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Heinkel He 100D-1 (He 113 "Propaganda Jager") 1:32 Special Hobby (32009) Following the selection by the RLM of the Bf 109 to be Germany's main fighter Ernst Heinkel was determined to prove his company could build a faster fighter. Designated He 100 the new aircraft would be a new design and not developed form the loosing He 112. In order to reduce drag the new aircraft would have a faired cockpit, no struts and instead of conventional radiators it was to use an evaporative cooling system. While the prototypes were fast it was felt the cooling system was unreliable and engine choice was limited by lack of DB 601 engines which were all being used by Bf 109 production. In the end only 3 pre production and 12 production aircraft were built. 3 Aircraft were purchased by he Japanese and 5 by the Soviets. The remained were used by the Germans in a propaganda film where they were given the He 113 designation, which is where a lot of the published still come from. As no aircraft remain and little records survived the war not a great deal about the aircraft is known. While the official reasons for the non production are given it is suspected politics played a large part in the then faster design being rejected by the RLM, in the end we will never really know. The Kit This is a rebox of the 2008 kit from Special Hobby. This is not a massively detailed kit as there is little information about the actual aircraft. Its on the shorter run end of injection moulding, the kit features fine engraved details throughout. As well as the plastic parts there is a small PE sheet and a pair of resin exhausts. Construction starts in the cockpit (where else) With the instrument panel being built up (instruments are provided as decals), the coming and gunsight are next, followed by the seat. The seat fits onto a rear frame and the head armour is added. A full set of OPE belts are provided. The seat frame fits into the left fuselage half as well as a couple of controls. Into the Right fuselage half more controls are fitted along with the cockpit floor to which the rudder pedals also need adding. The fuselage can the be closed up not forgetting to add in the instrument panel, coaming, and at the rear the well for the tail wheel. Now the fuselage is complete we can move onto the wings. The main wheel well must be first assembled and added onto the single part lower wing. The left/right uppers can then be installed. The completed wing can be added to the fuselage, and at the rear the tailplanes can be added. The main wheels, their struts and gear doors can then be added. Behind the main a small radiator is added. To finish off the tail wheel assembly is added along with the canopy, propeller and resin exhausts. Decals Three options for fictitious Squadrons are provided on the decal sheet, all in RLM 70/71/65 colours, these look to have been made in house, they look to be in register with no issues.: Net photo of the He113s Conclusion This is a good looking kit of an aircraft I must admit to never having heard of, but all of a sudden I want to build. With some care this will build up into a good looking model. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Beaufighter Hedgehog Exhausts – British/Australian (Q48386 & Q48387 for Revell) 1:48 CMK by Special Hobby The Beaufighter was used extensively as a night fighter due to its heavy centreline concentrated armament and capability to carry a dedicated radar operator in a cramped compartment in the fuselage, so damping any flames coming from the exhausts was important for two reasons. It was crucial for the pilot to retain his night vision during flight, as any bright lights could spoil his sight for up to 20 minutes, leaving the aircraft vulnerable and the chances of them finding a target reduced. It was also imperative that the aircraft was effectively invisible to both the bombers they were hunting and other enemy night fighters that may have accompanied the bombers, for obvious reasons. Hedgehog flame dampers got their nickname because of the small triangular spikes that covered the length of the extension, reminiscent of a hedgehog’s quills (vaguely). The extension contained the exhaust gases until they were out of the pilot’s eyeline, and dissipated them through various exits allowing them to cool sufficiently so that there was little if any flame coming from the rear. The Beau and many other types wore this style of exhaust, and they differed slightly between variants. British Type (Q48386 for Revell) The British exhausts were simply extensions to the exhaust stub, and are a drop-in fit to the aft of the cowlings, with a tapering tube facing toward the tail, ending in a point. They attach to their pour stubs on the inner face, so any mistakes removing them for the single block won’t matter much. Beaufighter Mk.21 – Australian type (Q48387 for Revell/others) Each damper on this set is supplied on a separate casting block with ancillary parts included that give you two options. They fit into the back of the cowlings as per the set above, but they are cylindrical and have stoppers at the rear for one version, or a stopper plus two feed pipes back into the cowling for the other option. Again, the parts are coupled to their blocks via the backside, and removal from their stubs is easy, even with a few passes from a sharp blade, which I tried successfully out of curiosity. Review sample courtesy of

Hi guys, I recently finished the Spitfire VC by Special Hobby, in the boxing devoted to Malta Spitfires. I have read several complaints on the net about this kit, but for my limited Spitfire expertise, it was ok. The only thing I realized a bit too late was that the UC legs are a bit too long (at least compared with Eduard Spits). I started by riveting the kit I choose the markings of BR 112 coded X, one can easily find pics of this plane lying on a beach in Sicily. To represent the famous 'Malta blue', I painted the kit in the Dark Earth, Mid Stone and Azure Blue desert scheme, using Gunze for the upper surfaces and a Tamiya mix for the Azure Blue. On top of that I applied a thin and rather transparent coat of a mix of Gunze H 337 and H 42, leaving the Desert camo slightly visible. There is a patch on the top of the fuselage and also the tail unit who seem not to have been overpainted. The weathering was done with oil washes, India ink pens, and pigments. I hope you will like it, Christian.

Well, there was me thinking that we've got LOADS of time on this group, all the way August...... and then I realised that June is basically gone and we're counting weeks rather than months 😲! So rather than get tangled up in a complicated multi project involving a bunch of Percival Vega Gulls, I'm opting for a simpler job in the hope of getting a finisher. It's another Vega - the Lockheed one. The decor supplied is for Amelia Earhart's "Little Red Bus", also described on the box as "Lady Lindy". Special Hobby box art also includes a little image of her Lockheed L10 in which she was lost out over the Pacific. This plane, the single-engined Vega 5B, she flew solo from Harbour Grace, Newfoundland to Derry in Northern Ireland in 15h 18m in May 1932, followed by her trans-continental coast to coast USA trip in August. Pretty good going for her and the plane! Looking like a nice simple build and paint job, no crazy pe bits etc. Afraid this GB, and the "Less than a tenner" group, has coincided with a fair bit of work stuff and a lack of modelling time for me, but I have some hopes for this one. 👍

F-4B Phantom II Wheels (4423 for Tamiya) 1:48 CMK by Special Hobby Kit wheels are generally 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 usually a drop-in replacement. This set arrives in CMK’s usual yellow-themed clamshell box, and contains four wheels on two casting blocks that join the parts at the bottom contact patch of each tyre. They are a drop-in replacement for the kit parts once you have removed them from their pouring block, and all the wheels have a fine circumferential thread, while the main wheels also have brake detail on the rear face. There are no manufacturer’s details or tyre specification detail found on the sidewalls but the detail on the hubs more than makes up for it, with a extremely subtle weighting to the bottom of the tyres to give the impression of the airframe pressing down on the highly compressed air in the tyres. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Westland Whirlwind Mk.I Gun Barrels (Q32395 for Special Hobby) 1:32 CMK by Special Hobby There were lots of happy faces when the new Special Hobby 1:32 Westland Whirlwind arrived, although a few people might have been sad that it wasn’t a helicopter. We reviewed the kit here, and some nice resin wheels & canopy masks here. Now we have the gun barrels to look at, which were well-detailed in the kit, but could always do with a little more crispness that resin offers. The set arrives in a green-themed CMK Quick & Easy shallow clamshell box, with simple instructions between the resin and backing card. Inside are two pairs of resin gun barrels on their own casting blocks, which are drop-in replacements for the kit parts once you’ve liberated them from their blocks. There’s an advert for the CMK razor saw on the instructions, and one of those is the ideal solution to getting them separated, so consider picking one up if you don’t already have one. The detail is better than the styrene parts when compared against each other, and the muzzles are hollow, so you don’t need to drill anything out. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

A-26 Invader Wheels - Late (4422 for ICM) 1:48 CMK by Special Hobby Kit wheels are generally 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. This set arrives in CMK’s usual yellow-themed clamshell box, and contains three wheels on individual casting blocks that join at the bottom contact patch of each tyre. They are a drop-in replacement for the kit parts once you have removed them from their pouring block, and the main wheels have circumferential thread and brake detail on the rear face, while the nose wheel has a mixture of circumferential and block tread toward the edges. Manufacturer’s details and tyre specification are found on the sidewalls in fine raised lettering, with a subtle weighting to the bottom of the tyres to give the impression of the heavy airframe deforming the tyres. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

3.7cm PaK 36 German Anti-tank Gun 1:72 Special Armour (72024) Rheinmetal began work on the 3.7cm PaK 36 Anti-tank gun back in the 1920s when it was realised such a gun was needed. Originally the gun was designed to be horse drawn. By the beginning of the 1930s the gun was re-designed for a more mechanised Army. The main difference being the wheels. Like a lot of German Equipment it saw its first major use in the Spanish Civil War. Other nations took notice of the new gun with Japan and Russia acquiring the rights to licence build the gun, Export orders were also placed by The Netherlands, China, Finland and Italy. By the start of WWII the German Army had over 9000 Guns. However even by 1940 it was found the gun struggled against the British Matilda, and French Char 1 tanks. In the East the gun was able to hold its own against most Soviet Tanks, however it was totally outclassed by the T-34. German crews dismayed by their rounds bouncing off tanks nicknamed the gun "Heeresanklopfgerät" or army door-knocking device!The gun continued to serve though throughout WWII as a mobile and mounted gun. The Chinese had more success with their guns against the lighter armoured Japanese tanks they encountered. The Kit This is the a new tool kit from Special Hobby for 2021 which arrives on one sprue of parts. There are not a great deal of parts but the are all well moulded. Construction starts with the carriage, the traverse and elevation wheels are added to the gun mount and this is paced on the main part of the carriage. The single part main gun is then added. The front of the carriage is then added followed by the gun shield. The wheels are then assembled and added along with the gun legs. The legs can be fixed splayed for firing or in trail for towing, Small handles, the feet and a mounted spade need adding to the legs. Decals There are no decals with the kit, but Special Hobby Suggest a few colour schemes you can use. Conclusion This is a good looking model in 1.72 and should be welcomed by the small scale armour modellers. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Dear fellow Britmodellers, here's the new 1/72 Special Hobby SdKfz 250/1, built from the box. Painted with Gunze/Mr.Hobby acrylics, weatherd with artist oils, pastel chalks and graphite pencil. Photographs by Wolfgang Rabel. The Special Hobby kit is a re-issue of the MK moulds (https://www.scalemates.com/de/kits/mk-72-07204-sdkfz250-1-ausfa--234263), originally released in 2013. Details are plentiful, and the general fit of parts is excellent. However, I noticed that on one sprue, a few small parts had been incompletely moulded. I assume the kit I got may have been a test-shot, and the errors will not be present on all kits. I re-worked and re-placed the pieces in question. The tracks come as a one-piece assembly and can easily be wrapped around the driving wheels without breaking. I much prefer this option over the link-and-length tracks which can be painful to assemble in small scale. The side markers are provided both in plastic and photo-etch (I chose the latter). Thank you for your interest, best greetings from Vienna! Roman

Hello Here is one of my last builds with this Blohm und Voss BV-155 V1. This high altitude prototype fighter first flew on February, 8th 1945. During the following months this prototype flew twice before the end of war. The 1/72 Special Hobby kit is easy to build and I added little bits inside the cockpit from pictures I took of the BV 155 V2 in the NASM fifteen years ago. Decals are from the box except the fuselage cross which I supposed was with dark green inside instead of black. Paint colors are mainly from the Gunze Acqueous range. Patrick

Special Hobby is to release in 2020 a 1/48th Reggiane Re.2005 Sagittario kit - ref. SH48206 Source: http://www.specialhobby.info/2019/09/news-from-special-hobby-102019.html?m=1 Sword Models is the other company working on a 1/48th Reggiane Re.2005 Sagittario kit: link V.P.

Gloster Meteor Mk.8/9 Martin Baker Ejection Seat Mk.II (Q48388) 1:48 CMK Quick & Easy Line by Special Hobby for Airfix kit Quite often if there is one thing modellers who dont even normally use aftermarket use on a kit its a new ejection seat. Injection moulding does not offer the same level of detail and many modellers dont want the trouble of multiple PE seat belts. A resin seat with moulded in detail is the best choice. This set from CMK gives us the MB Mark II Seat used on the Gloster Meteor Marks 8 & 9. The set arrives in the usual green-themed Quick & Easy blister pack, with the instructions sandwiched between the resin parts and the header card. Inside is a single seat.. The casting is up to the usual high standards from CMK/Special Hobby with minimal clean up being needed. The only thing the modeller will need to add is the seat firing handle from wire Conclusion Detail is excellent, and will add a great touch to any model. Highly Recommended for your Airfix Kit. Review sample courtesy of

US Navy F6F Hellcat Pilot & Mechanic (F72371) 1:72 CMK by Special Hobby Quite often its great to have a figure, or couple of figures to add to a finished model on a base to bring it more to life. This set from CMK is for a Hellcat pilot & mechanic; though it can be used for a variety of USN WWII aircraft. The set arrives in the usual yellow-themed CMK blister pack, with the instructions sandwiched between the resin parts and the header card. Inside are the two figures. The casting is up to the usual high standards from CMK/Special Hobby with minimal clean up being needed. The hands for the mechanic figure are mouled away from the arms so as not to interfere with the mould and will need to be removed and added, apart from that no other work is needed. Conclusion Detail is excellent, and will add a great touch to any 1/72 WWII USN model. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Special Hobby is to re-release the Azur (link) 1/72nd Supermarine Sea Otter Mk.I "WWII Service" kit - ref. SH72429 Source: https://www.specialhobby.net/2020/07/sh72429-supermarine-sea-otter-mki-wwii.html Box art+schemes+decals V.P.

Supermarine Sea Otter Mk.I "WWII Service" 1:72 Special Hobby (72429) The Se Otter was developed by Supermarine from its famous predecessor the Walrus. As a longer range Sea Plane the main difference is the arrangement of the engine from the pusher as seen on the Walrus to the more conventional puller. The Sea Otter was the last Sea Plane to be designed by Supermarine, and the last biplane to enter service with the RAF & FAA. Despite the prototype flying in 1938 it was not ordered until 1942 with only 292 of the nearly 700 ordered being produced before the end of WWII. Many aircraft were sold and used in civilian use post WWII with conversions to passenger and freight transport for remote locations being done. The Kit This is a re-release of the Azur Ffrom kit originally from 2011. The kit arrives on 4 spures, a clear spurue, A sheet of PE, a bag of resin parts and a cockpit film. Construction starts with the interior. Two seats complete with PE belts are made up these are fitted to the cabin floor along with all of the internal bulkheads. The instrument panel with its POE part and film goes in. The two rear windows go into the fuselage halves from the inside and then the fuselage can be closed up around the cabin interior. Now the tailplanes and rudder are fitted to the completed fuselage before work can start on the wings. Both the upper and lower wings are 3 part. There is a single upper with left & right lowers. The engine pod fits under the top with with the engine, cowl, and exhaust being in resin. The lower wing is attached to the main fuselage and then the upper wing is fixed on with all of the struts. There are shallow locating points for all the struts. Under the lower wing the stabilising floats can be fitted along with a pair of resin & PE bomb racks. At the rear the tail wheel is added and the main wheels are also built up ad added. To finish up PE & wire (not supplied) hand rails are fitted to the front and rear fuselage. These were used in SAR operations. A full rigging diagram is provided if the modeller wishes to rig the finished aircraft. Decals Three options are provided on the decal sheet, these look to have been made in house, they look to be in register with no issues.: JN106 - No. 1701 Sqn FAA, Maryborough Australia 1945 JM744, No.771 Sqn FAA, RNAS Hatson (HMS Sparrowhawk) Orkney Islands, 1944 JM808, No.712 Sqn FAA, RNAS Hatson (HMS Sparrowhawk) Orkney Islands, 1944/45 Conclusion This is a good kit of an overlooked aircraft. The fabric effects are well represented without being overscale and there is a fair amount of detail. With some care this will build up into a good looking model. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Introduction My Special Hobby Harvard has arrived. I won’t dwell on the contents as they are well documented elsewhere. Suffice to say it is the 1/72 Academy T-6G reboxed with a set of three alternative canopies, some resin, etch seat belts and a nice set of decals. I intend to use the Harvard IIA parts to make a United States Army Air Force AT-6C from Number 6 British Flying Training School (BFTS), Ponca City, Oklahoma, December 1942. Background During the Second World War several schemes were developed to train RAF pilots and aircrew in the safer skies of the Commonwealth and the (initially neutral) United States. One of these, the British Flying Training School Program, saw the creation of seven pilot schools across the United States. RAF recruits were shipped across the Atlantic, on occasions on the Queen Mary passenger liner, to Canada and then travelled in civilian clothes (whilst the US was still neutral) by train to their respective schools. For these young men this was an incredible adventure that we can’t really imagine in our much smaller world. No. 6 BFTS was based in Ponca City, Oklahoma. Here US civilian staff trained the prospective pilots, initially in PT-17 Steermans. Halfway through the course those that mastered this aircraft would progress to the AT-6 Texan. On successful completion they would gain their wings and return to the UK. I will base my model on one of the aircraft pictured in the excellent book The Royal Airforce in Oklahoma. Probably this one.

Kit - Special Hobby Paint - all Xtracolour & Humbrol enamels Decals - Kit Extras - MPM kit specific etch set. Bell AH-1G Cobra Assigned to W/O 1 Dan Shaver C / 16th Cav Early 1972. The same photo again as above but with flash brings-out the brown in the OD. Bought on impulse from Hannants about six weeks ago and built it immediately ! - this is my very first SH kit and without any bull, I can tell you is one of the best kits I've ever seen. The finesse of the details, the fit, the options (loadout and decals) are incredible, and no I'm not on commission. There is a downside - the instructions are tiny and my 58 year old eyes really struggled at times. Only the slightest smear of putty used on the 20mm ammo bins as they joined the fuselage and that was it. The MPM etch set was / is outstanding and does a lot to the finished kit, well worth investing in. Not too much else to add, enjoy the photos, please go-ahead and pass any criticisms, ask any questions etc. All the best from New Zealand. Ian. Edit: Just noticed the cat hair on the starboard tailplane.... it's gone now ! 🤦‍♂️

German Infantryman Carried on a Hetzer (F35370) CMK by Special Hobby Walking into battle was never really much fun (I'd imagine), as it meant that you arrived tired and could be tramping across the countryside for hours, although arriving after the battle probably wasn’t all that despised. Grabbing a ride on a tank would be the ultimate perk for the infantryman, as you’re travelling on a mobile blockhouse with a big gun that is also a useful source of cover if the shooting starts. This figure from CMK arrives in a shallow blister pack with a yellow-themed header card and the instructions sandwiched between. Inside are six resin parts on three casting blocks, the largest containing the majority of the figure, minus head, one arm, one hand and one of the jacket panels between the rear vent and the left side seam. He is sat on the angled deck of a Hetzer with one leg straight and the other brought up under his haunches. The right arm is attached over a set of ammo pouches round his waist, and the hand has a grab-handle moulded into it, which marks his location as on the rear left quarter of the vehicle, as confirmed by a small photo on the instructions. The left hand is cradling a late-war STG-44/MP-44, the successor to the ubiquitous MP40, and grandfather of the AK-47. The final part is the jacket-tail, which mounts to the rear of the figure on a block and socket, having the mess-kit and water-bottle moulded-in. Finally, the head is sculpted with a long, deeply socketed neck, and moulded-in helmet with the strap crisply moulded into the chin. Sculpting is excellent, and the helpful photo will assist with the posing of the completed figure on the rear of the Hetzer, but he’ll need some mud splattered on his legs if he’s been sat there for any length of time. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

I'm so pleased that the Special Hobby version of the Academy Texan has made it to these shores as it finally will allow me to build a subject I've been wanting to build for over 40 years! My subject will be Harvard T.2B FX432/R of 500 Sqn RAuxAF stationed at RAF West Malling in 1952. The amount of times I've biffed up the Heller kit trying to convert the Texan into the longer canopied Harvard IIB/2B are legion, hopefully now, with this kit I can do it justice. So here's the kit... ...and here's the decals, which I first bought when I was 15, a mere 41 years ago... Now this kit has arrived I'm hoping it will give my mojo a much needed KUTA!

German Kriegsmarine/Speed Boat Life Raft (N72037/8 for Revell) 1:72 CMK by Special Hobby Warships sometimes get holed, and by their nature they sink. Back before ships were made of metal, it was a secondary consideration, but after the massive loss of life when the civillian Titanic went down, a great deal more effort was put into saving those in peril on the sea. By WWII liferafts were standard equipment on ships of all sizes, with many different styles used by various countries. Some WWII German Kriegsmarine ships and boats used square rafts with interweaved webbing floors for weight saving, and paddles to allow their occupants to propel themselves around to an extent. These rafts, or Rettungsfloss in German are resin and Photo-Etch (PE) sets that arrive in their standard slim clamshell box with a card backing and instructions within. They’re part of the Maritime Line, with a blue watery theme as you’d expect. Inside each box is a resin raft that has the bottom flashed over, which will be sanded away during preparation, plus a small PE sheet with the floor webbing and a pair of paddles etched into it. The difference between them is the profile, one square, the other rounded and with an additional rope grabrail around the top, while they share the PE sheet. With the prep-work done on the resin part, the webbing should be pressed into the footwell, and the corners bent up and glued to the depressions in the inner sides. If you’re portraying the raft in use, the paddles can be placed in the well, but if you intend to depict the raft in position on the side of a turret (for example), you should glue the paddles to the sides of the raft and create some loops with a short length of tape or brass. German Speed Boat Life Raft/Schnellboot Rettungsfloss (N72037) German Kriegsmarine Life Raft/Rettungsfloss (N72038) We reviewed the 15cm Tbtsk C/36 gun turret recently, which has a little advert in the rear for these two sets, showing how the rafts could be attached to the cheeks of the splinter shroud. You can check out that review here. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

SIAI-Marchetti SF-260EA/D/EU "Late bulged Canopy Type" (SH72433) 1:72 Special Hobby The SF.260 was designed by Stelio Frati as a three seat aerobatic aircraft designed for the sport aircraft market. It was designed for full IFR flight and with a capability similar to some military aircraft. It was these qualities which caused it to be favoured by Air Arms as a trainer and even light attack aircraft. Production was originally by Aviamilano with the first flight in July 1964. SIAI Marchetti soon after purchased the rights to the design and production continued by them until being bought by Aermacchi in 1997. Both piston engined and turbo prop aircraft were developed. Aermacchi continued production on taking over the company. The Kit This is a brand new tool for 2020 from Special Hobby. The quality is fist class with crisp moulding and fine engraved panel lines. Given the small size of the real aircraft, in 1/72 the model is quite diminutive. The model arrives on two main sprues and a single part canopy. There are two further small sprues for different aerial configurations and a weapons sprue. Construction starts in the cockpit. The instrument panel is first mounted to the centre console with two different panels in the kit depending on your preferred decal option. The instruments are provided as decals. The console is then fitted to the cabin floor and the flight controls added in. Next the two front seats and rear bench type seat go in. All being provided with decal belts. The rear bulkhead is fitted along with the shelf which goes behind the rear seats. The cockpit can then go into the fuselage along with the front bulkhead. No mention is made of nose weight though I would highly suspect it will be needed. The single part main wing can then be fitted to the fuselage making sure to fit the nose gear well in the front section of it first. At the front the engine face and prop can be added, and on the tips of the wing, the tip tanks. These are followed by the tail planes and the single part canopy. The landing gear and doors can now go on. Depending on your decal choice aerial are fitted where needed. Lastly if doing an armed version the pylons can be added. The kit provides rocket pods for the Irish example but these are not the six shot SNEB pods they flew with. A bit frustrating as Special Hobby have produced these pods in the past. There is also no gun pods with the Irish Air Corps used either. Markings The glossy decal sheet is printed by Eduard and looks sharp and in register. There are four decal options available from the decal sheet; SF-260EA 70-35 70 Stormo, Italian Air Force 20015. SF-260D ST-47 No.5 Basic Flying School, Belgian Air Component. SF-260EU - 1248, Venezuelan Air Force, 2010. SF-260EU - No.612 Sqn Uruguayan Air Force, 2010 Conclusion It is good to see a new tool out of this much used trainer/light attack aircraft. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Harvard Mk.II/IIA/IIB British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (72447) 1:72 Special Hobby The North American Aviation T-6 Texan has a long history dating from its inception as the NA-16 in 1935 right up to 1970. Even today there are flying versions in various Warbird associations. The T-6 (in various designations from NA-16, through B1 to T-6 etc.) was originally produced as a basic trainer but over time it was upgraded to an advanced trainer (AT-6 Texan) with improved performance for basic and combat type flying training, plus an added facility for training rear gunners. The T-6 was also supplied to Britain and Commonwealth nations and designated the Harvard (I & II) and was in service during WW2 and for many years postwar. The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan was a large WWII training plan designed to produce the war time pilots needed for all services. Created by the UK in partnership with Canada, Australia and New Zealand the plan produced nearly half of the aircrew for these countries during WWII. The Kit This is a re-boxing of the Academy kit by Special Hobby with a new injected clear sprue for the different canopies used (one for an AT-6F/SNJ, one for a Harvard II, and one for an AT-6A/D, so expect more boxings!) and some resin parts, and a small PE fret; as well with the addition of a new decal sheet for Aircraft Canada, The UK, Rhodesia, New Zealand and India. Construction starts with no surprise i the cockpit. Both seat get belts from the new SH fret, the control columns and their linking bar also come from the new resin parts from SH. These go onto the floor and then the cockpit sides are added along with the rear bulkhead and the rear seat instrument panel. Once in the fuselage can be joined up and the front instrument panel added it. The instruments are provided by decals. The area behind the rear cockpit must be trimmed away for the aircraft in this boxing and it is indicated by a red area in the instructions. Next up the engine front is put into the cowling and the propeller is added A small area on the cowling must be removed and again this is shown in red. The insert for the main wheel bay is then added into the lower wing and the upper wing parts added. The complete wing can then be joined to the fuselage and at the rear the tailplanes are added on. Then the canopies are put on, with different ones for the different decal options. Different airframe fittings are added depending on the decal optiuons, one having the large aerial mast in front of the cockpits, and one having a PE gunsight added. Different pitot tubes are also included for the different options. Underneath the wheels and gear legs are added along with the new resin exhaust included in this boxing. Elevator control horns are added and lastly the tail wheel. Markings There are five decal options on a sheet printed in house, the decals look to be thin, in register with no issues. 1. Harvard Mk.II No. 25/2625, 34 Service Flying Training School RCAF Medicine Hat, Canada, 1943. (All over yellow). 2. Harvard Mk.IIB, No. 38/FX389, No.16 (Polish) Service Flying School, RAF Newton, England (Dark Earth/Dark Green over yellow). 3. Harvard Mk.IIA No. 78/EX490, No.20 Service Flying School, SRAF, Cranborne, Southern Rhodesia 1943. (Natural metal finish with wide yellow bands on the wings) 4. Harvard Mk.IIA No. 32/NZ934, No.2 Service Flying School RNZAF, Woodbourne, New Zealand 1942. This aircraft served with the New Zealand Air Force until 1958. (Dark Earth/Dark Green over sky with yellow side training panels). 5. Harvard Mk.IIB No. 14/FE479, No.1 Service Flying Training School RIAF, Ambala Base, India 1944/45. (All over yellow). Conclusion It is great to see Special Hobby taking the good Academy kit and adding the additional parts to bring us the Harvard which helped to train so many allied aircrews. Very Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Westland Whirlwind Mk.I Updates (for Special Hobby) 1:32 CMK by Special Hobby We reviewed Special Hobby’s new large-scale Whirlwind Mk.I recently here, and at the bottom we promised to review the additional aftermarket that Special Hobby and their resin CMK line were producing. We’re now making good on that promise, as the first sets have arrived. Whirlwind Mk.I Wheels (5135) Kit wheels are generally 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 usually a drop-in replacement. This set arrives in a yellow-themed clamshell box with instructions in the rear, and contains three resin wheels, each attached to their casting block at the bottom, on the contact patch. Removing them should entail a simple saw-cut, with very little additional clean-up required, followed by a wash in warm soapy water to remove any remaining mould-release agent. Detail is excellent, with Dunlop and the tyre specification written in raised letters on the sidewalls, and strengthening ribs around the inner circumference of the tyre carcass. Westland Whirlwind Mk.I Masks (M32003) This set is flat-packed with a card insert inside the clear foil bag, and contains a sheet of yellow kabuki tape with brief instructions. These pre-cut masks supply you with 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 get a set of hub/tyre masks for the wheels, allowing you to cut the demarcation perfectly with little effort. Conclusion It’s a nice kit, and this pair of initial sets makes it even nicer and just a little bit easier by simplifying the masking of the canopy and making up of the wheels. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

It's taken me nearly 2 years, on and off, to hammer this one together but here is my effort at the Special Hobby Ju 87A1 in 1/48 scale. To say the fit is not great would be an understatement. I had to build a jig to get the wings to the correct angle, sort shape issues with the undercarriage, spinner, and radiator cowl. The cockpit is a mix of kit resin, photo etch and scratch build plus a few other modifications along the way such as a scratch built radiator and bomb crutch. Paints were a mix of Vallejo and Tamiya weathered with a combination of watercolour and enamel washes and pastel chalks but not too much as I wanted a machine relatively new to the theatre. Having said that I thoroughly enjoyed it and learnt a lot. I now also have a representation of this amazing looking machine to go alongside the other Ju 87s in my collection. Anyway I hope you like it and look forward to any comments and tips for the next one.

GAL.48 Hotspur Mk.II (211) 1:48 Planet Models by Special Hobby General Aircraft Limited were approached by the British government to create a new troop-carrying glider after the German Fallschirmjager’s successes with them in the early war. The Hotspur was the result, but it was soon realised that its 8 troop limit was insufficient for their needs going forward, and the initial Mark.I suffered from some teething troubles that were addressed by the more competent Mk.II after only 18 Mk.Is were made. Changes to the wing were made to improve flight characteristics, and the fuselage was stiffened to reduce the likelihood of it breaking up during a hard landing. Other improvements included a braking ‘chute that prevented it from careening through field and glen after its 91mph landing (a terrifying prospect if landing downhill), a better canopy for visibility, and side doors to aid fast deployment of the troops. Because of the type’s limitations however, the glider was generally used in training because of its forgiving handling characteristics that helped learner pilots, although it did have a high sink-rate that was either a boon or a curse, depending on whether anyone was shooting at you. In the run-up to D-Day, it was suggested that the gliders could be used to carry crew and equipment over to the makeshift RAF airfields in France, and Spitfire Mk.IXs were considered for the towing task. Experiments showed that it was just about practical, but the caveats were that the Spits had a habit of overheating due to the low speed, and would have been vulnerable to enemy fighters whilst towing at a stately 160mph maximum. Some bright spark even thought of increasing the passenger numbers by creating a twin-fuselage “Zwilling” with a straight 12ft centre wing section between the two fuselages. That one got as far as prototyping, but it would be an easy conversion if you had two kits to hand. once hostilities ceased, the Hotspur was retired rapidly as the training need had evaporated overnight, but fortunately a few airframes found their way to museums, where they remain today. The Kit This is a new tool resin kit from Special Hobby’s resin division, Planet Models. It has had a long gestation that has been further extended by the vagaries of the pandemic, but at last it is with us. It arrives in a small white box with a large sticker on the lid to tell us what’s inside. On opening the captive lid we find several heat-sealed and channelled bags within, containing all the resin parts, using trapped air to protect the parts, and the rest of the box filled with packing peanuts to further protect the contents. The largest parts are the fuselage halves and the two wings, followed by the elevator fins, and twenty-two smaller parts in the same grey resin on twelve casting blocks. Two vacform canopies, 13 clear resin window plugs, two white metal gear legs and a decal sheet round out the package, with the instruction booklet supplied on three sheets of A4 printed on both sides, and with colour profiles on the rear pages. Resin usually comes still attached to its pour block, which is where the liquid resin is poured into the mould as well as acting as an overflow, and as bubble-catcher for more rustic manufacturers that don’t have access to pressure casting methods. The blocks will have to be removed before you can assemble or paint the parts, so there will be a little extra time needed to prepare the model for construction. With resin, you should take the precaution of wearing a mask when cutting or sanding it, as the tiny particles are harmful to your health if breathed in. Washing the parts in warm water will also improve the adhesion of paint, as there may still be some moulding release agent on the parts when you receive them. Take care not to use water that is too hot, as this may cause deformation to more delicate parts, but this technique can conversely be used to fix warped parts, using cold water to “freeze” the changes in the shape. Construction begins with cleaning up the parts, such as the fuselage, which has a few areas where casting blocks have been, and clearing away any flash from the windows and join lines. After that, the cockpit is made up from a narrow floor with seats and twin control columns, the ribbed sides of the fuselages with additional bracing and equipment added, plus a twin frame that makes up the cockpit sills, to which two simple instrument panels are fitted, along with some dial decals to improve detail. The fuselage has a number of windows dotted around, and these are all clear resin parts that are inserted from inside, so they need fitting and sanding flush if necessary before you join the fuselage halves around the cockpit floor, then you add the sills in the opening and the canopy over the top of that. Many people are a bit phobic about vacform canopies, but with some blutak pushed inside it to hold it rigid and by using a sharp blade, they are relatively easy to cut out as long as you make regular light strokes. With the fuselage closed up, there is bound to be a little sanding and possibly some filling, so please remember the precautions mentioned above. The white metal landing gear has a tiny “spat” cover that plugs up the socket for the strut when it isn’t in use, but when fitted, it hangs over the front of the leg, which is outfitted with a pair of small resin wheels, with four supplied in total. The wings and elevators all fit using the traditional slot and tab method, and epoxy may be a slightly more forgiving option for these joints, as it gives you some curing time to ensure you get the correct dihedral on the main planes, and fit the elevators perpendicular to the tail fin. Once all those parts are cured and made good, you can fit the long skids into the holes under the fuselage. On my example those were a little obscured by flash and moulding debris, so if this happens to you, use the skid parts as a pattern if you’re having trouble finding some of them. That’s it! It was a simple glider, so it should be a simple kit. Nice though. Markings You get two decal options in the box, both of which are for training units. You can build one of the following from the box: BT551/L No.2 Glider Training Unit, Weston-on-the-Green, Oxfordshire, England, 1942 BT744/B1 No.1 Service Flying Training School, RAF Netheravon, England, 1942 The decals have good sharpness, register and colour density, although the yellow around the roundels do look like they could be a little translucent. There has been a lot of speculation about the colour schemes around the web, and that includes Britmodeller, so have a look at the thread [url= https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235019681-148-general-aircraft-gal-48-hotspur-mkii-gal-48b-twin-hotspur-mki-resin-kits-by-planet-models-hotspur-mkii-released/&do=findComment&comment=4108029]here[/url] to see what people have to say on the matter. Conclusion It’s been a long time coming, so troop glider fans will be very pleased that it has finally landed, and that it’s a 1:48 Hotspur. Detail is good, the resin is well-crafted, and once clean-up is completed, it should go together much like an injection moulded kit. Take care of the seams with super glue or epoxy, and make sure you have plenty of masking tape handy if you plan to depict the yellow/black striped decal option. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of