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Russian T-62 Mod. 1975, (Mod 1972 + KTD-2) Trumpeter 1:35 History The T-62 was produced between 1961 and 1975. It became a standard tank in the Soviet arsenal, partly replacing the T-55, although that tank continued to be manufactured in the Soviet Union and elsewhere after T-62 production was halted. Its 115 mm gun was the first smoothbore tank gun in use. It could fire kinetic penetrator rounds, a new larger turret and ring, which in itself required a re-designed larger hull. Additional armour was incorporated in the re-design, but this was concentrated in the upper hull at the expense of the lower hull and roof area. Once in service the tank underwent a seemingly endless upgrade process, of which the Mod.1975 was a T-62 Obr.1972 equipped with a KTD-1 or KTD-2 laser rangefinder in an armoured box over the main armament. It also has concealed bolts around the commander's cupola. The kit represents a MOD 1975 fitted with a KTD-2 laser rangefinder. The Model Yet another T-62 release from Trumpeter, they really are getting their money’s worth from the moulds. The boxart shows a vehicle on the road during a parade in the standard Indian colour scheme for this type. Inside there are ten sprues of light grey styrene, separate lower hull, seven of brown styrene, five of black styrene, one of clear, a sprue of a rubbery material, a bit like Dragons DS material, three sheets of etched brass, a turned alluminium barrel, plus a length of copper wire and decal sheet. All the parts are beautifully moulded with great detail and surface texture. There is no sign of flash or other imperfections, but there are a lot of moulding pips that need to be removed and will add to the cleaning up required. Construction begins with the road wheels: each wheel consisting of the wheel and separate tyre. The wheels are then paired up, the outside wheel being fitted with a central hub part. The idlers are of similar construction, whilst the sprockets are made up from three parts. The rear bulkhead is then fitted to the lower hull and detailed with a spare length of track and the four rear lights. The modeller is given a choice of lower glacis plate, which is then fitted to the lower hull, along with the torsion bar suspension, onto which each pair of wheels is attached, and gear covers onto which the sprockets are fitted. The tracks are made from individual links, unfortunately the instructions don’t tell you how many are needed per side, so it’ll be a matter of trial and error. With the tracks fitted the upper hull requires some holes to be drilled out before being fitted out with periscopes, towing hitches, turret ring rails, headlight and other small fittings. The engine deck hatches are now assembled, consisting of a mixture of styrene with etched grilles. The upper hull deck and engine deck sections are then glued into position. The two track guards are then fitted out with the various storage boxes and spare fuel tanks, as well as the front and rear mudguards, the completed items are then fitted to the hull. The two rear mounted fuel drums, each made from six parts and are fitted to the rear bulkhead. The searchlight and hatches are now assembled; the hatches have detail on both the internal and external faces. The upper turret section needs some hole being opened up before going any further. Once they’re done the vision blocks are fitted from the inside, whilst on the outside the hatch rings and side mounted hand rails are fitted, along with the aerial base. The hatch assemblies are then glued into position, followed by the commanders sight, searchlight, periscopes and numerous other fittings. The upper and lower turret sections are then joined and the snorkel assembly attached to the rear. Two more searchlights are then attached to the turret roof, followed by the ten part thermal sight. The barrel is then assembled, provided in three sections, with each section moulded in two halves. If you don’t want to use this method, Trumpeter have kindly provided a metal barrel which just need the muzzle gluing on to the end. Whichever you use the barrel is then slid through the mantlet cover and onto the turret. The heavy AA machine gun is made up from nine parts and when complete can be fitted to the commanders hatch ring. The completed turret is then fitted to the hull completing the model. There is only one decal option, that of Tank 720 in overall Russian Tank Green or similar. Rather unusually for Trumpeter they have included four crewmen in this kit. There are three standing, and one squatting, AK in hand. Whilst the figures are in normal styrene, their helmets are in the DS style material, which look quite realistic. There is also a sprue of weapons, four AK’s with separate magazines, two with folded stocks and two with extend stocks. Conclusion Yes, Trumpeter have release4d another T-62 variant. At least you can’t say you haven’t got a choice if Russian tanks are you thing. I’ve built a few Trumpeter and Hobbyboss AFV’s and haven’t ever had a problem with the build, although I would probably change the tracks for a set from Friulmodel or the like. If you like tanks then you need at least one of these in your collection, highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

British WWI Mark I Tank 1:35 Takom Following the first foray by the British Army into "Landships", which went by the name "Little Willie", the Mark I was a developmental successor, which saw the first use of the rhomboid track arrangement in an effort to lower the centre of gravity that would enable it to roll up and over German trenches, aided initially by a trailing "limber" that helped it cross wider trenches. It was by no means perfect and struggled with reliability plus the perennial problem of carbon monoxide build-up in the cab, as well as the penchant for the fuel tanks to go afire when hit. All of these problems were at least partially addressed in later marks, with only 150 built in total, and split 50/50 between Male and Female variants. The Male tanks carried a 6-pounder naval gun in each side-mounted sponson, while the female was equipped with four Vickers Machine guns in the same positions. Both types also had a number of .303 Hotchkiss machine gun in various positions, which varied between types. Due to the rapid process of trial-and-error, the Mark I was replaced by the Mark IV in May of 1917, which is the Mark that everyone thinks of when WWI Tank is mentioned. The Kit Takom have produced two kits, one each for the Male and Female, rather than including large quantities of styrene that would never be used in one kit. While the hull is ostensibly the same, the sponson design varies sufficiently for separate parts to be needed. Each kit also has some specific additions to differentiate the variants, as well as adding value to the box. The Male has a trailer for the detached sponsons, sponson crane fittings as well as the trailing wheel assembly, while the Female has the trailing wheels, plus a tent-shaped mesh panel on the roof, which was designed to deflect grenades thrown by the enemy. The Male boxing has sixteen sprues in mid grey styrene, a sheet of Photo-Etch (PE) brass, 190 track links, 8 poly-caps on a small sprue, two lengths of metal chain, plus a small decal sheet, instruction booklet and painting guide. The Female boxing has fifteen sprues, a large sheet of PE, 190 track links, six poly-caps, a small decal sheet, plus the booklet and painting guide. Common Parts The driver's compartment is first to be built up with two vision slots and one machine gun port between them on the front, with pistol ports moulded into the sloped sides, and topped off with a riveted roof. This is then added to the hull, which takes shape with the roof, floor, front and rear panels, all of which mate using long shallow tabs and slots in the edges. The Male needs some holed drilling if you are attaching the crane, while the female has them drilled to attach the grenade netting. The hull is detailed with a round hatch on the top, plus the three exhaust outlets and three roof stiffeners running laterally, with three triangular PE parts added over the exhausts to prevent them getting blocked. The rhomboid track sponsons are next, each being a mirror image of the other. The assembly is all done on the inner surface, including the idler, drive sprocket and the myriad of road wheels that must be organised according to type. A pair of inner plates blank off the interior of the sponson, and the outer skin is added last, trapping the wheels in place. Each side takes 90 track links, and you'll be pleased to hear that they are already off the sprue and in a ziplok bag, with only a very slight clean-up required on the traction ridge, which is not going to take very long at all! The inner face of the links will be unseen unless you are doing a "brewed up" diorama, in which case you might want to slice off the raised (and numbered) ejector pins in the centre, at least for any links that will have their underside exposed. Both kits have the trailing wheel assembly in the box, and this builds up from a fairly well detailed frame with masses of recoil springs at the front, and two spoked wheels at the rear. The wheels have their spokes moulded-in on one side, with the other side as a separate part, and mating these traps a poly-cap in position to allow later removal. A small suspension unit is then added to the rear of the hull with armoured panelling protecting it, while the springs attach to mounts on the inner face of the track sponsons. They weren't particularly effective by all accounts, but they do add a rather olde-worlde charm to the model. The kits diverge from their core components at this stage. Male Specific Parts The breeches of the two 6-Pounder guns are built up first, with breech blocks, winder and the twin-recuperator tubes on top, and the sighting gear on the right side. The mounts are added to the sides, and the rotation of the base is maintained by the addition of a poly-cap trapped between the top and bottom parts. elevation and trigger mechanisms are installed on a panel on the left of the breech. The breech and mount are then added to the gun-shield, with the inner shield a single part, while the outer lateral shield is two parts that mate in the centre. With the shield in place the single part barrel can be glued into the breech, and this has only a moulding seam to scrape away, with a nice deep slide-moulded muzzle added for good measure. Each gun sits in a box-like sponson with a sloped front, where the 6-pounder sits in a cut-out. The .303 machine gun pokes through a hole in the side, and the base for the gun doubles up as ammo stowage, with a nice thin PE panel perforated to accept shells. Shells that aren't included in the kit, sadly. The walls are built up with a door in the rear, and a reinforced roof added last, repeated for the other side in mirror image. If you build your model with the sponsons off for transport, the detail within will be seen, but if you attach them to the tank, the majority will be lost forever unless you open the door in the sponson rear. More on that later, however. The Gaza Strip marking option uses a pair of girders mounted on the roof to remove the sponsons for transport, and these are included in great detail, which is what the chain is used for. Styrene hooks, the geared wheels on the ends of the jib, and the attachment bolts are all provided, and these attach to the same holes used on the female boxing for the anti-grenade net. Because of the vehicle's width, the sponsons were removed for travel, and could be carried behind the tank on a four-wheeled trailer. This is happily included in the box, and has the framework chassis, load-bed, and steering axle included, plus a quartet of wide steel wheels that have a poly-cap buried between their halves. A pair of open topped stowage boxes fit over the front axle, with the towing frame, and three PE brackets are added to the flat-bed. The first thing that springs to mind when considering this format is that although the sponsons are well detailed within, the main hull is devoid of any interior, so this would make the project a much more involved affair until you think that canvas covers would most likely be hung over the apertures to keep the weather and snooping eyes out of the tank interior. This would probably also ring true for the sponson backs, so some tarp replicas will solve the problem quite easily. If you prefer to mount the sponsons on the tank, they simply glue in place on the sides of the hull, and should stay put while setting up with the application of a few pieces of tape. Female Specific Parts The Female sponsons contain two "turrets" with armoured Vickers machine guns per side, allowing almost a full spread of fire, with only the direct front and rear lacking cover. Each one has a two-part shield with brackets converging at the centre, through which a two-part Vickers with armoured cooling jacket project. The brackets attach to the base, which incorporates a poly-cap to maintain rotation after assembly, and a strengthening hoop fits at the rear over the gunner's head. Two of these assemblies are placed on each sponson floor, and the walls are built up around them, with a narrow slit allowing for traverse, while extra armour between each turret prevents shot incursion within the sponson. The roof is the last part to be added, after which they can be added to the hull. The Mark I and subsequent variants all suffered from flat top decks that attracted grenades, which could possibly breach the armour, so crews often added framework pitched rooves that were covered in mesh to fend off the aforementioned grenades. The framework is all styrene, while the mesh is PE and has diagonal stiffening laths etched in that prevented grenades getting caught up due to their weight. Markings Each boxing includes three markings options, with a wide variety of schemes that might make a few of you scream at the thought of masking. The decal sheets are tiny, and all the markings are white, so there's no worry about registration, while colour density and sharpness are good. There is no note of who printed the sheets, but they look like Cartograf, but don't quote me on that. The colour profiles have been done by Mig's AMMO, and a small picture on one of the pages advertises the fact that his company have created a paint set specifically for WWI British Tanks, which may be worth looking up if you're struggling to find the right colours in your own stocks. From the box you can build one of the following: Male Mk.I "HMLS Sir Archibald", Palestine Gaza Strip, 1917 – all over Khaki Brown. C19 "HMLS Clan Leslie", Battle of the Somme, Autumn 1916 – grey/brown/green/tan camo with black line demarcation. C Company, Somme River, Autumn 1916 - grey/brown/green/tan camo with black line demarcation. Female Mk.I A Company "HMLS We Are All In It", Somme River, Autumn 1916 - grey/brown/green/tan/black camo. Somme River, Somme, Autumn 1916 - grey/brown/green/tan/pink camo. Somme River, Autumn, 1916 - grey/brown/green camo. An addition page on the Male guide shows the correct colours for the trailer for the sponsons. Conclusion Apart from a full interior, there's not much more you could want from these early tanks, and speaking as a fan of WWI armour, it's great to see the first active tank being kitted in such detail. The only problem is, which one to get? The answer there is both of them of course! Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

Russian GAZ-66 With ZU-23-2 Trumpeter 1:35 History The GAZ-66 light utility truck entered production in 1964 at the Gorky Automobile Plant, where it replaced the earlier GAZ-63 on the lines. Originally produced for both civilian and military use, the military versions gradually became paramount. The overall design follows the usual Soviet guidelines of relative simplicity, strength and versatility. There are no design frills on the GAZ-66 as it is an orthodox forward control design capable of being produced in, or modified into, many different versions. This truck had been produced for 35 years. It's production ceased in 1999. Nearly 1 million of these trucks were built. The GAZ-66 is still used by the Russian Army, many ex-Warsaw Pact armed forces and wherever Soviet influence has spread. Many are used throughout the Middle East and nations in Africa. The GAZ-66 was simple in design and technology. Also it was easy to maintain. The basic cargo/utility model has an all-steel cargo body with an optional canvas cover over bows mounted on a chassis frame that can be arranged to carry any number of body styles. Cab is mounted over the engine and provides seating for the driver and one passenger. Standard equipment of the GAZ-66 includes a powerful cab heater and an engine pre-heater but these are omitted on models intended for tropical use. The GAZ-66 is powered by a 4.2ltr V8 petrol engine developing 115 hp. The truck has a full-time all-wheel drive and made a name for itself as a superb cross-country vehicle. Models produced from 1968 onwards, the GAZ-66A, have a central tyre pressure system and may feature a soft-top cab. Different variants have been produced specifically designed so that, over the range of vehicles, they can operate in climatic conditions ranging from -50°C to +50°C. There are numerous sub-variants of the GAZ-66, with or without winches, and with many equipped for special roles such as a twin 23mm AA gun carrier, the subject of this kit. A follow-on GAZ-3308 Sadko was developed as a replacement, however Russian Army preferred the KRAZ-4350, which offers more payload. However the GAZ-66 remains in widespread use and full replacement may take some time. The Model The kit comes in a sturdy top opening box with a artistic impression of the vehicle with the twin 23mm gun in use in a rather desolate landscape. Opening the box reveals ten sprues in various sizes in a nice light grey styrene, three sprues of green styrene, one sprue of clear styrene, three small photo etched brass sheets, two brass tubes, seven vinyl tyres and a small decal sheet. The mouldings for all the parts are superb, with no sign of flash or other imperfections and very few moulding pips. As with most truck kits there are a lot of parts that will probably never be seen, particularly the nicely detailed chassis, suspension and engine, but in my view it’s better to have them than not. There also lots of very thin parts such as the guns mountings rails across the top of the breech sections, so care will need to be taken when handling these parts. The build begins with the several sub-assemblies, beginning with the superbly detailed V8 engine. The engine block is provided in two halves, which, once joined together, are fitted with the sump and intake manifold. Each of the exhaust manifolds are provided in two pieces, these are fitted to the upper sides of the engine block, with the two cylinder heads fitted above them. The crank case and two piece starter motor are then attached to the rear end of the block, whilst the ancillary drive plate is fitted to the front. The two piece alternator is fitted to the right hand front with the water pump fitted to the front. On the top of the engine the six piece throttle body, three piece oil filter and single piece distributer are attached. The inner drive belt is fitted along its idler and tensioner wheels, followed by the outer drive belt and its idler and tensioner wheels and completed with the fitting of the cooling fan. The last part of the engine is the air filter, and this is made up from six parts before being fitted to the top of the engine. The next sub-assembly is for the pedal box, which consists of two halves, between which the brake and clutch pedals and a spacer bar are sandwiched. Each of the pedals are then fitted with their respective pads. Support bracket and box structures are then attached to the top of the box, followed by the steering column and steering wheel. The centre console of the cab is the fitted with the lid of the large storage box, whilst the two seats, each made up form three parts are also assembled. Each of the cab doors are also assembled, each with from the outer skin, clear part, door card and associated handles. The centre console is attached to the single piece floor moulding along with the accelerator pedal and seats. On the outside of the cab, just behind the rear of the centre console a selection of five levers which make up the oil tank pump controls are fitted. The instrument binnacle is fitted out with the various instrument decals, gear stick and the co-drivers grab handle before being fitted to the raised section of the floor moulding in front of the centre console. The single piece cab is then fitted with the two door assemblies, two windscreens, two rear screens, two quarter screens, a vent cover and the grille. The cab and floor assembly are then attached before the roof is fitted, followed by the headlights, with their clear lenses and side lights. To finish off the cab, two, two piece frames for attaching to the chassis later on, are attached to the underside, followed by the windscreen wipers, mud flaps, spotlight and two, three piece door mirrors. The completed cab is then put to one side to dry properly. Moving on to the running gear and each of the five tyres are fitted with their two piece rims, with the driving wheels also fitted with centrally mounted caps. The spare wheel frame is now assembled with the two frame rails joined together by seven crosspieces and two wheel supports and trough. The frame also carries the three piece electrical box for the gun mounting and a two piece tool box, oh and the spare wheel, or course. The next sub-assembly is that of the winch unit. This is made up from the drum, to which a universal joint if fitted, this attaches to the four piece gearbox and three piece support frame. The front and rear differentials are assembled next, each from two halves, and fitted with the over and under spring clamps. There are two large air accumulators, and each of these are made up of two halves, to which a two piece valve is fitted as well as the support frame. The truck bed is assembled next, with the single piece bed fitted with eight cross beams on the underside. The rearmost pair are fitted with the rear light clusters and mud flaps respectively. The bed sides come complete with the upper rails. These rail need to be removed, before the sides are attached to the bed itself. The front and rear panels are fitted with the numerous hooks for the tilt ropes to tie onto. The rear, opening panel is also fitted with the hooks, along with the foot rests and grab handles, before being attached to the bed, along with the two wheel arch covers. Usually assembled at the beginning of most truck kits the chassis construction finally takes place. Each of the chassis rails are fitted out with the air accumulators, cab suspension springs, suspension mounts, and two, two piece oil tanks. They are then joined together by five cross members, with the front capped off by the winch assembly and the rear capped off by the hook mounting strut and its associated braces. The engine assembly is mounted to the front cross members, followed by front bumper along with its PE brackets, a PE footplate and a PE tow eye. There is a small power take off box fitted to the rear of the engine which will eventually connect to the electrical unit on the spare wheel frame. On the underside of the chassis, the four leaf spring units are attached along with their respective clamps. The exhaust pipe is then attached to the exhaust manifolds of the engine and clamped to the right hand rail about half way down the chassis. The front differential is fitted with the two, five piece hubs and ball joints, along with the steering rack. The two differentials are then glued into position along with the three piece transfer box and joined together by the three drive shafts, each with separate universal joints. The radiator housing is made up from the housing, radiators rear mesh, front mesh, and top cap, along with the intercooler and two support struts. The assembly is then fitted to the chassis in front of the engine. On the upperside of the chassis, several support frames are attached, along with the rear PE bumpers, which need to be carefully bent to shape using the jig provided, as well as the four shock absorbers, and anti roll links. Each of the two petrol tanks is made up form top and bottom halves, two piece filler caps and their respective pipes. These are then fitted to the support frames fitted earlier. Two small tow hooks are fitted to the rear chassis cross member via two PE plates. The truck really starts to come together now, with the fitting of the four wheels, truck bed, spare wheel rack and finally the cab assembly. There you have it, one complete GAZ 66 model. But that’s not where this build ends, oh no, there’s still the twin 23mm gun mount. Each of the guns are made up from eight styrene parts and two turned brass tubes that are fitted to the muzzles. The gun frame is is assembled from seven parts, to which the guns are then attached and further detailed with an extra eight parts. The large trunnion wheels are then assembled, each from four parts, the centres of which can be left unglued if the modeller wishes to change their elevation every now and then. The trunnion mounts are fitted to the mountings floor plate and the gun assembly fitted between them. The complex sight/control block is made up from no less than twenty three parts, so be patient as you could easily miss a part or two out. The gunners seats, each made from five parts, and the two seven piece ammunition boxes are fitted to the mounting, followed by the sight/control block and rear gun plate. The mounting is finished off with the fitting of the foot controls, manual rotation wheel, guard rails, and wheel arches, complete with lights. The gun base is then made up from upper and lower halves, before being fitted with the fixed part of the axle arms, adjustable ground plates, movable axle arms, wheel hubs, wheels and towing hitch. The gun mounting is then fitted to the base unit before the whole assembly is placed onto the truck bed. The model only comes in one colour scheme; that of overall light green with a black chassis. Decals are provided for four different number plates and a few placards for the gun mounting and the instrument cluster for the cab. Conclusion I’ve always had a soft spot for the Gaz 66, ever since, as a teenager, I used to do wargaming with 1:300 scale metal vehicles. This is a lovely, well detailed kit of this vehicle and the addition of the big twin 23mm gun mounting makes it even more interesting as it seems to have been a common addition to quite a few battlefields. If you want, there are parts included in the kit which will allow the modeller to produce a vehicle with a standard truck bed, complete with tilt rails, (but no tilt, although this can easily be scratch built), thus leaving the gun as a separate entity for use in a diorama? Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

Camouflage Netting (Green or Tan) Pegasus Hobbies Armour modellers occasionally need a source of camouflage netting that looks good enough in scale to pass for the real thing. There are a number of DIY techniques, but they can be time-consuming, especially for the novice. These packs from Pegasus give you the basics that you need to begin, and they have been pre-dyed in either green or tan to take away one of the most messy stages of the task. Each pack comes with approximately 30cm x 40cm of the cloth, folded up to the size of the bag, and they have differing texture to the threads. The tan pack is more or less an evenly-spaced mesh, while the green is more uneven, giving a tiger-stripe look. Both are quite transparent when used in a single layer, but this increases with layering, as you will hopefully be able to tell from the pictures. They could be used with 1:48 and above, but at smaller scales the threads may start to look overscale. You can add your own embellishments in the shape of tie-on squares or glued on mixed herbs for additional texture, and the colour can be varied further by airbrushing additional colour onto it. Conclusion A good starting point for any camouflage netting if you're looking to add some to the stowage of a vehicle or diorama. Watch out for stray fibres though! Recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

Russian Su-33 Flanker D 1:72 Trumpeter Instantly recognisable to enthusiasts of Cold War or modern jet aircraft, the Su-27 Flanker has formed the backbone of the Soviet Union/Russian Air Force's air superiority fighter force for much of the last thirty years. The design marked a departure from previous Soviet aircraft, with its podded engines, large wing and sophisticated avionics (it was the first fly-by-wire aircraft to enter service in the Soviet Union). Emerging in prototype form as the T-10 in 1977, the design showed great promise, and before long it had beaten the time-to-height records set by the modified Streak Eagle in 1975. Although originally designed as a long-range air superiority fighter, like many of its contemporaries the Su-27 has been developed to take on a variety of roles, including air-to-surface missions. The multirole Sukhoi Su-33 Flanker D is the navalised variant of the successful all-weather interceptor. Around 35 examples of the type have been constructed for Russian Naval Aviation, all of which operate from the Aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznestov. The Su-33 differs from the Su-27 in a number of respects. Most noticeable are the canards, situated forward of the wing to provide additional lift and manoeuvrability. The Su-33 also features larger wings with a powered folding mechanism, folding horizontal stabilisers, in-flight refuelling capability and the ability to carry a range of air-to-surface weapons. Despite the relatively small number of aircraft produced, this is the latest in a steady trickle of kits of the Su-33 to emerge. Things got off to a less-than-promising start, with the old and not very accurate Italeri Su-27 Sea Flanker (re-boxed by Zvezda). A few years ago Hasegawa gave us a much more sophisticated kit which, while still not perfect, was very good indeed. Now Trumpeter have released an all-new kit along with a typically generous selection of ordnance. Inside the large top-opening box are 230 parts spread across fifteen sprues of grey plastic and a single clear sprue. In typical Trumpeter style, the plastic parts are exquisitely moulded, with engraved panel lines, rivet and fastener detail. Also in the box is a small fret of photo etched parts, two decal sheets (one for markings and one for stencils) and a colour painting diagram as well as instructions. In common with other Trumpeter kits, the parts are extremely well packed and all of the sprues are individually bagged. Certain parts, such as the clear sprue are wrapped in foam for extra protection. Trumpeter seem to be in something of a purple patch with their recent 1:72 releases, and happily this kit continues that run of good form. The overall shape and arrangement of parts appears to match photographs and plans of the real thing very well. The canopy has the correct profile, which means a seam down the middle, but this is a five minute job to clean up with the right tools. Trumpeter have even included the option to build the model with the wings and horizontal tails folded, which is very pleasing to see and exactly how I will finish mine. Construction begins with the cockpit. This is made up of five parts, including a crisply moulded K36 ejection seat, which slots into a cockpit tub adorned with convincing moulded details (although decals re also provided). Once completed, the whole sub-assembly fits inside the fuselage halves. As with most kits of blended-wing aircraft, the fuselage is split vertically with the inner section of wing moulded in place. The outer sections of the wings are moulded separately so that the model can be built with the wings folded. Some modellers will find this a pain as it creates an extra joint to deal with, but I'm made up that Trumpeter included this option because it wasn't possible to finish the Hasegawa kit like this without major surgery. Do note, however, that you must drill a number of holes in order to fit the appropriate pylons to the outer wing sections before your cement the parts together. There are different parts to use for each option, as the outer flaps are dropped when the wings are folded. The same applies to the horizontal tail surfaces, with different versions provided for folded and unfolded options. The engine air intakes are next. These are slide moulded, which makes construction relatively pain free. Engine turbine faces are included, which will prevent the dreaded see-through effect, and parts such as the auxiliary air intake louvers are moulded separately in order to maximise the level of detail. The Su-33's rugged landing gear is next. Each main gear leg is moulded as a single part, which should translate into a degree of structural strength, while the more complex nose gear leg is made up of seven parts. In both cases the wheels are moulded separately. While the model is on its back, you have to add the Su-33's beefy tail hook a nicely detailed part is made up of four parts. The pylons have to be added at this stage too, so make sure you drill out the appropriate holes at the start of the build, or this is the point at which you'll really regret it. The canopy is nicely realised and, as mentioned above, accurate in profile. Because of the shape of the canopy and the way it has had to be moulded, there is a little distortion around the sides, but by way of compensation it can be finished in either open or closed positions. In typical Trumpeter style, a very extensive range of ordnance is included. Of course there is so much that you can't possibly use it all, but who doesn't like spare ordnance? All told, you get: 4 x KH-31 Krypton air-to-surface missiles; 4 x KH-35 Zvezda anti-ship missiles; 4 x KH-59M Ovod cruise missiles; 2 x B-8M rocket pods; 1 x APK-9 data link pod (for use with the KH-59 missiles); 2 x R-77 active radar homing air-to-air missiles; 4 x R-27ET extended range infrared homing air-to-air missiles; 4 x R-27ER extended range semi-active radar homing air-to-air missiles; 2 x R-73 infrared homing air-to-air missiles; A choice of two schemes is provided on the decal sheet - Su-33 Flanker D 'Red 67' and Su-33 Flanker D 'Red 80', both of the Russian Navy. The decal sheets are nicely printed and you get a full set of stencils too, which is a bonus. Conclusion Trumpeter are definitely on a role with their 1:72 aircraft, having given us fans of Soviet/Russian aircraft a hat-trick of very decent kits in the shape of the MiG-29, Su-24 and now the Su-33. This is a very decent representation of an interesting variant of an important aircraft. The basic shape of the aircraft looks to be about spot on and, with the option to fold the wings, it has much to recommend it, even when compared to the Hasegawa kit. No doubt this kit will find its way into the collection of a great many modellers, and justifiably so. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

Tupolev G-5 MTB Merit International 1:35 The G-5 was a Soviet motor torpedo boat built before and during World War II. Approximately 300 were built, of which 73 were lost during the war. Four were exported to the Spanish Republican Navy during the Spanish Civil War and others were transferred to North Korea after the war. Three were captured by the Finns, but only two were used before all three had to be returned to the Soviets after the Moscow Armistice in 1944. The class was an improved and enlarged version of the Sh-4-class motor torpedo boats which were derived from a design by Andrei Tupolev, the noted aircraft designer. It was intended to use Soviet-built engines and carry larger torpedoes than its predecessor. A prototype was designed and built by TsAGI the Central Aero-hydrodynamic Institute) in 1932–33. As its intended engines were not yet available two 1,000 bhp (750 kW) Isotta-Fraschini engines were imported from Italy. Unarmed, and with a partial fuel load, it achieved a maximum speed of 63.5 knots (73.1 mph; 117.6 km/h) during its trials in the Black Sea during 1933 and the decision was made to place it into production. The G-5 used a single-step, hydroplaning design with a whaleback upper hull. It was mainly built from duralumin which saved a significant amount of weight, but greatly complicated its use in service because of duralumin's susceptibility to galvanic corrosion in salt water. One captured Soviet torpedo boat commander said that G-5s could only be kept in the water for 5–7 days during the summer and 10–15 days during the winter before it had to be removed from the water and treated with anti-corrosion measures. The hull was divided into three compartments by two transverse bulkheads. The superstructure was very small to reduce top-heaviness, and crewmembers could not stand up inside it. Designed to use a version of the Mikulin AM-34 aircraft engine adapted for maritime use as the GAM-34. The two engines were fitted in the forward compartment of the hull. Each engine had its own transmission and drove a bronze propeller .67 m (2 ft 2 in) in diameter. The initial version of the GAM-34 was less powerful than planned at only 675 bhp (503 kW) and the initial Series 7 boats could only reach 45 knots (52 mph; 83 km/h). However the minimum speed was 18 knots (21 mph; 33 km/h) which caused a great deal of trouble when trying to moor and when manoeuvring in close proximity. The two torpedoes were carried in troughs set into the rear deck in a manner derived from that used by the British WW I-era coastal motor boats captured by the Soviets during Russian Civil War. The torpedoes were pushed off the stern by an arbor with a bell-shaped head that was activated by an explosive charge, but the torpedo motor was not activated until a wire trailing from the boat snapped, giving the boat time to turn away from the target. This launching system was very light, but it required additional training to properly aim the torpedo and prior coordination when making massed torpedo attacks to prevent the boats from ramming each other or the torpedoes. The gun armament initially consisted of a single 7.62 mm (0.300 in) machine gun, but this was upgraded to a 12.7 mm (0.50 in) DShK machine gun in later models. Some later boats carried two DShKs although the mounts varied; some were placed in a tub in the forecastle, but others carried theirs in a rotating turret behind the superstructure, above the torpedoes. Some boats carried 82 mm (3.2 in) ROFS-82 or 132 mm (5.2 in) ROFS-132 rocket launchers in fixed mounts above and behind the wheelhouse. The Model When this kit was first announced it was met with a fair bit of surprise, be it a very welcome one. The kit comes in quite a small box for the scale, as it’s not a very big craft, especially when compared with the similarly scaled Vosper and US PT boats released by Italeri. What there is though is beautifully moulded, with some very fine detail on the hull and small superstructure. On opening the box the modeller is confronted with six sprues of grey styrene, the two part hull, the moulds of which must have taken some machining to get all the well rendered curves reproduced, a single piece bridge structure, a sprue of clear styrene, a small sheet of etched brass and a smallish decal sheet. The biggest disappointment is the complete lack of internal detail, which seems to be coming a bit of a trademark for Merit. It’s like they get bored of a subject and just release as is, without any further thought on what the modeller might like to see in a kit. This does give the scratch builders and aftermarket companies something to do, but it would have been nice to have some included. Construction begins with the fitting of a small cross member just aft of the bridge opening on the inside of the upper hull, and the opening up of three holes on the upper deck. The upper and lower hulls are then joined together before being turned upside down for the two propeller shafts, which are moulded complete with their support bearings, and the two propellers. The hull is turned right side up and the two rudders, with their separate steering wire attachments fitted. Each of the three rear mounted torpedo rails are made up of two parts. These are then fitted to the centre and sides of the torpedo troughs. The transom mounted support braces are then attached, followed by to access hatches and the torpedo support cradles. The engine compartment hatch, front machine gun tub ring and forward access hatch are all glued into place, whilst along each side there are two hull strakes fitted. The various vents, hatches are attached to the sides, with the engine room clear skylights and hatch handles being fitted to the deck. The deck is also fitted with the various cleats, bollards, handrails, and boat hooks. Staying with the deck fittings, the ventilators, jack staff, torpedo trough fittings, ensign staff and the two fuel tank racks are glued into place. The three fuel tanks are each made up of upper and lower halves, which, when assembled are fitted to the racks fitted earlier. The tanks are then fitted with the eight sections of pipe work, six of which lead to the inside of the deck via the torpedo recess. Each of the long exhausts are then assembled from fourteen parts and attached to each side of the deck. At this point, we finally get to build the primary weapons of the boat, the two torpedoes. Each of them is made up from upper and lower halves, four part contra-rotating propellers, (the propellers blades being etched brass). The propellers are sandwiched between the two halves of the body, with the separate upper and lower propeller guards being attached. Each of the two DShK heavy machine guns are assembled, each made from a single piece barrel/breech, to which the rear mounted firing handle is attached, along with two fittings for the mount. The triangular mount is then fitted, along with the counterweight and three piece ammunition tank. The large searchlight is then assembled, with the mounting cradle made up from four parts and the searchlight from another three. The bridge structure is then fitted out with the five windows and top mounted screen, followed by the torpedo sighting plate, various vents, navigation lights and four hand rails. The torpedo sight is then fitted to its plate, followed by the searchlight, four piece mast, and the rear mounted gun tub, made from four parts, to which a previously assembled DShK is fitted. The forward gun tub is made from five parts and fitted with the remaining DShK. To complete the model the torpedoes, bridge and forward gun tub assembly are all fitted and the model displayed on the five piece stand, which comes complete with nameplate. Decals The smallish decal sheet contains a pair of Soviet Naval Ensigns, one straight, the other slightly wavy. The rest of the sheet contains three of each number 1 – 9 and ten zeros, to make up any numbers the modeller wishes. Although the boxart shows the two boats without numbers, it will require some research to determine what numbers were used. Conclusion This is a great looking kit, and from the build progressing on Britmodeller as I type, it looks like it goes together well. As mentioned above, you will have to add some interior as there are a few areas that make the whole boat see through. Fortunately there are some photos available that will help with this. All in all though, this will make into a very interesting and unusual model. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

M-ATV MRAP Trumpeter 1:16 History In the summer of 2008, the U.S. Department of Defence (DoD) began to examine the possibility of developing and procuring a lighter-weight, all-terrain capable MRAP variant to address the poor roads and extreme terrain of Afghanistan. Source selection activity considered responses from more than 20 companies to a Request for Information (RfI)/Market Survey dated 21 August 2008 and in mid-November 2008 the U.S. government issued a pre-solicitation for an M-ATV. In early December 2008 the M-ATV formal Request for Proposals (RFP) was issued. The original M-ATV program requirement was for between 372 and 10,000 vehicles, with the most probable production quantity stated as 2,080. In March 2009, it became known that two each of six different vehicle types (from five manufacturers) had been delivered to the U.S. Army for two months of evaluation, at the conclusion of which up to five ID/IQ (Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity) contracts would be awarded. In addition to Oshkosh's proposal, BAE Systems submitted two proposals, these being a Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) derived design and an FMTV-based Caiman derivative. Force Dynamics (a Force Protection/General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) joint venture) offered Cheetah, GDLS-C (Canada) offered an RG-31 MRAP derivative, and Navistar offered an MXT-based solution. After GDLS-C's RG-31 was eliminated from the competition in May 2009, it was announced that the five remaining bidders had been awarded ID/IQ contracts, and were each to deliver three production-ready test vehicles for the next stage of the competition. At the completion of testing, the U.S. DoD stated that it planned to select a single M-ATV producer but could, at its discretion, place production orders with multiple producers as it had done with the initial MRAP procurement. On 30 June 2009, the M-ATV contract award was announced with a single ID/IQ contract award to Oshkosh. Brigadier General Michael Brogan, United States Marine Corps program officer for MRAP, stated that the Oshkosh M-ATV was chosen because it had the best survivability and Oshkosh had the best technical and manufacturing capabilities of all the competitors. The Oshkosh bid was also the second cheapest. The initial M-ATV delivery order was valued at over $1 billion and included 2,244 M-ATVs. The overall M-ATV requirement had increased in early June from 2,080 to 5,244 M-ATVs, these split 2,598 (Army), 1,565 (Marines), 643 (U.S. Special Operations Command), 280 (Air Force), 65 (Navy), and 93 for testing. In July 2009, the first 46 M-ATVs were delivered, and in November the 1,000th M-ATV was handed over. Oshkosh reached its contractual obligation to produce 1,000 M-ATVs per month ahead of schedule in December 2009, and by using its existing manufacturing facilities in Oshkosh, WI (50%), and making use of its recession-hit JLG telescopic handler facility in McConnellsburg, PA (50%). The first vehicles arrived in Afghanistan in October 2009 and were to be all delivered by March 2010. In total 8,722 M-ATVs were delivered to the U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Air Force, and U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) for use in Afghanistan. M-ATVs were delivered in two main variants. The base model is designated M1240 with the Objective Gunner Protection Kit [OGPK] manned turret); it is designated M1240A1 when fitted with the Under-body Improvement Kit (UIK). The second main variant is designated M1277 and is fitted with M153 CROWS remote-controlled weapon station (RCWS). Produced in smaller numbers, the SOCOM-specific variant is designated M1245; M1245A1 with UIK fitted. As part of the overall divestiture of the wartime MRAP fleet, the U.S. Government will keep about 80% (around 7,000) of the M-ATV fleet, 5,651 of these (inc. 250 for SOCOM) to be retained by the Army. Work is currently underway at Oshkosh's Wisconsin facility and the Red River Army Depot to reset the around 7,000 M-ATVs retained to a common build standard. Oshkosh was awarded an initial 500-vehicle M-ATV Reset contract in August 2014. Three additional contract options for 100 vehicles each were awarded in December 2014. Total contract value is in excess of US$77 million. Deliveries are under way and will continue through September 2015. Reset work centres on returning vehicles to Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) 22 standard: essentially the build standard for the final M-ATV production batch. LRIP 22 includes upgrades such as the UIK and enhanced Automatic Fire Extinguishing System (AFES). Reset work also adds Engineering Change Proposals (ECPs) that include acoustic signature reduction (muffler), Modular Ammunition Restraint System (MARS) ammunition storage, and some Government Furnished Equipment (GFE) relocation. On 28 May 2015, Oshkosh announced the U.S. Army had awarded it a contract modification for the reset of 360 additional M-ATVs. The modification includes options for the reset of up to 1,440 additional M-ATVs. Deliveries for this latest modification are to start is October 2015. Oshkosh is on contract to reset a combined 1,160 M-ATVs with a total value of over $115 million. The Model The first thing you will notice about this kit is that it comes in a very big box with an artists impression of the vehicle on the front. Originally released as a ready built model by Merit International, sister company Trumpeter have now released it as a kit. On lifting the lid of the box off, you are confronted with a sea of plastic and a second box which contains both the larger single piece items and the small parts, to keep them safe. In total there are ten sprues of grey styrene, two of clear styrene, eight separate parts, also in grey styrene, one small sheet of etched brass, four metal springs, eight metal shafts, one metal link shaft, twenty three screws of various sizes/types, five large vinyl tyres, each three inches in diameter, and a smallish decal sheet. The moulding of all the parts is superb, particularly on the large separate parts that make up the chassis and body parts, with crisp details, such as bolt heads. There is no sign of flash or other imperfections, such as sink marks on even the largest parts. Although it appears to be quite a small vehicle, the completed model measures out at 386.3mm long and 159mm wide so will take up quite a lot of display space. Construction begins with the with the wheels with the four central hubs being fitted with two inner hub parts before having the large vinyl tyres slipped over them. The inner hubs and brake accumulators are then attached. The wheels are then put aside whilst construction concentrates on the chassis. The large single piece chassis is fitted with the four suspension mounts, each pair fitted with two piece differentials which include the drive shafts for each wheel. Each suspension mount is then fitted with upper and lower wishbones and ball joint. Between the two wishbones a metal sprint is fitted, before the whole assembly is fitted to the mount, followed by the shock absorber and wheel assembly. The steering rack is then attached to the front axle and the large transfer box is fitted on the centreline, attached to the rear cross-member and the drive shaft fitted between the transfer box and rear differential. The front bumper is fitted with two uprights and attached to the front of the chassis. On the underside of the bumper there is a large crossbeam which is attached via two brackets. Whilst on the underside, the two scuff plates are fitted over the front and rear differentials. The build moves onto the cab, with the firewall being fitted with the two foot pedals, followed by the instrument binnacle, to which the instrument panel is attached and detailed with the appropriate decals. The steering column is added next, followed by the navigation screen which has a map represented by a decal, on view. The cab floor is fitted by the two racks that make up the centre console between the seats. The three passenger seats are each made up of a squab and backrest, whilst the drivers seat is mostly moulded in one piece, with just the base frame and headrest to be fitted. With the seats in place the front bulkhead/instrument panel is fitted, along with the door frame uprights and metal steering link shaft and put to one side. The next major component to be assembled is the CROWS II gunners/commander cupola. The upper, armoured section of which is moulded in one piece, to which the lower section, which has been fitted with the access hatch, is added, along with the clear parts that represent the armoured glass. The 50cal heavy machine gun is a super bit of moulding and only requires the fitting of the pintle mount, two piece ammunition box, breech to plate and shield attachment fitted before it can be added to the cupola. The splinter shield is then fitted with the two armoured glass parts before being fitted to its mount on the machine gun pintle. The instructions now tell you to add the cupola to the single piece main body section, but it may be possible to leave this off till you’ve finished painting, although it does require a fixing ring to be fitted from the inside. The armoured windscreen parts are then fitted from the inside to the body section, along with the PE grille screen, and three boxes associated with the cupola rotation. The cab assembly is then fitted from underneath the body, along with the inner wings and the door hinges fitted to the door posts. Each of the four doors are fitted with their associated armoured glass parts, door cards and hinges. Each of the doors can then be hung on the opposite hinges allowing them to be opening if so desired. The front doors are then fitted with large wing mirrors. The main cab/body section is then fitted to the chassis assembly, along with the large single piece under chassis angled plate. The next stage is the fitting of the rear mud flaps and large equipment frame/truck bed. The upper beams of the frame are closed off with a single part that covers the three sides, whilst the storage lockers are fitted to the single piece wheel are section. The upper frame is then attached and is fitted with the three aerial bases. The assembly is then attached to the rear of the chassis and fitted with mudflaps, radio box with another aerial base, grab handle and reflectors. The three piece towing hitch is then attached, as is the spare wheel mounting frame, and step frame. The large exhaust is also fitted, along the right hand side of the vehicle. The thick DUKE aerial is fitted to the right hand side rear wheel arch, whilst to the rear the spare wheel, with two part hub is attached to its mounting frame. At the front the two piece headlights are attached, along with the two reflectors. Finishing off the build the modeller just needs to fit the roof mounted floodlights over the drivers and co-drivers positions, rear door mounted floodlights, two more aerial bases, one on each side of the scuttle, with the right hand one fitted with a two piece flat plate aerial. There is a two piece camera unit fitted on the centreline of the scuttle, between the two windscreens, whilst at the front the flag shaped anti-IED device is fitted to the mounting plate on the bumper. Finally the two three piece access steps are added to each side. Decals There is only one colour scheme provided, that of overall sandy brown. Most of the decals provided on the sheet are for the various instruments and placards inside the vehicle, with just the vehicle ID numbers on the front, rear and sides and a couple of caution/tie down markings on the sides. Only one vehicles ID marks are provided. Conclusion Having seen the built model at Telford in November, I wasn’t sure what to expect from this kit. But from what I’ve seen in the box I really like it and it actually screams, BUILD ME, so it could end up jumping to the top of my build pile. Although quite large, the model doesn’t seem overly complicated, but with enough detail provided to make an out of the box build worthwhile. For those who wish to go the extra mile there is plenty of scope to add further details, such as maps, bottles, ration packs, personal kit and weapons. It’s certainly a good size to display, either at home or at a show. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

USS Enterprise, CV-6 Merit International 1:350 Enterprise sailed off the South American for her shakedown cruise and operated off of the east coast of the United States and the Caribbean Sea until Apr 1939. Transferred to the Pacific, she trained navy pilots on carrier operations. When Pearl Harbor was struck by the Japanese in Dec 1941, she was en route from Wake, thus escaping potential damage or destruction. Her aircraft scouted the area for retreating Japanese vessels but failed in the search attempt. They did, however, find and sink submarine I-70 on 10 Dec 1941. In late Dec 1941, she sailed for Wake to assist the defending the garrison, but it was already too late to make a difference. Beginning in Jan 1942, she began operating in the South and Central Pacific. On 1 Feb 1942, her task force struck the Marshall Islands, dealing significant damage, although the Enterprise received minor damage herself. During Feb and Mar, she continued to supply the aircraft that attacked various Japanese bases in the Central Pacific. She returned to Pearl Harbor in late Mar 1942 and received repairs. In Apr, she provided air cover for the USS Hornet to launch the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo and other Japanese cities. In early May, Enterprise sailed south in anticipation of what would become the Battle of Coral Sea, but she arrived too late to participate in the action. She returned to Pearl Harbor on 26 May, and immediately began to prepare for another anticipated action somewhere off of the Hawaiian Islands. On 28 May, she set sail from Pearl Harbor as the flagship of Rear Admiral Raymond Spruance "to hold Midway and inflict maximum damage on the enemy by strong attrition tactics." On 4 Jun 1942, a combination of luck and skill on the part of pilots from three American carriers led to the discovery and sinking of four Japanese fleet carriers. Enterprise's pilots were given credit for the sinking of Soryu and Akagi. She returned to Pearl Harbor undamaged on 13 Jun. On 15 Jul 1942, Enterprise sailed for the South Pacific. As a part of Task Force 61, her aircraft support the landings on the Solomons Islands on 8 Aug. On 24 Aug, she participated in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons. With Enterprise's aircraft lured to a sideshow by light carrier Ryujo, aircraft from Shokaku and Zuikaku passed the anti-aircraft curtain laid down by North Carolina and other ships and attacked Enterprise. One of the three bombs that hit Enterprise passed through several decks aft and exploded deep in the carrier and caused serious fires and casualties. However, effective damage control kept her from being disabled. She was able to restore use of the flight deck briefly while the Japanese aircraft returned for fuel. Enterprise managed to transfer the majority of her aircraft to Henderson Field at Guadalcanal before limping away to the southeast to fight another day. During this confrontation, Enterprise's aircraft also disabled the Japanese seaplane carrier Chitose, though she would be saved. After down time between 10 Sep and 16 Oct, she returned to Task Force 61 in late Oct. On 26 Oct, she engaged in the Battle of Santa Cruz Islands with carrier Hornet. Initially hidden in a squall, Enterprise was hidden from Japanese detection, leading to Hornet bearing the entire weight of the attack by herself. But by 0930 that day, Enterprise's aircraft found the Japanese carrier Shokaku and commenced their own attack. Without adequate fighter cover, Enterprise's dive bombers suffered heavy losses, but did successfully plant several 1,000-lb bombs on Shokaku causing damage so heavy that she was to be placed in repairs for nine months. At 1000, Japanese aircraft found Enterprise, and just like Enterprise's aircraft they mounted an uncoordinated attack on the enemy vessel. Out of the 23 bombs released, only two landed on the Enterprise. The first hit exploded 50 feet under the forecastle deck, and the second crashed into the third deck before exploding. Despite damage, Enterprise was not disabled. The Japanese sank the carrier Hornet and sailed away with a tactical victory. On 30 Oct 1942, Enterprise made port call at Nouméa, New Caledonia for repairs. On 11 Nov, she sailed prematurely for the Solomon Islands again with repair crew still on board due to war demands. She arrived at the First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, in which battle her aircraft helped in the sinking of 16 ships (including helping to sink the battleship Hiei) and damaging 8. She returned to Nouméa on 16 Nov to complete her repairs, and spent most of Dec 1942 and Jan 1943 at Espiritu Santo for training. On 30 Jan 1943, Enterprise's aircraft flew air cover during the Battle of Rennell Island. Between 1 Feb and May 1943, she covered troops and supplies being shipped to the Solomons Islands. On 27 May 1943, she received the first Presidential Unit citation won by an aircraft carrier. On 20 Jul 1943, she made port call at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for an extensive overhaul. Returning to action in Nov 1943, the Enterprise provided air-support during the landing on Makin Island. During the night of 26 Nov, she launched the first carrier night fighters of the United States Navy. She returned for Pearl Harbor after launching an aerial attack on Kwajalein on 4 Dec. Between 29 Jan and 3 Feb 1944, the ships aircraft, as members of Task Force 58, attacked the Marshall Islands and Kwajalein. On 17 Feb, she attacked Truk in the Caroline Islands. Three days later, she launched a strike on Jaluit Atoll. From this point on, she provided air cover and close ground support on nearly every landing operation, large or small, in the Pacific. One of the major engagements she participated during this time was the Battle of the Philippine Sea between 19 and 20 Jun 1944, where she provided air cover for the landings at Saipan. At the end of that battle, 429 Japanese aircraft were shot down at the total cost of 29 American aircraft. Between Oct 10 and 20 1944, Enterprise attacked Taiwan, Okinawa, and the Philippine Islands in preparation of an invasion of the Philippines. During the Battle of Sibuyan Sea, her aircraft played a major role in the sinking of several major Japanese vessels. She returned to Pearl Harbor on 6 Dec 1944 after another month of support in the Philippines area. She returned to the Philippines at the end of the year, performing raids on Japanese shipping as well as providing day- and night-time fighter escort for bombers that headed for the Japanese home islands. During the Battle of Iwo Jima, Enterprise's aircraft provided air cover between 10 Feb and 9 Mar. On 15 Mar, she departed Ulithi for attacks on Kyushu, Honshu, and Japanese shipping but was turned back on 18 Mar after receiving damage from a Japanese bomb. Between 5 Apr and 11 Apr, she supported the Okinawa landings and received damaged from a kamikaze aircraft. She returned to Okinawa once again on 6 May after receiving repairs at Ulithi, but was once again damaged by kamikaze on 14 May 1945. She sailed for repairs at Puget Sound Navy Yard and remained there until the end of the war. After the war, Enterprise participated in Operation Magic Carpet that brought troops back to the United States. While in Britain, she received the British Admiralty Pennant, the only ship outside of the Royal Navy to receive the honour. Enterprise was decommissioned in Feb 1947 and after a bid to save her for use as a museum ship failed, she was sold for scrap to the Lipsett Corporation of New York City. The Model At last, those of us who build maritime models in 1:350 have a kit of the USS Enterprise from WWII. It’s been an awful long time coming, but has the wait been worth it. Well, we shall see. The kit comes in quite a large oblong shaped top opening box, although not as large as one would expect. Inside there are seventeen sprues in a light grey styrene, which is also used to produce the single piece island, central hanger roof section, two hanger floor sections , two flight deck sections and of course the magnificent single piece hull. In addition there are fifteen sprues of clear styrene for the aircraft, five sheets of relief etched brass, a large decal sheet and a large black stand. As we have come to expect from the likes of Merit, the moulding of all the parts is superbly done, and there is only one small area with an imperfection, and that is a small sink mark on the single piece hull, around the area of a sprue gate, as seen in the close-up picture of the bow., Of course there is no flash, but there are quite few moulding pips, mostly on the smaller parts. For those who wish to build this kit as a waterline I’m afraid that you’re out of luck, unless you wish to take a Dremel to the hull. Speaking of which, the hull plates do look a little over done, but it’s nothing a bit of sanding can’t cure. What is nice is that much of the interior of the hanger deck is included, although it’s not overly detailed, so will give those super detailers something to do. Taking the hull in hand, construction begins with the fitting of the four propeller shafts. Each shaft is attached to the hull via two A frames and a propeller. Once the single rudder has been attached the hull can be turned over using the steadying nature of the large base the main hanger deck, along with the separate foredeck, with two holes opened up from the underside, can be glued into place. The foredeck is the scene of the next four steps in the instructions, with the fitting of the four capstans, eight cleats, eight bitts and two hatches. The six flight deck supports are attached, along with the anchor chains, two 20mm cannon and the Jackstaff. Now, although the instructions call for the PE railings to be added to the foredeck at this point, it would probably be best to leave them till later in the build as they would be prone to being knocked off. The two, two piece platforms are assembled and glued into position and fitted with their PE railings. The three inner panels for the foreward lift are fitted. The ships weaponry is built up in a series of sub-assemblies, with the twenty three 20mm Oerlikons made up from the cannon/pedestal, and PE gun shield, the quad 1.1” machine guns are made up from 3 styrene parts and the eight 5” mounts consist of the single gun barrel, breech mechanism, railings and gun captains stand. The foreward superstructure, consisting of three parts is glued to the foredeck, with the port and starboard 5” gun decks attached four of the 5 gun assemblies can be glued in place, along with the quad 1.1” machine gun mount, its platform and two support legs, which is glued right on the prow, just aft of the Jackstaff. The foredeck flight deck supports fitted earlier are now fitted with the flight deck strengthening beams, moulded as a single part, (This area is ripe for the aftermarket companies to reproduce in PE, much like Hasegawa did with their carrier detail sets). The port and starboard bow catwalks are assembled and attached to the crossbeams and the side of the hull, with a PE catwalk folded to shape and fitted to the foreward beam. Much like the foredeck, the quarterdeck area is kitted out with the various deck fittings, capstans, bitts, cleats and hatches, followed by the rear bulkhead, flight deck supports and crossbeams. The rear 5” decks and their guns are glued into position, along with the aft catwalks and stern mounted PE catwalk. The starboard hanger walls are each made up form two halves, providing detail for both the interior and exterior. These are then detailed with various styrene catwalks and PE platforms, whilst the hanger side openings are fitted with their respective shutters. Although the shutters are moulded in the closed position, it wouldn’t take much to either cut a number off the block of shutters, or leave them off altogether and fashion rolled up versions out of spare PE or even paper and scratch build some supports. The port hanger walls/hull side plates are quite a bit different form their opposite halves, but are again detailed using a mix of styrene and PE, and also have the shutter parts in the closed position, (see above for solution). Both hanger walls/hull side assemblies are now glued into position on the hanger deck, along with a boat davit on the port side. Before the flight deck can be attached, the interior of the hanger deck is further detailed with the addition of some trunking and wall sections, whilst on the exterior the numerous inclined ladders of varying lengths are fitted between the various platforms and decks. The four ships boats each consist of the upper and lower hulls, and which once assembled are each glued to their respective six piece cradles, and into position on the ships side decks. Along with the two aft mounted cranes, each made up form three PE parts. The hanger roof structures, consisting of three large individual parts are glued to the hull sides, covering the hanger. The two flight deck sections, the largest of which requires certain holes to be opened up, are glued into place, along with the PE railings on the exposed main deck areas. With the flight deck on, she’s beginning to look like a carrier, but there’s quite a few parts to add before she’ll really look the part. These include the three lifts, the bow anchors, crash barrier, three gun tubs, two director tubs, the eleven piece deck crane, which, apart from the king post, is made up entirely from PE and the three quad 40mm bofors mounts, each consisting of four parts. The rest of the catwalk railing can now be attached, and the ships light AA weaponry fitted into their positions along the catwalks. The degaussing cable run is made up from several lengths of PE, which needs to be carefully fitted around the top of the hull, just beneath the main deck level. The two Mk 37 directors are each assembled from four styrene and seven PE parts, whilst the main CXAM radar array consists of five styrene parts and five PE parts. The foremast is now built up for the main platform onto which the multiple arms of the PE supports are attached to the underside, along with the three support legs, and long vertical ladder. There is a second platform fitted on support legs, and window framework attached to the topside of the first and the mast top, with yardarm, along with the CXAM radar are glued to the top platform. Two more yardarms are attached between the first and second platforms. The single piece island is fitted with the Admirals and control bridge decks, then festooned with styrene platforms, searchlights, and other deck fittings, plus a the associated PE railings The funnel cap is glued into place and fitted with three PE funnel caps and a length of railing that surrounds the entire cap walkway. The two Mk37 directors are fitted, one on the foreward end and one of the aft end of the island structure, these are followed by the foremast assembly and the main mast. The completed island assembly is then glued into position on the starboard side of the flightdeck, completing the build of the ship. But what of the aircraft I hear you ask, well, each of the three types, TBD-1, SBD-3 and F4F-4 each come in multiple parts, the two fuselage halves, separate wings, horizontal tailplanes, cowling, undercarriage and propeller. There are five aircraft of each type, if you want to fill the flightdeck, then Trumpeter already do separate packs of these aircraft. The wings of the F4F-4 and TBD-1 can be posed folded, whereas the wings of the SBD didn’t have the option to fold. Decals The very large decal sheet, which unfortunately was curled up in the review sample as its only just smaller than the box is wide and it got a bit squished, is actually very well printed. There are a full range of markings for the flightdeck, including the lift surrounds and three dotted lines. Two that extend the full length of the deck and the middle one extends aft from the bow to just aft of the middle lift. The large flightdeck id numbers could be used, but these were generally painted out during the war, or at least painted black, whereas these are a very bright white. There are also examples of the Stars and Stripes plus Jacks in wavey or straight forms. Each of the aircraft is provided with a full set of stars, plus individual aircraft codes. The decals look suitably thin, so great care will be need when laying the flightdeck stripes down, they appear in good register and nicely opaque, which will be handy if you use the large deck numbers. Conclusion It’s great that, at last, the maritime modeller can now build all three US carriers used at the Battle of Midway. It has been a long time coming, and they say patience is a virtue, particularly for a modeller. Well that patience has been rewarded with a super looking kit. I’m not a huge fan of clear styrene for use with the aircraft, preferring them to be made from standard coloured material, but I guess I’ll have to live with that, as there’s no other option at the moment. From what I’ve seen during the research for this review, the hull looks to be ok in shape, only the plate detail may be a little on the heavy side, which will be a relief to those that found the Trumpeter Hornet kit a let-down with the hull. I’m sure that once built it will make an excellent addition to any collection. Very highly recommended Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

Gloster Gladiator Mk.1 1:48 Merit Models The Glad was the winning contender for the competition that R J Mitchell's original "Spitfire" design was intended for, and after adding a better engine and enclosing the cockpit it went into service with the interwar RAF, as well as achieving some export success. By the time WWII broke out it was outclassed and starting to show its age, but was initially engaged in front-line service, most famously as the trio defending Malta. Even though it was old technology, it still performed comparatively well, even against more modern all-metal monoplanes, but its days as a fighter were numbered, except as a carrier fighter where it lingered a little longer. The Kit The 1:48 market has had only one kit for a number of years, so when we heard of this new release from Merit we were hopeful of a modern tooling with additional detail, which is in fact what we received. The kit arrives in a small box with three large sprues and two smaller in grey styrene, plus a clear sprue containing just the canopy part and a medium sized decal sheet. Instructions and separate painting guide complete the package, and from these you'll see a distinct familiarity with Trumpeter and Hobby Boss instructions if you haven't already recognised the link. The instructions are little more than two A4 sheets in landscape due to the simplicity of the moulding, which has no fancy features such as separate control surfaces or multi-part canopy, and marks this out as a more simplified product from their stable. Detail is good overall, with some nice moulding on the fuselage and engine cowling, but a few sink marks here and there due to over-thick moulds that might have been better split to avoid this. Construction begins with a ladder framework added to the interior of each fuselage half, and a simple cockpit floor onto which the seat, radio gear and control column are fixed. The instrument panel slips into a slot in the fuselage sides, as does the floor, and you've already closed up the fuselage in step 1! The shape of the fuselage looks to be pretty good overall, although there is a slight taper forward of the cockpit, and an incorrect angle of the canopy rail "sill" that stand out. The tail feathers are all separate, and as already mentioned have moulded in control surfaces, fitting in the familiar slot and tab style. The engine is well-detailed, and builds up beginning with the piston banks with separate reduction gear housing, and at the rear the exhaust part traps a prop-shaft in place so that it can rotate freely. A pair of intake trumpets are added to the front of the engine, and it is then slid into the cowling. The cowling shape is unfortunately wrong, having the correct forward profile, but without the taper of the rear section that is so noticeable from the side. Underneath the exhaust pipes and another small intake are added, after which the keyed rear of the engine is mated to the front of the fuselage. The lower wing seems a little thick and blunt at the leading edge, but has good rib detail and shape from above, however on my review sample there was a degree of shine on the upper surfaces that may well be down to shrinkage in the mould during manufacture, leaving the valleys between the ribs looking a little uneven in depth. The single piece canopy offers no possibility of leaving the cockpit open unless you take your life in your hands and cut the part with a razor saw thereby exposing its thickness, at task that most people probably wouldn't attempt in fairness. Flipping the model over, the landing struts are installed in deep recesses, but they will need a good scrape to remove the prominent moulding seam, and the bands that pass around the skin where the real thing telescopes to absorb bumps might also need re-scribing to complete the rather faint lines already there. The single piece wheels fix to the lower ends of the struts, and have the shallow convex hub covers that were often used, but could do with a swipe of a sanding stick to flatten the bottom a little to reflect the weight of the airframe on the smooth tyres. The wing-mounted Lewis guns and their streamlined fairings fit into recesses in the lower wing, which would make it difficult to leave them off, but as most carried them, it shouldn't affect many people. The prop is a single part, and comes moulded with the spinner cap that was sometimes left off, and will require some scraping to remove the mould seam, plus maybe a little filler to remove the slight sink marks near the base of the two blades, due to the thickness of plastic there. The upper wing is again a single part, although it appears thinner and less blunt to the leading edge than the lower, with the correct zero-dihedral central panel and dihedral outboard of the first bracing struts. The cabane struts and wing bracing struts are supplied with good-sized mating points, which should result in a good join between the wings, but there isn't a wiring diagram for those wishing to rig the aircraft as it should be in the real world. There are plenty of photos of the rigging out there though, so it shouldn't be very difficult to work it out for yourself. Markings There are three options in the box, and as is often the case with kits from this stable, there isn't any information supplied about the aircraft depicted. From the box you can build one of the following: K6130 of 72 Squadron 1937 in overall silver dope with red fin and elevator planes, plus red/blue stripes over the upper wing and down the fuselage sides. This aircraft and pilot were lost when it flew into a hill in cloud in Egypt. K7965 of 73 Squadron 1938 in overall silver dope with stylised blue/yellow diamond on upper wings and fuselage sides. Also lost after an overshoot on landing in Egypt 1942. 2602 Chinese Nationalist Air Force 29th chungtui, 5th tatui 1938 in all-over green with blue/white striped rudder. A decal is included to improve the simple instrument panel, but otherwise decals are limited to national markings, codes and squadron motifs. They are well-printed in good register, but with a few jagged lines evident under magnification. For those averse to masking, the Chinese option has the blue/white stripes provided on the sheet. Please note that the artefacts picked up on the camera are simply differences in the glossiness of the decals, due to the sheet's contact with the protective paper while shipping. The colours aren't actually blotchy to the naked eye. Conclusion The kit has some shape issues that might be tricky to correct without aftermarket, but if you aren't hugely focused on that, it should build up well with the caveats mentioned above. It appears more of a "budget" product than we have come to expect these days, and as such it suffers in comparison to the competition, having no poseable flying surfaces, opening canopy or crew door to show off the interior. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

PLA JL-9 Plateau Eagle Trumpeter 1:48 JianLian-9 (JL-9) is an advance trainer or light attack aircraft designed and manufactured by the Guizhou Aircraft Industry Corporation (GAIC) of China. The aircraft was designed for the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) and the People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force (PLANAF). The JL-9 was designed by modifying the JJ-7 aircraft. The modifications included redesigning the forward fuselage and incorporating a FIAR Grifo S7 pulse-doppler fire-control radar in the solid nose radome. It was designed to carry either three drop tanks of 480l capacity or two 480l and one 720l capacity drop tanks under the wings and fuselage. It can cope with a flight envelope of +8g and -3g. The aircraft features an in-flight refuelling probe on the starboard side of the front fuselage section to accomplish air refuelling missions even in the worst climatic conditions. It is fitted with double-delta wings to render additional space for fuel capacity and raise the aircraft's angle of attack. The JL-9 was built to suit the desperate requirements of the PLAAF for a new trainer aircraft to match its new generation fighters in aerodynamic performance and avionics suite. The aircraft is being used to train pilots flying fourth-generation aircraft such as Chengdu J-10, Sukhoi Su-27SK, Sukhoi Su-30MKK and Shenyang J-11. The intention to develop the JL-9 was unveiled by GAIC during the China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition held in 2001. To reduce development costs and time, GAIC built the JL-9 by modifying the JJ-7 aircraft, which was derived from the Soviet MiG-21U Mongol fighter trainer. The first JL-9 prototype took its maiden flight in December 2003. The aircraft was listed in the PLAAF's 11th five-year procurement plan in June 2005, according to Chinese newspapers. A total of five production JL-9s entered service with PLAAF in 2006. An advanced version of the JL-9 equipped with a stability control augmentation system and a microwave landing system was examined in 2006. On completion of technology certification testing in September 2006, it entered into series production for PLAAF and PLANAF. Another version of the aircraft, incorporated with a tail hook, underwent flight testing in January 2011. Its export version is designated as FTC-2000 (Fighter Trainer-2000) Mountain Eagle (Shanying). The kit comes in an attractive top opening box with a slightly impressionistic painting of the aircraft on the lid. Inside there are eight sprues of medium grey styrene, one sprue of clear styrene, a small sheet of etched brass and a medium sized decal sheet. Naturally, as we have come to expect from modern kits, there is no sign of flash or other imperfections and only a few moulding pips, so clean up of parts should be pretty easy. All the parts are well moulded with very finely recessed panel lines, fasteners and raised areas where required. This isnt a complex kit by any stretch of the imagination, although nicely detailed, a lot of parts that would sometimes be moulded separately, have been included as part of the main moulds, such as the fuselage halves. This includes items like the three rod aerials on the fin tip, which are protected by a simple sprue extension, so try not to break them off during the build. Talking of the build, it does start with the cockpit. The single piece tub includes both front and rear cockpits, into which the respective bulkheads are fitted, each one being moulded complete with the ejection seat rails. The rear instrument panel, with decal instruments is fitted just aft of the front cockpit bulkhead, followed by the fitting of the two, two piece ejection seats, with each seat get further detail in the form of PE harnesses. The front instrument panel is fitted with the coaming, three piece HUD and instrument panel decal before being attached to the front cockpit. The two side walls also have decal instrument panels before being glued into position forming a pretty sturdy tub. Whilst you do get a complete engine, it is rather small, and you certainly wont see much once its installed. It is made up from two halves with the front fan and guide vane ring fitted inside the front section before the halves are closed up. The front is then fitted with an intake ring, whilst at the rear the nozzle and an outer ring are attached. The nose wheel well is then assembled from three parts are fitted with the nose wheel oleo, two part wheel and the separate left hand section of the wheel yoke. Each of the main wheel bays are also assembled at this point, each from four parts. Once assembled the main bays are fitted into their respective holes in the fuselage halves, the nosewheel well into one half, along with the engine and cockpit assemblies before the fuselage is closed up. The intakes are glued to their separate splitter plates, and then glued to the fuselage sides, along with a large intake on the port side rear, a smaller intake just aft of that, also with one on the opposite side of the fuselage and six aerials. The two halves of each wing are joined together as are the two halves of each horizontal tailplane before also being attached to the fuselage. The nosecone is then fitted, (with suitable weight to stop the model being a tail sitter), along with the pitot probe. Each main undercarriage is made up from a single piece oleo, two piece wheel, scissor link, brake hose and the outer bay door. These are then glued into position along with their retraction actuators. The nosewheel bay doors are fitted, along with a couple of aerials just foreward of the bay and the refuelling probe to righ of the front windscreen. The clear parts are exceptionally clear and once the windscreen and mid section are attached to the fuselage the two canopies can be posed either open or closed. The main wheel doors and their actuators are now attached, as are two more intakes, these are situated on the underside of the fuselage adjacent to the wing trailing edge. The four weapons pylons are then fitted two to each wing and the two large ventral strakes glued under the tail. The kit comes with two pairs of AAMs, PL-8s and PL-9s, and a couple of long range tanks. Each missile is made up of single piece body and seeker head and with separate front and rear wings, whilst the tanks are moulded in two halves. The missiles also come with a nice selection of stencils. Once the missiles and tanks have been assembled there is a table in the instructions of what can be carried where, and that is pretty much it, just painting and decaling completes the build. Decals The colourful decal sheet is very well printed, in register and nicely opaque. There are only two choices of colour scheme included, and none of the colourful ones seen on the net. One is overall silver with red identification numbers , whilst the other is overall light grey, with yellow numbers, both have green dielectric panels and a black nose cone. What Trumpeter do provide is a full set of stencils, naturally in Chinese. Conclusion This is pretty much the first time I have heard of this aircraft, and on first inspection if seemed to be a amalgam of a number of different aircraft, which made it seem familiar. Its quite a pretty aircraft, and quite simple, as per the kit, which would make it a nice diversion from something more complicated, or a mojo boosting build after a lay off. There some more interesting colour schemes out there, so some enterprising decal manufacturer may take up the baton, which will make for an even more interesting subject in the collection. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

Russian 9A52-2Smerch-M Multiple Rocket Launcher of RSZ0 9k58 Smerch MRLS 1:35 Trumpeter It seems to be a week for long designations of military hardware. This though can be referred to as a BM-30 Smerch, or just Smerch-M if you're in a hurry. It is the modern incarnation of the old Katyusha rocket system, and came into service in the late 1980s with the Soviet Army. The full system consists of the rockets in their launch vehicle, loading crane with spare rockets, and a maintenance vehicle, but it is the launch vehicle that we're talking about here. It is an indirect fire weapon that benefits from a fast set-up and take-down time to avoid retaliatory fire, and it can send up to twelve rockets on their way to a target in a shade under 40 seconds. It can reload in 20 minutes with a number of rocket types that are tuned for attacks on armour, personnel or soft-skinned targets, with a range of between 20km and 50km under normal use, but with an incredible maximum range of 90km for one anti-personnel type. There are quite a number of these systems in use around the world, mostly with former Soviet countries, or their usual non-aligned customers such as India and some Arab states. It will eventually be replaced by a lighter-weight lower-cost system that should bring cost savings as well as new technology to the party, but with a smaller complement of six rockets. The Kit Oh my word! That's a big box, and part of the recent wave of Trumpeter kitting large and impressive-looking Soviet hardware, where the more wheels the better. That's not meant to be a complaint of course, as I love these weird looking things, and they have so much potential for weathering and diorama settings, without needing to take up too much room. Opening the big box was tricky due to the close tolerances of the two halves, and the same could be said about the small(ish) box that occupies one end of the interior, holding a large quantity of the smaller sprues. The contents listing reads like a well-known Christmas count-down song, so I'll give it to you in a list format for a change: 23 sprues of mid-grey styrene 8 flexible black "rubber" tyres with 45mm diameter 4 frets of Photo-Etch (PE) brass parts 1 clear sprue 1 sheet of pre-cut masking material 1 length of braided brass/copper wire 1 length of flexible black hose 2 small sprues of translucent poly-caps 2 decal sheets 1 folded glossy A3 painting guide, printed on both sides 1 instruction booklet in landscape A4 1 Addendum sheet with the omitted installation of wheels 1 partridge in a pear tree just to check if you read to the end Blimey! If you measured a kit just on weight of styrene, we're already looking at very good value. We are a little more discerning than that however, but the detail and part count is mind-blowing, with a note on the box top that gives away the complexity of the task of building it. It says "Detailed scale kit for adult collectors to assemble", and that's very much the case, with a minimum recommended age of 14 years old. It isn't for the casual builder either, and will keep you busy for a long time with just the construction aspect of the kit, with almost 1,000 parts in the box and a finished model that is 30cm long and 10cm wide. It does spread a broad grin over my ugly mug when I think about the end product though, and there are a few fun schemes to choose from when it comes time to get the paints out. The largest parts come out of the box immediately, and they are the two girders that form the main chassis rails. They have transmission, spacers and cross-members added over the next few pages of the instructions, after which the powerful V12 diesel engine is built up along with its transmission, a short drive-shaft, and power-transfer box that splits the drive between the front and rear paired axles. The Smerch has all-wheel drive, with short drive-shafts projecting through the chassis and mating with brake hubs and four-point suspension torsion bars, with a single damper per wheel controlling re-bound. Steering racks for the two front axles are added, and two complex steadies are added to the chassis sides under the mounting point for the turntable, as well as masses of stowage and fuel tank boxes in a busy flurry of parts. Front bumpers are dressed with light-clusters in clear, and a towing cable is made up from the braided wire and styrene ends, then added to the chassis ends, with a scrap diagram showing the correct arrangement of the cable. Above the bumper is a large twin radiator with grille and a ladder strapped across it, and it's finally time to put the wheels on, as per the erratum sheet. Each wheel has a two-part hub with a poly-cap trapped between, and the tyre pushed over the rim, then pressed onto the stub-axles, being careful not to crush the suspension mounts against the chassis side. There is a sub-frame under the rear deck on which the rocket pack stands, with a partially tread-plated upper deck and rotation point for the pack. It covers the rear two-thirds of the chassis, and is followed by addition of a number of stowage boxes and the rear mudguards, with PE mounting brackets and flexible sections adding some realistically thin parts to the area. Flat mudguards are placed over the front two axles extending the deck space, and a crew ladder is placed on the right side for access, while a pair of light clusters are installed on the back mudguards. There are two crew cabs on the vehicle, one of which is the location for the driving crew, the other for the operators of the rockets. The crew cab is narrow and made up from individual panels with two doors and two seats, plus the usual driver controls, instruments and steering wheel. Decals are provided for the instruments, and the various windows are represented in clear styrene, for which there are pre-cut self-adhesive masks in the box. The operators' cab is built up in a similar manner, with two crew seats and a surprisingly small quantity of instruments. The engine deck covers the front of the vehicle, and has yet more storage, with the operators' cab installing in the gap behind it. The driver's cab sits in the space to the left of the engine deck, and hinges forward on a substantial looking tubular mount behind the bumper. The rocket pack turns and elevates for targeting, which is depicted by substantial chunks of styrene, bracing arms and a large girder-like base onto which the front and mid panels attach, perforated with twelve holes for the rocket launch tubes. The front panel has a set of rails holding the mid and front panels apart, which you'll need to let set up properly before handling, as the assembly will be quite weak at this point. The rocket tubes themselves are made up from two halves split horizontally, and have muzzle section added, which is split vertically to better accommodate the detail. Each tube has a pair of parallel lines engraved in a corkscrew pattern, which are guides for gluing the raised beams around their length. This looks to be quite an arduous task, as the beams are both narrow and straight, so you have to glue them in place using either CA to tack them instantly, or use styrene glue, taping them in place until set. I'd be inclined to use the former, as they need to be accurately placed due to their being used as guides to thread the tubes into the pack. After you have built all twelve tubes, they are twisted into place along the curved beams until their ends reach the back plate. The aft section of each tube is glued in place behind the rear panel, after adding latches and firing wires to each of the twelve parts. A couple of platforms for the crew to minster to the rocket tubes are added to the sides, along with access ladders, fold-out extensions, and of course, some additional equipment, brackets and hoses. The crew platforms can be posed stowed for travel with the rockets locked in the horizontal position, or deployed with the tubes elevated over the roof of the vehicle. The latter is the more impressive to look at, but it makes a big model even larger and in need of more headroom in your cabinet. Markings You might be expecting "any shade as long as it is green", but you'd only be half-right. There are six decal options, all of which appear generic to their operating country, except for some of the Russian ones that have vehicle codes on the side. From the box you can build one of the following: Russian – Green, sand & black camo, with white 761 on the vehicle sides. Russian – green & sand camo, with Russian flag on the rear compartment sides. Kuwait – all over sand. Russian – All over green with white 551 on the sides. Ukrainian – All over green with red rocket tube covers, white chassis and wheel rim parade edging stripes. National symbol on the cab sides. Belarusian - – All over green with red rocket tube covers, white chassis and wheel rim parade edging stripes. National symbol on the cab sides. The parade-ready options will suit those of us who like to model in a fresh from the factory style, while the in-service vehicles will open up some scope for weathering and paint effects. The camouflaged vehicles will test your skills with either airbrush or paintbrush, as they have tight demarcation lines that would be best masked off. There are some pictures out there that show a very tight freehand demarcation however, so you could go that way if you're confident with your airbrush handling. If you're planning on opening up any tubes, they appear to be a sand colour inside, but that probably wouldn't last long if there had been a few launches. The decal sheet is small and spread over two sheets, with little more than a few national insignia, data plates for the sides, a few number plates, and a useful instrument panel for the driver's cab. The decals are printed in-house and have good register, colour density and adequate sharpness, although the Ukrainian cross shows very slight sign of misalignment at the centre that only really shows up under magnification. Conclusion My goodness, what a lovely model! There's a lot in the box for your money, and it should keep you busy for quite a while, both with the sheer number of components, but also with the painting, which can be as complex as you wish to make it, thanks to the breadth of markings choices. The big tyres can be left natural for the parade finished vehicles, or matted down and weathered otherwise, with excellent detail moulded in. The only part I can foresee causing some profanity is those little curved beams that run round each of the launch tubes. Take your time and concentrate, perhaps only doing a few at a time, and you shouldn't have too bad a time. Another cracking "big rig" from Trumpeter – very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

T-38C Talon 1:48 Trumpeter Stemming from the light fighter programme that gave us the F-5 Freedom Fighter, the T-38 is an updated and upgraded version of the F-5A, which has seen a great deal of service with the air forces of the world due to its low running costs, supersonic abilities and interoperability with Allies flying the same airframe. The primary role for the Talon and Talon II is that of supersonic trainer, but it is also capable of assuming the light fighter role, as well as the chase plane role that it performs for NASA to this day. The T-38C is a further upgraded airframe that came into service early this millennium sporting a new avionics suite including revised "glass" instruments, navigation systems with GPS, and of course an uprated engines. The upgrade process started with T-38As which were zero-houred and upgraded by Boeing in Arizona, with a total order of just over 500. The Kit Although not a new kit, this is a new boxing with revised artwork. It contains four sprues of mid grey styrene, one of clear parts, a small fret of Photo-Etch (PE) brass, two sheets of decals, and instruction manual with colour painting diagram slipped inside. The parts are well-detailed with fine engraved panel lines but very little in the way of rivets, giving the skin an uncluttered look, while the cockpit has been well served with knobs, dials and screens. The included PE seems a little lacking in detail however, with a set of seatbelts that look simplified and etched from brass too thick to arrange them realistically. Construction begins traditionally enough with the cockpit, which is assembled around a central two-man tub, into which the instrument panels are dropped along with their coamings and decals for detail. The panels seem to be correctly arranged with a large central multi-function screen in the centre, surrounded by more traditional instruments. The side consoles also have decals provided, and the sidewalls are detailed with a pair of panels that you insert before putting the whole assembly in the fuselage. The ejection seats are quite simple, with only the rear of the headbox separate, to which the rear seat has another box added to the rear, which sits between the rear canopy hinges once installed. Separate joysticks and rudder pedals attach to the cockpit floor, and behind the rear seat, on a small deck you have the option of adding the cockpit hinge in either the open or closed positions, by choosing a short or long pair of parts. The same mechanism is used for the front canopy, with retracted or deployed parts added to the upper lip of the sidewalls, so choose early. To close up the fuselage all you need then do is glue the cockpit tub into the fuselage side, add the two inner main bay sections, and the single piece nose gear bay, which is quite well detailed given its shape and size. The two prominent intakes on the tops of the fuselage are added on each side of the spine, after which the intakes are built up from two sides of the trunk, and a single lip part to give a nice slim intake lip and splitter plate. There are four shallow ejector pin marks in each half of the intake, which is split vertically, but whether those would be seen if you chose to ignore them is for you to decide. The intakes go back only as far as the 3cm or so of the intake parts, but you could fake greater depth by painting a soft edged black circle in the middle of the blanking surface. Not much will be visible past the lips of these small trunks however, so put as much or as little effort in there as you see fit! The instructions would have you add the landing gear into the nose along with the bay doors for the nose and main bays, but I defy any mere mortal to do that and still have them attached by the end of the build. The wings are small and thin, just like the real thing, and only the centre portion of the lower wing is separate from the upper. There is basic bay detail moulded into the top wing, which will be visible through the outer bay door, which also contains the mounting points for the main gear legs and their retraction mechanism. A single bay door sits outboard of the leg on each wing, and again you're incited to put all this on before you've even added the wings to the fuselage. Madness sheer madness! The skinny elevators are each single parts, and attach to the fuselage via peg and hole, while the two-part fin with moulded-in rudder attach to two tabs on the top of the fuselage, with a small bullet-fairing aft of the rudder. The exhausts for the two General Electric engines are presented as a single part, which might initially draw cries of woe from the more detail oriented, and if you take a squint at some pics of the real thing, you'll find that they've been simplified a little. The tubular structure that supports the rear exhaust ring is there, but the tiny gap between the ring and the inner exhaust trunking is absent, which may put of a few. Otherwise the interior is quite well detailed with fluted trunking and a reasonable facsimile of the rear of the engine on the blanking piece. The canopy for the Talon is a three-section arrangement, with the windscreen fitting tight down over the coaming, but don't be tempted to fill the joint with the fuselage with putty, because Trumpeter have aligned the break with a panel line, albeit a quite fine one. A hoop is installed between the two cockpits before the front canopy can be added, with a pair of PE rear-view mirrors for detail, and the rear has a horse-shoe shaped styrene part added to the large frame at the rear, which mates with the opening mechanism. As you also get a four-part crew ladder included in the box, it seems that leaving the canopies open is the way to go. There are fine mould lines down the centres of the canopy parts that will need sanding and polishing smooth, but as it took me a long time to notice them, you could possibly get away with not sanding them off if you don't feel confident of getting them back to a good shine. One thing of note is that the front canopy on the real thing has a "blown" look that isn't fully replicated in the kit. The canopy bulges from side to side, but not front to back, which is incorrect. This won't notice if you pose the canopies open though, and neither will the very slightly shallow side profile of the canopies. An aftermarket vacform canopy would be useful to correct these minor errors as well as gaining scale thickness. Markings There are two markings options provided in the kit, with the usual lack of detail regarding units, time period and so forth that we have come to expect from Trumpeter. I've surmised the details to be as follows: 435th Fighter Training Squadron "Black Eagles" Randolph Air Force Base Light grey nose & tail, also undersides. Dark grey rear fuselage and upper wing section. Blue Black Eagles tail band. 460th Fighter Training Squadron "Chargin Cheetahs" Randolph Air Force Base Dark grey nose and tail. Light grey centre section, upper wing and undersides. Blue tail band with white stars. The decals are well printed in two shades of lowviz grey (one for each aircraft), and spot of colour used on the tail bands. Conclusion There have been a few issues with regard to overall length of the kit noted on the internet, stemming from the inclusion or exclusion of the pitot probe in the measurements, which has led to a small elongation of the fuselage of this kit, although it is small enough to get away with unless you have your laser measure out. Detail is overall good, with a few areas such as the exhausts that may warrant attention if you are after additional detail and accuracy. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

Flying Tigers P-40B/C AFV Club 1:144 The American Volunteer Group "Flying Tigers" 1937-1942 In April, 1937, Claire L. Chennault, then a captain in the United States Army Air Corps, retired from active duty and accepted an offer from China for a three month mission to make a confidential survey of the Chinese Air Force. At that time China and Japan were on the verge of war and the fledgling Chinese Air Force was beset by internal problems and torn between American and Italian influence. This was the beginning of Chennault's stay in China which did not terminate until 1945 at the close of World War II. Chennault's combat and other experiences between 1937 and 1941 in China laid the ground work for the organization of the American Volunteer Group (AVG) in 1941 which consisted of volunteer pilots and ground crew; from the U.S. Army Air Corps, U.S. Navy and U.S. Marines (note - these airmen had to resign from the U.S. Forces and were then employed by China into the Chinese Air Force as civilians). By the time of America's entry into the war in early December 1941, the AVG's personnel, with 100 Curtiss P-40B Warhawk aircraft had been formed into three combat squadrons. These Warhawks were part of an order that had initially been placed for the Royal Air Force; however, the RAF considered the P-40B to be obsolescent and an agreement was made for the P-40B's to go to China and the RAF to get later model P-40D variants. The Flying Tigers' role was a very short-lived one (although their name and feats were used and re-used throughout the war), lasting from only December 1941 until 4th July 1942 when they were disbanded and replaced by the China Air Task Force of the United States Army Air Forces. During this short period, the AVG The Kit There are only two sprues to be found within this package. The main sprue, in a light olive green plastic, holds all (ten) of the main components of the model except the canopy. The second sprue is in clear plastic and holds a single canopy piece. These are enclosed in a clear plastic bag that is attached to a card backing; on which is printed the assembly instructions on one side, plus a painting and marking guide on the other side. There is no cockpit detail whatsoever, with just and open area but I would envisage that some aftermarket producer; perhaps Brengun or Retrowings, might produce a detail set sometime in the future? One can hope. The large air intake, situated under the nose of the fuselage, is closed although it shouldn't take more than a couple of drill holes and some cutting to open out the fairing. Detail on the kit, in terms of panel lines, ailerons and fuel/ammunition covers etc. is good but fine; therefore care should be taken when painting, especially if brush painting as these areas could be lost under layers of primer and topcoats. There are a couple of sink-holes on the upper wings, one on each close to where the wing attaches to the fuselage. There is one small aspect of the kit's production which is unusual and that is the model has a pair of mainwheels, for a wheels-down setting, but the tailwheel is fitted into the fuselage in the raised position. This means that a tail-wheel will need to be crafted by the modeller if they wish to depict the aircraft on the ground. The canopy is a single piece casting and looks to be simple but nicely detailed. The canopy frames are so narrow that only with real care and masking would prevent slipping onto the clear glass when painting. Don't let that put anyone off though, the frames do look correctly proportioned; it is just the diminutive size of this model that may cause concern on painting and detailing. Decals The decals provided for this kit are produced in Taiwan, although I have seen a set on-line (kit No. AR 14401) which are produced in Italy, possibly by Cartograf?. The set with this kit is not to the standard of the Italian set (this kit is actually marked AR 144S01) and only comes with enough decals for a single aircraft; that of code 68 of the 3rd Pursuit Squadron "Hells Angels" of the American Volunteer Group and piloted by Charles H. Older. You will have to trust me when I state that there are two 68's on the sheet below. The white of the decals matches the background causing them to blend. Colour details are provided on the back of the card packaging FS specifications with matching details for Hobby Color and Mr Color paints. Conclusion I would describe this kit as a simple affair that will not take much effort to assemble into a decent but basic model of the Hawk 81A2/P-40B Warhawk; however, having said that, I think this kit is a good foundation to build a better model. The cockpit area could be built up and enhanced with some plastic sheet and then painted; plus the intake could be hollowed out, providing a little more detail etc. The detail is good and, with the addition of camouflage and the decals, this should build into a nice addition to the WW2 family of fighter aircraft in 1:144 scale. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

MiG-29A Fulcrum Izdeliye 9.12 1:72 Trumpeter The Mikoyan MiG-29, known in the West by its NATO reporting name 'Fulcrum' is an air superiority fighter designed and built in the Soviet Union in the 1980s. As with other comparable aircraft of that period, such as the Su-27, F-16, F-15 and Panavia Tornado, it was produced in significant numbers and is still in fairly widespread service with air arms around the world today. The MiG-29 was developed as a lighter, cheaper aircraft compared to the Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker, an aircraft with which it is broadly comparable in terms of layout and design, if not size and weight. As with the Su-27, the engines are spaced widely apart, with the area between the engines being used to generate lift and improve manoeuvrability. The MiG-29 is powered by two Klimov RD-33 Turbofans, each of which is capable of generating over 18,000lb of thrust in reheat. The aircraft is well suited for use from rough airstrips. The engine air intakes can be closed completely when on the ground, allowing air to be drawn through louvers on the upper surfaces of the blended wing roots. Armament is covered by a combination of Vympel R-27 medium-range air-to-air missiles and R-73 or R-60 short-range air-to-air missiles, as well as a GSh-30-1 30mm cannon. The aircraft can be used in a range of roles and is capable of carrying bombs and rockets as well. The aircraft has been widely exported and is still in widespread use by a variety of air arms, including several NATO member states such as Poland. There have been quite a few kits of the MiG-29 over the years, although pretty much all of them have their foibles in terms of accuracy or ease of build. Until now, the Italeri and Airfix kits have represented the best of the bunch in terms of early Fulcrums. Things are about to change, however, with both Trumpeter and Zvezda releasing new kits of the type this year. Trumpeter are first to market with their all-new MiG-29A, and we've got a copy courtesy of UK importers Pocketbond. The kit arrives well-packed into a sturdy top-opening box adorned with a high-quality painting of a Hungarian MiG-29 in flight. Inside are eight sprues of grey plastic, three small clear sprues, two sheets of decals, instructions and a colour painting diagram. There are over 150 parts in total. In common with other Trumpeter kits, the parts are extremely well packed and all of the sprues are individually bagged. The plastic parts are beautifully moulded and the engraved surface details are clean, consistent and sharp. The parts have a very slightly textured finished, but the panel lines should hold a wash nicely, which is just as well as these aircraft are often seen heavily weathered. Before I go on to describe the kit in detail, I may as well confront the issue of accuracy. It's fair to say Trumpeter have a patchy track record when it comes to the accuracy of their subjects, but of course each kit must be judged on its own merits. I've had a good look over the kit and, overall, I'm very impressed. Firstly, the overall shape and arrangement of parts appears to match photographs of the real thing very well. The only area that appears to be slightly off is the section of the fuselage underneath the cockpit and above the blended LERX. The walls of the fuselage should be vertical here, and they're a few degrees off. The difference is tiny though, so you'd have to be a real MiG fan or incredibly fastidious to notice (or let it bother you). The only other issue is that the auxiliary engine intakes are fixed in the open position. Hopefully someone will produce a set of resin covers so the model can be finished in a more convincing ground configuration. Trumpeter are not on their own in this regard, as most other currently available kits in this scale have the same issue. Construction begins with the cockpit. This is comprise of a tub, two-part K-36 ejection seat, instrument panel, control column and two sidewall panels. The level of detail and quality of moulding is very good to the extent that an aftermarket replacement will probably only be necessary if you wish to have the canopy open. Once complete, the whole thing can be sandwiched inside the fuselage. As with most kits of blended-wing aircraft, this part is split vertically with the wings moulded in place. All of the landing gear bays are moulded as part of the lower fuselage, speeding up assembly considerably. Don't forget to drill out the holes in the lower wings first though, as otherwise you'll struggle to locate the pylons for the underwing stores. Before tackling the rest of the aircraft, Trumpeter have thrown in a little extra goody in the shape of a tow bar for ground handling. This is a nicely detailed little accessory which opens up possibilities in terms of dioramas. With that out of the way, construction moves on to the twin engine air intakes. Compressor faces are provided, as are the doors that close when the engines are running on the ground. The engine exhausts are similarly well-executed, which each made up of no fewer than five parts. Extra details are provided for the main landing gear bays, while the nosecone is a single part to which the pitot attaches. The nose gear is well-detailed but, unusually, split horizontally at the point of the oleo strut and torsion link. I'm a bit worried about the long-term strength of this part, even if it is beautifully detailed. On the other hand, it makes it easier to alter the length of the part if you want to modify the stance of the aircraft. The main landing gear legs are much more straightforward and should be a fair bit stronger. The landing gear doors are nicely depicted and feature small clear lenses for the landing lights. Flipping the model back onto its feet, the vertical and horizontal tail pieces can be added. These are both solid parts, so they won't take long to assemble. Once these parts are in place, all that remains to do is fit the canopy. This is moulded in two parts and a small hydraulic strut is included to enable the rear part to the posed in the open position. In typical Trumpeter style, a comprehensive selection of ordnance is included. All told, you get: 1 x PTB-1500; 2 x PTB-1150; 2 x R-73E AAMs, plus alternative practice rounds; 2 x R-27T AAMs 2 x R-27R AAMs 2 x R-60 AAMs, plus 4 x alternative practice rounds; A choice of two schemes is provided on the decal sheet: MiG-29A '04 Black', Hungarian Air Force, 59th Tactical Fighter Wing, 1st 'Puma' Tactical Fighter Squadron. This is the aircraft depicted on the box artwork and is finished in a two-tone grey scheme; and MiG-29A '01 White', Russian Air Force, 21st OSAD/120th GvIAP, Domma Air Base. This aircraft is finished in the familiar grey/green distruptive scheme. The decal sheets are nicely printed and you get a full set of stencils and markings for the ordnance too, which is a bonus. Conclusion It seems Trumpeter are on something of a roll at the moment. Following hot on the heels of their rather nice Su-24, they have produced a very creditable kit that, one or two very minor niggles aside, can take its place near the top of the pile when it comes to kits of this type. The finished article should look the part and, thanks to the relatively low part count, should be relatively easy to assemble too. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

Spinosaurus 1:24 Pegasus Models The Spinosaurus is a relatively newly discovered theropod dinosaur, and full grown it is well-deserving of the title "behemoth", because it dwarfed the mighty T-rex, although they never met because of time and distance (so sad). The Spinosaurus lived almost 100 million years ago, and was found mostly around the north of what is now Africa, but had relatives in the lump of rock that became Great Britain in the shape of the less impressive Baryonyx. As well as being huge, with a skull alone approaching two metres in length, it also had a distinctive row of spines growing from its back vertebrae that formed a sail with a covering of flesh in between the spines. These spines were two metres high at the highest point, and contributed to the creature's name when enough was known about it. As more examples of fossils have been found, estimates of its size have risen to the current figure of around fifteen metres from nose to tail, and up to twenty one tonnes in weight. Close examination of it has indicated that it lived near and in water for most of its life, implying that it would have been a strong swimmer, as depicted in Jurassic Park III, when it crept up on the barge carrying our heroes and made a bit of a mess of it. A reconstructed skeleton has been posed in the swimming position, and it would have been a truly terrifying sight for its prey. "Spinosaurus swimming" by Mike Bowler from Canada - Spinosaurus. Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons - Conclusion When put together this kit is a very impressive looking item, and once painted should look stunning if done with care and attention. My only concern is that the nostrils are a little far down the rostrum when compared to skeletal examples, but they are small enough to be moved if this bothers you, and the vinyl is tough, so workable. The parts go together well, and with the use of CA or epoxy resin you'll soon have it built up, and be able to move onto the biggest task, which is painting. it isn't a cheap kit, but if you were to buy one ready-made and pre-painted, you'd be looking at multiples of the purchase price for one of such quality. Very highly recommended. Available from all good model shops. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

M60A1 Patton Main Battle Tank 1:35 AFV Club The M60 was one of a line of tanks to take the name Patton, partially because they were all related developments of the same basic principle. The M48 Patton was the basis for the M60, after the need was discovered for a larger gun that could penetrate the frontal armour of the Soviet tanks reaching the front line. The M48 was scaled up to accommodate the 105mm license built Royal Ordnance L7 gun, a re-designed turret and a fully cast hull, mounting aluminium road wheels to reduce weight in non-essential areas. It was the last US tank to use steel as its protection from penetration, and that served the crews well through its long service life. The M60A1 was the most produced version, and was an initial update with better suspension and improved armour, with a larger turret that allowed the crew a little more room. It also had a rudimentary stabilisation system fitted to the gun, although it wasn't capable of the fine control of modern systems, but did allow the gun to stay pointing in the same general direction when aimed. It was wide service during its long career that started in the 60s, both with the US and allied nations. It was sold to the Iranians before the revolution, so some of the remaining operational Pattons were pressed into service during the Iran/Iraq was in the 80s. It was finally retired after service in the First Gulf War, where the Marines used it exclusively for their part in the campaign before reluctantly dropping them in favour of the then new M1 Abrams MBT. While out of service with the US, it is still a potent tank, and is still in service with minor operators throughout the world. The Kit I always look forward to AFV Club kits, as they appeal to this modeller, and give the impression that they are passionate about what they produce. When this box landed on my cluttered desk I was keen to see inside, particularly as I had seen one in the flesh only the week before. Arriving in AFV Club's usual white themed box with a painting of an M60 on the way somewhere, the box is stuffed full of sprues, with nine in total moulded in an olive green styrene, plus the lower hull tub. There is also an M2 Machine Gun on a section of sprue, a substantial clear sprue, two rubber-band style tracks, two sheets of Photo-Etch (PE) brass, a small bag of flexible styrene parts in olive and black, a spring, a bag of rubbery o-rings, a turned aluminium barrel, length of synthetic cord, decal sheet and of course the instructions. First inspection reveals lots of lovely casting detail on the hull and turrets, which is accompanied by raised welding-beads, casting serial numbers where appropriate, and very fine raised location point lines for parts that butt-fit to the main parts. The level of detail on the parts is excellent, with grilles, tiny welding beads between sections of parts and ultra-fine mouldings that push the limit of injection moulding technology. Once you've had a look at the sprues and perused the visual history of the different variants on the page before the instructions, it's time to start cutting parts off the sprues. The lower hull is moulded as a single part with casting texture moulded in, but as it has been done using sliding moulds, there are some small seams between the suspension mounting points, so scrape these off and make good with some stippled Mr Surfacer or your chosen texturing method. Then you can add the suspension mounts, bump-stops and the driver's lower escape hatch, followed by the torsion bars and swing-arms, plus the final-drive housings at the rear of the hull. Towing shackles, hitch and rear light-clusters are added to the rear bulkhead, and then it's time to do the running gear. There are fourteen pairs of road wheels, which are built up from two individual wheels glued together around a small O-ring as a change from poly-caps. The drive sprockets are made up from three parts, the central part of which is a complex moulding that stands well away from the rest of the parts of the hull to allow the sliding parts of the mould opportunity for movement. One of mine had come off within minutes of leaving the bag, and I found it on the workshop floor with a little crush damage, which was quickly repaired. They are the most easily knocked-off parts, and without them you'll be screwed, so keep an eye on them! The wheel sets press onto the axles for easy removal during the build, and are wrapped with the rubber-band tracks once the main parts of the upper hull has been finished, using the usual overlapping sections of track to make the joint. There are two links performing this function, and the outer halves are held on only by the centre link, which makes for a weak joint that could be damaged, leaving you with a need for replacement tracks, which Friul make marked ATL-142, with an alternative tread-pattern (lozenge shaped blocks) ATL-143. The driver's compartment is depicted in reasonably good detail in this kit, showing off his cramped space, which added to his limited ability to leave via the top hatch or through the main component, left him with the lower hatch as his primary means of escape. Not a prospect I'd relish under any circumstances. His station is complete with his controls, instruments, seat and various levers, plus vision blocks and more detail that are applied to the underside of the top deck, all of which has plenty of painting call-outs so you're not left floundering. The top deck includes the upper glacis and extends as far as the back of the turret ring, where you add the fuel filler-cap on the starboard corner, as well as the driver's vision blocks, which are made of clear styrene. The driver's top hatch is attached to the hull via a long hinge rod that flips it up toward the turret, requiring the gun to be at the rear for proper exit. The front deck is installed before the engine deck, which has a tapering arrangement of panels, surrounded by a large number of grilles to cool down the powerful Diesel powerplant. These are well-moulded, and have been split into five sections per side to preserve detail, plus another two large panels at the rear bulkhead. Separate grab-handles are added to each one when they're installed, adding to the realism over the usual moulded-in affairs. With the top deck ostensibly completed, the fenders are added, which are split in similar proportion to the deck, with curved flanges added to the rear. A bunch of stowage boxes are built up with separate handles, and are then dotted around the fenders along with some perforated stiffening brackets for good measure. The rear-mounted travel-lock can be built to move on its hinges, and the locking jaws can also be left loose for that occasional change of pose that we never get around to. Whilst at the rear, you have the choice of adding a small grille to the back of the tank, or replacing it with a cast panel and long intake extension tube that has some lovely welding beads moulded in. A pair of flexible styrene bracing "wires" can be added if you want, but these are optional. Adding the front mud-guards and light-clusters sees the hull complete. The turret starts with the gun, which has a turned metal barrel, which is inserted to a recoil mechanism that also carried the 7.62mm coax machine gun and its mount. The spring is loaded into the canister which is then closed over by a bolted lid, and the metal barrel is inserted through this to be glued onto the breech assembly. The inner mantlet/mount is made from two parts, and slides down the barrel and onto the coax MG, and is then installed within the turret body, with a short piston going between the lower breech and the turret ring to control elevation. The lower turret with moulded-in ring is then glued in place, and the either the rubberised mantlet cover and concertina sleeve or its uncovered alternative are placed over the barrel. The two-part bore evacuation system clamps around the barrel at a convenient ledge, an alternative muzzle tip is added (or not), and the turret body is then detailed with lifting eyes, clear vision blocks, stowage hooks, aerial bases and so forth. The towing cables are built up from styrene eyes and cord "cables", which are slung around the lower rear of the turret below the combined PE/styrene turret bustle stowage rack that wraps around the rear. The top of the commander's cupola is moulded in clear to for the multiple vision ports around its perimeter, and has a .50cal M85 machine gun in a mount that provides elevation, while the independent movement of the cupola provides the traverse. This allowed the commander to fire without exposing himself to incoming rounds, but the cupolas were known for their propensity to become detached when the tank was hit by a non-penetrating round, which could have serious ramifications for both the commander's health and the tank, which would be an open target into which grenades could be hurled. A large vision block is fitted to the roof of the cupola, and sighting equipment hangs down underneath it inside, with the full breech and mounting of the MG fully depicted. Careful masking of the interior and exterior will result in a rather good looking cupola. The mantlet of the commander's gun can be left uncovered or by the addition of the provided flexible styrene part it can be depicted covered. Early Cold War tanks all seemed to carry big searchlights on their guns, and the M60 was no exception, and it's a complex one. The body of the device is built from halves that fit around the back plate, plus two horizontal bars on which the mounting bracket fits. A reflector that is as large as the body fixes to the front with a black "thing" in the front, all of which is enclosed behind a clear lens. A couple of grab-rails and latches are dotted around the surface, and it is added to a bracket on the mantlet, with a long articulated rod leading back to an attachment point on the turret top. A couple of jerrycans with PE straps are added to the rear sides of the turret, and a couple of aerials are stretched from sprue, or better yet, from carbon fibre rod that you can obtain from eBay. The turret is a drop-fit to the hull, so remember to either glue it or don't turn it over to look at the underside. Markings A note of warning to begin with. As soon as you get your kit, remove the paper from the decals, as mine had already become quite fond of the decals, and tore a few times on removal, leaving fibres adhered to the decals. There are five options available from the box, and they are disparate enough to please most folks, which is always good. From the box you can build one of the following: Austrian Army – all over olive drab. IDF, Sinai Oct.1973 – All over sand yellow. US Army 3rd Battalion, 3rd Armoured Division, 1977 – Green/orange/black/off white camo. US Army 69th Armoured Regiment – Sand yellow/black/green camo. US Marine Corps – Green/khaki/black/off white camo with a white mantlet. The decals are of merchantable quality, but with fibres of the paper still clinging to the surface, they look a little older than they should. Registration is good, colour density appears so too, and sharpness is good enough. The carrier film is thin and glossy, but extends quite a way around the decals in place such as the serials and badges, which would be better cut away. Conclusion It's a rather nice kit of an important US Main Battle Tank that deserves the detail that has been lavished on it. The rubber tracks are about as good as they can get, but alternatives are available if you feel the need. The inclusion of PE and a turned barrel adds value to the package if you don't like moulded in grilles or sanding the seams of a styrene barrel (who does?), so what're you waiting for? Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

Bussing NAG 4500A w/ Bilstein 3T crane AFV Club 1:35 The foundation of the company Bussing goes back to the year 1903. Bussing is considered the oldest German lorry manufacturer. In 1931 Bussing took over AEG daughter company NAG and became Bussing-NAG. This company manufactured many lorry types from 1.5 ton to 11.5 tons payload. The Bussing-NAG type 500 was manufactured from 1939 to 1941. Beginning in 1940, it was designated Bussing-NAG type 500 S. It was propelled by a 6 cylinder, 105 HP diesel engine and had a payload of 4.75 tons. The Bussing-NAG type 500A was developed in the beginning of 1939. It was made in small numbers from late 1940 to 1942. Unlike to the Bussing-NAG type 500S it had all wheel drive. The Bussing-NAG type 4500 S was the successor model of the Bussing-NAG type 500S. Outwardly, it looked different, but it was based on the same technology. It was manufactured from 1942 to 1945. A whole range of alterations were introduced into the series production units of the Bussing-NAG 4500, especially to type 4500A. Nearly 15,000 units of the type 4500 A/S were manufactured until the end of Second World War. The Model The kit is a variant of the previously released NAG 4500S and instead of the flat bed, it is fitted with a Bilstein 3T crane. The box style is typical AFV Club with a photo style picture of the built up kit with a black and white background. Inside the top opening box it is literally stuffed full of sprues. There are fifteen sprues of yellow styrene, one of clear styrene, a small etched sheet, a small decal sheet, seven vinyl tyres, a length of string and four ultra small metal parts, (so small in fact that I couldn’t get a photo of them). Naturally, being from AFV Club, this is highly detailed kit, with lots of parts, so not suitable for novice modellers, in fact it may be a challenge for even an intermediate modeller. Whilst all the parts are cleanly moulded, with some finely rendered details there is a small amount of flash,, but only on a couple of parts. There doesn’t appear to be any signs of other imperfections, but there are a lot of moulding pips. The tyres, although not to everyones taste are very well moulded with very fine tread detail, (certainly for road use, not cross country), and sidewall details, including the manufacturers name. As with most truck kits, most of the detail is on the chassis and suspension parts, and this is no different, so care and attention to the instructions and parts placement will be needed to get all the wheels to sit on the ground correctly as it looks like it will be relatively easy to get the chassis slightly skewed. As with most truck kits the chassis is the first section to be assembled. Consisting of two longitudinal rails which are joined together via six cross members, the rear most one being fitted with a four piece towing hitch with its associated spring mounted behind the cross member. Two five piece accumulator tanks are then fitted, one on each chassis rail whilst the four part exhaust/silencer is threaded through the mid section cross members and out to the left hand side. The front bumper is then fitted with two reflectors and number plate before being attached to the front of the chassis rails. On each rail, two footstep support brackets are attached, followed by the front mudguards, which have the footsteps moulded integrally. The two piece fuel tank is then fitted to the right hand rail via two triangular brackets. To the rear of the chassis, the two reflector arms are attached, and then fitted with the reflectors and the rear number plate to the left hand arm. Up forward the radiator is fitted along with the single hooded headlight and two open headlights, which come with clear lens parts. The two differentials are then assembled, the rear from five parts and the front from no less than twenty six parts, which include the very detailed, and thusly, complex, steering mechanism. The differentials are fitted to the leave spring assemblies, which, in turn are attached to the chassis. Each of the four wheels are built up with an inner hub which has a poly cap fitted into it, followed by the outer hub, then the vinyl tyres are slipped over the rims, and the centre hub glued into place. The wheels are then attached to the axles. Assembly moves onto the engine, which is made up from two halves of the block, to which the cylinder heads are attached, followed by the alternator, auxiliary drive cover and exhaust manifold. The gearbox is then assembled from eight parts, and then fitted with the two piece bell housing before being glued to the engine assembly, which is then fitted with the sump block. The engine is further detailed with the fitting of the intake manifold, three piece air filter unit, coolant pipes, fan belt and fan. The engine/gearbox assembly is then fitted to the chassis, along with the transfer box and the three driveshafts, each having separate universal joints. The gear leaver is then attached to the top of the gearbox. The assembly of the cab begins with the fitting of the foot pedals and hand brake lever, as well as a couple of fixing brackets to the floor. The bench seat base is then fitted, being topped off with a single piece seat cushion. The rear bulkhead is fitted with the single piece seat back, rear window and two hand holds. The interior of the front cab section is detailed with the fitting of the instrument binnacle, switchbox, two windscreens and a couple of fuse boxes. The three cab assemblies are then joined together and the roof fitted. On top of the roof there is a small light fitting complete with clear lens, along with two grab handles, two more of which are fitted to the sides of the rear bulkhead. The cab assembly is attached to the chassis, with the previously fitted gear stick, threaded through the hole in the cab floor. The steering column is, likewise slid into a hole in the floor and attached to the steering rack, before being fitted with the steering wheel. The bonnet centre bar is then fixed between the cab and the radiator. Each door consists of a single piece door, clear window part plus internal and external door handles. These can be fitted to the cab either open or closed positions. The four piece bonnet, with additional PE mesh fitted to the inside of the grille, and pioneer tools to each side panel, is then fitted over the engine. Unfortunately the bonnet sections cannot be posed open without resorting to some surgery. Just aft of the cab there is a large tool box, which is made up from eleven parts, inside there is a space for the spare wheel to be fitted, an eight piece manual winch, and a large catch that holds the spare wheel panel in place. On the rear panel two tool holders are fitted to opposing sides, whilst under the outer edges of the tool box the four piece Jerry can holder and six piece stowage bin are attached, before the whole assembly is fitted to the chassis. Behind the tool box the truck bed, assembled from two longitudinal rails and four cross members, is fitted to the chassis rails via eight U clamps. The actual bed itself is fitted with the six part crane turntable, two storage boxes, two rear light clusters, the two rear wheel arches, each fitted to the bed with two supports, and three cross beams. The bed is then glued into position, followed by the tool box lid and more pioneer tools, with their associated brackets. Two axle stand assemblies are then fitted to the rear of the tool box, whilst the paraphernalia required for the crane is fitted to eh bed, these include various lengths of pole, eyes, hooks and lifting beams. Five Jerry cans are then assembled and slid into their respective slot in the rack, and “locked” off with a large strap. We finally come to the crane itself. The jib is made up form five parts, with seven piece jib extender being fitted to the lifting end. The left hand side of the crane housing is made from three parts, into which the cable drums, with the string provided, wrapped around them, and ends left free, spacers and guides are fitted. The single piece right hand panel is then glued into place with the ends of the various shafts and axles slotted through the panel. The housing is partially closed off with three panels at the front and the upper guide wheel frame fitted to the rear of the roof and a long handle to the left hand side panel. The jib assembly is the attached to the cable housing, followed by the string being passed through the various guide wheels and onto the three piece hook assembly. The completed crane is then mounted onto the turntable fitted to the truck bed. The kit comes with the option of having the four stabilising legs deployed or folded, depending on how the modeller wishes to depict their model. Each rear leg consists of eight parts, whilst the front legs consist of seven. The last part to be fitted is the tool box side panel, covering the spare wheel. On the outside of this panel, two folding legs are attached, allowing the panel to be posed either open or closed. This then completes the build. Decals The small decal sheet actually has quite a few decals on it. There are mostly stencils for the crane, which seems to be covered in them. The rest are the individual truck markings for the three schemes included on the colour charts. NAG 4500A from StuG Abt.209 on the Eastern Front 1942/43 in Panzer Grey overall NAG 4500A from Panzergrenadier Division “Grobdeutschland” on the Eastern Front in Autumn 1943 in a rather purple looking German Grey. NAG 4500A of the 1st Company SPzAbt. 501, based in Tunisia in the Winter of 1942/43 in overall green brown with olive green splotches on the front half of the vehicle. Conclusion There’s not a lot more I can say, other than being an AFV Club kit it is quite complex and detail wise, complete. There is so much you can do with this truck though, with endless possibilities for diorama settings or vignettes. Modify some troops from the spares box for the crew and away you go. It is a very nice kit, but as I said at the top of this review, not one for the beginner. It’s definitely one to test your patience and dexterity, especially as there are some really, really small parts. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

T-62 Mod.1972 (Iraq Modification) 1:35 Trumpeter The T-62 was one of the Soviet Union's Main Battle Tanks (MBT) during the 60s and 70s, and as such there were a lot of variants, partly due to its wide use "in-house" and due to its success in export to Soviet aligned and friendly nations. It was based on the T-55 chassis, which was stretched and given new running gear, with a complete new upper section and turret. It was also up-gunned with a smooth bore 115mm weapon with 40 rounds on hand. The Iraqi variant was numerous in their service, and saw extensive action in the Iran/Iraq war in the 80s, where it gave a good account of itself, inflicting heavy losses on the Iranians with their Western sourced tanks. In the First Gulf War it was less fortunate, as Western MBT designs had progressed to the next generation with composite armour, advanced electronics, targeting and weapons systems. The attrition rate was horrific, which is evidenced by the availability online of pictures of knocked out Iraqi T-62s from both the first and Second Gulf War. Interestingly, some survive today in Kurdistan where they form part of the military forces of the factions there. The Kit Trumpeter's range of T-62 kits expands almost daily, and this variant should hold some interest for anyone that would like to model the opponents in one of the largest post WWII conflicts. There is also a lot of scope for battle-damaged and knocked-out dioramas, with a wealth of pictorial guidance readily available. We recently reviewed a similar boxing of the 1975 Mod here. The lower hull is identical to the Mod.75, and that also extends to the top deck, save for a slight variation in the engine deck PE grilles. New Parts The real differences are found in the turret, which is substantially altered (or un-altered as it's an earlier model), and the 1975 turret's sprue-gates are blanked off on the sprue where it would have been. The correct turret is supplied on a new sprue with various aspects of the fit-out, and has a rather nicely textured outer, as well as a detailed cupola base, which was deleted on later models, probably due to cost and complexity. The hatch is also more complex, while the commander's hatch remains unchanged. A searchlight with a large armoured cowl in PE is fitted to the front of the commander's hatch, and a styrene jig to bend the outer is supplied to ease this task. Another, larger searchlight is fitted forward of the gunner's hatch with another PE cowl and jig that you could also use instead of the PE part if you're PE-phobic or make a mess of bending it. The main gun has the option of using styrene parts with horizontal seams, or a very nicely turned aluminium barrel, which slots into either a bare mantlet, or one with a moulded-in canvas cover, the detail on which is first rate. A small PE ring slides down the barrel to the fume extractor, and another styrene ring fits at the base before the gun is slid into the socket, which is best glued with either CA or a small quantity of epoxy glue for strength. A small armature leads from the barrel base to the big searchlight, ensuring that they both point in the same direction at all times. A big DShk 12.7mm machine gun is fitted to the loader's hatch front, and is rather well done, with detailed gun, mount and ammo box fitting into a socket on the deck. This boxing is also provided with a KMT-6 mine plough, and although quite complex to build, it adds a certain amount of stance to the tank, and is well worth the effort of building, remembering that you need to remove the outer two rows of bolt-heads from the lower glacis before attaching the two parts. Markings There is only one option available from the box, and you'd be right if you guessed it was painted a dark yellow sand colour. My Arabic is non-existent, so I couldn't tell you the unit or vehicle number, but there appears to be another un-used decal on the sheet that looks similar to a backwards 7. Perhaps another tank from the same regiment? Weathering will be the key to replicating an accurate depiction of one of these desert-based vehicles in any other state than parade-ground shine. The decals are on a small sheet with white being the predominant colour. There are small identification markings for the turret, front and rear of the vehicle, plus what I assume is the vehicle number on the centre sides of the turret. The decals are have good register, sharpness and colour density, although the rear vehicle code has a rather large carrier film. Conclusion This is an interesting release from the Trumpeter T-62 factory, as it represents the opposing force that met a fiery end by the hand of an Abrams or Challenger II. Modelling opposing forces are certainly appealing to this reviewer at least. I'd also be tempted by a knocked-out diorama, although I suspect my skills couldn't pull that one off successfully. The kit is well-detailed, and you get a lot of parts in the box that would have once been considered aftermarket, which is a trend that I'm very happy to see. It's also good to see the alternative styrene parts for some of the more complex PE parts, to cater for the younger or less experienced modeller. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

Vought F-8E Crusader VF-162 "The Hunters" 1:72 Academy Vought designed the F-8 (Then the F8U) in the early 1950s in response to a US Navy requirement for a supersonic fighter to be armed with 20mm canon as Korea had shown the short comings of aircraft armed with the traditional 0.50 calibre ammunition. The F-8 would be the last USN aircraft designed with guns as its primary weapon, indeed the F-4 which followed never has a gun in USN service. This lead to the F-8 being called "The Last of the Gunfighters". A novel feature of the F-8 was the fitment of a variable incidence wing. This afforded extra lift without compromising forward visibility as the main fuselage stays level. The F-8E was a major development of the Crusader. A new AN/APQ-94 Radar unit was fitted giving the nose a new profile with its larger nose cone. Another noticeable addition was the dorsal hump. This contained the electronics needed to fire the new AGM-12 Bullpup missile. Weapons pylons appeared on the wings able to carry a combined 5000lbs of ordnance. A new J57-P-20A engine was also fitted. A total of 286 E models would be built. The Kit Academy's Crusader was first released in 2004 and welcomed by 1.72 scale modellers. It is as good now as it was then, the mould still producing crisp parts, with fine recessed detail. The kit arrives on three main sprues, with a smaller sprue for weapons; and a clear sprue. Construction starts with the cockpit. The four part ejection seat is assembled and then installed onto the cockpit tub. The instrument panel is added complete with its gunsight, a control column is added as is a rear cockpit bulkhead. Following this the engine intake, and main gear well sub assemblies are made up. Once these three sub assemblies are complete they can be added to the main fuselage. Also to be added to the main fuselage before closing it up are the main ventral airbrake, arrestor hook bay; and the bay under the main wing. The main wing can then be assembled. It is worth noting that the kit allows the modeller to make the variable incidence main wing and allow it to be shown in the raised position. For this separate leading edge slats are provided as they drop when the wing is raised. However at the same time the slats drop the flaps also drop. Academy do not provide this as an option in the kit so the modeller will have to cut these out if they wish to raise the wing. To help there are a number of aftermarket kits to replace the flaps. It is slightly annoying Academy have not fixed this error. To make the main wing the electronics hump for the to is added along with the leading edge slats. The next area to receive the attention of the modeller is the underside of the Crusader. The nose wheel is built up and installed along with the nose wheel bay doors. The nose wheel is a three part leg with a one part wheel. The ventral airbrake is installed in either the open or closed position. It is worth noting that on parked Crusaders there is some droop of this as pressure bleeds of the hydraulic system. The main gear is then built up next. There is a two part leg with a one part wheel. The main gear bay doors are then installed. The tail planes and ventral strakes are then added. Again if the crusader is parked the tailplanes tip backwards slightly as the hydraulic pressure bleeds off. The modeller is now on the home straight. The canopy is added on the front, and the exhaust nozzle to the rear. Also at the rear the afterburner cooling scoops are added. If the modeller is going to arm their crusader up single and double "Y" racks are provided for the nose to hold either Sidewinder Missiles, or 5" Zuni Rocket Pods. For the wing pylons Multiple Ejection racks and 500Lb Snake eye bombs are provided. The bombs sit on the pylons in slant configuration where by only the bottom and outer parts of the rack are used. The last items to be added are the pitot tube and finally the main wing. Decals Decals are by Cartograf and should pose no issues, markings are provided for two options; VF-162 "Hunters" - USS Oriskany 1966 VF-103 "Sluggers" - USS Forrestal 1964 Conclusion It is good to see this kit re-released with new decals, in particular a non Vietnam Squadron. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

USS Maryland BB-46 1945 1:700 Trumpeter The USS Maryland was the second of three Colorado class battleships to be completed. The Colorado class were substantially similar to the preceding Tennessee class, but featured eight mighty 16 inch guns rather than the twelve 14 inch guns fitted to the earlier class. They were, until the introduction of the North Carolina Class on the eve of the Second World War, the most powerful ships in the US Navy's fleet. The Colorado class battleships were fitted with the same turbo-electric propulsion system as the rest of the Standard type battleships, giving them a maximum speed of 21 knots. The USS Maryland herself was present at Pearl Harbour at the time of the Japanese attack. She suffered light damage as a result of being hit by aerial bombs, but was repaired and returned to service in 1942. She was present at the Battle of Midway, took part in shore bombardments in the Battle of Tarawa and the Battle of Kwajalein. She was damaged by a torpedo during the Battle of Saipan and was hit by kamikaze attacks during the battles of Leyte Gulf and Okinawa. She received seven battle stars for her service in World War II before being decommissioned and sold for scrap in 1947. Trumpeter have done quite a service for maritime modellers over the past decade, having built up quite a catalogue of naval subjects from the pre-World War One era to the modern day, often in collaboration with Japanese firm Pit-Road. World War Two has proven to be the richest era in terms of subjects, with one of their latest releases being this kit of the USS Maryland in her modernised, late war form. This is the second kit of the Maryland to have been released by Trumpeter, following on from their kit of the ship as she appeared in 1941, which was released back in 2013. In typical Trumpeter style, the kit is immaculately packed into a sturdy top-opening box. Each sprue is individually wrapped and delicate parts are protected with extra strips of foam padding. My only complaint concerns the decals, which have the protective paper sellotaped in place. Previous experience suggests that, apart from being difficult to remove, the residue from the sellotape can make it difficult to remove the decals from the backing paper. The kit is comprised of hundreds of parts moulded in grey plastic and spread across some twenty sprues. The only exceptions are the aircraft, which are moulded in clear plastic, the lower hull and waterline plate, which are moulded in dark red plastic, and the natty black plastic stand for the full-hull version. A small fret of photo etched parts is included, as is a small sheet of decals. The upper hull and upper deck are all moulded separately. Many of the smaller parts such as the secondary and AA armament are produced on generic sprues that are common to a number of kits. This is a clever way of minimising tooling costs without compromising quality. The plastic parts are perfectly moulded and feature plenty of intricate detail. The photo etch parts are also very fine indeed. I'm a big fan of Trumpeter's policy of including both full hull and waterline options in their kits, so this gets the thumbs up from me. Construction begins with the upper hull and deck. The latter has Trumpeter's characteristic (although probably overscale) planking detail moulded in place and is split into two levels as the ship features a long forecastle. The upper hull has portholes and other details moulded in place. The Colorado class of ships did feature prominent belt armour, but even so the way this is replicated in this kit feels a little overdone. The main superstructure is made up of the deck and separate parts for the walls. Features such as the anti-aircraft mounts and twin 5 inch/38 cal turrets, which were fitted just before the end of the War, are prominent features of this area. As this is the late War fit, there are dozens more anti-aircraft mounts to make up and fit around the deck and superstructure, helping to create an incredibly busy and detailed finish. The detail doesn't stop there, however, as there are separately moulded anchors, cable reels and anchor capstans to fit to the deck. The main crane and aircraft catapult are picked out in photo etched brass, although there are plastic alternatives if you don't fancy that option. Other details provided for on the fret include the radar array and the truncated conical cage mast. This part will need to be rolled into shape and fixed with glue, which won't be an easy task. It would have been great if Trumpeter could have included a jig for this amongst the plastic parts, but never mind. Most of the rest of the details, including the bridge superstructure and funnels are fairly straightforward and can all be built and painted prior to assembly. The four twin 16-inch main gun turrets are all present and correct. You have the option of using guns with or without blast bags, which is handy as these are a pain to make from scratch if they are not included. Owing to the way in which Trumpeter has prepared these kits (with maximum commonality of parts), the triple turrets which were a feature of the preceding class of battleship are also included. These can be put in the spares box for a rainy day. Once all of these sub-assemblies are complete, the whole thing can be assembled. You don't have to make up your mind whether to finish the model in full hull or waterline configuration until the very end of the building process. If you choose the former, then you can fit the propellers and their shafts to the underside of the hull. If you choose the latter, you can just stick the hull plate on and call it done. The only thing left to do then is build and add one or three of the Curtiss SC-1 Seahawks that are provided on the small clear sprues. A colour painting guide is provided, but as usual you should seek to check your own references before committing to paint. Conclusion Trumpeter are amassing quite a range of small-scale warships now, and this addition is very welcome indeed. It is a nicely produced and well-detailed kit, with superbly moulded plastic parts and delicate photo etched details. The only thing missing is a set of railings, but that can be easily sorted with some generic aftermarket parts. All-in-all this looks like a great package and it can be firmly recommended to all fans of US Navy vessels. UK Distributors for

Russian T-34/85 Berlin 1945 Number 183 Factory 1:35 Academy The T-34 was Stalin's mainstay medium tank that was produced in incredible volume by extremely crude methods, and thrown into the fray against the numerically inferior German tanks on the Eastern Front. The designers combined a number of important advances in design such as sloped frontal armour, wide tracks to spread the load, and the ability to cope with the harsh Russian winters without grinding to a halt, which was a problem that affected the Germans badly after the successes in the summer of Operation Barbarossa. The part count and cost of the tank was continuously reduced during production, with plants turning out up to 1,300 per month at the height of WWII. The initial welded turret was replaced by a cast turret with more room, and the 76mm gun was replaced by a more powerful 85mm main gun, giving even the Tiger pause for thought. The 1945 model /85 had a number of upgrades over previous editions, with electrically powered turret traverse, smoke canister system, and squared off fenders. Crews often added in-the-field modifications such as the famous bed-spring armour, where they burned mattresses and attached the remaining metal springs to the armour to pre-detonate the German Panzerfaust, thereby weakening the effect of the weapon's shaped charge. Bed frames were also used, as they had a heavy-gauge mesh that usually supported the mattress on top. The Kit This edition of the kit has been launched as a special edition that includes bed-frame armour, and features specific to Factory 183 (UTZ) facility at Nizhniy Tagil, where it was made. It isn't an amazingly high-tech tooling with all the bells and whistles, but it is a solid kit of the T-34/85 and doesn't indulge in over-complication of parts in order to add extra miniscule detail. It arrives in a pleasantly simple box with a side-view of the subject, and an overall white theme that seems to be their new look for armour kits. Inside are sixteen sprues in Academy's familiar green/grey styrene, two more sprues in black styrene, a sheet of Photo-Etch (PE) brass for the bed-frame armour, a small decal sheet, instruction booklet, and lastly the painting guide with sprue diagrams on the rear. As usual with many armour kits, you'll have a number of parts left on the sprues after construction, as some of the sprues are multi-purpose. The build isn't complex, as already mentioned, and begins with the construction of the lower hull from a floor panel and sponson sides with overhangs. To these are added the suspension arms in their shafts, and you'll need to take care to ensure the enclosures are sloped in the correct directions. A central bulkhead adds a little strength to the assembly, as does the rear bulkhead, after which the suspension swing-arms are added to their mounting holes. The wheels are made up in pairs with separate hub-caps, and have rubber road tyres moulded in. Some later T-34s were fitted with sprung road-wheels to save strategically important rubber stocks, but having seen some pictures of the decal options provided with the kit, these plain hubs with large bolted rims would seem to be correct. The drive sprockets and idler wheels build up in the same way, and all are added to the stub axles ready to accept the tracks. The tracks provided in the kit are link and length, with the long top and bottom runs moulded as one part, while the sections wrapping around the ends of the run are individual links, giving a realistic look without the work involved in preparing and adding a whole run of individual links. The top run has the characteristic sag moulded in, so all you have to do is put them together and paint them sympathetically. The upper hull is built up next, with the usual light clusters, towing eyes and pioneer tools scattered around the surface. The engine deck is completed with a hatch, two louvers and radiator box, which has a PE grille added, with PE stiffeners around the edges, and across the shortest distance. The rear bulkhead has an insert that has the exhausts and their armoured covers, plus a circular access panel added, after which the rear mud-flaps can be installed. At the front the bow machine-gun is added in its own armoured cover, and a length of spare track-links are added in the centre of the glacis plate. At the front the driver's hatch can be posed open or closed, although I don't see much point in the opened option unless you can find a suitably large driver figure to obscure the fact that there's no interior. The join between the upper and lower glacis is finished off by adding a triangular section beam long the front. Now for the turret, which always seems like the fun bit to me, but maybe I'm just easily pleased? The turret comes in two halves, split around its widest part horizontally. There is a deeply contoured casting texture moulded in that looks a little fierce on first inspection. These turrets were incredibly rough-cast however, and under paint it should look about right, but if you wanted to rough it up a little more and vary the depth, you could attack it with a stiff brush and some Mr Surfacer. Check your references and our Walk Around section if you need some additional pointers. You'll need to do a little work to hide the join anyway, but sometimes there were heavy lines around this area anyway, so see your references again. The commander's cupola is raised and has a number of vision blocks around its sides, with a two-part clamshell hatch that is atypical of the variant. It is however correct according to photographic evidence. The mantlet is set on a pivoting block, with a pair of cheek inserts added to hold it all together. The gun is a single part with a slide-moulded hollow muzzle, and slots into the mantlet from the front, while the cupola drops onto the top. A number of grab handles, lifting lugs, mushroom vents and the simple gunner's hatch are also added, completing the turret assembly, which locks into the hull via a bayonet fitting on the turret ring. At this point you'll have to decide how best to proceed regarding the bed-frame armour, as installing it now will make painting and decaling much harder. Personally, I'd build up the frames and their supports and paint them separately, adding them after main painting and decaling has been completed. The turret receives six panels, which have folded angle-iron sides, while the hull has an asymmetrical set, with the starboard side fully protected with four frames, and the port side protected only along the rear half by two frames, which is as it should be according to photographic evidence. The vulnerable engine deck also has a frame attached over its air intake grilles, and all have stand-off brackets attached to the ends and sometimes the middle frames. The front fenders are the last styrene parts to be installed, although these are probably best done before painting. Markings Two decal options have been included in the box, and there are a number of pictures available online that will assist you with verifying the details of your build. Both have the same white identification bands around their turrets and an overall green scheme. From the box you can build one of the following: 11th Tank Corps. K235. Berlin, May 1945. 11th Tank Corps. K238. Berlin, May 1945. The decals are all white, but with red identification numbers that makes finding each one that bit easier. They are printed in Korea, And have good sharpness and colour density, but as they are one colour there should be no need for registration concerns. However, the white has been double-printed with a small offset, as can be seen under magnification when looking at the kit data at the bottom of the sheet. This could well mean that there is a little ghosting of the numerals when applied to the dark green model, so be aware, and touch-in with white paint if necessary. These numbers were roughly hand-painted, so a few wobbles here and there shouldn't matter. Conclusion There are plenty of T-34 kits out there, and while this couldn't be described as an Überkit, it is certainly of good quality, and keeps the detail, whilst retaining simplicity for ease of building. The only parts that might tax your skills are the bed frames, but as long as you have a reliable straight-edge and some patience, it shouldn't be too tricky. Even if your bends aren't perfect, it won't matter at all, as these frames had to content with tank-riding soldiers all the time, so must have got pretty badly beaten up over time. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

BMP-3[uAE] w/ERA Tiles and Combined Screens 1:35 Trumpeter History The BMP-3 infantry combat vehicle entered production in the late 1980s. About 120 BMP-3 vehicles are in service with the Russia Army and over 900 have been exported to a number of countries, including United Arab Emirates (600 vehicles), Cyprus (40), Indonesia (30), Kuwait (110) and South Korea (70). Kurganmashzavod of Kurgan, Russian Federation manufactures the chassis and the Instrument Design Bureau (KBP) of Tula is responsible for the turret. It is a tracked, armoured, amphibious vehicle designed to engage armoured ground and air targets while stationary, on the move and afloat. In 2007, the Russian Army placed an order with Kurganmashzavod for a number of new-build BMP-3 vehicles. A command version, the BMP-3K, is available, which is the same as the basic BMP-3, but with additional communications and navigation equipment. A version designed for more sustained amphibious operation is the BMP-3F. Changes in construction allow movement afloat in sea state three and firing with necessary accuracy in sea state two. The BMP-3F can endure continuous amphibious operation for seven hours. A reconnaissance version, the BRM-3K, is in service with the Russian Army. KBP and Kurganmashzavod have upgraded the vehicle with a new turret and engines. The upgraded vehicle is called the BMP-3M and the new turret includes a new automatic fire control system with digital computer, new BZS1 gunner's sight with SAGEM thermal imager and laser illuminator, TKN-AI commander's periscope with laser infrared illuminator and new ammunition-loading system. The BMP-3M will also be able to fire ammunition types including new 100mm laser-guided projectiles, new 100mm HE-FRAG (high-explosive fragmentation) rounds and new 30mm APSDS (armour-piercing discarding sabot) rounds. Additional passive armour protection is effective against 12.7mm armour-piercing rounds from a range of 50m. Explosive reactive armour is available as an option. The new uprated engine is the UTD-32, which is rated at 660hp. In February 2011, UAE signed a $74m contract with Russian arms exporter Rosoboronexport to upgrade its 135 BMP-3 vehicles. The upgrade is to convert these vehicles into BMP-3M standard. Model The kit comes in the standard Trumpeter box with a depiction of the vehicle somewhere in the UAE. Inside, there are fourteen sprues of sandy coloured styrene, two separate hull sections, the separate turret; one sprue of clear styrene, two small sheets of etched brass, one hundred and eighty individual tracks links, (three bags of 60), and a small decal sheet. The moulding of the parts is well up to Trumpeters usual standards, with no sign of flash or other imperfections, lots of very fine detail, but quite a few moulding pips. Dry fitting of the upper and lower hull sections shows that it will be a very good fit and the detail that's been moulded onto the upper hull is superb, as it's crisp, with great definition and even includes the turret ring gear cog. Construction begins with the building of several sub-assemblies, such as the road wheels, idler wheels and drive sprockets; each of which is made up from two parts, along with the six three piece shock absorber assemblies. The lower hull section, to which the lower front glacis plate appliqué armour is attached, is also fitted with a large spade like plate. The six return rollers are then attached to the hull, along with the bump stops, torsion bar and shock absorber assemblies, sprocket wheel gear covers, mud scrapers, idler wheels and drive sprockets. The road wheel assemblies are then attached to their respective axles, followed by the tracks, each of which is made up from eighty four track links, each of which is fitted with a separate guide horn.Unfortunately each track link has to be glued together, so you will be required to make a run, then drape it on the wheels before the glue sets fully. The kit comes with a nice interior, the construction of which begins with the fitting of the two sidewalls, the left side of which is fitted with two fire extinguishers, and a two piece flask like item, whilst the right hand sidewall just has one fire extinguisher fitted. The large drivers console fitted to the front of the vehicle is fitted with two large box like items, the centre mounted steering column and control yoke. The only two decals contained in the kit make up the instrument panels. The central bulkhead is fitted out with three seats, the centre and left hand seat having separate headrests. Behind this bulkhead the large engine cover is attached to the three spigots jutting up from the floor, with two angled sidewalls attached between it and the vehicle sides. There are five further seats fitted within the fighting compartment and the lower hull is finished off with the attaching of the rear bulkhead which has been fitted out with the two rear access doors, the door handles, internal door latch wheel, mud flaps, two, two piece stowage boxes, several grab handles, two footsteps, which can be posed folded up or extended, and two water jet doors. Moving on the inside of the upper hull, several holes need to be opened up before any parts can be added. Once these are done the two sidewalls are attached, along with more stowage boxes, drivers, gunners and fighting compartment clear periscopes, ventilator inlets, and machine gun mounts. Topside of the upper hull the three front mounted hatches are attached, either open or closed, followed by the two oblique mounted machine gun barrels, with a choice of two different types of barrel, two headlights, each with clear lenses, sidelights, wing mirrors, grab handles and pioneer tools. The rear mounted hatches can also be posed open or closed, and since there is an interior to see it would be a shame to have it all buttoned up, each of the large hatches have smaller hatches fitted. The large engine air intake is fitted just forward of the large hatches and is fitted with a PE screen. At the bow, two armour supports are fitted on each side, whilst at the rear, the PE radiator grille is fitted along with the large exhaust, also with a PE plate fitted. The upper and lower hull assemblies are then joined together and the large, two piece ERA block is attaché dot the lower glacis plate. The slide ERA blocks are also provided as two parts, which when joined together are further fitted out with the ten PE support beams and separate two piece front block. Before fitting the large side ERA blocks, the track guards, moulded complete with attachment points are glued to the sides of the hull. The rear quarter sections of armour are made up of an inner plate, with exhaust aperture in the right hand plate, two support brackets, and two sections of bar armour. The side blocks and quarter armour are then attached to their respective positions on the hull, along with an attachment beam on the upper glacis plate. Since the kit comes with an interior for the hull it’s only natural that it also comes with a full turret interior. Construction of this begins with the assembly of the four piece main gun breech, which includes the trunnions, four piece commanders seat base and four piece turret training gearbox. The gear box and commanders seat base are attached to the turret floor which is made up from upper and lower sections. The turret motor, centre console, four piece gunners seat base, commanders and gunners seats are then glued into position. The floor is fixed to the turret ring via four support legs, whilst the ring also has the lower mantlet plate fitted. The turret floor detail is further enhanced with the inclusion of three ready use rounds for the main gun. The interior of the turret itself is fitted with the commanders sighing equipment and intercom boxes, whilst on the outside the large, ten piece targeting sight is fitted to the left hand side of the turret, and two, two piece periscope covers plus loading hatch are also attached. Whilst the gunners hatch is a very simple single piece affair, the commanders hatch is much more complicated. The hatch ring is fitted with two clear periscope parts from the inside, along with the commanders turret control yoke, and on the outside the hatch and four piece searchlight is attached. The breech sub assembly is then fitted into position, along with the mantlet and the two piece main gun barrel is glued into position, the coaxial 30mm barrel is the attached to the mantlet and the main barrel on the right hand side and the coaxial machine gun is fitted to the left hand side of the mantlet. The top of the turret is then fitted with the aerial base, an infra red sight complete with searchlight on top and a piece of appliqué armour just in front of the gunners hatch, three bar armour support brackets, rear turret bustle plate. The turret is then attached to the turret ring/floor assembly, after which the turret mounted bar armour is attached, followed by the cheek mounted screens, each made up from the cheek plate, attachment pads and the five individual screens. The turret is finished off with the fitting of another searchlight, it’s electrical cable, and what I presume is a laser sight, made up from four parts and attached above the rear of the main gun barrel. The completed turret is then fitted to the hull assembly, thus completing the build. There is just the one colour scheme provided for the UAE vehicle, which is sandy brown overall with red brown splotches. No unit or other markings are provided. Conclusion Well, Trumpeter are still finding new variants of Russian vehicles to kit, not that I’m complaining. This looks like another winner and one which has the potential to have even more detail added to it in the form of personal kit, food/water containers and weapons, or whatever you fancy. It does make a change from having another green based camouflaged vehicle in the collection, and will stand out from the crowd. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

Russian GAZ-66 Oil Tanker Trumpeter 1:35 History The GAZ-66 light utility truck entered production in 1964 at the Gorky Automobile Plant, where it replaced the earlier GAZ-63 on the lines. Originally produced for both civilian and military use, the military versions gradually became paramount. The overall design follows the usual Soviet guidelines of relative simplicity, strength and versatility. There are no design frills on the GAZ-66 as it is an orthodox forward control design capable of being produced in, or modified into, many different versions. This truck had been produced for 35 years. It's production ceased in 1999. Nearly 1 million of these trucks were built. The GAZ-66 is still used by the Russian Army, many ex-Warsaw Pact armed forces and wherever Soviet influence has spread. Many are used throughout the Middle East and nations in Africa. The GAZ-66 was simple in design and technology. Also it was easy to maintain. The basic cargo/utility model has an all-steel cargo body with an optional canvas cover over bows mounted on a chassis frame that can be arranged to carry any number of body styles. Cab is mounted over the engine and provides seating for the driver and one passenger. Standard equipment of the GAZ-66 includes a powerful cab heater and an engine pre-heater but these are omitted on models intended for tropical use. The GAZ-66 is powered by a 4.2ltr V8 petrol engine developing 115 hp. The truck has a full-time all-wheel drive and made a name for itself as a superb cross-country vehicle. Models produced from 1968 onwards, the GAZ-66A, have a central tyre pressure system and may feature a soft-top cab. Different variants have been produced specifically designed so that, over the range of vehicles, they can operate in climatic conditions ranging from -50°C to +50°C. There are numerous sub-variants of the GAZ-66, with or without winches, and with many equipped for special roles such as oil supply vehicles, the subject of this kit. A follow-on GAZ-3308 Sadko was developed as a replacement, however Russian Army preferred the KRAZ-4350, which offers more payload. However the GAZ-66 remains in widespread use and full replacement may take some time. The Model The kit comes in a sturdy top opening box with a artistic impression of the vehicle on a snowy airfield with a Mig 31 taking off in the background. Opening the box reveals ten sprues in various sizes in a nice light grey styrene, one sprue of clear styrene, three small photo etched brass sheets, five vinyl tyres and a small decal sheet. The mouldings for all the parts are superb, with no sign of flash or other imperfections and very few moulding pips. As with most truck kits there are a lot of parts that will probably never be seen, particularly the nicely detailed chassis, suspension and engine, but in my view it’s better to have them than not. There also lots of very thin parts such as the handrail across the top of the tank, which seemed to snap as I looked at it. This and other bits of pipework and rails do appear to have quite a few sprue gates and moulding pips, so take great care when removing them from the sprue and cleaning them up. The build begins with the several sub-assemblies, beginning with the superbly detailed V8 engine. The engine block is provided in two halves, which, once joined together, are fitted with the sump and intake manifold. Each of the exhaust manifolds are provided in two pieces, these are fitted to the upper sides of the engine block, with the two cylinder heads fitted above them. The crank case and two piece starter motor are then attached to the rear end of the block, whilst the ancillary drive plate is fitted to the front. The two piece alternator is fitted to the right hand front with the water pump fitted to the front. On the top of the engine the six piece throttle body, three piece oil filter and single piece distributer are attached. The inner drive belt is fitted along its idler and tensioner wheels, followed by the outer drive belt and its idler and tensioner wheels and completed with the fitting of the cooling fan. The last part of the engine is the air filter, and this is made up from six parts before being fitted to the top of the engine. The next sub-assembly is for the peddle box, which consists of two halves, between which the brake and clutch pedals and a spacer bar are sandwiched. Each of the pedals are then fitted with their respective pads. Support bracket and box structures are then attached to the top of the box, followed by the steering column and steering wheel. The centre console of the cab is the fitted with the lid of the large storage box, whilst the two seats, each made up form three parts are also assembled. Each of the cab doors are also assembled, each with from the outer skin, clear part, door card and associated handles. The centre console is attached to the single piece floor moulding along with the accelerator pedal and seats. On the outside of the cab, just behind the rear of the centre console a selection of five levers which make up the oil tank pump controls are fitted. The instrument binnacle is fitted out with the various instrument decals, gear stick and the co-drivers grab handle before being fitted to the raised section of the floor moulding in front of the centre console. The single piece cab is then fitted with the two door assemblies, two windscreens, two rear screens, two quarter screens, a vent cover and the grille. The cab and floor assembly are then attached before the roof is fitted, followed by the headlights, with their clear lenses and side lights. To finish off the cab, two, two piece frames for attaching to the chassis later on, are attached to the underside, followed by the windscreen wipers, mud flaps, spotlight and two, three piece door mirrors. The completed cab is then put to one side to dry properly. Moving on to the running gear and each of the five tyres are fitted with their two piece rims, with the driving wheels also fitted with centrally mounted caps. The spare wheel frame is now assembled with the two frame rails joined together by seven crosspieces and two wheel supports and trough. The frame also carries the three piece pump unit for the oil tank and a two piece tool box, oh and the spare wheel, or course. The next sub-assembly is that of the winch unit. This is made up from the drum, to which a universal joint if fitted, this attaches to the four piece gearbox and three piece support frame. The front and rear differentials are assembled next, each from two halves, and fitted with the over and under spring clamps. There are two large air accumulators, and each of these are made up of two halves, to which a two piece valve is fitted as well as the support frame. The large oil tank consists of two halves split horizontally, which, when joined together are fitted with the rear mounted two piece hose box, followed by the two top mounted hatches and their frames. The tank assembly is then fitted to the supporting frame/walkway, which has two grab handles attached on top and two light clusters to the rear underside. The tanks two pipes are fitted between the tank and the hose box, and the underside is further fitted out with the front wheelarch sections which are held in place with two PE support struts. On top of the tank there is a long pipe attached, and fitted with to tap pipes connected to the hatch frames, whilst on the opposite side there is a long handrail. Usually assembled at the beginning of most truck kits the chassis construction finally takes place. Each of the chassis rails are fitted out with the air accumulators, cab suspension springs, suspension mounts, and two, two piece oil tanks. They are then joined together by five cross members, with the front capped off by the winch assembly and the rear capped off by the hook mounting strut and its associated braces. The tank supports braces are then attached to the rear of each rail and fitted with U clamps, whilst at the other end the engine assembly is mounted to the front cross members. The front bumper is then fitted along with its PE brackets, along with a PE footplate and a PE tow eye. There is a small power take off box fitted to the rear of the engine which will eventually connect to the pump unit on the spare wheel frame. On the underside of the chassis, the four leaf spring units are attached along with their respective clamps. The exhaust pipe is then attached to the exhaust manifolds of the engine and clamped to the right hand rail about half way down the chassis. The front differential is fitted with the two, five piece hubs and ball joints, along with the steering rack. The two differentials are then glued into position along with the three piece transfer box and joined together by the three drive shafts, each with separate universal joints. The radiator housing is made up from the housing, radiators rear mesh, front mesh, and top cap, along with the intercooler and two support struts. The assembly is then fitted to the chassis in front of the engine. On the upperside of the chassis, several support frames are attached, along with the rear PE bumpers, which need to be carefully bent to shape using the jig provided, as well as the four shock absorbers, and anti roll links. Each of the two petrol tanks is made up form top and bottom halves, two piece filler caps and their respective pipes. These are then fitted to the support frames fitted earlier. Tow small two hooks are fitted to the rear chassis cross member via two PE plates. The truck really starts to come together now, with the fitting of the four wheels, oil tank assembly, spare wheel rack and finally the cab assembly. There you have it, one complete GAZ 66 model. The model only comes iin one colour scheme, that of overall light green with a black chassis. Decals are provided for the number plates and that’s it, no placards or anything that I would have thought an oil truck should have, but then it is Russian and they never seem overly concerned with the sort of signs we in the West go mad for. Conclusion As trucks go, this one is rather cute and will look great in a collection or in a diorama with one of Trumpeters big 1:35 scale helicopters. There is an awful lot of detail that is lost once the cab and tank go on, but if you do a bit of research then you may be able to display the cab open and the beautiful engine on display, although you will have to add some more pipes and wires to do a proper job on it. Also the hose box could have done with the option of having it open with all the valves that are necessary for pumping the oil out. That said it’s a great looking kit and I can happily recommend it to truck modellers and normal modellers alike. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

BMP-2D Infantry Fighting Vehicle 1:35 Trumpeter History The BMP-2 is an infantry combat vehicle variant of the BMP-1 that incorporates a major armament change. It has an enlarged two-man turret which mounts a 30-mm automatic gun, model 2A42, with a long, thin tube and a double-baffle muzzle brake, along with a 7.62-mm coaxial machine gun on its front. On top of the turret is an ATGM launcher. This launcher can employ either AT-4 SPIGOT or AT-5 SPANDREL missiles. Although it is the AT-5 SPANDREL canister normally seen mounted. The engine is an upgraded 300-hp, V-6 diesel. The vehicle commander now sits in the two-man turret, along with the gunner. Because of the enlarged turret, there is room for only two roof hatches in the rear fighting compartment, rather than the four of the BMP-1. The BMP-2 can accommodate one less passenger than the BMP-1; there also is one less firing port for an assault rifle on each side. BMP-2D, (the subject of this release), is a late production version of the BMP-2. This vehicle includes appliqué armour on the turret, provision for mounting mine clearing system under the nose of the vehicle, and spaced type appliqué armour fitted along either side of the hull. The downside is that this vehicle is no longer amphibious. Model The kit comes in the standard Trumpeter box with a depiction of the vehicle in what looks like a Middle Eastern environment. Inside, there are sixteen sprues of light grey styrene, two separate hull sections; one sprue of clear styrene, rather unusually in this day and age the kit comes with rubber band style tracks, and a small decal sheet. In a slight step backwards, along with the tracks, the kit does not include a metal barrel, unlike its predecessors. The moulding of the parts is well up to Trumpeters usual standards, with no sign of flash or other imperfections, lots of very fine detail, but quite a few moulding pips. Dry fitting of the upper and lower hull sections shows that it will be a very good fit and, most probably an easy and enjoyable build. Construction begins with the lower hull section, to which the lower front glacis plate is attached. The plate is fitted out with the various paraphernalia, such as the towing hooks, towing eyes, and brackets. The six return rollers are then attached to the hull, along with the bump stops, which have PE end caps, mud scrapers on the idler wheel end and the sprocket gear casings on the front. The idler wheel axle is fitted, followed by the torsion beam suspension units are then attached, with the front two and rearmost units fitted with shock absorbers. Each of the road wheels, and sprockets are made up from two halves, whilst the idlers are made up of two styrene hubs, between which five PE spacers are fitted. The wheels are then attached to their respective axles, and the rear end of the hull is fitted with two towing eyes and their mounting plates, a pair of grab handles and the rear track guards/mudflaps. The two rear doors are each assembled, made up form inner and outer skins, clear periscope, hinges, and door handles, before being fitted tot he lower hull. Since the vehicle comes with an interior, you may wish to pose the doors open, in which case you should probably leave this till nearer the end of the build to prevent them being knocked off as the build progresses. The interior is now built up with the six torsion beam covers and two rearmost slats glued to the inside of the lower hull. The large console fitted to the rear of the vehicle, between the two doors is made up form five parts, then glued into position, along with the two interior panels that fit on the outer sides. There are two seats, each made up form five parts that are fitted to the left of the engine compartment which is closed off by two bulkheads, There is a two piece storage box situated just behind the rearmost of the two seats. The front seat is for the driver, and this position is also provided with a nice instrument panel, for which there is a well printed decal used to represent the instruments, and a two piece steering arm. The troops carried in the back of the vehicle sit on two, three piece bench seats which are finished of with two end plates. The rubber band style tracks are fitted at this point in the instructions, although its probably best to leave these till after painting. Moving onto the upper hull, the large turret ring is fitted, along with the drivers clear periscopes, commanders sights, and troop periscopes and gun ports, fitted to the interior. On the exterior, the front glacis plate is fitted, along with the periscope covers and outer gun port hatches, and ventilator mushroom. These are followed by the front and rear lights, various brackets and straps, and the three slats that fit into the exhaust Now, although this type of BMP is not amphibious, it still has a splash guard fitted to the front glacis plate, and would be used for fording rivers and the like. The splash guard and its hinges on this kit can be posed either extended, with the addition of two gas struts or stowed away. Still on the upper hull, the PE exhaust grille is fitted into a tray like part and glued over the exhaust port. The drivers and commanders hatches are each or three parts and can be posed open or closed, as can the two, two piece troop hatches on the rear roof. A couple of pioneer tools are also fitted to the rear upper roof. The upper and lower hull assemblies are now joined together, followed by the two track guards which are fixed to the hull via the top of each guard and three stays per side. The appliqué armour is then attached to the hull sides, above the track guards. Onto the turret next, and, as with the hull, this is provided with a full interior. Firstly the main sight and targeting control panel are assembled and fitted to the inside of the turret, along with three clear periscopes and a further sight, I assume is for the AT-5 missile, with a pair of control handles. Each of the two hatches are built up from multiple parts, the gunners hatch ring has another missile sight fitted on the inside, along with a pair of periscopes, whilst on the outside is the sights protective cover, five piece infra red searchlight and three part hatch. The second hatch, presumably the missile man/loader, is a much simpler type, and is made up from just three parts. Naturally each hatch can be posed open or closed. The turret is then fitted to its base section, followed by the mantlet, main cannon and co-axial machine gun. There are quite a few grab handles, and the appliqué armour brackets fitted to the outside of the turret, as well as the two aerial bases, an additional sight for the loader and another searchlight. The appliqué armour sheet is then attached to the brackets on the rear of the turret, whilst the six smoke discharger tubes are fitted, three per side. The AT-5 tube is made up from two halves and two end pieces. The tube is then fitted to the tube locking mechanism, which, in turn is fitted to the four part launcher, before the whole assembly is attached to the roof of the turret. A third searchlight, made from three pieces, and probably another infra red light is fitted just to the right of the mantlet, low down on the turret. The turret cage is now assembled from the floor, two three piece seats, training motor housing/gearbox, turret control arm, two footplates, and four supports which connect the floor to the turret. The completed turret is then slid into the turret ring completing the build. Decals The small decal sheet provides markings for only one of the two vehicles depicted on the colour chart, neither of which are identified. One is obviously army, whilst the anchor on the turret could mean its Russian Marines of Naval Infantry, (if they still have such a unit). Both vehicles are in the same camouflage of light green, black and wood brown over sandy brown. Conclusion Trumpeter seem to be trying to produce every variant of Russian vehicle they can find, not that that is a bad thing, but it would be nice to see some other countries vehicles being modelled. That doesn’t make this kit bad, in fact it looks to be a very nice kit and, what with the interior, could be made into a great looking model, especially if the modeller added some small details such as personal weapons, small arms, water bottles etc. I tiwll also make for a good subject for a diorama, with all the doors open and some troops milling around. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

USS Texas, BB-35 Trumpeter 1:350 USS Texas (BB-35), the second ship of the United States Navy named in honour of the U.S. state of Texas, is a New York-class battleship. The ship was launched on 18 May 1912 and commissioned on 12 March 1914. Soon after her commissioning, Texas saw action in Mexican waters following the "Tampico Incident" and made numerous sorties into the North Sea during World War I. When the United States formally entered World War II in 1941, Texas escorted war convoys across the Atlantic, and later shelled Axis-held beaches for the North African campaign and the Normandy Landings before being transferred to the Pacific Theatre late in 1944 to provide naval gunfire support during the Battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Texas was decommissioned in 1948, having earned a total of five battle stars for service in World War II, and is now a museum ship near Houston, Texas. Among the world's remaining battleships, Texas is notable for being the only remaining WW1 era dreadnought battleship, though she is not the oldest surviving battleship; Mikasa, a pre-dreadnought battleship ordered in 1898 by the Empire of Japan, is older than Texas. She is also noteworthy for being one of only six remaining ships to have served in both World Wars. Among US-built battleships, Texas is notable for her sizable number of firsts: the first US Navy vessel to house a permanently assigned contingent of US Marines, the first US battleship to mount anti-aircraft guns, the first US ship to control gunfire with directors and range-keepers (analogue forerunners of today's computers), the first US battleship to launch an aircraft, from a catapult on Turret 3, one of the first to receive the CXAM-1 version of CXAM production radar in the US Navy, the first US battleship to become a permanent museum ship, and the first battleship declared to be a US National Historic Landmark. The Model With the release of the USS New York maritime modeller knew that it wouldn’t be too long before Trumpeter released her sister ship the USS Texas. Well, here she is in all her glory. Fortunately Trumpeter haven’t just released the same parts as in the New York kit, which they could well have done knowing their haphazard research techniques, as the deck and superstructure parts are all new and from what I can see, correct for the era. Unfortunately, they haven’t done anything with the hull, which still sports the overlarge shelf along the top of the aft section of the armoured belt, which is a great shame as this is almost impossible to fix. The large, thick, hull plates are also still in evidence, but at least these can be sorted with a bit of judicious rubbing down with some wet ‘n’ dry. The kit comes in the standard top opening box that has a very nice rendition of the Texas at sea in line ahead with another battleship on the top. Inside there are eleven sheets of light grey styrene, two main deck parts and six loose superstructure parts, also in light grey styrene, two sprues of clear styrene, four sheets of etched brass and small decal sheet the large black styrene stand and a length of chain. All the parts are very nicely moulded with some very fine details, particularly on the deck and superstructure. The parts are all cleanly moulded, with no sign of flash or other imperfections, but there are quite a few moulding pips, mainly on the small parts. The exceptions being on a couple of the loose parts, where they look like they have been quite roughly removed from a sprue, with large lugs that need to be removed and cleaned up. The instructions are well printed and very clearly mark the positioning of parts and sub-assemblies Construction begins with the fitting of the two hull halves between which are four bulkheads and two joining parts for the bow and stern. The main deck is provided in two sections, the joint of which is fortunately covered by the superstructure, so there’s no worry about filling an awkward seam. Turning the hull upside down the four keel strakes, two propeller shafts, A frame supports, and propellers plus the rudder are attached. Before moving on, several sub-assemblies and PE parts are constructed. These include the PE inclined ladders, PE floater baskets, forty two 20mm Oerlikon mounts with PE shields, two director towers with PE radar dish, twelve 5” gun mounts, and eight quad 40mm mountings with PE railings. Six of the 5” mounts are fitted just forward of amidships before the large deck 01 is attached. This needs several holes drilled through before the fitting as the ship is at a different mod state than the previously released sister ship USS New York. On either side of the hull, aligned with 01 deck, a section of what used to be the barbette emplacements is attached. The bridge area is now assembled, which includes 02 deck, armoured steering bridge, 03 deck and secondary bridge along with two lookout points. The bridge structure is then glued into position along with two ready use lockers, signal lamps, large and small and two binocular stands. The instructions also call for some of the railings, inclined ladders and floater nets to be fitted, but it may be prudent to leave these till nearer the end of the build. The underside of the upper bridge deck/mast is also fitted out with PE braces and struts before being turned over and fitted with the forward main director two rangefinders, two aldis lamps and six 20mm Oerlikons. The two inclined mast poles and underside deck supports are attached and the sub-assembly fitted above the bridge, followed by the mast pole which has two lookout tubs attached along with their roof. Once again the railings and inclined ladders are due to be fitted at this point. The upper spotting top is now assembled, with the PE support braces, yardarms and a very nice PE radar antenna. This is then fitted to the top of the mast structure along with two PE inclined access ladders. Attention is then quickly focused onto the foredeck, with the fitting of the PE anchor chains, hawse pipe gratings and styrene windlasses, cleats, bollards and Jackstaff. Moving aft, more ready use lockers are fitted round the bridge structure and mid AA gun deck. These are followed by several deckhouses, complete with attached carley floats, six quad 40mm mounts, six 5” mounts and four 20mm Oerlikons alongside B barbette, as well as a pair of small goose necked derricks. Aft of the forward superstructure all the way back to the quarterdeck, or fantail in this case, numerous ready use lockers, ventilation mushrooms, intakes, davits, and other ephemera are fitted. Four more deckhouse sub assemblies are then constructed and fitted with either Carley floats or 20mm Oerlikons and floater baskets, before being fitted into their respective positions, followed by four Quad 40mm mounts, two Mk 51 directors, four 5” mounts, a practice 5” loader and twenty 20mm Oerlikons. The funnel is assembled next; it comes in two halves and is fitted with a styrene and PE funnel cap and base. It’s completed with auxiliary steam pipes, PE funnel guards and railings before being fitted into position. The next sub assembly is what looks like an auxiliary bridge on top of a large intake trunk, capped with a small radar antenna. This is fitted just aft of the funnel along with four ships boats onto their respective cradles. More of the ships superstructure railings are now attached as well as the remainder of the floater baskets. The two cranes are assembled from a mixture of PE and styrene parts which should make them look really good once painted up. With these in place the build moves onto the five 14” main turrets. Each turret consists of the base, turret, and the two gun barrels, which whilst they are quite nicely done, they would be better replaced with turned metal items. The centre turret is fitted with a very nicely detailed PE catapult, complete with walkways and supports, whilst B and X turrets are each fitted with six 20mm Oerlikons, their splinter shields, ready use lockers and on the outside of the shields four floater baskets, plus Y turret has four Carley rafts attached the turret sides. With the build in its final stages the five turrets are fitted and the main mast is assembled from a series of decks, three mast poles, and fitted with the after main director, topped off with a pole mast on top of which is the large CXAM-1 radar array, which is made entirely of PE parts, although fitted to a styrene mounting, four 20mm Oerlikons, ready use lockers and railings before being attached to the ship. The kit comes complete with two OS2U Kingfisher aircraft on the two clear sprues. These are assembled from two fuselage halves, separate floats and propeller. Unfortunately there appears to be only room for one on the model and that would be attached to the catapult, as there isn’t a handling trolley for the other to sit on, although one of the aftermarket companies may rectify this. Last task is to fit all the upper deck railings and set the completed model onto the large stand provided. Decals The small decal sheet provides national markings and codes numbers for the ships aircraft, the ships name for the stern and her ID number for the Bows and stern quarters, the Stars and Stripes in plain and wavy form. For the colour scheme you will need to get into a blue period, as the horizontal surfaces are Deck Blue and all the vertical surfaces are Navy Blue. You will get some relief if you’re building full hull with the red anti-fouling and black boot topping, as even the aircraft are in a light blue/blue grey and white scheme. Conclusion As with the USS New York release this is Trumpeter at their best, mixing superb detail and moulding with some shocking inaccuracy with the hull. They really do have a problem when it comes to researching ships hulls as they rarely get the details right, even if the length and breadth is correct. That said, if you’re not a stickler for absolute accuracy this will build into an impressive model, after all, most people who will see it won’t know what’s wrong with it. So, for buildability and modelling enjoyment, alone, I can still quite happily recommend it. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for