Search the Community

Khibiny ECM Pods for Su-34 (Hobby Boss & Kitty Hawk) 1:48 Zactomodels Some of you may have heard of Zactomodels before, especially if you're into Soviet/Russian jets in 1:32, but if you haven't already, now you have. The owner, Chris Wilson is a perfectionist, and strives for the ultimate in detail, with little things meaning a lot to him, but he doesn't let that get in the way of the enjoyment of his hobby, which is always nice! Based in the US of A, he has decided that the ECM pods that are attached to the wingtips of every 1:48 Su-34 needed to be more accurate, and off he went. The set arrives in two thick Ziplok bags, one of which has a heat-sealed partition to prevent the parts from getting damaged, and accompanying them is a Photo-Etch (PE) brass fret, a slip of pre-cut vinyl masking material, and small sheet of very detailed instructions. There are four resin parts, comprising two pods (one for each wing), and two nose cones if you want to depict your Fullback with the new nose cones that were rolled out in 2018 (check your refs, as always). That means you'll need to cut the noses off the pods, but Chris has you covered with a dotted line on the diagrams guiding the way. The PE parts are fences that were added to the pods in 2015/16 to prevent/reduce flutter. They need to be folded to right-angles before they are glued onto the pods with CA, and again the location is shown from two angles for your convenience. The rest of the instructions detail the alterations to the kits that will be needed for the two kits. The Hobby Boss kit needs the wings thinning a little, a section removing from the tip to accommodate the radiused fillet, the attachment tabs removing, and the vinyl stickers adding to the wingtip. For the Kitty Hawk kit it's a little more simple – you just need to shorten the pins a little. That makes me glad I'm building (or trying to find time to at least) the KH kit. Engage smug mode For the HB kit you might want to add some brass pins to the wingtip to line up with the holes in the resin, which will strengthen the joint no end. As usual with resin, take the precaution of wearing a mask when cutting or sanding resin, 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. Conclusion A simply lovely set from Zactomodels, and the first time I've seen their stuff in the flesh after many years of admiring from afar. Needless to say it's totally in line with expectations, and will look great when applied to the model – whenever that might be on my part at least. The shame of it! Happily he's now got a website, and accepts PayPal payments, so what's keeping you? Review sample courtesy of

AIM-120 AMRAAM 1:32 Zactomodels The AIM-120 was developed as a longer-range all-weather air-to-air missile with Beyond Visual Range (BVR) capabilities, entering service as the A model in the early 1990s with the US Navy and Army, as well as a substantial number of other foreign operators. It was upgraded to the B with improved electronics, and later on it was further uprated and fitted with clipped winglets to allow it to fit within the stealthy internal bays of the then-new F-22 Raptor. ZactoModels have taken it upon themselves to create the most accurate AIM-120 in 1:32, and now we have two types to represent the A/B with its pointed fins, and the C after its pruning. The set arrives in a heat-channelled Ziplok bag that holds the parts separate from each other to reduce the chances of damage in transit and in the stash. The instructions are printed on A5 paper, showing all your options, including live and Captive Air Training Missile (CATM) exhausts and nose cones, which require the removal of the front and rear sections of the missile bodies, of which you get two. You also get two trees each of the relevant set of fins for your purchase, either the more pointed ones, or the clipped ones, as mentioned above. Each of these have a small pin moulded in the base that corresponds to holes in the missile body, which you'll just need to arrange at 90o to each other. Each part is highly detailed with all the panel lines, rivets, raised and recessed detail that you could wish for, some of which is more visible under paint, so we've included some of Chris' original photos at the bottom of the review so you can see it all before you cough up your cash. There aren't any decals supplied with the set, but it's likely you will have some in the kit you're putting them on, but on the off chance you don't, Two Bobs decals produce a set. Extremely highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Hi Folks! The latest product of my sick leave - 1/32 Revell MiG-29UB with Zactomodels upgrade set (3x more than the kit cost) and Eduard exterior PE. Finished in Xtracrylix with Begemot's amazing decal sheet. For info on using the Zacto set, the build thread is HERE Usual high quality pics taken outdoors in the dying sunlight.... Happy to answer any questions, comments etc. Al

Just finished my F-15C build, I did have a WIP thread here but unfortunately I didn't update it for a year. The main build thread is largescale planes forum if you're interested........I have done lots of builds here so apologies for straying!!! http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=54151 Sat next to my 1/48 Wild Boar which is on Britmodeller...

Never built in 1/32 so I thought I'd do my fav plane the F15C. Has to be Tamiya's F15C and to enhance it I scoured the world for AM gear.........went a bit OTT in the end....never mind that's why they invented debt. Will post updates soon as I can......

Hi all, Before normal life is resumed, I wish to get this lovely MiG-29 done. For infor about the kit, you can do no better than read Greg's helpful Review thread HERE. It's a really nice kit for its era (1990), much better detail than the far more recent Eurofighter release. Unfortunately due to its early release, it suffers some issues with accuracy. I prefer the Sparka to the single-seat version, it falls into a rarefied group of combat aircraft that actually looks better with two seats than one. Throwing the kitchen sink at this one: Revell kit Zactomodels correction set Scale Aircraft Collapses metal landing gear Quickboost ejector seats MASSIVE Begemot decal sheet with no less than 24 options from around the world! I'll be building 102 Blue from Erebuni base at Yerevan, Armenia with a dramatic tiger artwork on the tails. Hopefully all the cutting and butchering of the kit to fit the Zacto set will go well - that will be the make-or-break factor, and will decide whether I wasted the 100-odd quid I spent on the whole kit and caboodle. Da svedanya! (for now!)