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This is my first entry for this GB: the Delta 2 kit of the Campini Caproni, previously issued by Delta in 1972 or 73. A newer kit was issued recently by Valom, and that makes this elegible for the group build. You may watch a video of the real thing: Not exactly the kind of aircraft that can be accused to look good. The same happens to the kit: According to the plans in the Ali d'Italia booklet it is all wrong: the wings are too big, too thick and will require severe surgery; The fuselage seems to be too thin; in short, there is no single part of the kit that can be used as is. So... that's my kind of kit! As you may see, I started to glue the undercarriage doors because that part of the wing must be modified and the location, size and format are all wrong. The canopy was designed to run in a large rail, but I covered it with plastic, still to sand. Follow-up in a few days! Carlos

Italian Puma 6x6 Armoured Vehicle 1:35 Trumpeter The Defence Vehicles Division of IVECO developed the Puma family of 4x4 and 6x6 light armoured vehicles to meet the requirements of the Italian Army. After extensive trials with prototype vehicles, the army placed a contract with IVECO in 1999 covering the supply of 540 Puma vehicles. The first vehicles were completed in 2003. Of the 540 vehicles, 320 will be in the 6x6 version with the remaining 220 in the 4x4 configuration. The 6x6 version of the Puma will typically be used in the armoured personnel carrier (APC) role, while the 4 x 4 version will typically be used for reconnaissance. To reduce overall life-cycle costs, the Puma family shares many common components, such as the diesel engine, automatic transmission and suspension. The baseline APC version of the Puma is armed with a 12.7mm M2 machine gun. However, the vehicles can be fitted with a range of turrets and cupolas developed by Oto Melara, including one with a remote-controlled weapon. IVECO has developed a number of specialised versions of the Puma for the Italian Army. These include ambulance, command post, 81mm mortar, air defence with MBDA Mistral missiles and two anti-tank (one with the Raytheon TOW and one with the Euromissile MILAN anti-tank guided missile system). The Puma design is such that it can be adopted for a wide range of other roles and missions. Standard equipment includes powered steering, run-flat tyres, a nuclear, biological and chemical defensive system and afire-detection and -suppression system. The Model Packaged in the now Trumpeter standard of sturdy top opening cardboard box the artwork of which depicts a vehicle at the head of a convoy of similar vehicles. Don't look to closely to the artwork as you'll see something has gone wrong with the front pairs of wheels. Inside there are the hull halves and eleven sprues, all in alight grey styrene, along with one small sheet of etched brass, a small decal sheet, six poly caps and six rubber wheels. All the parts are very well moulded with no sign of flash and only a few moulding pips. The details are crisp and well defined and the dry fitting of the hull pieces showed that the fit is superb, almost click together with no gaps whatsoever. Even though the Puma is quite a small armoured vehicle, in kit form it's a nice size to work with, not too small and fiddly. With only nine pages of instructions it's not been over engineered or has overly complex suspension or transmission boxes which makes it look like a really nice and relaxing weekend type build even though the kit count is quite high. The build starts with the fitting of the clear ports into the upper hull after which the it is slid onto the lower hull and glued into place. As stated above the fit of these parts is quite amazing and shows how much Trumpeter have come along in the last few years. On the underside the there are two four piece transmission boxes and on three piece box. These are fitted into position and connected by their respective drive shafts.the main shock absorbers, complete with stub axles are fitted into position and joined to the transmission boxes by cross-shafts. The front two pairs of stub axles are also fitted with steering racks. The three pairs of wishbones assemblies are then attached to their respective wheel hubs, followed by three cross braces. Additional details such as the front valance, front towing shackles and mounts, fuel filler cap upper and lower hinge for the side door and a footstep on the left hand side are attached. The wheels are made up of an inner and outer hub between which a poly cap is fitted. These are best painted before the tyres are fitted which are push fitted over the hubs. Since the tyres are hollow it might be an idea to fill the lower portion with Milliput or such like to prevent them from sagging in the future. The rear bulkhead is festooned with small parts such as the lights, shackles and their mountings, tow hook with addition eye-bolts and storage racks. There is a very complex winch assembly consisting of eleven styrene and two PE parts. The rear bulkhead assembly is then attached to the vehicle followed by the winch assembly which is fitted to the right hand side of the bulkhead. The engine intake grille and aerial mounting are fitted to the front of the vehicle whilst three storage clamps are fitted to the right hand rear quarter and an armoured panel fitted to the right hand side just above the gap between the two front wheels. An attachment plate for the pioneer tools is fitted to the front glacis and then fitted with the pickaxe and shovel whilst a host of smaller fittings are attached to the rear and sides of the vehicle. Further progress is made with the fitting of the two upper hull rear hatches, side storage baskets, lifting eyes and the five piece smoke discharge assemblies. There is a strange hook assembly on the bow just aft of the engine deck, the use of which evades me. In front of the hook structure the engine radiator grille is fitted, whilst to the front of the vehicle the headlight and sidelight assemblies are attached. The drivers hatch is assembled out of the main hatch, large hinge bar on top, with the two handles and three vision blocks fitted from beneath. This prominent hatch is very often open and it's a shame that there is no interior detail, even if just for the drivers position. In front of this hatch is a large armoured glass windscreen, with additional wiper part and support plate. The turret assembly also has a number of vision blocks, but this time fitted from the top. There are a number of other sights and sensors fitted to the turret surround along with the machine gun mount. The turret hatch is attached to the surround by two hinge parts. The machine gun, which looks like an MG-42 or derivative has a separate ammunition box and cradle for one side, along with a case collection box on the other side. The completed turret assembly is then fitted to the turret ring on the vehicle. Finally the two part wing mirrors and a couple of grab handles are attached completing the model. Decals The small decal sheet provides items for two vehicles, one in standard Italian three colour scheme with markings for ISFOR in Arabic whilst eh other is in overall white scheme for a UN mission. The decals include registration plates, Italian flags, UN identification plates and convoy plates. Conclusion This is a fantastic little kit and going by the fit of the hull sections should be a very nice build with little use of filler. There's quite a lot of detail included and with the exception of the tyres/wheels or you're adding it to a diorama shouldn't need any aftermarket additions. The six wheeler is a better looking vehicle in my eyes and I'm glad Trumpeter chose to release it ahead of the four wheeler. I can highly recommend this kit to anyone interested in modern military vehicles and it would be good starter kit for those fairly new to military modelling. Review sample courtesy of

Nieuport 17 Eduard 1:48 The type was a slightly larger development of the earlier Nieuport 11, and had a more powerful engine, larger wings, and a more refined structure in general. At first, it was equipped with a 110 hp (82 kW) Le Rhône 9J engine, though later versions were upgraded to a 130 hp (97 kW) engine. It had outstanding maneuverability, and an excellent rate of climb. Unfortunately, the narrow lower wing, marking it as a "sesquiplane" design with literally "one-and-a-half wings", was weak due to its single spar construction, and had a disconcerting tendency to disintegrate in sustained dives at high speed. Initially, the Nieuport 17 retained the above wing mounted Lewis gun of the "11", but in French service this was soon replaced by a synchronised Vickers gun. In the Royal Flying Corps, the wing mounted Lewis was usually retained, by now on the improved Foster mounting, a curved metal rail which allowed the pilot to bring the gun down in order to change drums or clear jams. A few individual aircraft were fitted with both guns - but in practice this reduced performance unacceptably, and a single machine gun remained standard. The type reached the French front in March 1916, and quickly began to replace the Nieuport 11 in French service. It was also ordered by the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service, as it was superior to any British fighter at that time. Worthy of note is the fact that during part of 1916, the Nieuport 17 equipped every fighter squadron of the Aéronautique Militaire. The Germans supplied captured examples to several of their aircraft manufacturers for them to copy. This resulted in the Siemens-Schuckert D.I which, apart from the engine installation, was a close copy and actually went into production, although in the event it was not used operationally on the Western Front. Like the other Nieuport types, the 17 was used as an advanced trainer for prospective fighter pilots after its operational days were over. The Model Inside the standard Eduard Weekend Edition box with a stylised picture of the Nieuport on the front. Inside, all the parts are well protected in a poly bag. There are two sprues, one in the standard Eduard light brown styrene and one in blue/grey styrene. The parts are well moulded with no flash and only a few parts with moulding pips. There is also a small single clear part for the windscreen. The build of this diminutive fighter with plugging the lower front fuselage with a blank plate followed by an internal panel to the port side on which the throttle and linkage are fitted, and a support strut to each fuselage half. The cockpit floor has the joystick, seat and rudder pedals added, followed by an internal strut through the floor and the instrument panel to the strut. Once the internal fuselages are painted they can be joined with the engine mounting shaft sandwiched in-between. The next stage is to fit the lower wing, horizontal tailplane, rudder and their respective control horns. The engine, best painted first and two part cowling is then glued into place, as is the windscreen, tailplane struts and rear skid. The upper wing, using the wing off the blue/grey sprue, is then fitted with the tubular gunsight, whilst the machine gun and ammunition feed is add to the upper front fuselage. With the interplane and cabane struts are the upper wing can be fixed into place. Two grab handles are then fitted to the upper wing in front of the cockpit. Turning the aircraft over the undercarriage, consisting of the two wheels, support struts and axle/fairing are attached and finally the prop can be fitted, although this may be fitted after painting has been completed. Decals Being a Weekend Edition there is only one option on the decal sheet, that of a Nieuport 17, N3139, ten, Fulco Ruffo di Calabria, 91’ Squadriglia, Italian Front, Spring 1917. They are all very well printed in good register and slightly glossy. There are also four instruments for the panel. The decals are nicely printed, with good colour density, although the green of the rudder colours looks slightly patchy. The paint scheme, of overall aluminium, with the lower port wing in red and lower right wing in green, is really attractive and will make this little aircraft stand out from the crowd. Conclusion This is another very nice little kit from Eduard. Being quite small it will be quite fun to rig, but not overly complex. It will certainly make a nice addition to any collection. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of