The completed engine is then locked between two circular carriers, and two exhaust collector parts are attached at the rear next to the cooling gills that are moulded into the rear carrier. The cowling is a complex shape that has a substantial portion moulded as a single part, inserting a curved plate inside to create a broad intake trunk in the base, then fitting two more inserts into the top sections of the cowling that fit into position, creating the familiar intake ‘ears’ at the top. The engine slides into the cowling from the rear until the cooling gills butt up against a cut-out, then attention shifts to the nacelle, which is made from two halves after adding covered exhausts and hinge-points to the gear bay sides on a single carrier per side, then gluing the two halves together with three bulkheads holding everything to shape. Once the glue has cured and seams have been dealt with, the engine and cowling are glued to the front and fitted under the wing. Again, the same process is carried out in mirror image for the opposite nacelle, after which the wings can be slid into position and glued in place. The Marauder was another tricycle gear equipped bomber, and the nose leg is made from the main strut with scissor-links added on both sides, fitted into the bay with a retraction jack behind it. A crew access ladder is provided, and is fixed into the roof at the rear of the bay, locating the two bay doors on the sides after fitting hinges along the upper edges, with a small retractor jack installed at the mid-point to complete the area. The main gear legs are fitted with twin supports at the top and door openers mid-way down, inserting them into the nacelles along with a V-shaped strut, and a pair of bay doors on each nacelle. The main wheel tyres are made from two halves, with two more parts for the hubs, as is the nose gear wheel, but with flat hub caps, all three installing on stub axles so that the model can sit on all three wheels, or the rear two if you forgot the nose weight. I can’t laugh, as I recently did that, but got away with it. An aerial and a faired-in D/F loop are fixed under the belly, removing one under the nose, and another aerial is mounted behind the cockpit, with just the two four-blade props with separate spinners to complete the build. Markings There are four decal options on the large sheet, representing Flak Bait at various points of her career, the mission indicators growing in number as time goes by. From the box you can build one of the following: 322nd Bombardment Group, England, Mid-1943 322nd Bombardment Group, England, Summer 1944 322nd Bombardment Group, combat missions in Europe, Spring 1945 322nd Bombardment Group, Bavaria, Summer 1945 Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. As is common now with ICM kits, there is a page of the instruction booklet devoted to the masking of the canopy, using the printed shapes on the bottom of the page and the diagrams above to create your own masks if you wish. It consists of only thirty-two elements, some of which are used on the side windows, landing lights and around the cowlings at the front of the engine nacelles. Conclusion This particular Marauder saw over 700 hours of combat action, so amongst the four options there’s plenty of opportunities to depict a well-weathered example, and as it’s a famous airframe that’s still in existence, there should be plenty of reference photos online. Very highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

MH-60L Black Hawk US Special Forces Helicopter (48360) 1:48 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd Designed by Sikorsky as a modern replacement to the ageing UH-1 Huey, which was officially name Iroquois, the name Black Hawk was selected to continue the tradition of naming rotary-winged aircraft after native American tribes or their leaders. Development began in the late 1960s, with all proposals to utilise the same GE turboshaft engine that would eventually be designated T700. Key criteria included reduction of operating costs, crew and passenger survivability, and reliability that in turn fed back into the reduction in ongoing expense and safety. Redundancy of systems was also stipulated, as was ballistic protection for the crew and airframe, plus crash protection for the humans, and quieter flight than previous models to reduce the reaction time of the enemy as the aircraft approached. A quartet of prototypes were sent for trials alongside the Boeing-Vertol competitor in 1976, the Black Hawk winning the day and entering production later that year. Initial variants were developed after the original variant reached service, including an Electronic Warfare EH-60, and the Special Forces specific MH-60A, all of which increased the weight of the airframe, leading to an upgrade to the H-60L that harmonised the various common upgrades to enhance commonality for crew and maintainers alike, using T700-GE-701C engines with more power, and an improved gearbox that had been capable of running dry from the outset as part of its survivability improvement over its predecessor. The first Special Ops Black Hawk was the MH-60A that was later replaced by the MH-60L in the 80s as the standardisation of basic equipment fit, which was intended as an interim solution until the more advanced MH-60K could be fielded in the late 80s. The L was equipped with a pair of winglets that can be fitted with a pair of M230 30mm Chain-Guns, unguided rocket packs, or Hellfire missiles that allow the crew to ruin anyone’s day. Other winglet options include air-to-air missiles, M134D miniguns and GAU-19 12.7mm minigun pods, while the door gunners have M134D miniguns at their disposal, which we’ve all seen blasting targets with a stream of glowing tracer rounds moving sinuously as the gunner adjusts his aim to remain on target. Other systems were carried over from the MH-60A, such as the FLIR turret that gave the crew night vision to more accurately target their enemy. The MH-60M added a host of additional features that included in-flight refuelling, enhanced digital flight controls and glass cockpit, terrain-following radar, and yet more powerful engines to cope with the increased weight. The remaining fleet of legacy variants were upgraded to M standard to homogenise the fleet, which was completed by 2015. The MH-60 Black hawk Stealth Helicopter variant consisted of at least two specially modified airframes that were famously used in the assault on Osama Bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan during 2011, one of which was damaged in a hard landing and had to be destroyed with a scuttling charge, but a section of the tail remained due to the aircraft straddling a wall, letting the cat out of the bag in a spectacular manner on the world’s news programmes after the event. The Kit This is a brand-new tooling of this Special Ops helicopter in 1:48, bucking the current trend of tooling rotary-wing aircraft in 1:35 for whatever reasons that this reviewer’s tiny mind can’t seem to come to terms with. As 1:48 is my preferred scale, this kit makes me very happy, as it will look right at home next to my fixed-wing collection, whilst also keeping the use of shelf-space to a sensible level. That’s the personal stuff out of the way, now on to the model itself. The kit arrives in a top-opening box with ICM’s usual captive flap on the lower tray, and inside are seven sprues in grey styrene, a clear sprue, decal sheet, and instruction booklet that is printed in colour on glossy white paper, with colour profiles of the decal options on the back pages. Detail is excellent, starting with the exterior, which has finely engraved panel lines, recessed and raised rivets, plus other raised and recessed features that are typical of the type, whilst the raised rivets alone should put those that were disappointed by the lack of these on other manufacturers’ kits in recent years at ease. The cockpit is similarly well-appointed, while the aft compartment has a full set of optional tubular framed fabric seats, with sections of wall added around the doorways to give the model a more realistic look. Construction begins with two cyclic sticks with large gaiters, which mount in the raised forward section of the floor, with each crew member having a pair of pedals in the foot well, a three-part centre console with joystick, instrument panel and decal with coaming over the top forming a T-shape, which is inserted in the space between the two crew stations, boxing the front in with a shallow bulkhead. The crew seats are made as identical assemblies from four parts, with two collective sticks built from three parts each, all of which is installed in the cockpit along with a stowage rack attached to the back of each seat. Two substantial ammo cans are built from two parts and fitted to the floor near the front of the main cabin, followed by making the two interior skins for around the doors, which are each made from four parts and can be painted one of two colours, with a decal applied afterwards, fixing those to the floor on a pair of slots in the edge. The ceiling panel has the pilots’ overhead console moulded-in, which has four decals applied after painting, plus two tubular rails and a folded item that appears to be a stretcher in the passenger cabin. An optional thirteen individual seat backs are made with separate cushions, fitting three to a row of linked bases, and adding tubular backs, making two more single seats and a row of four more seats in the same manners, then mounting them all in holes pre-drilled in the ceiling part, adding diagonal braces to the underside of the bases. The ceiling is then mated with the floor assembly, lining up the pins on the seat supports with holes in the deck, and making up another row of four seats that are inserted into the rear of the ceiling, adding diagonal supports to the floor. The port fuselage half is prepared by adding nose glazing, a two-part exhaust slotted through a hole in the side, and a bulkhead that is fitted behind the passenger cabin, drilling out four flashed-over holes in the side of the boom. The interior assembly is inserted in front of the bulkhead, fitting a three-part rotor-head base into a raised ring moulded into the ceiling, applying nose glazing to the starboard side, and slipping the tail-rotor axle in without using glue. The tail-rotor has an insert in the rear to complete the full depth to the root, and a control crown is fixed to the front, fitting the assembly to the axle before closing the fuselage. It may be wise to leave the tail-rotor off until after painting however, as many modellers including myself would be likely to damage this relatively delicate part during handling. Before closing the fuselage halves, the tail wheel strut has the opposite yoke added, trapping the two-part wheel in place, itself trapped in position during closure of the fuselage halves. It’s important to align the halves carefully before the glue sets, to reduce the appearance of the seams and minimise the work needed once the glue is set, in order to protect the raised rivets that are dotted around the tail boom. The underside of the fuselage is a separate insert that is prepared by drilling out several flashed-over holes, then adding a frame around the lower winch-point, and an insert under the nose that receives the two-part FLIR turret. Before gluing the underside in place, a shackle is glued to the underside of the floor, again taking care with alignment to reduce remedial work on the seams later. The tail has a two-part stabiliser cemented across the base of the fin, adding an insert above, which is also a two-part assembly, mounting a small clear light that is painted a translucent red at the top of the tail fin. The nose has an insert with three sensor fairings fitted, installing it in the space at the front of the fuselage, and adding a forward section of the roof over the cockpit, with narrow strips running back down the sides of the fuselage. The flight crew doors have separate windows and an insert fitted before they are glued in place along with the windscreen, which closes in the cockpit. The exhausts for the twin GE power plants are built from three parts, with a two-part fairing around them, and a bulkhead to the front, the port bulkhead having an auxiliary exhaust mounted on it. Two intake bulkheads with fan detail moulded in are installed at the front of the engine compartment along with two fairings, mounting the exhausts behind them, and building the engine cowlings from two more parts, which are added between the bulkheads, covering the top with a curving roof that has plenty of external detail moulded-in. A pair of two-part exhaust cowlings are made, together with a large curved fairing over the front, which has several additional parts and wire cutters fitted beforehand, adding the three assemblies to the engine compartment to complete main assembly of that area. Each side of the fuselage has a pair of narrow windows fitted that have their surround moulded-in, making up a pair of sliding doors that each have a pair of square windows with rounded corners inserted, attaching them to the side of the fuselage in open or closed position as you prefer. Various sub-assemblies are now built to complete the busy exterior of the Black Hawk, starting with the main gear legs, which have two-part tyres fitted to the lower end, and a small part to the top of the starboard leg to facilitate fixing of the retractable refuelling probe in the next step. The combined starboard base of the probe/gear leg fairing is made from three parts plus a clear light, joining it to a two-part outer tube, and fixing it to the underside of the nose on the starboard side with an X-shaped bracing strut, into which the leading strut of the gear leg also fits. The port fairing is again made from four parts, but only accommodates the gear leg, fitting fairings over the rear struts on both sides to complete the main gear. A forest of antennae, lights and other fixtures are applied to the underside of the fuselage and along the tail boom, building two-part chaff and flare dispenser housings for the boom, which are mounted next to flat blade antennae, the port side having two housings while the starboard side has one. Two door-mounted miniguns are made from five parts each and are perched on a triangular support before they are attached to the open sides of the fuselage, one per side. You have a choice of depicting the refuelling boom retracted by using a short tip, or extended by fitting a longer part, adding a pair of wipers to the windscreen, plus small detail parts and pitot probes, mounting a five-part winch fairing over the door and two-part faceted Infrared sensor on the roof behind the rotor head, plus more antennae running aft along the tail boom to the fin. The main rotor is well-detailed, starting with the rotor head that is made from upper and lower halves, plus the shaft and a carrier for the blade control ring that is fitted next along with four push-rods that link it to the base of each rotor. A cruciform part is mounted on a circular spacer, with a cap on top, finally adding the four blades to the assembly to complete it, after which the axle can be dropped into position in the roof of the engine compartment. If space is at a premium, or you are likely to take your finished model to a show, you can leave the rotor loose to facilitate moving it around. Markings There are three decal options provided on the sheet, all of them wearing a black or black with dark grey camouflage scheme for stealth purposes during night operations, although due to the size of the profiles in print, it’s quite hard to discern the details, and the decal numbers are also quite small. From the box you can build one of the following: 90-26290, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), Tennessee, 2007 93-26489, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), Exercise PANAMAX 2011 91-26360, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), 2012 Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. As is common now with ICM kits, there is a page of the instruction booklet devoted to the masking of the canopy and glazing, using the printed shapes on the page and the diagrams above to create your own masks if you wish. If you have the same age-related poor eyesight as I have, you should perhaps have a look at ICM’s site, where you’ll find a link to a PDF of the instructions, or go straight here to save yourself a search. Conclusion This is the first new tooling of this type using data that was gathered in this millennium, that also uses the advanced technology now available to kit designers. It is well-detailed inside and out, and as an avid gunship modeller, this first release is appealing to me, and probably many other modellers in this scale too. In the unlikely event that you prefer another less-aggressive variant however, there’s bound to be more boxings along in due course, so keep watching for our reviews. Very highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

ICM Acrylic Paint Sets ICM via H G Hannants Ltd In 2021 ICM released their own Acrylic Paint range, and soon after began offering boxed sets that matched with their recent kit releases, which is good marketing, and helpful to the modellers building these kits. The sets arrive in a cardboard box with six screw-capped bottles inside, each containing 12ml of paint. The bottles are clear Polypropylene, and are capped with cylindrical tops that have knurled sides, and a one-time security seal that you break on first opening. A label on the side gives you basic information about the colour and code, a little information regarding application in English and Ukrainian, plus a bar-code. As is sensible with a new range of paints, we undertook some testing of the first issues to establish whether the paint was good for brushing and airbrushing, and what sort of finish you can achieve with their products. They have released many sets since then, and so far we’ve been reviewing them separately, which is not only time intensive for us, but also means that they’ll be scattered throughout the Tools & Paint Review area, due to the time between releases and the volume of reviews that we post. To counter this, we’ll be putting all the sets in this thread going forward, so that anyone with an ICM kit can check the availability of a suitable set, and only have to read that they have a polypropylene bottle holding 12ml of paint the once. It should cut down on the instances of déjà vu too, which is always nice. Below you can see the results of our initial testing, complete with painted spoons that help to show off the smoothness and effect that light and shade has on the colours. The individual sets will be listed below these, with photos and a note of the colours included for your reference. Testing with Airbrush I used Ultimate Acrylic Thinners to dilute the paint to spray through my Gunze PS770 airbrush, which has a 0.18 needle chucked in. The paint dilutes well once it has been mixed thoroughly, and sprays well through my airbrush, which has a smaller than usual needle that is a good test of the finesse of the pigment grind of any brand, some of which don’t spray very well though anything less than a 0.3mm needle. There were no problems with blockages at all, and the coverage was excellent after my usual ad hoc dilution method, which was probably nowhere near the 40-60% thinners or water that’s suggested on the pack. The photo below shows the five actual colours sprayed out onto plastic spoons that have been prepared by buffing with a fine grade flexible sanding stick of the kind you use in the penultimate step before buffing to a shine. As the paint dried it obtained a highly matt finish with the exception of the Oily Steel paint, which is clearly semi-gloss. The Satin Varnish also worked very well diluted with water, sprayed over the spoons that were also partially taped up to perform two functions at once. The satin patina that resulted is exactly what was expected, and the tape lifted no paint at all, despite my best efforts to do so. Bear in mind that the spoons were prepped by a buff with a very fine sanding sponge to give them a chance of adhesion. There was very little damage to the cured paint from scraping my fingernails across the surface too. There were track-marks of course, but no lifting of paint at all. Testing with Paint Brush As usual I used a #6 synthetic filbert brush from AMMO, which has slightly curved edges to keep tramlines in the paint to a minimum. The colours brushed extremely well with one exception, which was the Oily Steel. It appeared to pull up when over-brushed during application, despite the surface remaining wet, which resulted in the appearance of tiny fibre-like structures in the paint that led to a gritty finish that was also translucent even after two coats, obtaining a rather lumpy opaqueness after three coats. The rest of the colours covered perfectly after two coats with minimal brush marks visible, which was thoroughly impressive to this long-lapsed brush painter, and some were almost completely opaque after one coat, save for the fact that they were laid down over a white surface. The undiluted Satin Varnish brushed out well over the matt surface of the brush painted spoon undersides, and I had to leave it until the next day to have my evening meal. The satin effect was excellent again, and the paint was tough enough to stand up to my fingernail test without lifting, although you can’t avoid leaving tracks across the surface due to the deposition of tiny particles from your fingernail on the surface. The Sets We’ve updated this review with all the sets that we’ve reviewed over the last couple of years (how time flies!), and will keep adding the new ones so that it becomes a comprehensive reference. WWII Marder I (3003) This set contains the following colours: 1060 Middle Stone, 1071 Camouflage Green, 1050 Saddle Brown, 1038 German Grey, 1027 Gun Metal, 1002 Matt Varnish B-26K Invader (3007) This set contains the following colours: 1072 US Dark Green, 1058 Tan Earth, 1069 Extra Dark Green, 1002 Black, 1024 Silver, 2002 Satin Varnish OV-10A Bronco (3008) This set contains the following colours: 1071 Camouflage Green, 1031 Warm Grey, 1032 Blue Grey, 1026 Oily Steel, 1002 Black, 2002 Satin Varnish Laffly (3009) This set contains the following colours: 1072 US Dark Green, 1042 Pale Sand, 1052 Hull Red, 1039 Rubber Black, 1027 Gun Metal, 2001 Matt Varnish Basic Colours (3010) This set contains the following colours: 1001 White, 1002 Black, 1003 Deep Yellow, 1004 Deep Red, 1005 Dark Blue, 1006 Deep Green The rear of the box shows the following: USAAF Pilots 1944-45 (1012) This set contains the following colours: 1002 Black, 1008 Deep Brown, 1052 Hull Red, 1068 Olive Green, 1044 Basic Skin Tone, 1059 Green Ochre American Civil War Union Infantry (3013) This set contains the following colours: 1037 Dark Grey, 1026 Oily Steel, 1075 Grey-Blue, 1050 Saddle Brown, 1017 Gold, 1043 Light Flesh German WWII Aviation (3014) This set contains the following colours: 1074 Pale Blue, 1034 Dark Sea Grey, 1003 Deep Yellow, 1070 German Field Grey, 1035 Grey-Green, 2002 Satin Varnish WWII Soviet Aviation (3016) This set contains the following colours: 1032 Blue Grey, 1033 Sky Grey, 1036 neutral Grey, 1069 Extra Dark Green, 1071 Camouflage Green, 2003 Gloss varnish The rear of the box shows the following: Bundeswehr Vehicles & AFVs (3017) This set contains the following colours: 1026 Oily Steel, 1060 Middle Stone, 1072 US Dark Green, 1039 Rubber Black, 1052 Hull Red, 1073 4BO The rear of the box shows the following: WWII Royal Air Force (3018) This set contains the following colours: 1054 Chocolate, 1069 Extra Dark Green, 1037 Dark Grey, 1032 Blue Grey, 1027 Gun Metal, 2002 Satin Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: US Cargo Trucks (3019) This set contains the following colours: 1046 Blood Red, 1003 Deep Yellow, 1066 grass Green, 1068 Olive Green, 1001 White, 2003 Matt Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: Try Me (3020) This set contains the following colours: 1001 White, 1002 Black, 1027 Gun Metal, 1073 4BO Green, 1011 Clear Red, 2004 Grey Primer The rear of the box shows the following: WWII Japanese Aviation (3021) This set contains the following colours: 1063 Green-Grey, 1023 Aluminium, 1025 Natural Steel, 1062 British Khaki, 1073 4BO Green, 2002 Satin Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: US Helicopter Pilots – Vietnam War (3023) This set contains the following colours: 1060 Middle Stone, 1062 British Khaki, 1002 Black, 1072 US Dark Green, 1073 4BO Green, 2001 Matt Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: WWI US Infantry (3024) This set contains the following colours: 1059 Green Ochre, 1055 Deck Tan, 1061 Green Brown, 1050 Saddle Brown, 1008 Deep Brown, 2002 Satin Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: Armed Forces of Ukraine (3025) This set contains the following colours: 1072 US Dark Green, 1035 Grey Green, 1041 Buff, 1069 Extra Dark Green, 1054 Chocolate, 2001 Matt Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: US Helicopters (3026) This set contains the following colours: 1071 Camouflage Green, 1072 US Dark Green, 1001 White, 1007 Deep Red, 1027 Gun Metal, 1011 Clear Red The rear of the box shows the following: Ghost of Kyiv (3027) This set contains the following colours: 1028 Offwhite, 1033 Sky Grey, 1034 Dark Sea Grey, 1037 Dark Grey, 1038 German Grey, 2002 Satin Varnish US Aviation 1980-90 (3028) This set contains the following colours: 1055 Deck Tan, 1056 Light Earth, 1039 Rubber Black, 1072 US Dark Green, 1032 Blue Grey, 1011 Clear Red The rear of the box shows the following: Ships of the Kriegsmarine (3029) This set contains the following colours: 1007 Deep Red, 1018 Brass, 1037 Dark Grey, 1056 Light Earth, 1027 Gun Metal, 1011 Clear Red The rear of the box shows the following: Civilians (3030) This set contains the following colours: 1005 Deep Purple, 1008 Deep Brown, 1009 Deep Green, 1030 Ivory, 1047 Matt Red, 1077 Dark Blue The rear of the box shows the following: Fire Trucks (3031) This set contains the following colours: 1001 White, 1007 Deep Red, 1039 Rubber Black, 1023 Aluminium, 1060 Middle Stone, 1012 Clear Blue The rear of the box shows the following: WWII German Tank Crew (3032) This set contains the following colours: 1024 Silver, 1004 intense Pink, 1002 Black, 1036 Neutral Grey, 1070 German Field Grey, 2001 Matt Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: WWII RAF Pilots (3033) This set contains the following colours: 1077 Dark Blue, 1075 Grey Blue, 1003 Deep Yellow, 1054 Chocolate, 1060 Middle Stone, 2001 Matt Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: American Civil War Confederate Infantry (3034) This set contains the following colours: 1075 Grey Blue, 1076 Deep Sky Blue, 1036 Neutral Grey, 1055 Deck Tan, 1020 Bronze, 2002 Satin varnish The rear of the box shows the following: Personal Protective Equipment (3035) This set contains the following colours: 1045 Medium, Orange, 1035 Grey Green, 1011 Clear Red, 1039 Rubber Black, 1015 Clear Yellow, 1024 Silver The rear of the box shows the following: WWII Aircraft Armament (3036) This set contains the following colours: 1071 Camouflage Green, 1057 Ochre, 1037 Dark Grey, 1002 Black, 1072 US Dark Green, 1026 Oily Steel The rear of the box shows the following: WWII US Infantry (3037) This set contains the following colours: 1041 Buff, 1058 Tan Earth, 1031 Warm Grey, 1072 US Dark Green, 1008 Deep Brown, 2001 Matt Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: Wehrmacht Trucks (3038) This set contains the following colours: 1038 German Grey, 1040 Beige, 1029 White Grey, 1052 Hull Red, 1072 US Dark green, 2003 Gloss varnish The rear of the box shows the following: Combat Vehicles Armed Forces of Ukraine (3040) This set contains the following colours: 1001 White, 1011 Clear Red, 1027 Gun Metal, 1072 US Dark Green, 1039 Rubber Black, 1073 4BO Green The rear of the box shows the following: WWI British Infantry (3042) This set contains the following colours: 1018 Brass, 1059 Green Ochre, 1071 Camouflage Green, 1062 British Khaki, 1052 Hull Red, 2001 Matt Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: Military Equipment Armed Forces of Ukraine (3039) This set contains the following colours: 1027 Gun Metal 1008 Deep Brown 1072 US Dark Green 1041 Buff 1002 Black 1073 4BO Green The rear of the box shows the following: Armed Forces of Ukraine (3041) This set contains the following colours: 1028 Off White 1072 US Dark Green 1058 Tan Earth 1062 British Khaki 1054 Chocolate 1031 Warm Grey The rear of the box shows the following: WWI & WWII Weapon & Equipment (3043) This set contains the following colours: 1025 Natural Steel 1027 Gun Metal 1035 Grey Green 1031 Warm Grey 1053 Leather Brown 1002 Black The rear of the box shows the following: WWI German Infantry (3044) This set contains the following colours: 1008 Deep Brown 1037 Dark Grey 1070 German Field Grey 1034 Dark Sea Grey 1038 German Grey 1072 US Dark Green The rear of the box shows the following: WWI French Infantry (3045) This set contains the following colours: 1075 Grey Blue 1076 Deep Sky Blue 1046 Blood Red 1055 Deck Tan 1008 Deep Brown 1002 Black The rear of the box shows the following: Luftwaffe Pilots (3046) This set contains the following colours: 1077 Dark Blue 1002 Black 1003 Deep Yellow 1054 Chocolate 1028 Off White 1024 Silver The rear of the box shows the following: WWII US Aviation (3047) This set contains the following colours: 1071 Camouflage Green, 1001 White, 1068 Olive Green, 1002 Black, 1023 Aluminium, 2002 Satin Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: Wehrmacht Afrika Korps (3049) This set contains the following colours: 1059 Green Ochre, 1041 Buff, 1038 German Grey, 1058 Tan Earth, 1060 Middle Stone, 1061 Green Brown The rear of the box shows the following: WWII British Royal Navy Aviation (3050) This set contains the following colours: 1074 Pale Blue, 1069 Extra Dark Grey, 1033 Sky Grey, 1022 Burnt Tin, 1028 Off White, 2002 Satin Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: WWI US Vehicles (3051) This set contains the following colours: 1071 Camouflage Green, 1056 Light Earth, 1002 Black, 1060 Middle Stone, 1037 Dark Grey, 1051 Dark Rust The rear of the box shows the following: WWII Military Vehicles of Britain (3052) This set contains the following colours: 1069 Extra Dark Green, 1060 Middle Stone, 1061 Green Brown, 1028 Off White, 1071 Camouflage Green, 2002 Satin Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: WWII German U-Boats (3053) This set contains the following colours: 1033 Sky Grey, 1034 Dark Sea Grey, 1037 Dark Grey, 1018 Brass, 1026 Oily Steel, 1011 Clear Red The rear of the box shows the following: US Cars 1930-40s (3048) This set contains the following colours: 1077 Dark Blue, 1009 Deep Green, 1007 Deep Red, 1031 Warm Grey, 1064 Lime Green, 1065 Interior Yellow Green The rear of the box shows the following: WWII British Infantry (3054) This set contains the following colours: 1069 Extra Dark Green, 1027 Gun Metal, 1062 British Khaki, 1059 Green Ochre, 1008 Deep Brown The rear of the box shows the following: Civil Aviation (3055) This set contains the following colours: 1001 White, 1077 Dark Blue, 1007 Deep Red, 1024 Silver, 1045 Medium Orange, 1034 Dark Sea Grey The rear of the box shows the following: WWII Japanese Pilots (3056) This set contains the following colours: 1050 Saddle Brown, 1026 Oily Steel, 1061 Green Brown, 1052 Hull Red, 1041 Buff, 1072 US Dark Green The rear of the box shows the following: Firefighters (3057) This set contains the following colours: 1059 Green Ochre, 1002 Black, 1038 German Grey, 1011 Clear Red, 1054 Chocolate, 2007 Green Primer The rear of the box shows the following: Humvee US Military Cars (3059) This set contains the following colours: 2005 Black Primer, 1056 Light Earth, 1052 Hull Red, 1072 US Dark Green, 1073 4B0 Green, 1038 German Grey The rear of the box shows the following: WWII Royal Navy (3060) This set contains the following colours: 1049 Medium Rust, 1034 Dark Sea Grey, 2004 Grey Primer, 1074 Pale Blue, 1037 Dark Grey, 1042 Pale Sand The rear of the box shows the following: Animals (3061) This set contains the following colours: 1039 Rubber Black, 2009 White Primer, 1043 Light Flesh, 1008 Deep Brown, 1006 Deep Orange, 1053 Leather Brown The rear of the box shows the following: American Cars of the Early 20th Century (3058) This set contains the following colours: 1010 Deep Blue, 2005 Black Primer, 1069 Extra Dark Green, 1068 Olive Green, 1066 Grass Green, 2003 Gloss Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: WWII US Armoured Vehicles (3062) This set contains the following colours: 1027 Gun Metal, 1041 Buff, 1071 Camouflage Green, 1072 US Dark Green, 2005 Black Primer, 1001 White The rear of the box shows the following: WWII Imperial Japanese Navy (3064) This set contains the following colours: 1049 Medium Rust, 1036 Neutral Grey, 1047 Matt Red, 1038 German Grey, 2004 Grey Primer, 2003 Gloss Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: German Civilian Cars of the 1930s (3065) This set contains the following colours: 1046 Blood Red, 1040 Beige, 1002 Black, 1024 Silver, 1010 Deep Blue, 2003 Gloss Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: Medieval Warriors (3066) This set contains the following colours: 1025 Natural Steel, 1026 Oily Steel, 1058 Tan Earth, 1053 Leather Brown, 1017 Gold, 1019 Rusty Brass The rear of the box shows the following: Ancient Warriors (3068) This set contains the following colours: 1024 Silver, 1020 Bronze, 1047 Matt Red, 1019 Rusty Brass, 1026 Oily Steel, 1053 Leather Brown The rear of the box shows the following: WWI German Aviation (3069) This set contains the following colours: 1001 White, 1002 Black, 1046 Blood Red, 1056 Light Earth, 1072 US Dark Green, 1076 Deep Sky Blue The rear of the box shows the following: Napoleonic Wars (3072) This set contains the following colours: 1006 Deep Orange, 1007 Deep Red, 1009 Deep Green, 1017 Gold, 1028 Offwhite, 1077 Dark Blue The rear of the box shows the following: Leopard Tanks (3073) This set contains the following colours: 1070 German Field grey, 1039 Rubber Black, 1026 Oily Steel, 1028 Offwhite, 2005 Black Primer, 1052 Hull Red The rear of the box shows the following: ’Flak Bait’ B-26B (3074) This set contains the following colours: 1002 Black, 1036 Neutral Grey, 1068 Olive Green, 1071 Camouflage Green, 1072 US Dark Green, 2004 Grey Primer The rear of the box shows the following: Black Hawk US Helicopter Acrylic Paint Set (3067) This set contains the following colours: 1002 Black, 1033 Sky Grey, 1038 German Grey, 1056 Light Earth, 1072 US Dark Green, 2003 Gloss Varnish The rear of the box shows the following: Conclusion The paints were excellent through the airbrush with nothing in the way of drama during the testing process, including the metallics and varnish. The solid colours also brushed out very well, as did the varnishes. There is a little less paint in the bottles than some brands, but a shade more than others, so it’s about average. That is more than offset by the very reasonable price they’re asking for the set, even at RRP. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Dardanelles Campaign 1915 (DS3520) 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd More widely known as Gallipoli, the Dardanelles Campaign was a 1915 battle that raged from early February to January the following year, and resulted in extensive casualties on all sides. The Ottoman or Turkish Empire were on the side of the Central Powers along with Germany, Bulgaria, and Austria-Hungary, ranged against the Entente Powers of England, France and Tzarist Russia. The aim of the campaign was to weaken the Turkish Empire and secure the Suez Canal, cutting Turkey off from their Asian territories, allowing Entente battleships to bombard the capital Constantinople (now Istanbul), negatively affecting Turkish morale and their people’s willingness to fight. Both sides considered the campaign a victory, although they all suffered appalling casualties, making it a pyrrhic victory at best, regardless of which version you believe. Naval operations set the scene, followed by troop landings that included British, New Zealand, French and Australian forces ranged against the Ottoman troops and their civilian support personnel. The Entente command staff underestimated the strength and mobility of the Turkish forces, including their level of preparedness for the assault, which increased the casualty rate and kept the frontline in virtual stasis, much like the Western front of the time, creating trench systems to protect their positions at the expense of mobility and the likelihood of significant advances. The intense grinder of battle eventually affected opinion at home after several months with little in the way of advance to show for it, and during the process a young Winston Churchill as First Lord of the Admiralty had a major career set-back for his part in the operation. The eventual withdrawal of entente forces was well-organised, and its secrecy was largely maintained, allowing the troops to escape comparatively unhindered, leaving behind equipment and other stores that were suitably spoiled to prevent their later use by the Turkish or other enemy forces. The Entente forces learned many valuable lessons that were useful as far in the future as WWII however, and it affected the careers of more than Winston Churchill, but the most awful cost was the substantial loss of lives. WWI British Infantry 1914 (35684) This set consists of two sprues in grey styrene in a bag that also includes the weapons sprue detailed below. The parts for each figure are found in separate areas of the sprue for ease of identification, and parts breakdown is sensibly placed along clothing seams or natural breaks to minimise clean-up of the figures once they are built up. The sculpting is typically excellent, as we’ve come to expect from ICM’s artists and tool-makers, with natural poses, drape of clothing and textures appropriate to the parts of the model. All the figures are standing, advancing at a walking pace as was common during WWI, and there are three soldiers with standard uniforms with cloth-wrapped puttees over their boots, a Lee Enfield rifle with bayonet affixed, held in both hands in a slightly downward angle, presumably to avoid poking a colleague in front. The other figure is an officer in similar garb, but with a pistol belt, swagger stick and a revolver in one hand on a lanyard linked to his belt. The lanyard and rifle slings will need to be added from your own stock, using lead or pewter sheet for the slings, and cord or wire for the pistol lanyard. WWI British Infantry Weapons & Equipment (35683) Comprising one sprue of grey styrene within the same bag as the British Infantry set above, there are a huge array of weapons and equipment (no surprise there) to upgrade and detail your models and dioramas, using the painting instructions that can be found on the sheet. From the box you can make the following items: Lewis Machine Gun Lewis Magazine Pouch Lee Enfield No.1 Mk.III Rifle Lee Enfield No.1 Mk.III Rifle with Bayonet Ross Mk.III M1910 Rifle Ross Mk.III M1910 Rifle with Bayonet Lee Enfield Scabbard with Pickaxe Handle 1907 Bayonet 1907 Bayonet with Scabbard Lee Enfield Pouch (Left) Lee Enfield Pouch (Right) Leather Pouch Bandolier Rifle Mortar Rifle Wire Cutters Webley-Scott Mk.VI Revolver Webley-Scott in Officer Holster Webley-Scott in NCO Holster Webley-Scott Officer Pouch Webley-Scott NCO Pouch No.16 Grenade Mills Grenade Shovel Pickaxe in Case Pickaxe Axe Wire Cutters Mess Tin Canteen Compass in Case Rattle Binocular Binocular Case Mk.I Steel Helmet WWI Turkish Infantry 1915-1918 (35700) This set comprises of one sprue in grey styrene in a bag that also includes the weapons sprue detailed below. The parts for each figure are found in separate areas of the sprue for ease of identification, and parts breakdown is sensibly placed along clothing seams or natural breaks to minimise clean-up of the figures once they are built up. The sculpting is typically excellent, as we’ve come to expect from ICM’s artists and tool-makers, with natural poses, drape of clothing and textures appropriate to the parts of the model. Two of the figures are standing, advancing at a walking or jogging pace in a stooped manner to avoid incoming fire, the other is kneeling and aiming his rifle at the enemy, all three wearing standard uniforms with cloth-wrapped puttees over their boots, and a Mauser rifle with bayonet affixed, held in one or both hands. The other figure is an officer in a similar basic uniform, but with calf-length boots, a fez-style hat and a pistol belt, field-glasses and a Broom-handled Mauser C96 pistol in one hand, plus a sabre in its scabbard hanging from his belt on the left. The binocular strap and rifle slings will need to be added from your own stock, using lead or pewter sheet. WWI Turkish Infantry Weapons & Equipment (35699) Comprising one sprue of grey styrene within the same bag as the Turkish Infantry set above, there is a huge array of gear to upgrade and detail your models and dioramas, using the painting instructions that can be found on the sheet. From the box you can make the following items: Mauser 1890 Rifle Mauser 1890 Rifle with Bayonet Mauser 1893 Rifle Mauser 1893 Rifle with Bayonet Mauser 1903 Rifle Mauser 1903 Rifle with Bayonet Mauser Bayonet Scabbard Mauser Bayonet in Scabbard Mauser Rifle Pouches Bandoliers Wire Cutters Respirator Canister Mauser C96 Pistol Lemon Grenade Stielhandgranate Grenade Officer Sabre NCO Sabre Small Shovel Canteen Binocular Binocular Case Map case M1918 Steel Helmet WWI British Vickers MG Crew (35713) This set contains the gun and two-man crew, plus lots of accessories. Inside the bag are three sprues in grey styrene plus a folded sheet of instructions and painting guide. You can build one complete machine gun from the box, but there are two guns and two tripods, the former having options for fluted and straight cooling jackets, while the latter are set up for seated or prone operation. Construction of the gun is simple, with the breech details and firing handle attached to your jacketed barrel of choice, followed by the two arms that hold the gun in place and their central arm with adjustment wheel at the bottom. A length of finely moulded ammunition slides through the breech, and the unused end is fixed to the ammo can with more moulded rounds in an insert that sits on top of the box. The weapon is inserted into the hole at the top of your choice of tripods, then the afore-mentioned ammo can and the water reservoir for the cooling jacket, which is linked by a hose to the underside of the muzzle, but isn’t mentioned at all in the instructions. Depending on how you will deploy your gun, you could use a length of lead wire portray this, gluing it to the can. If you’re unsure of the correct locations, there are many good resources online. The figures are covered on the glossy instruction page, with two views where necessary, showing the parts in position and giving full painting options using their usual letter codes in red. The figures are well sculpted with sensible parts breakdown into torso, head, arms and legs, with peaked caps that glue onto the flat tops of their heads. The gunner is in the seated position operating the weapon, while the ammo feeder is prone, feeding the link into the breech of the gun from the ammo box in front of him. Additional rucksacks, pouches and water bottle parts are included on their sprue, with many more parts on the accessory sprue, which has a separate instruction sheet, mostly for painting purposes. There are copious Lee Enfield rifles, a Lewis gun, spades, axes, more pouches, binoculars and some battle bowlers that could be used instead of the earlier caps if desired. There are also pistols, grenades, wire cutters, a rifle mortar, pick-axe and sheath, and even a football-style rattle for signalling. You can use as many or as few of the accessories as you wish, keeping any spares for use in future projects. Backdrop The backdrop is found folded flat inside the box, and is printed on thick card with a rugged glossy printing on the front face. It has two folds engineered-in, and is intended to be folded into three sides of a rectangular box, in which you can pose the figures and equipment if you wish. It’s a bonus in many ways, and is entirely optional, as some might prefer to create their own groundwork for ultimate realism. Conclusion Great figures and accessories that could be built as a tribute to the men who fought and lost their lives in that terrible campaign. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Sankas WWII Wehrmacht Ambulance Trucks (DS3523) 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd Sankas is a shortened form of ‘Sanitaetskorps der Armee', or Army Medical Service in English. Amongst other things, medical, they oversaw the management of ambulance provision, using whatever vehicles were available to them, from horse-drawn carts to half-tracks and anything in between. This set includes three such vehicles, replete with red crosses on white circular backgrounds that marked them out (hopefully) for safety from opposing forces in whose sights they might fall. Lastkraftwagen 3.5T AHN with Shelter WWII Ambulance Truck The original AHx design by Renault could carry a load of 2 tonnes, and when Germany conquered France they ordered more into production and the larger AHN, which was capable of carrying 4 tonnes, but was designated 3.5 tonnes by the Wehrmacht, probably to give it a safety margin for overeager crews. The AHN was equipped with a 4L straight six petrol engine that was coupled to a four-speed gearbox. From introduction in 1941 to the end of WWII they served in all theatres where German troops were found, and around 4,000 were built in various forms. For two years after the war France built a further 2,400 units, many of which were sold to the civilian market, along with some of the former military vehicles. The Kit Stemming from a new tool in 2014, this is a reboxing with the addition of a new roof sprue that gives the option of a small ventilation hatch right above the driver’s head. Inside the box are seven sprues of grey styrene, a clear sprue, a bag of flexible plastic tyres, decal sheet and instruction booklet with colour profiles on the rear pages. This is a full detail kit, and construction starts with the chassis, which is built from rails and cross-members, into which you install the engine when it has been assembled from a decent number of parts to give good detail. The radiator slots into the front, and then suspension is added in the front and rear using leaf springs, which are then fixed to axles after the exhaust has been glued to the chassis rails. Steering linkages are fitted into the left side of the engine, joining up with the front axle's steering rack, and then the wheels are added, made up from the flexible tyres slipped over the styrene hubs. The rear wheels are paired for weight distribution, so have twin hubs joined together with a castellated mating surface. Fuel tank, spare wheel, drive-shaft and towing hitches are then installed to finish off the lower of the vehicle. The snub-nosed cab is next to be fabricated, and this begins with the stepped floor, which has crew steps added to the underside, and then has the two doors fixed to the sides after the clear windows are put in place, with the front completed in the same manner. Inside the cab an air filter box, instruments (with decal), driver controls and comfy-looking barrel-backed seats are all glued in place after painting, and the rear panel with small rear-view window finishes off the framework. The crew doors have glazing added and are attached to the front edge of their aperture in open or closed positions as you see fit, while the roof goes on as a single part or as the ventilated version with a lozenge-shaped hatch, and both roof parts have a couple of ejector-pin marks to square away if you think they will be seen. At the front is a distinctive radiator grille, which has an emblem design added to the front, and then gets fitted to the hole in the nose, plus a filler cap above it. The truck bed has a complex arrangement of supports underneath, which are slotted together on two central rails and surrounded by side frames, after which the floor is dropped on top and the sides are added. The rear mudguards underneath are attached via a pair of supports that mate with small blocks under the bed and ridges on the semi-cylindrical guards themselves. The number plate sits low on the rear, and side frames are added to the tops of the bed's uprights, with a large roof part fitted with longitudinal slats to complete top frame/tilt. Both the bed and cab are fixed to their slots in the tops of the chassis rails, and as the final step the lights, windscreen wipers, the convoy light and wing mirror are all attached to the sloping front and sides of the cab. Now for some paint. Markings These is just one scheme for this boxing, which is a brown/green random camouflage, sprayed over a base coat of dark yellow (Dunkelgelb). From the box you can build the following: Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. V3000S/SS M Maultier Ambulance Truck (35414) This kit originated in 2010 with new parts to make the ambulance body released four years later, totalling five sprues of grey styrene, two of clear parts, a small decal sheet, and the instruction booklet that is printed in black and white, as it is an older boxing before the transition to colour booklets. Construction begins with the chassis and running gear, until the cab is started, which has a moulded steel structure. The roof is moulded into the windscreen and scuttle, fitting the screen and instrument panel with dial decals, joining it to the rear cab after installing the back cushion, rear window and another curved part. The bonnet has sides and a central decorative trim piece fitted, and a cross-brace underneath near the front helps to strengthen the structure. The lower panels are mounted on the firewall, with the radiator at the front, laying the bonnet over the top, and making the cab floor with pedals, levers and the steering wheel on its column before the bonnet and cab are mated with it, making up crew doors with windows and door cards, which you can pose open or closed. The front wings have running boards moulded-in, and you must remove 11mm of its length for this variant, adding headlights with clear lenses, convoy light, pioneer tools, wing mirrors, indicators and windscreen wipers to the exterior, and fitting a Jerry can in a frame on the right wing, plus a filler cap on the curved panel applied earlier. The rear box has a flat floor with five cross-braces underneath, to which three sides are installed, fitting windows and doors with handles to the sides, then making the roof with shallow gable ends before gluing it in place. The rear doors are decorated with handles, number plate, hooks, to be installed either open or closed in any combination, then the raised centre section of the roof is made, with a curved top, long straight sides and ends that follow the curve of the main roof. At the rear, a two-part chimney/vent is fixed in a recess on the main roof, bringing the three main assemblies together, then installing the track assembly under the load area, and linking it to the engine with a drive-shaft. The back steps can be flipped up and held on hooks for travel, or folded down for access, making it from two carriers and four steps, plus two rings to correspond with the hooks on the doors. A stowage platform is built for the cab roof, consisting of a slatted floor, two brackets that conform to the slope of the roof, adding a shallow basket with ‘handle’ and a spare tyre that is made from the main carcass and hub, inserting one sidewall, and a handle that winds down to lock the tyre in position. Markings There are two decal options, with a dark yellow (Dunkelgelb) chassis, and white load box, with the white repeated on the bonnet, adding red crosses to further deter the enemy from shooting at them, or smaller red crosses and no white on the post-war option. From the box you can build one of the following: Poland, Autumn 1944 Germany, Winter 1945 Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Typ 2.5-32 WWII German Ambulance Truck (35402) The Opel Blitz was an extremely common light truck in use with the German Wehrmacht during WWII, and was available in 3 tonne long-wheelbase and 2.5 tonne short-wheelbase, with a variety of body-styles that included the ambulance that we have here. The Kit The initial tooling of this kit was released in 2013 in flatbed form, followed by the ambulance body in the same year. The kit consists of three sprues of grey styrene, two of clear parts, and a bag containing six flexible black tyres. The kit is rounded out by a sheet of decals that is hidden in between the pages of the black & white booklet, which has the profiles in monotone on the rearmost page. Detail is good, extending to a full chassis model, with planking engraved into the wooden parts, and a well-detailed engine under the bonnet, which has finely-spaced louvres moulded into the sides. Construction begins with the engine, making the block from two halves, adding intake and exhaust pathways, plus the usual accessories and four-bladed fan on a belt at the front. The chassis rails are spaced apart by three circular profile cross-beams, a flat beam at the rear, and a K-beam behind the engine location with a sump-guard at the front, adding a steering actuator to the inside of the left beam. Leaf-springs are installed under the rails on the outer edge, mounting brackets and supports to recesses moulded into the outer faces of the two rails, then fitting the engine above the sump-guard, and framing it with the radiator and connecting hoses. The exhaust is set under the chassis with moulded-in muffler and a separate L-shaped tail-pipe that exits in front of the rear wheels, which are next to be made. The front wheels are built from two-part hubs that have a flexible tyre slipped onto the rim, while the rear wheels are paired, fitting opposing hubs that mate in the middle and have tyres flexed onto them. The front axle is a simple beam with steering arm and actuators with a wheel at each end, the rear axle has the differential bulge with input shaft as a separate part, fixing a pair of wheels to each end, then installing them under the chassis on the leaf-springs, adding another linkage to the front, and a long drive-shaft leading from the engine back to the rear. A towing hitch with vertical bar is made from three parts and is fitted to the rear cross-beam, moving on to the bodywork. The cab is separate from the load area, assembling it on the floor, which has the kick-board and bench seat cushion installed on a raised platform, then adding three pedals and a steering column on the left side, the wheel a separate rim that fits over the three arms moulded into the column. A handbrake is fitted in the centre, attaching the rear wall with window behind after adding the back cushion for the driving crew, mounting the front arch and running boards around the front wheels, then lowering the cab floor into position and adding a cranked gear shifter directly to the transmission box under the floor through a small opening. The firewall and integrated windscreen frame have the dash installed from within, using a decal to depict the dials, then fitting the clear windscreen in the frame, and a battery into a pre-formed open-sided box on the engine side of the firewall. This too is installed on the chassis in front of the cab, and a grille with logo is mounted at the front of the chassis on double pegs, fixing the roof and two doors with windows, winders and handles to each side, with the option of leaving them open or closed at any sensible angle. The load bed is initially assembled exactly as the standard cargo truck, with planked floor, sides, tailgate and headboard, the latter with a pair of extra verticals added to the outside. The subframe forms a hash (#) shaped frame under the floor, fitting three stowage boxes with separate doors asymmetrically along the edges between the rails, and installing the rear arches on tabs, supported by two spurs from the cross-rails on either side. The load bed is then mounted on the chassis, and the bonnet is assembled from louvred side panels and the top, adding a logo to the front, and a pair of windscreen wipers to the scuttle, then fitting lights, convoy light, a single wing-mirror, and width-indicator lollipops to the front of the vehicle, plus pioneer tools on the sides, and vertically stacked light clusters under the tailgate, one mounting the number plate holder and Notek convoy light. The load box is a separate assembly that is made from four sides plus roof, with three windows inserted from within on the front and sides, lowering it over the model to complete the build. If you’re wondering how the wounded got in and out, the tail-gate would flip down, and the rear was split into two halves that open from the centre. A set of steps would have been nice for the casualty’s convenience, but there wasn’t one. Markings There is one set of profiles on the rear page of the instructions in black and white (we colourised the drawings), with the option of painting the model dark yellow (dunkelgelb) for a later war option, or panzer grey earlier in the war. From the box you can build one of the following colour schemes: Russia, 1942-43 Panzer Grey Russia, 1942-43, Dunkelgelb Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion A surprisingly compact package with three ambulance trucks to evacuate your 1:35 casualties from the battlefield. They’re all full-chassis models, so have plenty of detail moulded-in, and have tons of opportunity to pose doors and engine bays open if you choose. They will also take up a lot less space in your stash than the individual boxings, which is also nice. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Radar Hunter (72143) Mig-29 Ukrainian Fighter with HARM 1:72 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd This is going to be a difficult review to steer a centreline on, so you’ll have to forgive me if I drift to one particular side a little, although I’ll try not to. Please don’t be tempted to engage in any jingoism of your own. On 24th February 2022 an aggressor invaded Ukraine with malevolent intent, a variety of fallacious explanations as to why they were there, and intentions of taking over the whole country to make it their own. Ukraine, its government, and people have fought back valiantly against this attack, and Ukrainian aviators have been shooting down plenty of the aggressor’s aircraft, flying an upgraded Mig-29-13 in a grey digital camouflage scheme. Rumours began circulating that the Migs were using American-made AGM-88 High-speed Anti-Radiation Missile (HARM) to take out Russian radar installations, although there was much conjecture and claims that it couldn’t possibly be the case. Those rumours turned out to be true, as the ingenious Ukrainian engineers and their US counterparts had indeed managed to integrate them, and were using them as advertised, proved by videos that surfaced on the internet. A great example of necessity being the mother of invention. This helped to prevent the enemy from achieving anything resembling air superiority over most of Ukrainian territory, giving the brave Ukrainian fighters one less thing to worry about amongst many perils. We at Britmodeller would like to wish all of Ukraine’s armed forces our continued best with their struggle, and hope that it is resolved to their satisfaction. The Kit This is a reboxing of ICM’s 2008 tooling of this classic Cold War Soviet-era jet, but with new decals appropriate for the subject matter, most of which are a carry-over from their recent Ghost of Kyiv boxing that we reviewed in June of 2022. The kit arrives in a stylishly appointed top-opening box with captive inner lid, and inside are five sprues of medium grey styrene, a small clear sprue, three sheets of decals and the instruction booklet, which shares the same design as the box lid, and has spot-colour throughout, including full colour profiles on the back page. Detail is on par for the era of its original release, with engraved panel lines, raised and recessed detail where appropriate, cockpit and gear bay detail, and a complement of weapons and fuel tanks, some of which remain unused. Construction begins with the cockpit, which has an ejector pin mark in the middle of the floor that should be covered by the ejection seat, but needs cutting flush to ensure everything fits properly. A control column and instrument panel with raised and recessed detail moulded-in completes the cockpit, although the Zvezda K-36 seat could do with a little additional work, including adding the tubular housings for the ejection stabilisation beams that sit at each side of the headbox. The cockpit inserts into the upper fuselage from below, after which it can be closed ready for the other components. There aren’t many stages to the instruction booklet, and we see the wings, elevators and stabilisers added at the same time as the two-part canopy. Two inset diagrams show the twin engine nacelles being made up with integral FOD guards before they too are joined to the underside of the fuselage, with the exhausts also made up from inner and outer parts in another inset diagram. The HARM missiles are on a pair of identical sprues, and they build up in an unusual manner that consists of two halves, plus a pair of inserts that include extra detail on separate quadrants of the missile body. Once complete, they attach to a Heath-Robinson short, deep pylon, ready to be installed on the inner wing pylons closest to the engine nacelles. The included standard weapons also have their own diagrams, and you can make up four R-73 Archer air-to-air missiles, two to be found on each of the sprues. Each missile has its own pylon, and the unused larger R-27s have separate fins perpendicular to the seamline, although they’re not shown used in this boxing, as are the R-27s and R-60s on the main weapons sprue. The HARMs and R-73 missiles are shown inserted into the holes in the wing undersides at the same time as the main and nose gear, which have separate wheels and retraction jacks, plus gear bay doors and a clear landing light in each main gear well. The nose gear bay has three doors, and at the tip of the nose a pitot probe, with a smaller probe just aft of the nose cone. Markings There is just one decal option spread over the two sheets, with all the digital camouflage on the larger sheet, while Ukrainian national markings and codes are on the other. All the Ghost markings are present, with choices of codes in various colours to customise the identity of the aircraft, plus a stylised skull for the nose on a black circular backing, and two sizes of Ukrainian shield in blue and yellow. The third decal sheet includes decals to stencil the HARMs, with two drawings showing both sides for completeness. The underside is painted sky grey and the topside off-white, glossing them ready for the digital camo decals, of which there are eighteen in three shades of grey. An instrument decal is also included to improve the detail in the cockpit, plus several stencils for the airframe, all of which should settle down well with the help of some decal setting solution. They are printed by ICM’s usual partner, and registration, colour density and sharpness is good. Ghost of Kyiv Paint Set (3027) ICM have this year released their own brand of acrylic paints to the market, and are creating some kit specific sets to go with their major releases, of which this is one. The set arrives in a cardboard box with six screw-capped bottles inside, each containing 12ml of paint. The bottles are clear Polypropylene, and are capped with cylindrical tops with knurled sides, and a one-time security seal that you break on first opening. A label on the side gives you basic information about the colour and code, a little information regarding application in English and Ukrainian and a bar-code. The paint is thick in the bottle, with plenty of headroom between the surface of the paint and the lip of the neck. I dropped a glass stirring ball into each bottle, and they took a few seconds to disappear beneath the surface, indicating their viscosity. Inside the box are the following bottles: 1028 Offwhite 1033 Sky Grey 1034 Dark Sea Grey 1037 Dark Grey 1038 German Grey 2002 Satin Varnish The paint is undiluted, so will need thinning by between 40-60% with water or acrylic thinner for use with an airbrush, and they naturally have a semi-gloss finish that can be adjusted later by the use of varnishes, and are waterproof when dry like most acrylics. During my initial testing I used Ultimate Thinners, my go-to thinners for any acrylic paint, which helps keep the number of large bottles in my spray booth to a minimum. The paint comes out of the bottle quite thick and viscous, so it’s possible you’ll have to dilute it even for brush painting use, although I used it neat during testing, so a small bottle will go a long way in either case. It sprays well when diluted, and like a lot of acrylics a light coat is best initially, followed quickly after by heavier coats until you have the coverage you require. It dries quite quickly, and is touch-dry in 5-10 minutes in 20-23°c temperatures. I have used them to create several spray-out cards and spoons for other sets in the range, and they both spray and brush very well, with little issue other than my inexpert application by paint brush. Conclusion It’s great to see the Ukrainian forces getting new boxings in good time following their use in action, and don’t forget to pick up some paint while you’re out shopping for your kit. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Radar Hunter (72143) Ghost of Kyiv Paint Set (3027) Review sample courtesy of

Nakhon Phanom Air Base (DS4804) 1:48 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd After WWII, the B-26 Invader (not to be confused with the B-26 Marauder) was partially withdrawn from service, although it wasn’t long before it was called upon to fight in Korea against the Communist forces there, and later in the early 60s, it was reinvigorated again for the escalating Vietnam war. Nakhom Phanom Air Base was established in Thailand in 1962 as a base from which to launch airborne attacks against targets in nearby Vietnam, but the first battle was one with nature, the construction crews working furiously in between monsoon seasons, completing the main phase by the end of 1963. In addition to its offensive operations, it was also a hub for men and matériel throughout the conflict, often acting as a staging-point for other locations ‘in-country’ as they called it. This set depicts a moment-in-time where a B-26K Counter Invader and an O-2 Skymaster spotter plane were parked on a section of more modern M8A1, the replacement for Pierced Steel Planking (PSP) of WWII. B-26K Counter-Invader The good old B-26 Marau… hang on. The A-26 Invader? Wait, erm... B-26 Invader. That's it, as long as it's after 1948 as that's when it was re-designated as the B-26 by the US Air Force to confuse us, and later, back to the A-26 just to complete our befuddlement. It was developed a little after the Marauder and despite using the same engines it was a totally separate project from its more rotund colleague. It was designed to replace the A-20 Havoc, but it was initially less than popular in the Pacific theatre where its poor cockpit visibility due to the canopy and engine position rendered it unloved by the first users. In contrast, it was more popular in the European theatre and was accepted as replacement for the Havoc fairly quickly. Two types were designed, The C with a glass bomber nose and the B with a full metal nose filled with either 6 or 8 .50cal machine guns, which coupled with the three in each wing gave it quite a weight of fire, deserving of the ‘Strafer’ title. It also had a pair of defensive turrets on the fuselage mid-upper and dorsal positions, which were both operated by a single gunner using a complex remote mechanism that flipped between the upper and lower turrets depending on where the gunner was looking through his binocular sights. This trained the guns accordingly and calculated the correct offset for parallax and lead, but it was a very complex electro-mechanical device that caused some delays to it entering service, and more issues with maintenance in the field. After the war it served in Korea, early Vietnam engagements and other conflicts, ending its days in US service with the Air National Guard in the early 70s. The aircraft that fought in Vietnam were externally similar to the WWII aircraft, but the turrets were removed in favour of fixed forward firing guns, and four hard points were fitted to each wing allowing the carriage of 8,000lbs of ordnance of various types. The wings of these aircraft were rebuilt and strengthened, and the rudder was enlarged for better stability, fitting permanent tip tanks (65 US Gal) to the wings to increase range. Anti-icing equipment was added to the airframe, and a new anti-skid braking system was added to the landing gear to ease ground-handling. In the cockpit the dials and displays were updated, and a second control yoke was added to allow piloting from either seat of the two-man cockpit. New 2,500hp engines were added along with cuffed broad chord props to give the aircraft a better turn of speed, although it was never sufficient if it was jumped by jet fighters. The USAF ordered 40 of the "new" aircraft which were known as ‘Nimrods’ to their crews, which is pretty confusing for any anglophile aviation fan. In addition to combat operations in South east Asia, some aircraft flew with the CIA in the Congo doing heavens knows what at their behest. The aircraft were finally retired by 1969, with AC-130 gunships taking over the night interdiction role. Only 6 aircraft survive today, with "Special Kay" having been restored to flight as a memorial to crews who fought the covert missions in South East Asia. The Kit This is a reboxing of a recent tooling from ICM, with parts for the -K, which includes new wings with pylon recesses underneath, so watch out for the wings that should remain in the box. There are fourteen sprues in grey styrene, one in clear, two decal sheets and the instruction booklet, which has painting profiles in colour on the rear pages. A quick look over the sprues reveals that panel lines are very crisp, narrow and restrained, the surface is matt and very neat-looking, with plenty of engraved and raised features on the parts, plus subtle detail on the flying surfaces that add extra realism. Construction begins with the port fuselage half that is detailed with some side console and panel parts, nose gear bay sides, forward spar with radio gear, rear spar in the centre of the bomb bay, sloped aft bulkhead with equipment and a seat added, and another behind that. The bomb bay is outfitted with a pair of bomb ladders and a three-part bomb at the bottom of each one, moving to the cockpit floor, which has a three-part centre console, twin flight sticks and rudder pedals, a well-detailed instrument panel with decal, and a pair of three-part seats for the crew. As the completed cockpit floor is glued in, another half bulkhead is installed, so you'll have to do some detail painting as you go. After this the starboard fuselage side is prepped in a similar manner, along with an internal detail panel and nose gear bay side, a hatch, and two more bombs on ladders. Here's where a little cautionary note about sink-marks on the exterior of our sample needs mentioning. The right side of the cockpit and bomb bay with its detailed ribbing has caused the shallowest of sink-marks on the exterior, which would be best dealt with using a little filler before you get busy building. Happily, most of it is in areas that are open enough to allow easy sanding back of filler, so it shouldn't slow you down very much. With that and a quantity of detail painting you can then slide the starboard fuselage over the two spars, and it would be a good idea when fitting those spar parts to let them set up with the starboard fuselage taped in place to ensure they are square and line up correctly when they're set in place permanently. The instructions then have you building up the tail feathers, with the elevators having separate single-part flying surfaces, plus a two-piece rudder to attach to the moulded-in tail fin. The nose for this version is made up from two halves plus the underside, after which the gun barrel inserts are slipped into the nose, which is then fixed over the remaining opening at the front, adding a suggested 40g of nose weight into the available space to prevent a tail-sitter. The wings are next, and the new lower parts have the faces of the in-line radiator baths added and then it's already time to bring the halves together. You'll notice that there are fairings and a nacelle hump in the upper wing where the engine nacelles will be, and these are separate assemblies to be built up later. First, the separate two-section flap halves are mated and added to the trailing edge of the wings, the ailerons being of one part each and slotting into the wings via two tabs. The tip tanks are in halves, and underwing landing lights are added from clear parts, sliding the wings onto the spars and gluing them in place. Whether you'd rather wait until you've added the engine nacelles though is entirely up to you though. There are of course two engine nacelles and these build up pretty much identically apart from their outer skins, which are handed to fit their respective fairings as you'd expect. They are split vertically, and each half has internal structure moulded-in, with bulkheads added fore and aft of the gear bays, coupled with bay lip inserts that bulk out the edges and holds the moulded-in bay door. This may require some clever masking and a little care during handling, but it shouldn't hold you back too much, as the hinge-points are relatively robust. The two halves are joined together, the prominent intake on the top of the nacelle is added to the nacelle’s front bulkhead which is in turn glued to the nacelle body, with the completed nacelles attached to the wings from the underside, as yet without their engine cowlings or props. The engines are added later in the build, and the improved performance Twin Wasps are depicted in their entirety with both banks of pistons, push-rods, magnetos, ancillaries and reduction housing at the front, plus the collector ring and multi-part exhausts at the rear, the latter made up from nine parts each. So that they are fitted correctly and mesh properly with the nacelles, they are attached using a jig that is discarded later, so remember not to glue it in! Again, the engines are identical and interchangeable with each other, and they fit to the nacelles with a teardrop-shaped tab, after which the engine cowling is slotted over them. The cooling flaps are last to be added in four sets around the rear of the cowling. The top of the fuselage is still open at this point, as it has an insert to be fitted which encloses where the turret was, having a representation of the ring on the inside, and the rear compartment roof is added along with the new glass area for the top. The canopy is glued over the cockpit after drilling a hole in the top according to a scrap diagram, and at the rear an insert is fixed under the very rear of the fuselage with the tail light provided in clear. Attention turns to the landing gear, which is of the tricycle variety as became more common in late WWII. Each of the three tyres are made from two halves with separate hubs applied from either side, then hung on their respective legs, which have retraction jacks and scissor links added along the way. You have a choice of closing the bomb bay by fitting a single part with a panel line down the centre, or using two separate door parts to display the contents if you prefer, adding a few antennae and the new square-tipped props, which if you've been sparing with the glue when assembling the engines, should still spin once complete. There are four two-part pylons to be hung under each wing in preparation for the ordnance that is included in this boxing. Weapons ICM previously released this set as a stand-alone boxing, and inside the bag are four sprues, giving the modeller the following stores to hang from their Intruder or any other suitable project: 2 x LAU-10A Pods of 5" Rockets 2 x LAU-69 Pods of 2.75" Rockets 2 x LAU-68 Pods of 2.75" Rockets 2 x BLU-23 500LB Fire bombs (Can be made with or without the fins) 2 x BLU-27 750LB Fire Bombs (Can be made with or without the fins) 2 x Mk.77 750LB Incendiary Bombs 2 x SUU-14 Dispensers 2 x Mk.81 Snakeye Bombs 2 x MK.81 Low Drag Bombs 2 x Mk.82 Snakeye Bombs 2 x Mk.82 Low Drag Bombs (All the above bombs can be fitted with Fuse extenders) In addition, there are 2 Multiple Ejector Racks (MERs) all with anti-sway braces included, and what appear to be 12 Flares to load on the MERs. The separate instruction booklet gives detailed painting and stencilling information, the decals for which can be found on the separate sheet within the main booklet. Markings There are four options included on the decal sheet, all in SEA (Light Green/Dark Green/Brown) topside with black undersides, called out in ICM acrylic paint codes. From the box you can build one of the following: 64-17651, ‘Mighty Mouse’ 56th Special Operations Wing, 609th Special Operations Sqn., Nakhon Phanom 1969 64-17649, ‘Sweet Therese’ Davis-Monthan Air Force Base (AFB), 1970 64-17645, 56th Special Operations Wing, 609th Special Operations Sqn., Nakhon Phanom 1969 64-17679, ‘Special Kay’ 1st Special Operations Wing, USAF Late 1960s. This aircraft has been restored and is the only B-26K currently flying Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. As is common now with ICM kits, there is a page of the instruction booklet devoted to the masking of the canopy, using the printed shapes on the right of the page and the diagrams on the left to create your own masks if you wish. It goes up to 34 thanks to the reduced amount of glazing. O-2 Skymaster The O-2A Skymaster replaced the equally well-loved O-1 Bird-dog in the Observation role, adding Psy-Ops and light attack by the fitting additional equipment. It was developed from Cessna’s Type 337 Super Skymaster, and had additional windows in the pilot's side added to improve vision, the superfluous rear seats were replaced with racks of equipment including military radio gear, and hard-points were added under the wings. The twin props at either end of the stubby airframe gave it an element of redundancy in case of enemy fire, which also necessitated the installation of foam into the fuel tanks to help reduce the likelihood of leaks and subsequent fires bringing down the aircraft. With all the extra weight it was slower than the civilian version, but that was considered acceptable due to the crew and airframe protections it afforded. Like the Bird-dog it replaced, it spent a lot of time in Vietnam where it was used extensively in the role of Forward Air Control (FAC) and designated O-2B (31 converted Type 337 airframes) with the installation of loudspeakers to attempt to psychologically batter the enemy with recorded messages and leaflet drops that clearly didn’t have much effect other than supplying them with toilet paper in hindsight. Less than 200 were made in military form straight from the production line, and they continued service after Vietnam until the 80s, when some were sold on and others used in firefighting duties in the US, while more were flown in the nascent war against drugs in central America. The Kit This is a recent tool from ICM, and I was personally very happy to see it when it arrived, as I have a soft-spot for the Skymaster after building an old Airfix Dogfight Double with a Skymaster jousting with a Mig-15 in 1:72 as a kid. It has gone on to become the de facto standard for 1:48 scale, and many 1:32 modellers were incredulous to see one in their favourite scale around the same time too. The bag contains two large sprues, a set of clear parts, and hidden inside the instruction booklet is the decal sheet for the four decal options. Construction begins with the equipment racks in the aft fuselage, which are built up onto the bulkhead, then the fuselage halves are prepped with clear windows from the inside, plus an insert at the rear. The top surface of the engine is made up with exhausts and the front fairing that supports the prop axle, which is inserted but not glued. Under this the nose landing-gear bay is fitted with a firewall bulkhead that has the twin rudder pedals inserted before it is mounted into the starboard fuselage half. With those assemblies out of the way, the cockpit fittings are begun. The seats for the pilots have two U-shaped supports and a single piece back each, then the seats and instrument panel (with decals for instruments) with moulded-in centre console and control yokes added are offered up to the spartan cockpit floor, which slides under the already inserted electronics rack. The port fuselage half is decorated with a couple of M16 rifles and an arm-rest, then is joined with the other half taking care to insert at least 10 grams of nose-weight before you do. The aft fuselage has a complex shape that is moulded as a separate insert and is ready for a two-blade prop thanks to its axle and backstop part, and has two moulded-in exhausts under it. The nose gear leg was trapped in the wheel bay during assembly, and the two out-rigger main legs are a single C-shaped part that is trapped in a groove in the fuselage with a set of additional panels over it, making for a strong join, although the ends have proven to be weak due to possible cold-front breaks, but Aerocraft has made a metal replacement that is out of stock at time of writing, and well-worth the cost. Up front the big curved windscreen has a small instrument fitted into a hole in the middle, then is glued in place and the front prop is glued carefully to the axle if you want to leave it spinning. The wings are a single-span part on the top, and has most of the roof of the fuselage moulded-in, plus two top windows inserted from inside before fitting. The engine intake is made up from three parts including a separate lip, and fits to the aft of the roof, butting up against the rest of the fairing moulded into the fuselage, with a towel-rail and a small forest of blade antennae attached to the various depressions left for them. The wing undersides are attached after the booms are made up, and you should drill out the flashed-over holes for the pylons if you plan on fitting them. The booms are joined by the wide elevator that is made up of three parts including a posable flying surface. The two booms are also two parts, and also have separate rudders, which are each single mouldings and can be posed as you see fit. The instructions show the elevator glued to the booms before they are attached to the wings, but this is probably best done at the same time to ensure a good fit and correct alignment, then the lower wing panels mentioned earlier are glued in, trapping the sponson ends between the surfaces. Front gear door, ailerons and wing bracing struts with their fairings are next, then the main wheels, more antennae, and two raised trunks that run along the main fuselage underside are all fitted in place, plus the four identical pylons if you wish, along with their anti-sway braces. You have a choice of using four rocket pods on all pylons, or rocket pods on the outer stations and SUU-11/A Minigun Pods on the inner pylons. Markings There are four decal options from the box, and three of them are the more usual white/grey scheme that most people know. The last option is an all-black airframe, which gives the aircraft a more sinister look. From the box you can build one of the following: No unit details or timescale is given on the profiles, but you get full four view pictures and can use the tail-codes if you want to find out a little more about your choice of aircraft. Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. As is common now with ICM kits, there is a page of the instruction booklet devoted to the masking of the canopy, using the printed shapes on the right of the page and the diagrams on the left to create your own masks if you wish. It goes up to 130 thanks to the extensive greenhouse glazing. Figures Moulded on a single sprue of grey styrene and with a glossy instruction sheet with spot colour profiles of the five figures that can be found on the sprue. There are two crew members dressed for flight, complete with their vests and harnesses, while the third figure is an officer wearing uniform and cap, whilst marking items off on a sheet of paper with his pencil. The two ground crew figures are both dressed in fatigue pants, boots, and t-shirts that were common at the time, one reaching up with both hands, while the other is reaching up with a screwdriver in one hand, fixing something. Sculpting is excellent, with an abundance of crisp detail throughout, even down to the helmet carried by one of the crew. The poses, breakdown of parts and fabric drape is also beyond reproach, and they should build up into an excellent set of figures to distribute around your new Invader or Skymaster kits. M8A1 US Landing Mat (210 x 336mm) During WWII, temporary airfields were quickly created near the battlefront on flat ground by the linking together of stamped steel planking that had the weight reduced by punching out holes in the centres where it wouldn’t weaken the structure. These were known as Perforated Steel Planking (PSP), and were commonly used in all theatres of war, reducing mud and slurry build-up, and providing a flat and tough surface for aircraft to land, take-off, park and taxi along, also allowing other vehicles to avoid creating ruts in the surface. The holes however led to an element of dust and debris being kicked up, which is known in aviation as Foreign Object Debris or FOD, so the design was later changed to reduce the possibility of rocks and soil penetrating the planking. By the time of the Vietnam War, the M8A1 design had been formalised and was used to great effect. It was lightened by the use of corrugations to provide more strength from less material, and was capable of supporting the larger, heavier jet aircraft that were more prevalent. Lighter and more effective methods were developed later using aluminium, and latterly a honeycomb structure within that is incredibly strong, whilst reducing the amount of material needed. The set consists of two packs of four sprues, containing a total of eighty-six full planks, and thirty-two half planks to accommodate an offset layout, or give it nice tidy ends. The ends of the full planks are joined by four pegs that link them together, and the longer edges have a set of simulated joints that are backed up for practicality by a series of small pegs and recesses hidden away on the lower edge, with the base flat and almost featureless to facilitate a strong bond with the substrate you are using as a baseboard. Conclusion What a huge selection of excellent quality styrene, including two very recent complete kits, plus copious diorama related accessories to make a base and populate it with people to give it some human scale. Another plus-point is that it is a compact package that will take up much less space in the stash than the individual kits, which is almost always a good thing. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Infantry Weapons & Chevrons (35749) of the Armed Forces of Ukraine 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd Since the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces in early 2022, the brave people and armed forces of Ukraine have been fighting to preserve the integrity of their young country, and as such many of their number have been engaged in combat, something many of them would never have expected to experience in their lifetimes. Ukraine has a historic cache of arms from the Soviet era, and has also received a great deal of new hardware from other nations to bring up their level of equipment to more modern standards, as well as increasing the numbers that are needed to effectively defend their territory, and to reclaim those areas that have been unlawfully removed from their stewardship by the invader. They are coping well with the disparity of types of armaments that they have at their disposal, making effective use of them in their operations. The Soviet era gear includes AK47 and AK74 variants, heavier machine guns such as the PKM, various RPGs and MANPADs, with similar equipment from the US and other countries finding their way into their inventory, such as the devastating Browning .50cal, AR-15 derivatives, and even an updated MG42 variant manufactured by Beretta, which is still an effective weapon that is the basis for the German MG3 machine gun found in Bundeswehr service today. The Kit This set contains dozens of weapons such as those mentioned above, plus more of varying sizes and usage cases, which can be found on eight sprues of grey styrene in various sizes. There is also a large decal sheet that has a huge array of unit badges, flag patches, rank slides and so forth that are separated between units and arms, and an instruction booklet that is printed in spot colour, with a full-colour cover that has the badge/chevron key on both sides of the rear cover. Detail is excellent, as we’ve come to expect from ICM, and the instructions for each type of weapon has a key that gives the names/designations for those that aren’t familiar. The following are supplied in the box: AK-74 Assault Rifle with GP-25 Grenade Launcher Malyuk Assault Rifle with Silencer Malyuk Assault Rifle AKS-74 Assault Rifle AKS-74 Assault Rifle with Silencer & Telescopic Stock AKS-74U Assault Rifle AK-47 Assault Rifle AK-47 Assault Rifle with GP-25 Grenade Launcher RPG-18 Grenade Launcher AK-74 Assault Rifle FN FAL 50.61 Automatic Rifle SOG Knife in Sheath Glock Knife in Sheath FORT Pistol in Holster Beretta Pistol in Polymer Paddle Holster UAR-10 Sniper Rifle UAR-15 Automatic Rifle FIM-92 Stinger Man-Portable Anti-Aircraft Missile System RPG-7 Grenade Launcher with Grenade PKM Machine Gun M2 Browning Heavy Machine Gun AGS-17 Automatic Grenade Launcher with Drum Mag and Tripod SPG-9 Tripod Mounted Grenade Launcher Beretta MG42/59 Machine Gun with Bipod, link ammo & box Stugna-P Anti-Tank Complex on Tripod with Remote Controller 2 x FPV Drones with Pelican Carry Boxes Maxim Machine Gun on two-wheeled carriage, with ammo can and link Construction of the weapons are straight forward, whilst some are single parts. A few have multiple parts, which are shown either in one step, or up to eleven simple steps for larger items such as the Stugna-P and its associated equipment. Markings The weapons colours are called-out in red-boxed letter codes on the instruction diagrams, and the box art shows some examples of camouflaged rifles, but checking the many references from this ongoing conflict should give you plenty of choices. The decals are for the many units of Ukraine’s armed forces, and can be used for figures, checking your references for the correct locations. They are as follows: The decals are printed using a digital process and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas. This means that the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. Conclusion A perfect accompaniment to any Ukrainian-themed model or diorama, either for background equipment, or to re-equip figures that have been re-assigned to fight for Ukraine from other figure sets. The decals will also be a huge benefit in terms of authenticity and realism, as the carrier film can be gently peeled away after application, leaving a conformal decal that’s in-scale with the model. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

ZiL-131 with Trailer (72817) 1:72 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd The military ZiL-131 chassis was a 6x6 general purpose truck chassis that was capable of transporting 3.5 tonnes, developed from the earlier ZiL-130 civilian truck. Its versatility made it useful for many tasks when suitably fitted out with an appropriate cab and load area for the assigned task. The power was provided by a 7 litre V8 petrol engine that gave it a top speed of 50mph under ideal conditions, but it was off-road with all six wheels under power that it came into its own, although 6-7mpg was far from economical compared to a more modern vehicle. The cabs were fitted with standard Soviet-era equipment to give the drivers a sense of familiarity, although cost-saving was probably a bigger motivator to those making the decisions. Their presence in many of the former Soviet states is almost ubiquitous, and they have provided excellent support for the military of Ukraine, providing transport of goods, equipment and troops to and from the front in their fight against the aggressor that invaded their country in 2022. The Kit This range of kits was originally started by little-known company Omega-K as a truck with canvas tilt in the 90s, before the tooling was taken over at the turn of the millennium by ICM, since when it has been re-released many times and with various alterations to the basic kit and its chassis. This boxing arrives in a relatively small top-opening box that has a captive lid to the lower tray, and inside are seven sprues and three loose cab parts in grey styrene, three clear sprues, a large decal sheet and two instruction manuals, with colour profiles on the rear pages showing the decal options. Even though the base kit is of a certain age, the detail is excellent throughout, and whilst there is some flash evident in places, it is easily removed to expose the detail. Construction begins with the six road wheels that are all moulded in two halves with chevron tread, and have a separate hub cap for extra detail, with just the seam to clean up in the middle, conveniently located at the centre of the tread pattern where it won’t be damaged. If you want to add some weighting to them, a quick swipe with a coarse sanding stick should do the trick, after which you can glue the wheels with the flat-spot at the bottom. The ladder chassis is a single moulding, adding the underside of the engine, transfer box, drive-shafts and various tanks around the ladder, then the twin axles at the rear and single front axle are both inserted below the rails on leaf-spring suspension with the axles interlinked by numerous drive-shaft elements, and a steering link for the front. Underneath, the twin exhaust downpipes from the manifold merge into a muffler then make their way out to the side as a single pipe, over one of the rear axles to exit between them, then installing a winch with motor at the front, and a towing hook to the rear of the chassis. The cab is a nice slide-moulding that has a little flash here and there, but it’s well worth the effort to remove it, as I found out when I tested one by scraping the seams. After this, the cab floor with various controls and steering wheel is inserted from below, then the clear windows, windscreen and headlamps are inserted to the front, with cages finely moulded, although suffering a little flash that will take care to remove, but again it’s worth the effort. Door mirrors, a small spotlight and a fire extinguisher on the rear corner finish off the detailing of the cab, after which the load box is begun. The load box is another single moulding that will need a little cleaning up to remove the moulding seams, especially the seam on the top of the roof, subsequently adding two vents along the centre and grab-rails at the edges, a ladder to one side, clear windows parts from the inside, a spare tyre and other small parts at the rear, and two circular vents in the walls. The floor is added as the three sections of the model are mated, fixing the cab and load box to the chassis, whilst adding the chunky bumper iron to the front, the twin two-part fuel tanks in front of the rear axles, and adding a pair of towing/tie-down hooks to either side of the radiator. A number plate holder, mudguard and rear light cluster are fitted under the rear of the load box, and the shelf high up on the front is detailed with five parts that provide facilities to the load box. The trailer has its own ladder chassis that has four leaf-springs mounted in the corners, fitting the towing arm on two brackets under the front, leaving the arm mobile without glue. Two axles are fixed under the paired springs, and chassis rail extensions are added to the tops of the ladder, locating them via lugs and notches, fitting two-part wheels to the ends of the axles to complete the running gear. The trailer body is made from six faces, fixing windows inside three of the walls, and skylights on the diagonal portions of the roof. The completed body has a two-part stowage box fitted under one side, a box on the rear next to the double-doors, and facilities for heating and cooling the interior high up on the front wall, which includes a two-part tank. The chassis is glued to the underside of the body on four pegs to complete the model. Markings There are two decal options on the sheet that depict the two different digital camouflage schemes, the more subtle option introduced the year before the invasion. From the box you can build one of the following: Armed Forces of Ukraine Armed Forces of Ukraine, camouflage version from 2021 Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion There’s a little flash to scrape away here and there, but it’s worth it to get to the detail, which is pretty good for the scale and the age of the original kit. The added trailer gives extra length and interest to the model, and with some sympathetic painting and weathering the completed model should look good. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Montgomery’s Staff (35617) 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd Bernard Montgomery was born in 1887, and grew up with his family, who moved around during his early life, but had returned to live in London by the time Monty, as he had become known, was old enough to join the British Army, studying at Sandhurst, where he was apparently close to expulsion due to his extremely aggressive and belligerent behaviour. By the outbreak of WWI he was a temporary Captain, and was shot in the chest by an enemy sniper, puncturing a lung, with a subsequent round damaging his knee, enforcing a lengthy period away from the front lines while he recovered. He rejoined the fight, having been promoted to Brigade Major, taking part in several well-known battles before the Great War ended, by which time he was a Lieutenant-Colonel, although he reverted to Captain (Brevet Major) the year following an end to hostilities. He stayed with the army between the wars, reaching the rank of Major-General by the time hostilities recommenced, serving with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) during the Battle of France. The offensive training he had insisted on doing with his troops before the battle commenced in earnest paid dividends, although they weren’t involved in the heaviest fighting, returning to the UK relatively intact. Whilst at home he upset the War Office by his forthright criticism of the BEF’s overall performance, but was put in charge of anti-invasion defences of areas of the South of England, where he antagonised the overall commander, which may have accounted for his switch to another location, but at all times he was training his troops for the forthcoming battle, even after the invasion of Britain became unlikely. He was given command of the North African campaign in late 1942, where he performed well, endeavouring to fight the enemy as a unified force that involved cooperation between Army, Air Force and Navy, supported by Prime Minister Churchill, who was a staunch advocate of his. During his time there he was promoted to full General, and was eventually victorious over the Axis forces in Africa, after some set-backs that are overshadowed by the victories. He then went on to fight in Italy, where he was critical of the lack of coordination between disparate units, and was engaged in intense fighting that saw the Germans move from one defensive line to the next, inflicting heavy casualties on his men. He returned to Britain in early 1944, relieved to be away from a campaign that he once described as a ‘Dog’s Breakfast’, which for those uninitiated in British slang, generally means a complete mess. Despite his often-abrasive personality, Monty had his champions, and was heavily involved with the D-Day landings and ensuing fighting to free France from the clutches of Nazi Germany, where he again faced his old enemy Rommel, who he knew from the North African campaign, finally breaking out from the Normandy beachhead and fighting their way across France with frequent difficulties that were eventually overcome, often at great cost in men and machinery. Perhaps the most famous set-back was the Allied defeat during Operation Market Garden, the legendary “Bridge too Far”, which he continued to assert for the rest of his life could have succeeded with adequate support, although he did concede that it was also his worst mistake. Monty’s command of elements of the US forces during the Battle of the Bulge led to resentment from US command staff, which continues today, repeated and amplified over the years, outshining his many successes. His abrasive nature probably contributed to this, and he continued to be a thorn in people’s sides until long after the war was over, first commanding the British Army on the Rhine (BAOR), then serving as deputy to Eisenhower again with NATO until his eventual retirement in 1958. He died in 1976 at his home aged 88, and he is buried in Hampshire. The Kit This new figure set from ICM depicts the general and his staff poring over a map somewhere behind the front-lines in Europe after D-Day. The set arrives in a shallow top-opening box with a captive lid on the lower tray, and inside is one large sprue of grey styrene, and a sheet of instructions that double as a painting guide, using arrows to point out part numbers, and red letter codes for paint colours that correspond to a chart under the sprue diagram on one side of the instruction sheet, which give colour names, swatches and ICM’s own paint codes. It also advises that their paint set #3054 is suitable for use with the figures, which includes six shades intended for use painting WWII British infantry. There are four figures in the set, one of which is Monty, plus three of his staff, one wearing a pair of headphones and carrying a notepad, most likely the radio operator. Two other officers are included, one holding a map folio and pointing, the other supporting the other side, while Monty looks on with his thumbs in his hip pockets and a tanker’s beret on his head. There is a reproduction map printed on the instruction sheet, with the instructions to cut it out and paste it into the centre of the folio, folded to fit. The radio man is bare-headed to accommodate his headphones, while the two officers are both wearing flat hats typically worn by British officers of the period. The parts for each figure are found in separate areas of the sprue for ease of identification, and parts breakdown is sensibly placed along clothing seams or natural breaks to minimise clean-up of the figures once they are built up. The sculpting is typically excellent, as we’ve come to expect from ICM’s artists and tool-makers, with natural poses, drape of clothing and textures appropriate to the parts of the model. Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery consults with British General Horrocks (left) and Prince Bernhard (right) in Belgium in early September 1944. (Photo: Imperial War Museum.) Conclusion Looking at the faces of the Montgomery and the other figures, ICM have done extremely well in creating a likeness of their features, and the set will go well with their upcoming release of Monty’s Leyland Retriever, which is due soon under the code 35603. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

B-26B Marauder with USAAF Pilots & Ground Crew (48322) D-Day 80th Anniversary 1:48 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd Now 80 years ago, D-Day 6th of June 1944 was one of the major turning points of WWII, when the western Allies opened a second front that comrade Stalin of the Soviet Union had been asking for at meetings for some time. The land operation was named Overlord, and was timed to take place when the Allies were at maximum readiness in an attempt to secure success, although in war there is no such thing as a 100% guarantee. Southern England became the staging ground for millions of troops, their equipment, backup staff, and the aircraft that would provide critical air cover during the operation, in addition to heavy around-the-clock bombing that took place in before and after the big day. During a break in the poor weather that summer, a massive seaborne force undertook Operation Neptune, which transported them across the Channel/La manche to Normandy through the night of the 5th, landing early on the morning of the 6th of June. Many air raids were scheduled at other locations to confuse and distract the Germans into expecting the main attack elsewhere, which along with the acts of some very devious psyops under the banner of Operation Bodyguard were very successful, as Mr Hitler took several days to come around to the fact that Normandy was the main attack and not a diversion, giving the Allies some leeway to establish a beachhead, although the battle to get ashore was still intense, especially Omaha beach, where the American troops suffered horrific casualties. Overhead, a huge effort was expended by Allied fighters and bombers of every class. The fighters accompanied bombers to support their attacks, also seeking out targets of opportunity to weaken the enemy’s defences to ease the impending arrival of Allied troops and armour as they moved inland after the initial day’s assault, heading for crucial locations such as Caen. The Luftwaffe put up what defence they could, but their numbers and skill-base had been substantially eroded over the preceding years of warfare, losing many of their experienced pilots and manufacturing capability, which coupled with fuel and equipment shortages kept the skies from being filled with enemy fighters, although the pilots of the RAF and USAAF would probably beg to differ, as these things are always relative, and based upon individual experiences. To minimise friendly-fire incidents between air-assets and ground-to-air assets, ‘special markings’ were mandated for Allied aircraft, which became colloquially known as ‘invasion stripes’ or ‘D-Day Stripes’, consisting of black and white bands on the wings and fuselage, using prescribed colours and widths that were adhered to with varying levels of accuracy and tidiness depending on the individual unit’s available manpower and time before take-off, which has caused many disagreements between modellers over the years. The Set This set includes the newly-tooled B-26B Marauder, and adds a recently tooled USAAF figure set that was previously available separately, all three decal options for the Marauder wearing Invasion stripes to avoid friendly fire when over Europe from jittery Allied soldiers or otherwise friendly Anti-Aircraft installations. The figures add human scale to the model, and will lend themselves to a diorama situation if you have one planned. B-26B Marauder Instigated on the eve of WWII in Europe, the Marauder was a medium bomber developed over two years by the Glenn L Martin company, entering service in early 1942. Due to its high wing and relatively small planform, loading was high, which resulted in a faster than usual landing speed, which could cause problems for an inexperienced crew during final approach, and similarly if a single-engined approach was necessary. Its stall speed would bite the pilots aggressively if they varied even slightly from the documented landing procedures, resulting in excessive losses due to accidents, which earned it the nickname ‘Widowmaker’ amongst crews. To counter this, changes to the aircraft’s aerodynamics and wing length were undertaken, together with additional crew training, a combination that proved successful, and led to the type’s loss rate being amongst the lowest of the Allied bomber fleet. After initial orders, more followed, and improvements led to the B-26A, and soon after the B-26B, which by Block 10 benefited from longer wings and the other improvements that gave its pilots a longer life-expectancy. The type saw extensive service in Europe, flying with the US Army Air Force and with the RAF, where it was known as the Marauder Mk.1 for B-26A airframes, and Mk.1a for the B models. It also saw service in the Pacific, with a total of over 5,000 airframes built, 500 of which were flown by the RAF, with all airframes withdrawn from service by 1947, after which the A-26 Invader was given the B-26 designation, creating confusion amongst many aviation buffs and modellers over the years. Powered by a pair of Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp engine in nacelles under the wings, the rotund fuselage could carry up to 4,000lbs of bombs in a bay between the wings with a range of 1,500 miles at a substantially higher cruising speed than a B-17, giving it a better chance against fighters and flak, which contributed to its low attrition rate. An early adaptation saw the main armament increased from .303 machine guns to .50cals in all four turrets that could take a bigger bite out of any enemy fighters that ventured too close. The Kit This is a re-boxing of a brand-new tooling from ICM, of an aircraft that has been neglected for many years in 1:48 scale, so there was much joy when the kit was announced, and many of us, myself included, have been waiting as patiently as we can manage for its release. The kit arrives in a top-opening box with an attractive painting of a colourfully marked Marauder getting ready to brave the flak over Europe, and under the lid is the usual captive flap on the lower tray, and under that are eight large sprues in grey styrene, another separately bagged grey sprue for the figures that we’ll cover later in the review, plus one sprue of crystal-clear parts, a large decal sheet and the instruction booklet that is printed on glossy paper in colour with painting and decaling profiles on the rear pages. Detail is up to ICM’s modern high standards, with most of the fuselage full of detail that includes the cockpit, bomb bay and fuselage compartments around the turrets and waist gun positions. Construction begins with the fuselage halves for a change, preparing the interior by drilling out some flashed-over holes for gun packs used on two decal options, and adding the outer bomb racks plus other small details, along with the windows and hinges for the bomb bay if you plan to pose them open. There are also two decals to be applied to parts of the nose compartment, one on each side. The nose bay is built upon its roof, adding side walls and details to the interior, then the cockpit floor is layered on top, fitting the pilot’s four-part seat and separate rudder pedals, making the centre console from another five parts, and attaching the instrument panel to the rear, both it and the console receiving decals to depict the dials. The cranked control column has a bow-tie yoke, applying them to the floor in front of the pilot’s seat, and a bottle behind it, plus a single-part co-pilot seat, two-part yoke, and a stiff neck from straining to view the instrument panel. In the front of the floor is the bomb aimer’s seat, with a three-part sight for him to look through when the time for dropping bombs arrives. The bomb bay front and rear bulkheads have spars moulded-in and show off the circular cross-section of the fuselage, detailing both with small parts, and joining them together via the roof, which is ribbed for strength. Six bombs are built from two main parts with a separate spinner trapped inside the fin structure, gluing three to each of the central bomb ladders, then mounting those onto a pair of rails that fit into the bottom centre of the two bulkheads during the installation of the bay roof. The completed assembly is inserted into the port fuselage half, hiding the short empty sections of the fuselage by inserting another bulkhead behind the bomb bay and in front, the latter having the cockpit floor slotted into it before installation. Before the fuselage halves can be closed, there is a lot of armament to be built, starting with the rear gun turret, which has two guns glued to a central support, sliding the barrels through the two slots in the rear cover, and adding a tapering bracket to the top. The fuselage waist defensive armament is stowed away inside until needed, mounting the two guns facing aft on a section of flooring via two supports, which is depicted with two options, although I can’t see any differences between the two, but it’s late. The waist guns are glued into the rear fuselage on a flat area, inserting the rear turret in the aft, and fitting an armoured bulkhead forward, which the gunner sits behind on a circular seat that is also included. The top turret has the front section with ammo cans built first, inserting it and the gunner’s seat into the turret ring from below along with the control levers. The twin .50cals are inserted from above with the sighting gear between them, slotting the completed interior into a surround, then sliding the glazing over the barrels and securing it with a non-fogging glue before it is slipped into the cut-out on the upper fuselage. Another ovoid bulkhead with a hatchway is inserted between the rear gunner and waist gunners, suspending a box overhead in the waist compartment, then sectioning off the nose from the cockpit with a horseshoe-shaped bulkhead. If you skipped ahead and prepared the starboard fuselage half to speed through painting and weathering, it’s all good, otherwise the starboard fuselage is drilled out and dotted with detail parts, windows, braces and bomb racks, plus bomb bay hinges if you are leaving the doors open, then closing the two halves after putting 50g of nose weight in the space between the cockpit and bomb bay to keep the nose wheel on the ground when the model is complete. The tail fin is a separate assembly on this kit, starting by gluing the two halves of the fin together, then building the stabilisers as a single unit made from a full-span lower and two upper parts plus two smaller inserts. The two assemblies are brought together at the rear, covering the rear of the fuselage, and adding a curved insert behind the cockpit, covering the nose weight, whilst giving you a last chance to add some if you forgot earlier. The rudder and two elevators are each made from two halves, and can be glued into position deflected if you wish, to add some individuality to your model. The bomb bay has four actuators fitted to each of the fore and aft bulkheads, installing the four doors folded into pairs, or covering the bay with a pair of doors if you intend to close it. Two of the decal options carried cheek-mounted gun packs, which mount on the holes drilled earlier, after building each one from fairing, barrel, and nose cap for each of the four, with the instructions advising to install them after applying decals in that area. The main canopy and tail gun glazing are attached, adding two clear roof panels to the canopy, and making the nose glazing with a rectangular box on one side, and a gun in the centre before it too is glued in place. Two detail inserts are applied between the spars that project from the wing root, with the detail facing inward, so remember to paint those at the same time as the rest of the interior for your own convenience. The wings are each separate, and slide over the spars that are moulded into the bomb bay bulkheads. Before closing the wing halves, the gear bay structure is made, consisting of three parts forming an H-frame, adding two more ribs in the forward compartment, and closing off the rear of the bay with a final stringer, painting everything as you go. A bay insert is also included for the ailerons, and this is fixed to the lower wing as the upper is brought in and the two halves are mated. The two-section flaps are each made from upper and lower halves, as is the aileron, and all three are fitted in the trailing edge of the wing, attaching actuator fairings, detail parts inside the nacelle roof, a landing light in the leading edge, and a tip light over the moulded-in recess, which has a likeness of a bulb moulded into the area. A pitot probe is cut from near the wingtip, then the same process is carried out on the opposite wing in mirror-image, setting the completed wings to one side while the engines and their nacelles are built. Each Double-Wasp engine is made from a layer of six parts, depicting both banks of pistons and push-rods, adding the bell-housing and magnetos to the front, trapping a prop axle between them without glue, and inserting the intake ‘spider’ at the rear, with nine exhaust stubs mounted behind the engine. The completed engine is then locked between two circular carriers, and two exhaust collector parts are attached at the rear next to the cooling gills that are moulded into the rear carrier. The cowling is a complex shape that has a substantial portion moulded as a single part, inserting a curved plate inside to create a broad intake trunk in the base, then fitting two more inserts into the top sections of the cowling that fit into position, creating the familiar intake ‘ears’ at the top. The engine slides into the cowling from the rear until the cooling gills butt up against a cut-out, then attention shifts to the nacelle, which is made from two halves after adding covered exhausts and hinge-points to the gear bay sides on a single carrier per side, then gluing the two halves together with three bulkheads holding everything to shape. Once the glue has cured and seams have been dealt with, the engine and cowling are glued to the front and fitted under the wing. Again, the same process is carried out in mirror image for the opposite nacelle, after which the wings can be slid into position and glued in place. The Marauder was another tricycle gear equipped bomber, and the nose leg is made from the main strut with scissor-links added on both sides, fitted into the bay with a retraction jack behind it. A crew access ladder is provided, and is fixed into the roof at the rear of the bay, locating the two bay doors on the sides after fitting hinges along the upper edges, with a small retractor jack installed at the mid-point to complete the area. The main gear legs are fitted with twin supports at the top and door openers mid-way down, inserting them into the nacelles along with a V-shaped strut, and a pair of bay doors on each nacelle. The main wheel tyres are made from two halves, with two more parts for the hubs, as is the nose gear wheel, but with flat hub caps, all three installing on stub axles so that the model can sit on all three wheels, or the rear two if you forgot the nose weight. I can’t laugh, as I recently did that on a kit I was building, but got away with it. I’m certain that wouldn’t be the case with this kit however, and made sure I applied a little bit more than prescribed in a neat box behind the cockpit. An aerial and a faired-in D/F loop are fixed under the belly, and another aerial is mounted behind the cockpit, with just the two four-blade props with separate spinners to complete the build. As is common now with ICM kits, there is a page of the instruction booklet devoted to the masking of the canopy, using the printed shapes on the bottom of the page and the diagrams above to create your own masks if you wish. It consists of only thirty-two elements, some of which are used on the side windows, landing lights and around the cowlings at the front of the engine nacelles. USAAF Pilots & Ground Crew (48088) Moulded on a single sprue of grey styrene and with a glossy instruction sheet with spot colour profiles of the five figures that can be found on the sprue. There are three crew members, two of whom are dressed for flight, complete with their life jackets and harnesses, while the third crewman is wearing olive drabs and a leather flying jacket with an officer’s cap and his hands in his pockets. Two of them have large kit bags at their feet, while the guy in the peaked cap is carrying a parachute pack in one hand and a glove in the other. The two ground crew figures are dressed in overalls, one kneeling with a spanner pack to his side, while the other is reaching up with what looks like a screwdriver in one hand. Sculpting is excellent, with an abundance of crisp detail throughout, even down to the sewn-in ribbing on the underside of the crewman’s turned up cap bill. The poses, breakdown of parts and fabric drape is also beyond reproach, and they should build up into an excellent set of figures to distribute around your new Marauder. Since this review was completed, I've painted the figures, and am really pleased with the sculpting and poses. Markings There are three decal options on the large sheet, all of which were European-based during Operation Overlord, with only one wearing camouflage, whilst all wear invasion band ‘special markings’ appropriate to the period they were in operation after D-Day. From the box you can build one of the following: B-26B-55MA 42-96077 ‘Ladies Delight’, 584th Bomber Squadron, 394th Bomb Group, probably Boreham, England, Summer 1944 B-26B-55MA 42-96214 ‘Coral Princess III’ 494th Bomber Squadron, 344th Bomb Group, Pontoise, France, Autumn 1944 B-26B-55MA 42-96165 ‘The Big Hairy Bird’ 599th Bomber Squadron, 397th Bomb Group, Peronne, France, December 1944 Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion Like a lot of modellers, I’ve had a soft spot for the Marauder for a while, and was extremely pleased that a new well-detailed model was released by ICM, with the prospect of more boxings, this being the first of them. The figures are a useful inclusion, and increase the fun factor as long as you’re not phobic about painting them. The Marauder saw a lot of action, so there are plenty of opportunities to depict a well-weathered example, and having built the original boxing, I can confirm it’s a good kit that goes together well, although I wish I had more time on my hands to finally finish painting it. Very highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. If you’re looking for reference material, you can also visit our Walkaround material below. Review sample courtesy of

Studebaker US6-U5 US Gasoline Tank Truck (35492) 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd Before WWII, Studebaker began development of a 2.5-ton truck for military and civilian use, that was capable of working equally well off-road and on, with a 6 x 6 drivetrain giving it good grip in all weathers. It was up against substantial competition however, and other designs were found to have better performance under the conditions prevalent in locations where the type was to be used, the Studebaker being better suited to cold weather operations. The first trucks arrived in the USSR in 1941 under the Lend/Lease agreement, where it was well-liked, resulting in Soviet Russia being the major overseas operator of the type, calling it the ‘Studer’ in their service, where they adapted it to various roles, including most famously as a Katyusha rocket launcher. It was powered by a 5.2L straight-six petrol engine that could output around 86hp and drove all six wheels, while the over-engineered engine boasted a low compression ratio that made it extremely reliable. It was its reliability and ruggedness that endeared it to its operators and drivers, and inspired Joseph Stalin to write a note after the war congratulating Studebaker on the design of the vehicle, and telling them of how useful it had been to their war effort. Many Studers were used post WWII in the Soviet Union, often with their military equipment removed. Even after retirement, the cab and general configuration was also used as the pattern for the GAZ-51 truck, although heavily modified due to technological progress in the meantime. The Kit The origin of this kit stems from 2007, when it was first released, but there have been many variants and additional parts added to the tooling in the interim, and it still gives the impression of being a thoroughly modern kit, with some impressive detail. This boxing depicts a fuel tanker, and arrives in a top-opening box with the usual captive flap on the lower tray. Inside are six sprues of various sizes in grey styrene, a clear sprue in a separate bag, and a decal sheet between the pages of the colour printed instruction booklet that has profiles of the decal options on the rearmost pages. As already mentioned, detail is good, and the kit is a full chassis offering, with engine, cab, chassis and bodywork all provided, including a rather complex, single-part moulded transmission system that is located under the ladder chassis. Construction begins unsurprisingly with the ladder chassis, spacing the two main rails apart with six cross-members of various designs, some of which are made from 2, 3 or four parts, plus more dotted around the chassis, and a pair of leaf springs at the front, which locate in recesses in the outer faces of the rails. The chassis is finished at the ends by a large bumper bar at the front, and a pair of sprung R-shaped forms on either side of the towing shackle. The engine is next, basing the work on a two-part block with separate cylinder head, end caps with fan-belt moulded into one end, air intake box and pathway, plus other ancillaries, and the fan itself. The gearbox is created from three parts and is mated with the rear of the engine, lowering the motor into the chassis and coupling up the radiator assembly, which has been made from inner and outer faces, plus header tank and feeder hose that links to the top of the engine, adding the exhaust system under the engine, leading back to a separate muffler that has the exhaust moulded-in, exiting the side of the chassis behind the cab. The monolithic transmission system is fleshed out with separate halves of the differential castings, plus half the casing of the transfer box between the front and rear wheels. A steering linkage is added to the front axle, and the completed assembly is then installed under the chassis, linking the first stubby drive-shaft to the rear of the gearbox, and locating the three axles onto their mountings. At this stage the rear axles don’t yet have their springs, first needing the central mount between the twin axles, after which the inverted leaf springs, dampers, and tie-bars can be installed, plus more linkages added to the front axle both for steering and damping, followed by two addition chassis rails mounted over the load carrying area. Two sets of running boards are attached to the chassis by L-brackets on each side of where the cab will be, accompanied by a five-part fuel tank on the left side, and a six-part stowage box on the right. The US6 rolled along on ten wheels, four sets of pairs that are made from five parts, and two singles at the front, each made from main carcass and inner sidewall, trapping a disc in the centre, in case you wish to leave the wheels mobile. The completed wheels are attached to the six axle ends with care, then the bodywork can begin. Work on the cab begins with the roof, windscreen frame and scuttle that are moulded as a single part, fitting the shallow-V shaped glazing from outside, and adding supports to the sides, with the dashboard inserted from beneath, applying three dial decals during the process. The firewall and kick board part has the lower sills and bottoms of the A-pillars glued to each side, mating them with the roof assembly once the glue has cured. The steering column has the wheel and separate boss applied to the top, joining it to the underside of the dash and kick board, then adding the three foot pedals around the base, mounting four controls and gear lever on the floor, and the bench seat after building it from just three parts, including the base. The floor is slid in from behind with the seat and controls, followed by the sides of the engine compartment, adding the battery into a recess in the left side after painting it and deciding whether to wire it into the engine. The front fenders are fitted to the sides, and the back is closed after inserting a lozenge-shaped window into the curved panel. Headlights with clear or hooded lenses are mounted on the wings along with side lights, with the grille applied to the front of the engine bay, the side extensions protecting the lights from frontal impacts, removing a small raised area on one fender. Crew doors keep the weather out, and have simple door cards moulded-in, to which the handles, winders and the window glass are installed, and these can be fitted open or closed as you wish. A pair of supports are fitted under the front of the wings, fixing the bonnet over the engine compartment, and adding outer door handles before mating the cab with the chassis, gluing the bottom of the steering column as you do so. This boxing has a pair of tanks over the load area that have an oval cross-section. In the space between it and the cab, a seven-part spare wheel carrier is fitted, with a two-part wheel slotted into position before the last part is glued in place, mounting it on two recesses in the chassis rails, and adding a filler cap extension to the fuel tank on the left side. The gasoline tanks are a double arrangement, made from two halves each, with end-caps and a filler cap on the top, fixing them both onto a platform that is built from two side-mounted fenders and four cross-braces with curves moulded into them to rest the two tanks on, with a very small gap between them. Two equipment boxes are made from six parts each, and are installed at the rear on either side of the tank, adding short rails to the rest of the length, which has wooden slats moulded into the upper surface. Inner rails are also included, with a solid end-plate at the front, then the tank assembly is inverted to run a combined outlet pipe from the centre of each tank to a spigot at the rear, fitting rear mudguards with C-shaped supports in grooves underneath. The tank assembly is mated with the chassis, aligning the slots in the cross-beams with the additional rails fitted to the chassis earlier, making up four jerry cans from halves, adding triple handles and filler caps to the top, with the instructions suggesting they are stowed two-per-side at the front of the railed fender area just behind the cab. The final step involves adding windscreen wipers, wing mirrors and towing hooks to the cab, all in pairs. Markings There are two decal options included on the sheet, with five profiles per page for each one, and you wouldn’t be wrong if you guessed they were both green. From the box you can build one of the following examples from WWII (no additional info is given): Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion This isn’t the first boxing of this kit, but it’s an interesting specialised option that depicts one of the thousands of tankers that kept the Allied troops and vehicles supplied with fuel during WWII. Detail is excellent, and it offers plenty of opportunity to dirty the model down after weeks or months of hard graft supplying the front lines. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Ki-21-Ib Sally with Japanese Pilots & Groundcrew (48197) 1:48 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd The Sally, as she was known by the Allies during WWII was a heavy bomber designed by Mitsubishi as a replacement for the Ki-20, in competition with Nakajima, who although they lost out on the design of the aircraft, were given the contract for the power plants, as their HA-5 engines were found to be superior to Mitsubishi’s offering that was originally installed in the winning design. A small number of airframes were also built by Nakajima, with a total of just over 2,000 built between them. It first flew in 1936 and was intended for long-range bombing missions against Soviet and Chinese opponents, first entering service in 1938 in operations against China. Initial experience showed that the design was lacking in some respects, extending to the crucial oxygen system that was initially found to be unreliable. The Ib was intended to address most of the issues, including the lack of armament and changes to the flying surfaces. It also had a remote tail gun installation, and could mount an additional fuel tank for extreme range missions. The type was pretty much obsolete by 1940, and mounting losses prompted the type’s withdrawal from front line service, and the sale of some of the superfluous airframes to nations that remained friendly to the Japanese Empire. Uses were still found for the type with the Japanese forces however, and the remaining aircraft were used until the end of the war as cargo transports, trainers, troop transports and communications hacks. The later variants had improved engine performance with new Mitsubishi units, some with alterations to the greenhouse behind the cockpit, which was changed to a turret on some, and removed entirely on transport variants. The Kit This is a reboxing of a brand-new tool from ICM, who continue to produce new kits despite the difficult circumstances in their home country. We’ve been reviewing its smaller 1:72 sibling kit that was relatively recently released by ICM, and I was quite jealous that this kit wasn’t available in my preferred scale – until it was! The kit arrives in a top-opening box that has a captive top flap on the bottom tray. Inside are seven sprues in grey styrene plus an extra one for the figures, a clear sprue in a separate bag, decal sheet and the instruction booklet, which is printed in colour with profiles for painting and decaling on the back pages. Another instruction sheet is included for the figures, which is also printed in colour on glossy paper, and consists of a sprue diagram, plus sections of the original box art separated to perform the task of colour and parts call-outs Detail is thoroughly modern throughout, and extends to ribbing on the interior of most of the fuselage, restrained fabric depiction on the flying surfaces, full representation of the engines and a nice cockpit, plus a set of crystal-clear glazing parts. Construction begins with the fuselage halves, which have the armed tail added to the rear on a keyed flange, a lozenge-shaped detail insert to make the wing root recess flush, and the side windows, ammo drums dotted around the interior, plus multiple well-detailed equipment boxes inserted in the cockpit area, and later a line of trunking that extends from the trailing edge of the wing to the tail. The mid-upper gunner’s compartment is built from a series of steps that are glued to a base with another step, which is then glued to a bulkhead at the front that forms the rear bulkhead of the bomb bay, and has ribbing along its lower portion. Fire extinguishers are lined up in pairs on the port interior over the bomb bay, then the bomb bay roof is fitted out with eight bomb shackles before the sides and front bulkhead are installed, and it is then populated by four bombs that are each made from two halves, plus twin braces to each side of the stabilising fins at the rear. The bomb bay is joined to the underside of the cockpit floor, and in the recess that is part of the forward floor, detail is moulded into the top of the bomb bay, and it accepts one pilot’s rudder pedals that fit into pairs of holes in the deck. A seat with cushion is suspended over the recess, then another more substantial seat is attached to the floor at the port side with a lever to the side of it, adding a side console, throttle quadrant and two bow-tie control columns before the front bulkhead is fixed to the cockpit, plus a pair of two-part fuel tanks further back over the wing along the starboard wall, with a small equipment installation just forward. The cockpit assembly can then be inserted into the port fuselage half, adding the bomb-aimer’s position with a choice of two glazing parts, one with a cushion and vertical column, one bare, slotting into the cut-out under the nose. More ammo cans are dotted around the upper gunner’s stepped compartment, adding a clear porthole in the floor, and an internal ladder below the crew access door in the port side. The reason for the ammo cans includes side-firing and ventral machine guns, with a choice of weapons that have a plate magazine over the breech, or Type 89 machine guns, gluing the floor-mounted glazing panel into one side of the lower fuselage before it is closed. In the front, a rack of four O2 bottles are inserted in the roof of the nose, then the starboard fuselage is prepared in a similar manner as the port, fitting the wing root insert, adding glazing, instruments, machine gun ammo cans, a jump seat and the afore-mentioned trunk down the wall of the fuselage. The fuselage halves are closed around the instrument panel that has a pair of decals to depict the dials, a short coaming, and centre throttle quadrant, plus the upper gunner’s seat that is suspended on four moulded-in struts that locate on corresponding depressions in the fuselage wall. You have a choice of posing the bomb bay open or closed, using a single part to depict it closed, or the four individual door parts that fold to the side in pairs with the help of a pair of retraction jacks at either end, which are all included on the sprues. The dorsal gunner’s fuselage insert is prepped by making the gun mount from two parts, a dump bag that is also two parts, and the twin guns mounted over it, which have a pair of half plate magazines fitted to the top of the breech, and a semi-circular pivot that flex-fits into recesses under the dorsal insert, after which you can glue the insert into position in the top of the fuselage, taking care to align it carefully to minimise clean-up of seams. You have the same choice of two gun types for the nose gun that slides through a hole in the nose glazing, gluing into the nose while the canopy and dorsal glazing are fitted, being careful to paint the deck under the dorsal glazing before you add glue. The tail is started by adding the elevator fins, which have separate flying surfaces and rudder panel, then the wings are prepared by inserting a two-part bay in each one before joining the upper and lower halves together, adding the ailerons into their slots and landing light lenses in the leading edges. They are then glued onto the wing root fairings on the fuselage, which have a lip to ensure proper location, and a slot for the short length of spar that extends from the wing to further improve joint strength. The wheels are installed under the wings before the engines and lower cowling are made up, starting with the tail-wheel slipped into its yoke, and then adding the two-part wheels to the H-frame main strut, which has a two-part support frame fitted to the front, and a long yoke with mudguard and additional V-strut that links the lower leg to the back of the bay. Four small parts are fixed to the wing inside the bays, and the lower cowlings are made up out of two halves plus a round bulkhead, adding a pair of two-part intakes top and bottom, then sliding the lower nacelle over the completed wheels and mating the edges with the recessed lip of the lower wing surface. The engines are built-up on bulkheads with the cooling flaps moulded-in, a separate exhaust stack underneath, and a depiction of both cylinder banks, plus the front bell-housing with push-rods moulded-in, hiding the prop axle inside without glue so that the props can spin later, and fitting a wiring loom guide around the bell housing. The finished engines are covered by two cowling halves and a separate lip, gluing them to the front of the nacelles and finishing them off by adding the three-bladed prop and separate spinner. The model is completed by installing an antenna post and D/F loop over the canopy, and a curious-looking cranked pitot probe in the leading edge of the port wing. Figures There are five figures included in the box, each one in a standing or walking pose. There are three flight-crew dressed in their warm padded gear, plus sheepskin-lined leather flying helmets with goggles and the typical fly-away chin straps. They are all carrying a Samurai sword, as was typical of aviators in Japanese army or navy service, a tradition that remained at the time, despite their lack of use unless the crew were forced to bail out over enemy territory. The other two figures are ground-crew, one of whom is saluting one of the aircrew, who is returning it sharply. The other soldier is walking and has a crew access ladder over his shoulder, with one arm through the rungs, either on the way to or from the hatch of a bomber. The parts for each figure are found in separate areas of the sprue for ease of identification, and parts breakdown is sensibly placed along clothing seams or natural breaks to minimise clean-up of the figures once they are built up. The sculpting is typically excellent, as we’ve come to expect from ICM’s artists and tool-makers, with natural poses, drape of clothing and textures appropriate to the parts of the model. The instructions are formed from sections of the box artwork that have been separated to allow arrows in black that point out the part numbers, while red arrows and a letter code corresponds to a chart beneath the sprue diagram on the opposite page. The chart gives colours in names, swatches and ICM codes that match the afore mentioned paint system, which should allow modellers to make their choice of colour even if they don’t use or can’t get ICM’s own colours, but they have a specific set numbered #3056 for this task. Markings There are four options on the decal sheet, all but one in light green-grey, differentiated by their unit markings, the final markings having a dense dark green squiggle camouflage scheme over the green-grey. From the box you can build one of the following: 60th Sentai, China, 1940 60th Sentai, 2nd Chutai, China, 1940 Hamamatsu Army Flying School, Japan, probably 1941 25 Hikodan Shireibu Hikohan, Japan, 1943 Decals are by ICM’s usual partner, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. As is common now with ICM kits, there is a page of the instruction booklet devoted to the masking of the canopy, using the printed shapes on the right of the page and the diagrams on the left to create your own masks if you wish. It goes up to 130 thanks to the extensive greenhouse glazing. Conclusion A nicely detailed and most welcome new boxing of this short-lived (in front line service at least) heavy bomber, which is improved further by the addition of the figures. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

HUMVEE M1097A2 Cargo Carrier (35436) 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd The High Mobility Multi-purpose Wheeled Vehicle, shortened to HMMWV and referred to as the Humvee because it was easier and a lot faster to say in daily use, was designed to replace the original Jeep and its descendants with a standard chassis that could be adapted to many roles, cutting down on development costs, simplifying maintenance, and providing a familiar platform for the soldiers and drivers that would be hopping in and out of them. The project has its origins in the late 1970s, morphing through several design and project changes into the HMMWV that was given the task of replacing all the Jeep-like vehicles in the US inventory. It was to have a wide wheel-base that could follow the tracks of the Bradley AFV and Abrams MBT through minefields, be sufficiently armoured to withstand indirect fire and shell-splinters - a problem that reared its ugly head later in its career. It was also waterproofed to manage deep fording without stopping to rig any specialist equipment, and it had to have extremely competent off-road handling, both to keep the troops and their equipment comfortable, and to keep pace with the tracked vehicles that it accompanied. The AM General design won the contest, being found to be the most rugged and reliable of the offerings, and a huge contract for many thousands of vehicles was forthcoming, reaching 100,000 units of production by 1995. By then however, the vehicle’s short-coming were becoming evident, with a report stating that the average time between breakdown was only 370 miles, far below what we’ve come to expect from modern motor vehicles. They were a design intended for the previous war in many ways, and when the Gulf War began, their light armour led to casualties that were deemed unacceptable, resulting in upgrades to the armour with add-on packages such as armoured doors and top-turrets. These brought their own issues however, making it difficult for troops to enter and egress due to the door design, and the armour on the roof of the vehicle made it top-heavy and more prone to roll-over accidents. During the noughties moves were made to transition to Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles that would protect the crews and were designed from outset to be much more survivable than the HUMVEE, but with additional work it continued to serve in the modern battlefield, ensuring that it was used according to its capabilities. Work-arounds have been created to ensure crews can escape crashed or damaged vehicles by adding D-rings to the doors so another vehicle can rip them out, and a window removal kit that could be utilised if no other vehicle was available, or incoming fire prevented outside assistance. A shipment of HUMVEEs has been sent to Ukraine to assist them in their fight against the invaders, where they will doubtless see extensive service, but in the longer term the US intends to replace the HUMVEE with the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV), which is a similar-looking vehicle, but one that has MRAP capabilities baked in, and more advanced comms equipment that will give the crews a tactical advantage on the battlefield. The Kit This is a new boxing of a brand-new tooling from ICM, who are based in Ukraine and now have impetus to have a model of a vehicle their own army are now using, and that works very well for the rest of us that want a well-detailed HUMVEE in 1:35 for our stash/cabinets/shelves. The kit arrives in a shallow top-opening box with ICM’s trademark captive inner flap on the lower tray, with a NATO camouflaged HUMVEE on the cover, parked in a rutted stretch of earth in front of a forest. Inside the box are six sprues in grey styrene, two clear sprues, a bag containing four flexible black tyres, a decal sheet, plus the instruction booklet that is printed in colour with a glossy cover, and has profiles of the decal options on the back pages. Detail is good, and is found on both sides of the body panels, showing off strengthening ribs and other structural shapes, although there are by necessity a few ejector-pin marks on the less prominent surfaces that are in open areas to make their removal more straight forward. New Sprue New Sprue Construction begins with the chassis, adding engine supports to both inner runners, then fitting a shaped tank to right inner rail, and the exhaust to the opposite rail on the inside. The engine is made from a two-part block that has a pair of four-port exhaust manifolds added underneath, with the sump and lower portion of the transmission installed below, followed up by a two-part transfer box to the rear, and the serpentine belts to the front. The assembly can then be lowered into the front of the chassis onto its supports, with a flat panel over the forward section, fitting a radiator hose to the front of the chassis, and the other half of the exhaust in the centre. The front axle is built with gaiters at each end of the drive-shafts, adding the axle tips, and the differential cover to the front, then creating the sub-frame that is made from two parts, mating it with the chassis and joining it to the transfer box by a long and surprisingly narrow drive-shaft. The rear axle is made in a similar manner, with the same style of sub-frame, attaching that to the rear with its own shorter drive-shaft, and fitting a pair of arms once it is in position. Each corner has a well-moulded two-part coil-over shock fitted from above, adding a steering linkage to the front axle, and two triangular carriers for the rear bumper, which is built from two layers, adding towing shackles and eyes before it is fixed into position along with a cross-member in the centre of the chassis, and another linkage to the front axle. The plate on top of the forward chassis now reveals its use as the base for the radiator, protecting it against shrapnel from the front and below. Three more protective parts are fitted to the back and sides with a fan moulded into the rear, then it’s time to put some wheels on your model, using the four flexible black tyres, and adding a hub surface to each side, slotting them in each corner to make your HUMVEE into a roller-skate. https://www.britmodeller.com/reviews/icm/35/35435-humvee.m1097a2/detail-bodyshell.jpg The bodywork begins with the firewall and its moulded-in windscreen frame, adding detail parts and painting various sections different colours depending on which scheme you intend to use, then adding a combined dashboard/transmission tunnel to the centre-left, and installing the two clear windscreen panes into the frame from behind. A scrap diagram shows that there are fourteen decals in total for this assembly, including dials, stencils and what look like nozzles for the heating/cooling system. An additional inverted W-shaped layer of framework is fixed to the interior of the windscreen, adding a neatly moulded steering wheel into the centre of the binnacle on the dash. Two cylindrical assemblies are made next, forming the air-cleaning box lying horizontal, and the coolant overflow tank sitting vertically against the diagonal section of the firewall on the engine side. A pair of windscreen wipers are attached to the top centre of the glazing panels, which are probably best either left off until later, or painted in advance of installing them. Going back to the cab side of the bulkhead, the ‘jug-ear’ wing mirrors are added into their protective frames, and each side has a sun visor fitted to the top, with a wiper motor glued vertically at the top of the centre frame, plus four more decals along the top frame. The floor is painted in two colours split between cab and passenger/load area, again differing between decal options, making a driver’s seat-base from two L-shaped parts and a top, the co-driver’s seat base formed from a single part, applying two decals to a small instrument panel set into the tunnel next to the driver. Two levers and a handbrake lever are installed nearby, mating the firewall/windscreen assembly to the front of the floor, and adding two T-shaped levers where they meet in the centre. The side panels are mounted either side of the floor after applying decals to the outside of the B-pillars that depends on the markings, making up two seat-backs from front and back, then sliding them onto supports at the rear of the cushions, locating them on the bases installed earlier, and putting two short divides behind each one, slotting into grooves in the B-pillars. The rear compartment has a pair of two-part bench seats added, mounting the rear and tailgate with extra parts on the top ends, to the back of the floor, after which the body can be mated with the chassis so that the bonnet/hood can be built. https://www.britmodeller.com/reviews/icm/35/35435-humvee.m1097a2/detail-radiator.jpg The bonnet panel has two oval holes next to the cut-out for the louvre panel, which a pair of large lifting eyes push through from underneath, adding shallow arches to the sides, then making the grille from the exterior with a mesh backing that depicts the radiator, plus two clear headlight lenses, then inserting it into the square cut-out in the front of the bonnet, adding the louvre panel, blackout driving light on the left, and combined indicator/blackout marker light on both corners. The front bumper is short but sturdy, with two types of towing eye fitted to each side plus two more on the rear, installing it and the bonnet assembly to the front of the chassis, giving your model a ‘face’. The shallow rear doors have raised sides moulded-in, and are fitted behind the B-pillars, with a pair of covers over the footwell to increase load space, adding another shallow full-width divider behind the crew seats, a rear bulkhead to separate the crew cab with an extra strengthening hoop and a small window, sliding into place and adding a roof between it and the windscreen. The front doors have frames for their windows, which are separate clear parts, completed by adding handles to both sides and fitting them in place open, closed, or somewhere in-between. The last two parts are two slatted panels that are mounted over the bench seats horizontally, or vertically if you prefer, as illustrated in the two drawings that follow the last instruction step. Markings There are two colour choices for this cargo HUMVEE variant, one in NATO European camouflage, the other in desert colours, both serving during the 2000s. From the box you can build one of the following: US Army, 2000s US Army (Desert Camo), 2000s Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion This cargo HUMVEE is the second of a line of many variants by the looks of things, with a little more height and detail in the cargo bed to add interest to the model. The detail is good, the construction simple, and the end result should be well-worth the effort with some care, some glue and a little paint. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

Bergepanther with Pz.Kpfw.IV Turret (35360) 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd The Panther was Germany's answer to the surprise appearance of the Russian T-34 after they finally reacted to the invasion that was Operation Barbarossa. Although the project had been in gestation for some time before, they took some design cues from the T-34 in the shape of the sloped armour, resulting in the Panther that was intended to fill the gap between the Panzer.IV and the (then) new Panzer VI Tiger. It was eventually supposed to replace both the Pz.IV and the earlier Pz.III that was really showing its age, but in reality it often fought alongside the Panzer IV due to lack of production numbers. It was planned as a lighter, more manoeuvrable tank than the Tiger, and was fitted with a high velocity gun from the outset, which gave it enormous penetrating power that was only equalled by the British 17-pounder fitted to the Sherman that turned it into the Firefly. The sloped frontal armour gave it an increased effective armour thickness, but this was not so true of the side armour, which was weaker and more steeply sloped, becoming the preferred target area of allied tanks, especially in urban combat where this was a telling issue. Like most German tanks of WWII, it was complex to produce, so suffered in terms of volume, which led to it being rushed into service with quite a list of problems still to resolve. Later production solved most of these initial gremlins, but loses in the interim were high with many being abandoned after breaking down during combat. To help with recovering broken down Panthers and other lighter vehicles, a number of Panther chassis were converted into Bergepanthers by removal of their turret and fitting of a raft of equipment that could be used in the recovery process, leaving the power of the engine free to provide traction without the extra weight of the turret, main gun and dozens of shells. The lack of turret made the Bergepanthers easy to distinguish from standard tanks, and this made them a target for the Allies, as just one Bergepanther taken out of service could lead to many broken-down tanks remaining on the battlefield, unable to be recovered and therefore useless in the fight against the Allies. A project to counter this vulnerability led to an unused Panzer IV turret being fitted to a Bergepanther with a dummy gun and no ammunition, acting as a command vehicle. This one vehicle was part of Schwere Panzerjäger Abteilung 653, and fought/towed in Ukraine during 1944. The Kit The original sprues for this kit were tooled in 2005, and they have been seen in ICM and Revell boxes in the interim, but this new boxing has a new sprue to depict the Panzer IV parts that make it unique. It might occur to some that this could be a sneak preview of a 1:35 Panzer IV from ICM, but looking at the parts, they have been made with this kit in mind, with exterior parts only, and a solid turret ring where the turret basket would be on the real thing, so in many ways it follows the ethos of the original. The kit arrives in a top-opening box with a captive flap on the lower tray, and inside are four sprues and two hull halves in grey styrene, four sprues in black, a small decal sheet, and the instruction booklet with spot colour and a profile for the decal choice in colour on the glossy rear cover. Detail is good, and the new parts will pass muster for their intended role, with individual links making up the tracks, and a well-rendered exterior. Construction begins with the lower hull, which is completed by adding the wide T-shaped rear bulkhead and the armoured surrounds around the final drive housings at the front of the hull. The many stub axles are inserted into the hull with a peg holding them at the correct angle, and these are accompanied by several additional suspension parts, bumpers, the housings themselves and of course the interleaved main wheels, plus the four-part idler wheels and two-part drive sprockets. The rear bulkhead is detailed with twin exhausts that hold the detailed jack across the armoured bases of the exhaust stacks, the angular stowage boxes, and the final drive housings have a small wheel fitted to the rear of the housing, which assisted in reducing the number of track-throwing issues encountered. The upper hull has the inside of the glacis plate detailed with driver’s hatch and vision blocks, plus two hatches on pegs that insert into the lift-out front section of the forward deck. The rear deck also has a large inspection hatch in the centre that is decked out with mushroom vents and grab-handles, then has the various rectangular and circular vents from the engine compartment added either side, plus a couple more circular vents and lifting lugs. The stowage for the sides of the hull is made up on frames, one for each side, plus a tube for the barrel-cleaning rods and two racks of spare track links at the rear, again one each side, bending the four spurs on the racks to an angle that matches that of the engine deck. The front mudguards have width indicators added that are relatively unusual for the Panther and a small wingnut in the centre, noting that the part numbers are missing from all the earlier sprues, but you can refer to the sprue diagrams at the front of the instruction booklet if you’re unsure. Then it’s time to make up the tracks. The track links are made up from individual parts that are joined together to create the complete run, although you aren’t given a guide to figure out how many to use, but from memory I suspect around 90 would be appropriate. They clip together, but need some glue to retain their integrity long term, so wrapping them around the road wheels while the glue is still flexible would work, then hold them in place with tape, foam wads and other flexible spacers to obtain the correct sag on the return run. The good news is that there are only two sprue gates to deal with per link, but they are on a concave surface, so if you have a circular sanding stick, file or burr for your motor tool, they won’t hold you back for long. There are however two small circular ejector-pin marks in the outer face of each link in a tricky place next to some raised detail. Sanding those could be done with a small, flat-tipped burr, or you could make your own tool from coffee stirrers or similar and glue some wet’n’dry to it, as I have done in the past. The alternative is to slap some weathering and mud on the tracks to hide any issues you didn’t fix. The new sprue contains all the parts for the turret, starting with the base that has the turret ring moulded in, adding three sides and the mantlet with pivot and a pair of trunnions fitted into the edges of the part. The roof is fitted on top, adding the outer mantlet and coax machine gun barrel to the pivot, making up the gun’s outer casing from four plates with a frontal plug, into which the two-part barrel with moulded-in muzzle-brake is slotted, taking care to align the two halves to reduce clean-up of the seams. Hatch handles and lugs are fitted to the sides of the turret, adding a mushroom vent to the base moulded into the roof, and gluing the base ring around the commander’s cupola plus a pair of grab-handles on the edges of the roof to assist crew entering and exiting the side hatches. The cupola is made from three parts that sit on top of one another, and a six-part bustle stowage box is fixed to the rear of the turret. This turret is protected by schürzen panels that are suspended around it on three brackets per side, adding two schürzen panels on each side, with a confusing cut-line on the rear sections that isn’t referred to any further thereafter. The completed turret is twisted into position on the hull via a bayonet fitting, and the model is completed by installing the hull schürzen as single parts on each side with moulded-in supports, the two towing cables with moulded-in eyes, an aerial on the engine deck, and a four-part travel lock for the main gun, leaving the support loose if you wish to set it flat to the deck at some point. Markings There is one decal option on the sheet, as you’d expect for a unique vehicle, and it’s wearing a base coat of dark yellow (Dunkelgelb), with red-brown and green camouflage sprayed over the top. From the sheet you can build the following: 653rd Heavy Panzerjäger Battalion (Schwere Panzerjäger Abteilung 653), 1944 Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion It’s a unique vehicle based upon a competent model of the Panther, and should confuse anyone that’s not yet heard of this oddity and confusion of generations of German armour. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of

2cm FlaK 38 WWII German AA Gun (35717) 1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd Starting life as a 20mm naval anti-aircraft gun that was developed into the FlaK 30, the FlaK 38 was a further development of the basic gun to improve the fire rate that had previously been less than inspiring. The improvement meant an increase from 120RPM to 220RPM, but also benefitted from a decrease in all-up weight, which eased its way into service with the army in late 1939, just in time for WWII. As well as the usual trailer mount and three-legged base, a lightened mounting was also created for the gun, using a tripod that reduced the weight still more, and made it air-transportable by paratroopers into active warzones. Following accelerated acceptance trials, the new design began service with the Wehrmacht and Luftwaffe in the summer of 1940, where it became the standard light-weight Flak defence weapon for close-range operation, where it was highly effective. Crews also found that the weapon was devastating against personnel and lightly armoured ground targets, which it could attack due to its wide range of elevation. This led to it being mounted on the back of trucks, half-tracks and other armoured vehicles where it could perform both roles, which it continued to do until the end of the war. It was considered less effective by the RLM later in the war due to the increasingly well-armoured fighters it was ranged against however, and in addition to being fielded in Zwilling (twin) mounts, it was also used in a quad-mount for increased fire density, with the intensity of replacing it with a 40mm gun if the war had lasted longer. The Kit This is a brand-new tooling from our friends at ICM, and although many other companies have their own FlaK 38s in 1:35, this is their offering, and it’s a fresh tooling that has been created using accurate dimensions and proportions in an effort to obtain a highly realistic rendition of this important German anti-aircraft gun. The kit arrives in a shallow top-opening box with a captive flap on the lower tray, and inside are two sprues of grey styrene, a small decal sheet and instruction booklet printed in colour on glossy paper, with painting and decaling profiles on the rear pages. Construction begins by trapping the gun barrel with moulded-in breech between the two halves of the cradle, sliding the assembly into the armoured mantlet if you are building the variant with a splinter shield, with two L-shaped supports holding the cradle to the mantlet. Two hollow circular pivots fit on the sides of the cradle, slotting a magazine into the breech on the left side through the hole, and these locate in a two-layer trunnion on each side, choosing which elevation piston to fit underneath to set the barrel for anti-aircraft or travel and anti-personnel operations. The trunnions locate in slots on a circular base that has tread-plate moulded into the sides, fitting elevation and rotation mechanisms to the right and at the rear of the trunnions. The sighting gear is mounted on an arm above the rear of the gun, and a pair of seats are built and installed, one on each side over the tread-plated areas. The option with the splinter shield has a horizontal support tube fitted on two brackets at the front under the barrel, mounting two sections of shielding on the bottom tube, adding upper brackets to steady the parts during firing and transport. Two small tabs are removed from the circular pivots if you are fitting the shield, and an additional shield is fitted on a bracket in front of the gunner’s position, which is raised above the main shield for sighting the gun. Three additional magazines are supplied to store in the ready-mag box on the left side of the gun for either variant. The base consists of two layers with a large circular cut-out in the centre, plus three feet, one on each outrigger, lowering the completed gun into position as the final part of the build. A pair of diagrams show the completed model in armoured and unarmoured finishes to assist you with making your choice and ensuring you build it using the correct parts. Markings There are four widely varying decal options on the small sheet, starting with a Panzer Grey early option, and adding three more with a base coat of dark yellow (dunkelgelb), with various camouflages over the top, including a winter distemper and two variations of red and green or grey stripes. From the box you can build one of the following: Eastern Front, 1942 Italy, 1943 Western Ukraine, 1944 East Prussia, 1945 Decals are by ICM’s usual partners, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion It’s good to see a modern tooling of this common FlaK gun, which is well-detailed, although you will have to drill out the muzzle yourself to add extra realism. A good choice of decal options that include instrument faces add to the appeal. Highly recommended. Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd. Review sample courtesy of