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  1. Special Hobby (SH) is to reissue in 2023 the Classic Airframes 1/48th Avro Anson Mk.I with two new injected sprues under ref. SH48211 Source: https://www.specialhobby.net/2023/07/sh48211-avro-anson-mki-148-boxart.html box art V.P.
  2. SBD Dauntless Control Surfaces & Dinghy (4463 & 4462 for Acc.Min & Academy) 1:48 Special Hobby The Accurate Miniatures SBD Dauntless in 1:48 was originally tooled in the late 90s, and was well-received at the time, being well-detailed and researched. It has since been reboxed by many manufacturers, including Academy, Monogram and Revell, the latter seeing an outing as an SBD-5 in 2021, which we reviewed here. It’s still very much a modern-looking kit, despite its 25+ year history, but a few aspects could stand some upgrades. Special Hobby have created these two resin sets to assist in this manner. The sets arrive in Special Hobby’s yellow themed blister pack, with a header card and the instructions forming the slot-in back to the package, and holding the resin in place within the blister, whilst remaining visible to the prospective purchaser. Control Surfaces (4463) This set includes seven control surfaces on their own casting blocks, plus six small hinge parts on another block. The new flying surfaces include replacement ailerons for those that are moulded into the kit wings, new elevators and their stabilising fins, plus a new rudder panel to replace the moulded-in original. The detail on the new parts is substantially better than the originals, with crisp panel lines, raised ribs, a fine trim-tab actuator on the rudder, and rounded leading edges to add realism. The elevators are drop-in replacements that can be posed deflected once the small hinge-points are installed, while the rudder and ailerons need their locations clearing by cutting away the originals along the pivot-line. The instructions suggest thinning and bevelling the edges of the wing at the cut to allow the curved noses of the resin parts to fit snugly into position in a realistic manner. The rudder also needs two more hinge-points gluing to the kit fin, marking their location by using the rudder as a template. When complete, it should add extra detail and a more individual look to the model. Dinghy (4462) Consisting of four small parts, the set includes the cylindrical bay for the dinghy, a stowed dinghy pack that slots inside, and a choice of two styles of door, so when cutting away the round panel on the port side of the fuselage you don’t need to worry about keeping the styrene part in one piece. It’s worth noting that on many decal options this panel appears under where one of the fuselage markings will be, so it is wise to plan ahead, and it might also be a good idea to consider masks for the affected markings, so that matching the colour won’t be an issue. If you are careful however, you could cut the decal once you have placed it, and apply the cut-out section to the door, touching in any damage or blemishes that were likely to happen on the real aircraft around a bay that was often opened for checking by crew and maintainers. Conclusion These sets will make a good model better, and the increase in the detail will be noticeable to all but the most oblivious of viewers. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  3. Sow with 3 Piglets (F48394 & F72393) 1:48 & 1:72 Special Hobby It seems Special Hobby are slowly creating a resin menagerie, which could possibly end with the creation of a huge resin ark to put them in two-by-two? Of course, I’m being silly, but we’ve had a profusion of camels from them, and now we have a mother pig with her piglets in two scales, ready to help you with any countryside or agricultural diorama you might have in mind. These sets arrive in the usual yellow themed blister pack with card hanger on the rear and the instructions sandwiched between the two parts. Inside are the resin parts, cocooned by a block of dark grey foam that has been cut out in the centre to accommodate the contents. Each set includes the sow and three piglets, all on the same printing base, supported by fine tendrils in their signature orange resin that combines strength with flexibility, which are desirable traits in 3D printed resin. You will notice that both sets have visible layers on the tops of the animals where the surface is curving very slowly over the back of the animals. At 1:1 scale these layers are almost invisible, and will disappear under a coat of primer, with encouragement from a very light sanding if they persist. It’s a feature of 3D printing, and as the layer height has reduced over the successive generations of printers, so the stepping has become less of an issue. The animals are all in individual, realistic poses, and are supported under their bellies and chins to avoid damage to any of the more visible details, although the pips that remain after removal are minimal due to their clever design, so no detail should be lost. You can see one of the piglets has separated from the larger 1:48 set during transit, which shows off the pose and the few supports that need removing. Sow with Piglets 1:48 (F48394) Sow with Piglets 1:48 (F48394) Conclusion Oink! If you need some pre-bacon for your next project, or really wanted some for your recent diorama, now you can. The two sets are identical in design, just differ in scale, so pick the one you need, and put your trotter on the “add to basket” button. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  4. T-2 Buckeye Anniversary Markings (SH32087) 1:32 Special Hobby Following WWII, the US Air Force embraced the jet engine wholeheartedly, with the Navy lagging behind a little due to the slow spool-up of the early jet engines that made wave-offs and go-arounds a cheek-clenching prospect. By the early 50s the T-28 Trojan was showing its age, so those in command began looking for a replacement. North American won a contract in the mid-50s, and the T-2A flew by 1958, entering limited service a year later, with only one jet engine installed in the earliest variant, which was also called the T2J-1 at the time, although consolidation of naming in 1962 renamed it as the T-2A. By the time the T-2B entered service, the engine count had increased by one to give it more speed and similarity of operation to the aircraft that the trainees would eventually fly after graduation. Around 600 airframes were built in total, and the type had a long career that spanned around 40 years, with most pilots during that time having spent part of their training flying a Buckeye, the name given to it that relates to the location of the factory in Ohio that made them, which has a state tree by that name. The T-2C was the final variant in US service, with GE engines replacing the Pratt & Whitney units, presumably for efficiency and maintenance reasons, as they brought no extra power to the party. 50+ D and E variants were built for overseas operators in South America and more notably Greece, who took 40 and are still flying them at time of writing. In US service the Buckeye was retired in 2008 when it was replaced by the more modern T-45 Goshawk, which is a substantially re-engineered and Navalised version of the BAe Hawk, as used by the RAF and the famous Red Arrows. The Goshawk is faster and more agile than its predecessor, getting close to the sound barrier and with advanced avionics that mimics those of the current fighters better than the worn-out Buckeyes could manage. A few T-2s are still flying in private hands, and make appearances at air shows, as do the Greek airframes if you’re lucky. The Kit This is a welcome reboxing of the 2014 releases of the US Navy and Greek boxings in this scale, only this boxing comes with a choice of both markings of these initial issues, so if you missed out on those, now is the time. The kit arrives in a top-opening box that has a pair of profiles of the decal options laid over a merged US and Greek flag. Inside are nine sprues of grey styrene, or eight if your fuselage halves haven’t separated in transit. There is also a small clear sprue with a separate canopy part, a small box with a bag of seventeen resin parts, three decal sheets, and finally an instruction booklet printed in colour on glossy white paper, with painting and decaling profiles on the rear pages, followed by some adverts for some of Special Hobby’s other products. Detail is good, and improved further by the resin that’s included, especially a pair of ejection seats that are very well done. Engraved panel lines, accompanied by raised and recessed features where you’d expect them go to make a good-looking model that is surprisingly large once complete. Construction begins with the cockpit, diving straight into the instrument panel, which has a decal placed over the raised dials, and is inserted into the coaming along with a bump on the top, a job that is repeated to make the rear instrument panel, only the bump count has increased to two, and there is an insert with the rear of the panel depicting the cylindrical backs of the instruments. It also has a decal, and is then mounted on a support frame for later insertion. The four side consoles are detailed with additional parts, including arms that mount the rudder pedals from the sides, all of which has colour call outs using letters that correspond with a table of Gunze Sangyo paint codes. For a total change, the lower wings have their moulded-in main bay details painted and the flap bulkhead inserted, then we’re back with the cockpit, bringing together the various sub-assemblies on the cockpit floor, adding bulkheads behind each pilot, control columns, two more small parts on the tutor’s coaming, and a rounded enclosure on a shelf behind him. Another diversion sees the twin intake trunks built from vertically split halves, then attached to a bulkhead that has the front of the engine’s compressor blades moulded in, and a similar pair of trunks at the exhaust end that mate to a bulkhead with the rear of the engine moulded-in. The two-panel rudder is made from two pairs of halves, and the nose gear bay is glued together down the centre, while the two resin North American ejection seats are painted and decaled, with a few small resin parts added, at which point you’re ready to close the fuselage, remembering to first paint the two resin inserts that are placed in the fuselage under the wing roots. The insides of the fuselage are also painted around the cockpit and the exhaust trunking, then those assemblies, the intakes, nose gear bay and the afore mentioned resin inserts are all trapped between the fuselage halves, locating on raised guidelines for security. Although the wings are separate due to their position mid-fuselage, they are shown being built up together, adding bay walls around the cut-out in the lower wing halves, closing the wings by fitting the uppers with their now-painted interiors. Flaps, ailerons, elevators and their fins are all built from two halves each, ready for joining to the fuselage in the next step, remembering to first install inserts into the wing roots to complete the bay walls before you glue them in place. The rudder panels fit into the moulded-in fin, with the elevators and their separate control surfaces slotted into holes in the tail, allowing you to deflect them if you wish. Someone seems to have forgotten that the wings’ control surfaces haven’t been fitted yet, as the drawing shows them in place, but they’re done later. First, the gap that extends the full length of the engine “swelling” is inserted, the intakes are extended forward and capped by a single lip each, adding a gaggle of intakes and outlets around the nacelles, with fillets inserted aft of the exhausts, and the arrestor hook fitted under the tail. The flaps can be posed deployed for landing/take-off, or cleaned-up for flight by adding or omitting the small hinge points and jacks that push them back and down in their tracks. More small antennae and lights are fixed to the underside while the model is inverted, then the landing gear is created and installed. Each of the main struts have a straight strut that glues to a sturdy A-frame and plugs into the bay, with separate scissor-links and three bay doors, the inner door provided with a resin H-jack retractor that has series of scrap diagrams showing its correct location, along with the retractor jack, and finally the two-part wheels. The nose gear leg is a single part that has separate scissor-links, and a short-drum-like part that glues to the bottom of the leg, then it slots into the back of the nose gear bay, adding the bay doors to the sides that have separate hinges and retraction struts that help open and close the doors with the movement of the leg. The two-part tip-tanks are glued to the ends of the wings, with clear lights at the tip and outer face, adding the ailerons to their cut-outs, a pair of strakes down the fuselage sides, a probe in the tail fin, and two clear tail lights, one each side. Another clear light inserts in a recess in the port wing leading edge to finish work on the exterior. The two ejection seats that were made up earlier are fitted with three- or two-part rails before being placed into the cockpit, adding a gunsight for one decal option to the front coaming, with a choice of long or short opening jacks between the crew, depending on whether you intend to pose the canopy open or not, cutting off 6mm for the closed canopy. Before fitting the canopy, a central cross-brace and rear bulkhead are fitted inside with a non-fogging glue, painting them a dark grey as you go, which is as good a time as any to mention the canopy mask set that SH have, which we reviewed here a little while ago. There is a small indent on the underside of the cross-brace to help locate the opener jack, then you can glue the windscreen into position over the coaming. Markings There are two decal options spread across two of the sheets, with the third sheet containing stencils for around the airframe. From the box you can build one of the following: T-2C Buckeye, Bu.no.155241, No.309, VT-23 ‘The Professionals’, NAS Kingsville, Texas, 1976, marking the US Bicentennial. T-2E Buckeye, Bu.no.160084, No.84, 363 Air Training School (MEA) ‘Danaos’, 120 Air Training Wing (PEA), Kalamata, Hellenic Air Force, celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the 363 MEA. The decals are printed using a digital process and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas. This means that the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. Conclusion It’s good to see this kit back on the shelves, and with marking for US and Greek aircraft included to widen the appeal. The resin does a good job of increasing the detail of the model, especially those ejection seats. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  5. Hello, I'm continuing my series of Italian aircraft. The next one is a little SIAI-Marchetti probably the most widespread Italian design created by aviation engineer Stelio Frati. This little bird stayed in production for over 50 years and continues to serve in AMI already for 47 years (the newer EA version of course - but the design did not change too much). This bird has been largely neglected by kit manufacturers in 1/72 for many years until Special Hobby and AZ models concurrently released it in the end of 2020. I could never understand how Italeri is able to ignore such classic Italian designs... Special Hobby supplied its initial release with the decals for the SF.260 that took part in a farewell ceremony for SF.260AM version that was held in Latina airbase on 19 September 2009 - almost exactly 14 years ago! The machine with s/n 54436 and code 70-63 received commemorative inscriptions to mark 35 years of service and impressive 235,500 hours flown as an AMI trainer! This kit - quite unusually for me - is completely out-of-the-box. Minor scratch built additions include a small antenna on the canopy and two antennae on the sides of the tail. Kit builds up quite quickly and easily. Decals worked very well. Orange colour is of course complex to paint. I used Hobby Color H14 which in my view gave very close match. Thanks for looking to everybody! Dennis P.S. As a bonus - here is the original aircraft photographed at the ceremony in Latina taken from this article https://theaviationist.com/2009/09/22/latina-19-09-09-sf-260ams-last-flight/:
  6. After the A-11 (link) Special Hobby is to release a 1/72nd Aero A-12 (early and late) kit - ref. 72466 Source: https://www.specialhobby.net/2023/04/sh72466-aero-12-172-v-priprave.html V.P.
  7. I love the SMB-2/Sambad / Sa'ar is aircraft, the Special Hobby kit is a joy to build and this will be my 4th. I am building it alongside the Cobra but with a lower level of priority. It will be painted in air superiority camo and loaded with Shafrir, 530l fuel tanks and quad racks. Reference pictures are scarce on the web but I got a lot of material from a Hondurian whose father served on the Sa'ar. I decided to start the build with the preparation of the fuselage halves. On the port side, after gluing the exhaust characteristic from the Sa'ar, I did the following: 1. Remove the AOA probe 2. Carve the missing NACA inlet 3. Drill an aft angled vent hole 4. Fill the forward NACA inlet 5. Create a 2mm x 2 mm opening on the hatch that is between the NACA inlets. 6. Glue the aft fuselage part that is characteristic of the Sa'ar in order to accomodate the P&W J52 inside SMB-2 fuselage. A small step needs sanding. 7. Drill the location of the pitot probes made of Albion Alloy micro tubes that will replace the plastic parts. 8. Drill the DEFA 30mm gun opening and glue a gin barrel made of 0,6mm Albion Alloy tube 9. Glue the main landing gear hatch (normally closed on the ground) The red line outlines a mould seam that could be confused with a panel line but actually needs to be sanded off. Starboard side: 10. Add a small scoop on the hatch. 11. Fill the NACA inlet 12. Create the 2mm square opening The pitot probe location was also drilled, the gun barrel added and the main landing gear hatch glued like on the other side. Then, I tackled the wings and drilled the location of the position lights: The air intake and the exhaust tunnel are glued and painted: The cockpit will be next.
  8. Grunau Baby IIB German WWII Glider (SH48237) 1:48 Special Hobby Between the wars, gliding was gaining in popularity, particularly in Germany where they developed soaring techniques and more efficient gliders allowing pilots to achieve unpowered flights of greater distance and duration using thermal, ridge and wave lift. Edmund Schneider had already produced the Grunau Baby 1, which proved to be very popular as a club aircraft with its simple design, being easily maintained, and many future Luftwaffe pilots gained their wings on the type. Schneider was a relatively young and unknown designer at that time and so he enlisted the help of the well-known and highly respected Wolf Hirth. Hirth was also a designer but was also the chief instructor at the Grunau Gliding School, and he agreed to say that he was the person behind the Grunau Baby design, a fact he would never contradict in the future. Improvements and development of the existing Grunau design resulted in the Grunau Baby 2A and ultimately the 2B. The basic fuselage was retained but with a lengthened and widened nose section. The fuselage was constructed around hexagonal frames with spruce longerons and a stressed skin of plywood. This proved to be extremely robust and easy to repair. The wings were a much more complex component however. Retaining the struts of earlier models, the wings consisted of a plywood covered leading edge torsion box ahead of the single main spar and fabric covering over the built-up ribs to the rear. The ailerons were also fabric covered but of slightly narrower chord compared to earlier models. With the introduction of the Grunau 2B, the wing span was increased to 13.75 metres and more efficient top and bottom airbrakes were incorporated. The tailplane, elevator and rudder were all fabric covered. The design proved to be extremely successful, and remained in production for almost a decade. The design also proved popular outside Germany and many countries such as Great Britain, Czechoslovakia, France and Brazil built their own version under license. Additionally, many Grunau 2Bs were built from kits or from factory supplied drawings. The exact number of airframes built is unknown, but at time of writing now exceeds seven thousand, making it one of the highest production runs in the world. Who knows how many more will come to light in the future? Above text courtesy of Stringbag, who knows about, and has flown in many gliders, including the Grunau Baby. The Kit This is a re-boxing with new decals of Special Hobby’s 2020 kit of this interesting little wood and fabric glider, and as you can imagine, it’s not a large kit, arriving in a small blue, white and grey themed top-opening box, with just one sprue of grey styrene, a clear sprue with one part, decal sheet and A5 instruction booklet that is printed in colour on glossy paper. Detail is good, although gliders are necessarily sleek to reduce wind resistance, even those from before metal and fibreglass became popular construction methods. The fabric and ribs of the flying surfaces and wing are nicely done, and if you wanted to create a more contrasting colour scheme, Special Hobby’s CMK range produce a set of masks that cover the wings and the small windscreen that keeps the bugs out of the pilot’s teeth. You can see our review of the masking set here. Construction begins with the simple cockpit, which has a floor with bevelled sides, the socket and gaiter for the control column and the base for the seat moulded-in, the latter receiving a cushion to protect the pilot’s behind. The interior is painted the same colour as the exterior, and the fuselage sidewalls have a leather document wallet, a narrow side console and a small winder handle added, before the rudder pedals are fixed into the nose, the floor slotted into the fuselage, and a bulkhead with a recess in the centre is added to the rear of the floor. Once the glue has dried and the seams have been dealt with, a head cushion is inserted in the vertical riser behind the pilot, and the control column is inserted into the socket in the floor. A 0.5mm drill mark is made in each side of the fuselage with the help of some measurements in blue on a scrap diagram, then with the fuselage inverted the landing skid is inserted into slots in the keel, and with it flipped back over, the instrument panel and coaming are mated and glued to the front of the cockpit cut-out. The elevators have ribbing detail moulded-in, and form a single part that is laid across the step forward of the moulded-in fin, supported by a pair of aerodynamic struts underneath. The rudder slots into the rear of the fin on a pair of pegs to complete the tail, with a dwindling number of parts left to use. The wing is full span top and bottom, joining the two halves together, and adding the ailerons into their slots, which should allow some deflection to the flying surfaces if you wish. The completed wing is glued onto two blocks moulded into the top of the riser behind the cockpit, and is supported by another pair of aerodynamic struts, taking care to set the alignment before the glue cures. The clear part includes a small section of the fuselage around the cockpit, and you are advised to test fit this first, adjusting the shape to achieve the best fit. The last two kit parts are the probe that sticks up in the pilot’s eyeline, and the towing cover at the tip of the nose, but you will need to supply a short length of fine wire or thread to depict the rudder control line under the starboard side of the fuselage, and insert a short length of 0.3mm wire into the depressions you drilled in the fuselage sides earlier to depict the lifting pegs and complete the build phase. There are a couple of elements that you may wish to check against your references before you build your model. The riser behind the pilot that supports the wings has a hard angled facet moulded into it, which may not be present on all machines, and the pivots on the ailerons are just leather protectors that stick above the level of the wing, so may need some minor adjustment if you wanted to go for accuracy. Markings There are four options on the decal sheet, two with Swastika symbols on the tail, which are supplied with separate centres, and two more in civilian schemes, all painted in ivory, or Elfenbein in German. From the box you can build one of the following: LH+XH, NSFK Rossitten, East Prussia, Germany, 1944 OK-300, Central Glider Pilot Flying School, Slope Airfield, Stranik Žilina, Slovak State, 1941-43 Croatian Air Force, 1942 D-7-342, NSFK Gruppe 7, Dresden, Germany The decals are printed using a digital process and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas. This means that the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. Conclusion A welcome release of this pretty glider from the golden age of wood and fabric flying before modern manufacturing techniques took over. Many still exist in private hands, thankfully without the Swastikas, although a two-part version is included for those that are going for historical accuracy. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  9. A-20G Havoc Low Altitude Raider (SH72478) 1:72 Special Hobby The A-20 Havoc, better known to those with an interest in the Royal Air Force as the Boston, was a light bomber developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company of Long Beach, California to a US Air Force specification issued in 1937. The aircraft’s initial customer was the French Air Force, who had been impressed by its performance whilst visiting the USA as part of a pre-war purchasing commission. The order was not able to be delivered to the French however, as by that time they were overrun and the armistice had been signed in 1940, so the contract was taken up by the RAF instead, who needed every aircraft they could lay their hands on. In RAF service it was known by the name Boston, and by the service code DB-7, with no fewer than 24 British and Commonwealth squadrons operating the Boston, either as a light bomber or night fighter such as the Havoc I Turbinlite, which was fitted with a powerful searchlight in the nose. The A-20 was also widely used by the USAAF after being met with initial indifference, and by the end of the war, almost 7,500 of the type had rolled off the production lines. By the time the A-20G began production in 1943 the glazed nose had been replaced by a solid nose that carried a gun-pack, initially with four 20mm cannons plus two .50cal machine guns set slightly back under the nose, although they reverted to six .50cals later, due to the inaccuracy of the cannons. The rest of the armament was standardised with .50cal guns in the newly powered top turret and the ventral turret, the former requiring the widening of the fuselage to accommodate its bulk. The engines were upgraded to more powerful variants of Wright R-2600 Twin Cyclone engines, and became the most numerous variant, serving in US, British and Soviet Air Forces amongst other operators, replaced by the H and J variants with more powerful engines amongst other improvements. The Kit This is a reboxing with additional parts of a kit that was first released in 2007, although it doesn’t seem to have been affected by time one iota. The kit arrives in a modest red-white-grey themed top-opening box, and inside are four sprues of grey styrene in a resealable clear plastic bag, plus a clear sprue in its own bag, a decal sheet that is separately bagged with a sheet of paper to keep moisture at bay. The instruction booklet is printed on glossy paper in colour with a portrait A5 format, and colour profiles in the rear to assist with painting and decaling. Detail is good, extending to all the usual places, and including fine engraved panel lines, internal details inside the fuselage and gear bays, as well as the rendition of the individual cylinders of the twin Pratt & Whitney engines. Construction begins with the cockpit, starting with a stepped floor, onto which the front bulkhead, instrument panel with decal, nose gear bay, pilot seat, control column and rudder pedals are fitted, the gear bay located on the underside of the floor. The upper turret is built on a detailed ring, adding a pair of guns into slots, then covering the assembly with a clear domed glazing, with the option of leaving the guns mobile if you don’t glue the pivots. This permits closure of the fuselage halves, fitting detail inserts each side of the cockpit, being careful to remove a tiny triangle of raised styrene from the starboard insert to improve fit. The upper turret and a clear window are added to the top of the fuselage during closure, adding a pair of oval windows on the sides, and shaving off an antenna over the wing root for accuracy. The wings are built next, comprising top and bottom halves, plus an insert on the top surface, and landing lights underneath. The engine nacelles are then made from halves, and have bulkheads at each end of the gear bay, plus an insert that details an intake on the side of the nacelle, all of which is painted in green primer before being set aside to build the elevators from two halves each. The next step sees the wings, elevators and a two-part nose with 20g of nose weight added inside, bearing in mind that this aircraft was an early adopter of tricycle landing gear, the bane of forgetful modellers everywhere! There’s plenty of room, and nothing will be seen of the area once completed, so a little more won’t hurt. The engine nacelles can’t be installed until the engines and their cowlings are completed, which starts with the twin banks of pistons, which have cooling vanes moulded-in, and a separate bell-housing in the centre, mating to a bulkhead in the rear, then they are slipped into the one-part cowling, one for each side of the aircraft. The landing gear is built before the nacelles are installed, and the nose wheel is first, the strut having a separate scissor-link and moulded-in yoke that accepts the two-part wheel, with retraction jack heading aft into the bay. The main gear is built with a box-like frame that is made from several parts with the main strut central, leaving the wheels off until after the nacelle is fitted. Once the bay roof and the gear assembly is complete, the nacelles are lowered carefully over the struts, and are joined at the front by the engine and cowling assembly. The main wheels are each two parts, and they can be glued onto the axles at this stage, along with the bay doors that run along both sides of all the bays under the aircraft. Putting the model on its wheels for the first time, the canopy and its long top-opening section are glued over the cockpit, the props are inserted into the front of the engines, and the nose cone with six .50cal barrels protruding from the holes moulded into it. Markings There are two decal options on the sheet that is included in the box, both of which are predominantly olive drab over neutral grey, but having some brighter green splodges here and there. From the box you can build one of the following: A-20G-25 Havoc, 43-9105 J, ‘Sweet Li’l Kitten’, 312th BG, 388th BS, USAAF, Gusap, New Guinea, Summer 1944 A-20G-45-DO Boston, 43-22148, A-28-78/DU-R, No.22 Sqn., RAAF Morotai, Podzim, 1944 <ul style="list-style-type:upper-alpha"> The decals are printed using a digital process and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas. This means that the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. Conclusion The Havoc/Boston is one of the many aircraft that served without the fanfare of the Lancaster, Spitfire or Mustang, but it served valiantly thanks to its crew, and this is a good model of the type. It’s mean and green, with a forest of guns in the nose. These things appeal to me, how about you? Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  10. Scheuch-Schlepper with Trailer (SA72017) 1:72 Special Armour by Special Hobby The Me.163 Komet was a WWII rocket-powered fighter that saw limited action toward the end of WWII. It was a tiny swept-wing, tail-less aircraft that had little room for such niceties as landing gear, launching from a disposable trolley, and landing back on the ground via a retractable ski and toughened wingtips. It landed as a glider, as the rocket engine would burn through its noxious 2-part fuel in a matter of around 5 minutes, using the power to reach altitude and make a few zoom attacks on the bomber streams that they were targeting. Once stationary, they had no motive power of their own or wheels, so had to be retrieved by a crew and a small vehicle, which is where the Scheuch-Schlepper comes in. It started life as a light agricultural vehicle of unusual design, powered by a tiny engine with only a few HP under what passed for a bonnet. The Scheuch brothers developed their schlepper in cooperation with Auto Union, who went on to become Audi in the long-term, and would trundle up to the parked Komet, reverse its split trailer under the wings, then inflate the bladders with the bottles on the towing frame to lift the aircraft off the ground. It could then chug away to the hangar for maintenance and refuelling, providing the Allies didn’t follow them back to strafe the airfield, as was often the case when the 163 and the Me.262 were at their most vulnerable. The Kit This little model is a new tool from Special Hobby’s Armour brand, and it arrives in a small end-opening box with a painting of the subject on the front, and a drawing of the model on the rear. Inside is a single square(ish) sprue in grey styrene, a bag of eight resin parts, a small fret of Photo-Etch (PE) and an instruction booklet printed on a piece of folded A4 in colour. The power unit body is almost complete as a single resin part, adding just the two wheels, the towing arm, and a cross-bar over the towing arm. The driver’s bucket seat, steering wheel and column are all resin, with two C-shaped PE parts fixed to the rear of the fenders, plus a handbrake and gear shifter nestled close to the driver. The two inflated bladders are each made from two halves, split horizontally and with a flat-spot moulded into the top to accommodate the wings of its target. The two inflation bottles are also two parts each, and four short axles with small wheels at each end are built in preparation for final assembly. The frame of the trailer is a V-shape, and has a support fixed across the diagonal section, gluing the bladders and bottles to the top surface. The short axles are inserted between two bogey frames and a cross-brace, and are fixed under the parallel frames to complete the trailer. There is an undocumented resin part in our review sample, which is a replacement towing arm with a third wheel moulded-in that allows the vehicle to move around when the trailer isn’t fitted, as it otherwise has only two wheels and would immediately fall forward or backward. Markings There were very few Komets, and they only saw service late in WWII, by which time the German forces had standardised on Dunkelgelb (dark yellow) for their vehicles, even such oddities as this one. There is a single colour drawing of the finished model marked with paint codes from the Gunze Sangyo range, and it’s entirely up to you if you’d like to add camouflage blotches in green or chocolate brown, as is the weathering. There are no decals included or required to complete the kit, so a little weathering or camo would add some extra visual interest. Conclusion This is a great little model to lift your Komet off the ground as well as adding a little extra interest. It is well-detailed and kind of cool for its kookiness, but I’m told that there are no plans to release one in any other scale such as my favourite 1:48. I may have to sulk about that. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  11. B-25 Mitchell Wheels – Circumferential & Cross Tread Patterns (4461 & 4466) 1:48 CMK by Special Hobby Kit wheels are generally moulded in two halves, which means you have the resultant joins to deal with, possible mould-slip issues on single part wheels, and sometimes less than stellar detail due to the moulding limitations of styrene injection technology, especially in the tread department. That's where replacement resin wheels come in, with their lack of seamline and superior detail making a compelling argument. They are also usually available at a reasonable price, and can be an easy introduction to aftermarket and resin handling, as they are generally a drop-in replacement. These two sets are for any 1:48 Mitchell, whether it’s from Accurate Miniatures, Academy, Italeri or Revell boxings, and both sets arrive in clear-fronted vacformed boxes, with the header card and instructions at the rear, whilst the resin parts inside are safely stored inside. Circumferential Tread (4461) This box contains ten resin parts on six casting blocks, containing two main wheels with a pair of hub fronts each, and one nose wheel with three hubs, one flat, the other two with spokes, allowing a choice of spoked or flat outer hub. The tyres have circumferential tread, the main wheels having cross-marks on the shoulders, with manufacturer’s mark and specification on the sidewalls. All wheels have restrained flat-spots at the bottom to give the impression of weight, and that’s where they are attached to the casting block to ease removal with a razor saw or motor tool. The hubs are all flat-cast, so will need to be careful removed ensuring you keep the blade level. Cross Tread (4466) This set has ten parts on six casting blocks, with the hubs cast vertically with the same choice of flat or spoked hubs for the nose wheel. The tyres are all cross-tread, with diamonds across the contact patch, while the nose wheel diamonds have depressions in the centres, with flat-spots chosen for the ease of removal of the casting blocks. Conclusion Resin wheels are a great way to add realism to your model without breaking the bank or complicating the build unduly. The detail is excellent, just remember that tyres are never black, always a shade of brownish grey or even very brown if they’re dirty or dusty. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  12. Czech Hedgehog WWII Anti-Tank Barrier (P72007 & P48008) 1:72 & 1:48 Special Hobby Tank barriers are important aspects of any defensive line of the 20th century onwards, and they are intended to stop tanks in their tracks to prevent their advance, and therefore leave any infantry without their mobile heavy weapons support. Various designs have been used over the years, and we’re looking at the type fielded by the Czechs during WWII, which was nicknamed Hedgehog, or rozsocháč in Czech, for fairly obvious reasons, as it’s a prickly customer. Made from large metal angle beams that are bolted together at right-angles, forming a similar shape to a jack from the game of the same name. The lower ends dig into the ground under their own weight, and if a tank rubs up against it, there is a good chance it will become snagged on the obstacle, stopping it from advancing any further. There were notches near the ends of the arms to accommodate barbed wire entanglements, which would make the chances of stopping the enemy even greater. Similar style obstacles are still in use today. Both sets arrive in clear-fronted vacformed boxes, with the header card and instructions at the rear, whilst the 3D printed orange resin parts inside are safely stored inside a cocoon of dark grey foam. There are four Hedgehogs in the smaller 1:72 set, while the larger 1:48 set has two Hedgehogs due to the extra size, and they are all printed very close together, supported by fine tendril-like supports that are simple to cut away. 1:72 (P72007) 1:48 (P48008) Conclusion The detail is excellent, and will be a boon to anyone building dioramas in smaller-scales. Once removed from their printing bases, all you need to do is apply some metallic or rusty paint shades. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  13. Pre-Cut Canopy Masks for Various Kits & Scales 1:72, 1:48 & 1:32 Special Mask by Special Hobby Some modellers are a little bit phobic about masking the canopies of our models to keep them crystal clear during the building and painting process, as they can be tricky if you’re inexperienced or a bit ham fisted. Special Hobby have created their own Special Mask line to help with that, and we’ve got a bundle of them in the review queue in various scales. Supplied on a sheet of yellow kabuki tape, these pre-cut masks give you a full set of masks for the canopy, with compound curved handled by using frame hugging masks, while the highly curved gaps are in-filled with either liquid mask or offcuts from the background tape. In addition, you usually get a set of hub/tyre masks for the wheels, allowing you to cut the demarcation perfectly with little effort. They each arrive in a flat polythene packet with a card header behind and a sheet of instructions sandwiched between them, all held together by a single staple. 1:72 CH-37 Mojave Canopy & Wheel Masks (M72046 for Special Hobby) Kit review here 1:72 Spitfire Mk.22/24 & Seafire Mk.46/47 Canopy & Wheel Masks (M72048 for Special Hobby) Kit review here 1:48 AF-2 Guardian Canopy & Wheel Masks (M48014 for Special Hobby) Kit review here 1:48 AH-1Q/S Cobra Inside/Outside Canopy Masks (M48016 for Special Hobby) Kit review coming soon 1:48 Grunau Baby IIb Canopy & Fabric/Flying Control Surfaces (M48017 for Special Hobby) Kit review coming soon 1:32 T-2 Buckeye Canopy & Wheel Masks (M32008 for Special Hobby) Kit review coming soon Conclusion Pre-cut mask sets save a lot of precious modelling time and don’t cost a ton of money, so they’re always worth picking up, even if you’re not averse to masking. Add in the new Inside/Outside masks to the mix, and they’re a great boost to realism in my estimation. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  14. Afrikakorps Soldier Prodding Unwilling Camel (F72391 & F48392) 1:72 & 1:48 Special Hobby During WWII in the African theatre of operations, both sides used the tools available to them to fight and transport themselves to the next battle, so naturally the camel featured at some point. The camel, known colloquially as the ‘ship of the desert’, is a large mammal that is as cantankerous as it is capable, having a huge fat storage hump on its back that allows it to travel for up to 40 days without a proper drink, its long legs and feet making it a capable of travelling vast distances without taking one step forward and two back in sand dunes. They’re still used everywhere there’s a desert, although 4x4 transport is taking over where the need arises. A reviewer of mostly military models and accessories must be flexible, so when the first set of camels came in, I thought “fair enough, a once in a lifetime thing. No problem”. Now we have two more camels in to review. An unexpected sequel, but now I’m just waiting for the next one. These two sets are 3D printed in both main aviation scales to go with your Afrikakorps or Luftwaffe desert diorama, whether it’s in the background or playing a primary role. The set name is a little misleading, as even the drawings show that the soldier is simply holding the reins of the camel loosely in his hand, probably waiting for Humpfrey to get up so he can finally make some progress. Both sets are supplied in the usual clamshell box with card header, the colours and branding different by scale for reasons that aren’t immediately apparent. The instructions are simple, and are hidden between the resin part and the backing, consisting of a simple visual of the model with painting examples. Both scale sets still have many supports attached to the underside, and to support the head of the beast, as well as the horizontal parts of the hopeful rider, who is wearing a peaked cap, which needed support during curing. I have nipped the supports from the larger model to show off the face, and as you may have already noticed the designs are the same for man and beast, just the scales that are different. 1:72 (F72391) 1:48 (F48392) With only a little work to do in order to remove the attachment pips on the underside, it should be ready for paint pretty quickly, and the detail is superb, leaving you to provide the harness controlling the animal’s movement, as well as it can be at least. Conclusion Detail is fabulous, with every aspect of the rider and camel carefully replicated, including the shaggy, wrinkly texture of the animal’s fur and its goofy face, however it still looks a little too happy based on the camels I’ve met before. Camels are a miserable, cantankerous species. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  15. Quoted in the December MPM newsletter a forthcoming Special Hobby 1/48th Supermarine Seafire F.Mk.XV Two boxing: SH48116 Supermarine Seafire F Mk.XV "Far East Service" SH48125 Supermarine Seafire F Mk.XV "Aéronavale Service" Pics of the frames are here http://www.modelforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=9...192344#p1192344 Source: http://www.cmkkits.com/en/news/mpm-newsletter-12-11/ V.P.
  16. F4F-4 Wildcat Gun Bay & Dinghy Sets (7512 & 7513 for Arma Hobby) 1:72 CMK by Special Hobby Arma Hobby have released several boxings of their excellent 1:72 Wildcat, with the most recent we’ve seen here in the Cactus Air Force boxing along with an P-39 Airacobra for good measure. Detail is excellent, but some aspects of the aircraft aren’t depicted, leaving space for CMK to create these two sets of upgrade components that can be used for a maintenance scenario, or just to have all the bits hanging out on this pugilistic little fighter. As usual with CMK's resin sets, they arrive in the familiar clear vacformed box, with the resin parts safely inside, and the instructions sandwiched between the header card at the rear. Open Gun Bays (7512) Containing twenty-four resin parts on six pour blocks, the first task will be to open the kit upper wing panels as shown in the instructions, and thin down the corresponding area inside the lower wing half to match. This is best done with either a motor tool, or by scraping with a curved scalpel, checking your work against a bright light to see whether you are getting close to going through. With the preparation done, the bay carcasses are loaded with the three gun breeches per side, plus short ammo feeds, then they are offered up to the new openings in the upper wings. A small triangular web is placed across the inner front corner, and the forward bay doors are placed near vertical along the front of each bay, with the others loose on the wing or somewhere conveniently nearby. Test fitting the bays in the wing will be key aspect of a successful completion, so take your time, and test, test test! Conclusion With only seven parts on two casting blocks, this set needs a small section removing from the spine of your model, as show in the instructions. A floor panel is inserted to span the gap, with a front and rear bulkhead joined by a rib along the line of the spine. The resin dinghy pack is shaped to fit the space, and two clamshell doors are fixed to the lower edges of the bay for the earlier mark, and for later airframes, only one door opens to the starboard side. Conclusion A pair of simple sets that will increase the detail further on what is already a great kit. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  17. 3D Printed Small Arms (P35009/11/13/17/18) MG3 Machine Gun, M2 Flamethrower, MG42 Machine Gun, M1917 Machine Gun, AK-74MN Assault Rifle 1:35 Special Hobby Guns. They’re everywhere, especially where there’s fighting. Special Hobby have taken to printing many of their upgrade and detail sets in attractive orange resin, and the detail is phenomenal. They’re bringing out a range of small arms as part of their offering, for use in dioramas, to increase the detail of figures, and as personal items in and on AFVs and softskins. Each set arrives in a clear bubble pack with a cardboard header and instruction at the rear. The 3D printed parts are secured in foam inserts that are cut to suit the shape of them, and there are small Photo-Etch (PE) frets of brass separated from the resin by a piece of clear acrylic, adding straps and other small parts to the models. This collection of sets is spread over different eras of warfare, and should be chosen for their suitability to the models you are making, not just because they look great, although it is tempting. MG3 Machine Gun (P35009) Although this looks very similar to a WWII MG42, it is its modern offspring, developed from a gun that was almost perfect, with little in the way of changes needed other than reducing the rate of fire, as bullets aren’t cheap and can only make the enemy a certain amount of dead. There are two of these weapons in the box, supported on printed surrounds along with a bipod and large drum magazine in resin, plus a sling and a short length of expended link on the PE sheet that is glued to the open breech opposite the magazine. M2 Flamethrower (P35011) This backpack-mounted weapon started service in WWII, seeing heavy use in the Pacific Theatre, where it was used to root out enemy soldiers from underground tunnels and bunkers. The set consists of six printed resin parts, building the three bottles on the frame, then adding a piece of wire from your own stock as the hose that connects the gun to the backpack. The PE sheet contains a two-part belt system, with additional thicknesses over the operator’s shoulders to reduce chaffing. You can see a few layer marks on the bottles, but those should disappear under primer and then paint. MG42 German WWII Machine Gun Late (P35013) The basis for many modern machine guns, the MG42 was a development of the MG34, intended to reduce the cost and increase speed of production as the war progressed away from Germany’s favour. Its formidable rate of fire garnered the nickname ‘Hitler’s buzz-saw’ amongst others. There are two of these guns on the printed bases, plus another base that contains four drum magazines and a pair of bipods. The PE sheet contains slings and a length of spent link the PE sheet that is glued to the open breech opposite the magazine. M1917 US Machine Gun (P35017) Although it looked visually similar to the ubiquitous Maxim gun, from which many other early machine guns were developed, the M1917 was mechanically different, and lighter than its competitor, leading to it remaining in service until long after WWII, and as recently as the Vietnam war. When crew-served, it was usually mounted on a tripod with its water jacket replenished from a can via hose, the ammo fed from boxes mounted to the side of the breech. The set is larger than the others in terms of parts, totalling 20 in orange resin, plus a small fret of PE that makes up the mount and other small parts. The two PE halves of the mounting frame join around resin parts at the front and rear, with a piece of wire from your own stock, then the adjustment levers and wheels are fixed on the outer surface. The tripod is built from a centre with three legs, adjustment gear in resin and PE, plus a PE strap around the rear leg, onto which the mount drops. The gun is a single resin part to which the PE trigger, ladder sight and cocking arm with resin handle are glued, then it is lowered onto the mount to complete it, choosing one of two types of magazine to hang on the left side of the breech, with a length of PE ammo common to both types. The WWI and WWII era magazines have different details, as explained in the diagrams on the instruction sheet. A spare magazine of either era can be placed ready on the ground near the tripod, and the water can is linked to the front of the jacket by another length of wire from your own stock to represent the hose. AK-74MN Soviet/Russian Assault Rifle w/Folding Stock (P35018) This was the standard rifle with the Soviets and is still in service with their Russian Federation successors, plus many of their Allies, former satellite states and other customers. There are two rifles in protective printing bases, and they are complete save for their slings, which can be found on the PE fret in the box. Conclusion 3D printing came of age, and it really shows in these weapons sets. Whichever one you choose for your next project, you won’t be disappointed, just remember to anneal the PE slings and straps carefully so they bend more naturally. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  18. Mirage IIIC Armée de L’Air (SH72476) 1:72 Special Hobby The Dassault Mirage III is one of the most recognisable aircraft to emerge from the Dassault Aviation stable in post war France with its distinctive delta wings and sharply pointed nose. The Mirage III grew out of French government studies for a light weight all weather interceptor able to reach an altitude 18,000 meters (59,500+ ft) in six minutes and able to reach Mach 1.3 in level flight. The tail less delta combined the wing with an area ruled Coke bottle-shaped fuselage to achieve such speed, minimising buffeting and other compressibility related issues that had plagued early supersonic designs. The Mirage IIIC would remain in French service from 1961 until 1988, and although there were fewer than 100 airframes built of this mark, it formed the basis for many sub-variants that were sold to overseas operators, including Israel, who operated the Mirage IIICJ that had less advanced avionics and some aspects of the design removed or simplified. Nevertheless, Israel found these aircraft and weapons systems more than a match for anything her neighbours were able to field during the Six-Day and Yom Kippur wars, with the aircraft being a resounding success in combat with Syrian, Jordanian and Egyptian aircraft, many of which were of Soviet origin. Israel then sold some of these aircraft to Argentina when they had been replaced by more modern designs. The Kit This is a reboxing of a new tool by Special Hobby of this Dassault success story, and it shows by the level of detail that is present. There is fine detail to be seen throughout all the sprues, including a crystal-clear canopy sprue, and a well-printed sheet of decals. The kit arrives in a modest top-opening box, and inside are five sprues in grey styrene, a small clear sprue in a Ziploc bag, a decal sheet in a resealable bag, and an A5 instruction booklet printed in colour on glossy paper. Construction begins with the cockpit, which consists of a tub with separate front and rear bulkheads that has the side consoles moulded-in, to which the rudder pedals, control column, instrument panel with decal, and the coaming with a clear HUD unit is attached to the top. The exhaust is made up from three sections to obtain detail, with a two-part lip, and a single section representing the rear of the engine that has a bulkhead moulded-in to secure it within the fuselage. The intake bullet fairings have a small insert added to each one, and the nose gear bay is glued to an insert that forms the lower surface of the nose, after which you can begin to close the fuselage, adding a two-part outer fairing to the exhaust before putting the trunk and cockpit between the two halves, installing the nose gear insert below once the halves are together. The tail fin is separate, and you have a choice of bullet fairings for within the intakes either side of the cockpit depending on which decal options you choose. Once you have chosen, the outer fairing can be glued over it to complete the intake trunking. The lower wings are moulded as a single part that incorporates the underside of the fuselage, needing a few fairings removing and a choice of two rectangular inserts installing before you can proceed. The main bays are added to the inside and are painted along with the roof details that are moulded into the upper sides of the wings, which are separate parts that are fitted after the fuselage is glued on the lower wing. Flying surface actuators are joined to the wing, and a circular light is inserted into a hole in the underside of the nose, leaving you with a very Mirage-shaped model that just needs the fine details and some paint to finish it. The nose gear is built from an A-frame to which the two halves of the yoke are added along with a rectangular bay door and the single-part wheel. The main gear struts are each one part with two-part wheels, and these are attached within their bays with the addition of a pair of retraction struts and bay doors on the outer and inner edges. The nose leg has a long retraction jack and another rectangular door at the front, plus a third that sits on the side of the bay with a retraction jack projecting into the bay. Several antennae, pitot probe in the nose and other small parts are dotted around the airframe, and the last act is to insert the ejection seat, which is made from five parts, and is covered by the fixed windscreen and pivoting canopy, which can be fixed in place in the raised or lowered position. A diagram shows the weapons locations for your ease, and these are included in the box, as follows: 2 x AIM-9D Sidewinder A2A Missile 2 x Matra Magic A2A Missile 1 x Matra R530 A2A Missile for the centreline 2 x 625L Fuel Tank 2 x 1300L Fuel Tank 2 x 500L Fuel Tank Each one is provided with a pylon and/or adapter rail, with separate perpendicular fins on many of the missiles, and a tail cone for the 500L fuel tanks. Markings There are four decal options included on the sheet, and you are provided with a four-view page for each one, complete with colour call-outs in Gunze Aqueous and lacquer. From the box you can build one of the following: No.28, 2_EG, Escadron de Chasse EC 1/2 Cigones, Armée de L’Air, Base Aérienne BA 102 Dijon-Longvic, France 1961 No.77, 13PG, EC 2/13 Alpes, BA132, Colmar Meyenheim, France, 1963 No.30, 10-RE, EC 2/10 Seine, BA120 Creil, France, May 1978 No.27, EC 2/10 Vexin, BA188 Djibouti (Ambouli International Airport), République de Djibouti, November 1978-September 1988 The decals appear to be printed using the same digital processes as Eduard are now using, and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas. I mention Eduard because from 2021, the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. Conclusion A very well-detailed and crisply moulded new tooling of this important French fighter in service with their own forces. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  19. PT Boat Weapons Set 2, 3 & 5 (N72031, N72032 & N72042 for Revell) Twin 12.7mm AA Brownings, 37mm M3 Gun & 37mm M4 Autocannon 1:72 CMK Navy Series by Special Hobby The American PT boat series were fast, agile and well-armed to deal with the Japanese enemy vessels in the Pacific theatre for the most part. Revell’s kits of these famous sea-borne warriors are quite old now, so upgrades to the level of detail to modern standards is a worthwhile proposition. We reviewed sets 1 Mk.4 20mm Oerlikon and 4 Mk.50 Rocket Launcher out of order, and now these three sets seem to complete the weapons upgrades… along with the other sets we’ve reviewed here and here that weren’t numbered. The smaller sets arrive in blue-themed blister packs with the resin cocooned inside, separated from the Photo-Etch (PE) by a clear acetate sheet, and protected at the rear by a sheet of dark grey foam, with the instructions flat against the card header. The larger set, #5 is supplied in a cardboard box that has the resin and PE separated in their own bags, plus a few foam peanuts and the folded instructions helping to keep the parts safe. Set 2 – Twin 12.7mm AA Brownings (N72031) This set contains two twin anti-aircraft mounts in protective frames, plus lengths of ammunition link for each of them on the PE sheet, four in total, one for each gun in both paired mounts. The guns are 3D printed, and the detail is exceptional, down to the perforations in the cooling jacket and the cocking handles. Care must be taken when removing the parts from their print-base and surround, but the orange resin that SH are using is both strong and flexible, which is good news all round, especially for ham-fisted modellers like me. Set 3 - 37mm Gun M3 (N72032) Containing the gun’s barrel with integral breech, plus the perforated breech guard on the PE sheet, this set is engineered to replace the kit part while utilising the rest of the kit parts for the trunnions and adjustment gear. Set 5 – 37mm M4 Autocannon (N72042) The largest set of the three contains five resin parts and one PE part to create the autocannon version of the 37mm cannon, including the large deck plate with cut-out, the tapering riser with pinion, plus the D-shaped magazine of 37mm shells that feeds the breech with rounds, fitting above the breech, augmented by adding a PE deflector grille vertically down the centre of the D, locating in a groove marked into the resin. The model is completed by fitting the two grips on a cross-beam at the rear of the breech. Conclusion The rear of the instruction sheet for the autocannon shows the full range of upgrades for the base kit, which is extensive and the kit will be immensely improved for their addition. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  20. Hurricane Mk.I/II Exhausts Ejector & Fishtail Types (Q32410 & Q32411 for Revell) 1:32 CMK Quick & Easy by Special Hobby Revell have recently issued a modern tooling of the mighty Hurricane in 1:32 as reviewed here, although it does have a few issues such as a simplified canopy and solid exhausts, but is otherwise a nicely tooled, well-detailed kit. These sets aim to remedy the shortcomings in the exhausts, and there are two flavours available, depicting the earlier Ejector type exhausts fitted to the initial Mk.I Hurricanes, and some of the first Mk.IIs, with the Fishtail style for the later Mk.IIs. Each set contains two sets of exhausts, one for each side of the Merlin engine of course, and they arrive in a clear plastic bag with a thick card hearer and instructions inside. The package is held closed by a single staple through all elements save the resin. The parts are all well-detailed with fine weld-lines and recessed tips to each of the exhausts that give the impression of a hollow part, the effect of which could be further deepened by adding some Black 3.0 or Musou black into the recesses. The earlier ejector type has a circular aft port, with the two forward of it a curved open slot, while the later fishtail pipes are all narrow arcs that gave just a little extra forward thrust to the airframe, to boost performance in air-to-air combat where it mattered most. Ejector Type Exhausts (Q32410) Fishtail Type Exhausts (Q32411) Conclusion Whichever set you choose, it’s a well-detailed and cost-effective remedy to one of the model’s weak points that is a drop-in replacement. It could actually be considered easier than gluing the kit halves together and dealing with the seams, and the extra detail is a bonus. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  21. Towbar for MiG-15/17 and other jets (P48006) 1:48 Special Hobby During the early part of the Cold War, a standard agricultural Tractor, the Zetor 25 saw extensive service in the Soviet military as a ground-handling tractor, towing MiG-15s and MiG-17s around the airfield once the engines were shut down. Fitted with a custom towing bar, they were a common sight chugging around the perry tracks, in-and-out of hangars on Soviet era military bases until they and the jets they towed were replaced by more modern, capable designs as technology improved and the aircraft became heavier. The towbar comprises a main frame with curved skid underneath, adding the towing eye and compression gaiter to the front, then creating a stabilising wire from your own stock of fine wire or thread that is tipped at each end with PE eyes from the fret that hook to the main gear legs of your chosen MiG, and wrap around a pulley printed integrally to the main towbar part, which on the real thing adjusted position as the vehicle turned corners, a simple mechanism that cleverly evened out the tension on the gear legs. The yoke at the rear of the bar attaches to each side of the aircraft’s nose wheel hub, and the towing eye of course connects to the hitch at the back of its tractor. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  22. Potez 25 A2 Jupiter Version (SH72420) 1:72 Special Hobby The Potez 25 was a French single engined, two-seater biplane designed in the interwar period and used widely by air forces around the world. Following development of the Potez 15, the designers attempted to build a larger, more flexible type that would be used in a variety of roles, including as a fighter, bomber escort, light bomber and reconnaissance platform, and this design became the Potez 25. The A2 variant was primarily a reconnaissance aircraft, powered by either a Salmson radial engine, a Lorraine inline engine or a Hispano Suiza engine. The Potez 25 had a respectable range of 373 miles and a maximum speed of 132 mph that was about average for the period, and even armed with 7.7mm machine guns, it was also capable of carrying 200kg of bombs. Surprisingly, the aircraft could quite easily be converted from sesquiplane to parasol-winged monoplane, and served with the Romanian Air Force in this configuration, hardly missing the smaller lower wing. In total, over 4,000 examples were built, including many under licence. The Aircraft was license built in Poland for the Polish Armed Forces. 47 aircraft were powered by a PZL Bristol Jupiter VIIF radial engine, as the original engines were in short supply in Poland at the time. The last example rolled off the production line in 1936, and any that were in service at the outbreak of WWII were hopelessly outclassed by more modern German Aircraft. The Kit The original boxing of this kit arrived in 2019 under the Azur Frrom logo, with new parts in subsequent boxings from both them and Special Hobby. This boxing depicts the Jupiter engined variant from the late 20s and early 30s, in the service of foreign operators Estonia, Finland and Yugoslavia. The kit arrives in a small top-opening box, and inside is a resealable clear foil bag that holds five sprues in grey styrene, a Ziploc bagged small clear sprue, another bag of 3D printed small parts in orange resin, a fret of Photo-Etch (PE) with a relatively large decal sheet in their own resealable envelope, and the instruction booklet printed in colour on portrait A5 glossy paper. Detail is good with engraved panel lines and louvres, raised and recessed features, and a well-rendered radial engine that gives its name to the boxing. Construction begins with the cockpit floor, which has two longitudinal ribs added to the top surface, a rudder bar near the front, and the seat toward the rear. A bulkhead and aft rudder bar are slotted behind the seat, adding two control columns into holes in the floor’s centreline. The aft cockpit is built inverted initially so that the two-part camera can be fixed to the underside, the pilot’s instrument panel with decal is placed on a cross-rail to be fixed to the starboard side of the fuselage along with the cockpit floor and the camera assembly, with another short L-shaped section with a U-bar projecting rearwards fitted into the port fuselage side along with a small seat and two canisters. Once all the detail painting is completed, the two halves can be joined, closing the underside with an insert that contains a downward firing Lewis gun fitted with a plate mag. The separate nose that allows the different engine options to be portrayed is built from two halves, adding a linked U-shaped cabane strut into the corner before trapping it in place with the top cowling portion. A small hole on the front of the fuselage is filled, making two pits nearby with a drill bit for later use. The lower wing has a spar joining them to full span, and two small holes need filling on the leading edges before they are slotted into the groove in the front of the lower fuselage, after which the nose assembly can be glued in place, trapping the wing in position. A windscreen, tubular sight and machine gun with ammo feed are installed, the latter in a recess that should be lengthened into the nose area before gluing. The upper wings are full-span, and join with the lowers on two angled interplane struts, plus another two cabane struts that plug into the upper fuselage just forward of the cockpit. The elevators are moulded as a single part, and must be marked with a drill according to the given locations on a separate drawing, then the part is laid on the rear of the fuselage into the recess at the tail. The marks made before are the locations for the V-struts that brace them, fitting the rudder into a slot over the elevators and marking the sides with a drill before placement. The undercarriage axle is supported beneath the fuselage by a three-part assembly of struts that forms a W, adding the tyres with two hubs at each end of the axle. A simple tail skid fits beneath the fuselage to support the rear. There are several PE parts applied to the upper wing, including aileron actuators and small aerofoils on short pins that sit in the hinge-point of the ailerons. More actuators are added underneath, then three rigging diagrams show how to lace up the wings, using a gaggle of PE turnbuckles that are marked in red to assist the process. It’s good to see these forming part of a biplane kit, as they make the task much simpler. Flipping the model on its back allows fitment of the paired bombs on racks under the wings, the crew step under the fuselage, and two 3D printed aerodynamic fairings that fit to the leading edge of the lower wings about centre span. The model is without any form of motive power at this stage, the Jupiter engine supplied as a single well-detailed part that fixes to the flat front of the fuselage, and is hemmed in by the multi-legged cowling before fitting the two-bladed prop into the bell-housing. The rear gunner’s position is fitted with a Scarff ring and U-mount with a pair of V-braces at the sides, and twin Lewis guns with plate mags that for the day must have given any attackers approaching from behind pause for thought. Scheme B wears a pair of skis on the landing gear axles, which comprise the ski parts and a conical adapter, plus a 3D printed conical spinner in the centre of the prop. Markings There are three options on the decal sheet in the service of different nations. From the box you can build one of the following: No.100, 2 Division, Estonian Aviation Regiment, Tartu, 1930 PO-40, Finnish Air Force, 1928 No.28 Royal Yugoslav Air Force, Yugoslavia, 1933 The decals appear to be printed using the same digital processes as Eduard are now using, and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas. I mention Eduard because from 2021, the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. Conclusion An interesting reboxing of this interwar biplane in some more unusual schemes, with plenty of detail into the bargain. The addition of skis is a fun option. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  23. Afrikakorps Soldier Riding Camel (F72388 & F48389) 1:72 & 1:48 CMK from Special Hobby During WWII in the African theatre of operations, both sides used the tools available to them to fight and transport themselves to the next battle, so naturally the camel featured at some point. The camel, known colloquially as the ‘ship of the desert’, is a large mammal that is as cantankerous as it is capable, having a huge fat storage hump on its back that allows it to travel for up to 40 days without a proper drink, its long legs and feet making it a capable of travelling vast distances without taking one step forward and two back in sand dunes. They’re still used everywhere there’s a desert, although 4x4 transport is taking over where the need arises. These two sets are 3D printed in both main aviation scales to go with your Afrikakorps or Luftwaffe desert diorama, whether it’s in the background or playing a primary role. Both sets are supplied in the usual clamshell box with card header, the colours and branding different by scale for reasons that aren’t immediately apparent. The instructions are simple, and are hidden between the resin part and the backing, consisting of a simple visual of the model with painting examples. The 1:72 camel still has many supports attached to the underside, as well as a separate back to the seat, which plugs into a slot behind the driver, who is wearing a pith helmet (hold the jokes, please). With only a little work to do in order to remove the attachment pips on the underside, it should be ready for paint pretty quickly, and the detail is superb, even down to the recreation of the harness controlling the animal’s movement, as well as it can be at least. F72388 1:72 F48389 1:48 Conclusion Detail is fabulous, with every aspect of the rider and camel carefully replicated, including the shaggy texture of the animal’s fur and its goofy face, however it looks a little too even-tempered based on the camels I’ve met before. Camels are never happy. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  24. Hi All, This will be my second entry in the Southern Europe Group Build: Special Hobby's 1/48-scale Breda Ba.65A-80 two-seat ground attack aircraft. The model will be finished in the colours of the Portuguese Aeronáutica Militar, who purchased ten aircraft in 1937. The Aeronáutica Militar allocated the aircraft to Grupo No.4 at Sintra airbase where they were apparently quite unpopular, being fairly difficult to fly and with mechanical reliability problems. On the 15th February 1941, however, the Grupo's prayers were answered when an exceptionally heavy storm destroyed the hangar where all the Bredas were parked, the whole force being damaged beyond repair. The boxing is the "Aviazione Legionaria" edition, which is for a single-seat Spanish Civil War. However, the parts for the two-seat versions, including the Breda Type M turret, are included, and the instructions can be downloaded from Scalemates The Portuguese national markings and aircraft numbers may be a sticking point, which will require a bit of thought, but I may be able to cobble them together from other sheets. As I've hurt my shoulder I won't be cutting plastic for a day or two, so I'll do the usual box and sprue photos then. Thanks for looking in! Cheers, Mark
  25. Nakajima Ki-43-II Ko/Otsu Hayabusa ‘Japan’s Allies’ (SH72479) 1:72 Special Hobby The Nakajima Ki-43-II Otsu Hayabusa, known to the Allies as the 'Oscar' was a single-seat, single-engined fighter that was flown by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force from 1941 until the end of the War. The design utilised the same 14-cylinder Nakajima Sakae radial engine as the infamous Mitsubishi Zero, and in fact in the heat of battle, the two aircraft were often confused by Allied aviators. Just like the Zero, the Hayabusa was light, nimble and exceptionally manoeuvrable, and just like the Zero, its Achilles heel was a lack of armour and self-sealing fuel tanks. The Ki-43-II introduced a more powerful engine with two-stage supercharger, strengthened wings with hardpoints for fuel tanks or bombs, armour for the pilot and basic self-sealing fuel tanks. In service the Hayabusa at first enjoyed enormous success thanks to its phenomenal rate of turn and lively performance. This was soon countered by the introduction of more advanced Allied fighters with heavier armour and armament, which removed much of the Ki-43's previous advantage. During the war the Japanese supplied their allies with fighters as a matter of course, including Manchuria, a puppet-state of Japan and Thailand. They weren’t used in great numbers because of Japan’s own need, but this changed after WWII, with China operating captured airframes, France, Korea and Indonesia procuring their aircraft from derelict stocks that would have otherwise been scrapped, but which they repaired to flying condition. The Kit This is a reboxing with new decals of the 2009 kit from Special Hobby, and it arrives in a modest top-opening box with a brace of Manchurian Oscars flying over broken cloud with a verdant stretch of land beneath them. Inside the box is a resealable clear foil bag with five sprues in grey styrene, a clear sprue in its own Ziploc bag, decals in another resealable bag, and the instruction booklet that is printed in colour on glossy paper in an A5 portrait form factor. Detail is good throughout with fine engraved panel lines, raised and recessed features in all the usual places such as cockpit, engine and landing gear bays. Construction begins with the cockpit, which is based on a flat floor, to which the two-part seat, rudder pedals and control column are attached, painting them and the sidewalls Nakajima cockpit green, and adding sidewall details depending on which decal option you are building. The instrument panel is fitted to the front of the cockpit opening during closure of the fuselage halves, at which point the single part elevators are fixed to the sides of the tail on twin pegs, with the tail wheel below, then creating the wings from full-span lower, and split uppers that leave space for the fuselage to fill. There are two cowling options for this boxing, both using the same engine part that is moulded into a bulkhead at the rear, fitting into the top cowling with two side panels, lining up on the ribs inside and painting the exhausts that project from under the cooling gills a suitable colour. The completed cowling is mated to the flat front of the fuselage and given a three-blade prop with separate spinner that slots into the hole in the centre of the bell-housing, with decal option A having a chin intake that comprises three parts. The canopy is split between windscreen and opener, first installing the gunsight and headrest at either end of the short opening before gluing it in position, then adding an antenna mast to the cowling on the starboard side in front of the cockpit. A clear landing light and pitot probe are inserted into the leading edge of the port wing, and you are advised to string an antenna wire of 0.02mm between the mast and tip of the tail fin. The landing gear struts are single parts that accept the wheels at the lower end, and have a captive bay door fixed to the outer side, adding another small door almost flush to the wing at the edge of the bay. Decal option C carries a pair of two-part fuel tanks that are held on a small pylon with a pair of sway-braces inserted on pegs, then an additional diagram shows their location 27mm out from the model’s centreline. Markings There are three options on the decal sheet, one Manchurian and two Thai aircraft, all wearing substantially different schemes and decals, none of which could be considered mainstream or common-place. From the box you can build one of the following: Ki-43-II Koh Hayabusa, Manchuka Imperial Air Force, Manchuria, 1945 Ki-43-II Otsu Hayabusa, Foong Bin 15 (15 Air Sqn.), Royal Thai Air Force, Don Muang, Thailand, 1943 Ki-43-II Otsu Hayabusa, Flt. Lt. Therdsak Worrasap, Foong Bin 15 (15 Air Sqn.), Royal Thai Air Force, Don Muang, Thailand, Autumn, 1944 The decals appear to be printed using the same digital processes as Eduard are now using, and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas. I mention Eduard because from 2021, the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. Conclusion A different take on a late war Japanese fighter in the hands of lesser-known operators, with some interesting schemes. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
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