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I have to make a confession first, I never finished a scale model of the Bf 109 So time to change this. As I had the three new kits in my stash, why not to do a "comparative" build of them. They are from largest to smallest box - Eduard, Tamiya and Zvezda. Upon opening the boxes, the Eduard box looks rather empty. The Tamiya box looks to have more in it. And the Zvezda box is full up to the rim! But this is a bit misleading as several frames are from the older F model. There are plenty online reviews of the three kits and they are all reasonably favorable. According to them, the Zvezda kit which is based on their F model lacks in details and looks rushed. Eduards Mk.II kit is now in 1/48 at last, but still has some shape issues. And Tamiya with the latest addition looks to be another shake the box kit to build it. So lets start the comparison with the wings. As can be seen, there is a slight variation in wing span. The Zvezda wing is actually a bit shorter still as it isn't casted with the dihedral in place. Here a close-up of the two bulges and the difference in shapes And here the a picture how these two bulges do look. Lets move to the top of the wing. Here the length diffrence is now more visible, with the Zvezda wing about 1mm too short. And the comparison of the undercarriage bulge. To compare the fuselage is a bit tricky due to the construction of the engine covers. The Eduard fuselage is maybe placed a bit too forward. Considering this, they are equal in length. Also note the different shapes and sizes of the bulge under the horizontal stabilizers. And these bulges on the real aircraft. It looks there was a bit of variation on the real aircraft too. But there are differences in the representation of maintenance panels. The res circle show the missing panels. I believe Tamiya has one too many, Eduard is correct and Zvezda has some missing. The Tamiya instructions have this to say about the panels above and the bulges below. And here the other side. The two bulges are very noticable on the Tamiya kit, very tiny on the Eduard kit and none existent on the Zvezda kit. Here a close up. One known issue with the Eduard kit is the fuselage height. In comparison with the Zvezda kit, it is 0.6mm too high. Comparing the Zvezda and Tamiya fuselage results in a perfect match. I am sure that all three kits will result in very nice models of the Bf 109 G-6. The Tamiya kit looks to be the easiest build. Eduard has some nice details and Zvezda needs a bit of work. My goal is to have the three models built in similar finishes prior painting. That means that I will rivet the Zveda and Tamiya kit. I may use after market parts for the wheel and exhaust which would also correct the other problem on the Eduard kit, the too wide opening for the exhaust. My next update will be a comparison of the cockpits ready for painting. I won't use the Eduard PE parts in the cockpit to have a fairer comparison. Thanks for stopping by. Cheers, Peter

Here is build #10 for 2025. The model is from Eduard's neat little 1:72 scale kit that allows you to build several subvariants of the post-war Czech built version of the BF-109 with a Junkers Jumo engine. These airplanes served with the Czechoslovakian and Israeli air forces in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Mine is built as a machine from 3rd Squadron, 18th Air Regiment, stationed in Pilsen-Bory in the early 1950s. Eduard's kit is very nice, with petit surface details and great details overall. It was pretty easy to build, and while it took me about a year from start to finish, I only spent maybe 1.5 week's worth of actual work to build it. My only gripe about the model is with the decals, which have the thick top film that is more or less removable. More on that in a bit. The model fits fairly well. I used a little bit of Mr. Surfacer 500, at the wing roots, and the canopy is just a tiny smidge too wide on my example. Everything else fits like a glove, and I love how Eduard engineered the main gear legs with long tabs that slide sideways into the gear-well edges. The kit plastic being so fine, and thin edged, is also somewhat fragile. I broke off and lost the little aerial wire doo-dad that goes on top of the tail, and I broke the tail wheel at least twice. Painting was done with a Tamiya mix of their RLM Grey and RAF Cockpit Green. The interiors and gear parts are various shades of Tamiya black and dark grey. The spinner is AK 3rd Gen acrylic Brick Red. I really like this acrylic line. It coats better than Vallejo and seems a bit more scratch resistant when painted over Mr. Surfacer primer. I'll be getting more of these paints as my Vallejo bottles run out. The brick red was also used to touch up red areas on the roundels, where I lost color while lifting clear film from the decals. Everyone knows the story of Eduard decals by now. They say you don't have to lift the film, but things look better if you do. I left the film on the smaller stencils and on the big black arrow. Look closely and you can definitely see an "umbra" around the markings there. I let the larger decals dry for about 48 hours, then really burnished them in and picked at the fim until I was able to lift it in large sheets. Most came off okay, but I lost little bits of the serial numbers on the tail, and a bit of red on one of the roundels. Still, I think I'm starting to get the hang of it. Still wish I didn't have to do it, though. I didn't add a lot of weathering on this one. Just a tiny bit of oil rendering around the engine and wing roots. Some watercolor oil streaks on the engine bottom. I give the kit an A- because of those decals. Meanwhile, my photography continues to be a barely earned D+. I'm also getting to that age where what I see, even with glasses on, is not as sharply defined as what I see when I take hi rez digital photos. Always an unpleasant surprise loading these up and seeing them on the big computer screen. :shock: :frown: But here we go, anyway.

Hello everyone, Ive been working (at glacial pace), on a crashed Fw 190 diorama/vignette. I know there’s some debate as to what a dio and what a vignette is, but I wanted a small scene that tells a story. This kit is really cheap and highly detailed, as it’s a ProfiPACK it comes with some masks and PE which really helps. The cockpit went together well, and for its scale it’s very detailed. The aircraft was built with the landing gears stowed. The decal scheme that I painted was for an aircraft that was shot down by bomber escorts over Germany in 1945, so most likely a P-51. The propellers were bent using a lighter, the wing was clipped to simulate damage on impact, a panel was removed with some metal rods inserted to represent the frame, and finally some .4mm holes were drilled to represent bullet holes. At this scale, .5 rounds are just shy of .2mm so slightly out of scale, but .4 was the smallest I had. All this detail should do enough to let the viewer know that it’s had a bad day! There are plenty of examples of damaged aircraft, so I don’t really think people can say what is right and what is wrong, but to try and keep the bullet holes subtle, I drilled them, then softened the edges with Tamiya cement. The rear tail also received some impacts. The left wing was also used to practise different techniques, as this will be submerged in water/resin. The aircraft was given a brown wash and AK slime dark green and light green were applied to the left wing. As for the base, the foam was cut and shaped before a balsa boarder was applied. Next came a mixture of Mig acrylic mud, sharp sand, sea grass, bits of stone and rounded rock that I picked up from a beach. The rounded rocks will be sat in the water obviously. A scar or mark where the aircraft slid before going firm was also worked into the base at this point. Along with a small cluster of static grass. I didn’t take too many photos of the next part as I was in the zone but the process was roughly: - Base coat everything with Tamiya X9 Brown. - XF59 Dessert Yellow then XF60 Dark yellow for the grass. - XF52 Flat Earth on the ground, followed by buff for the highlights. - Paint the stones with some greys. - Ammo wash Wet Ground for the river bed. - Ammo washes Fresh Mud and Loose Ground for the river bank. - AK Slime Dark Green and Light Green for the bank as well. The photo doesn’t do it justice, there some nice variation to the eye. At this point I also used the washes to splatter mud onto the aircraft. I tried to keep it all to scale, which was hard! The point that I’m up to now; the river bed has received some AK Still Water in preparation for the resin and some puddles were also filled to use up the last bit of Still Water that I’d put in the cup. I really like how this is looking, once the resin is done, I have some brown leaves to scatter and that should be it! Thanks for looking, Tom.

MiG-21Bis Dual Combo Limited Edition (2151) 1:72 Eduard The MiG-21 was a development of Soviet Cold War jet-age aviation, developed as a natural successor to its predecessors for the point-defence/interceptor role, should the Allied bomber streams head to Moscow to bomb it into radioactive dust. It was capable of Mach2 thanks to its Tumanskiy afterburning turbojet, but this level of speed could only be achieved at the expense of immense amounts of fuel, which gave it a short range. As an interceptor this wasn’t a major problem, and range could be extended by external tanks or aerial refuelling, should the need arise. Development airframes started coming off the line in the early 1950s, as the design matured into a capable interceptor, progressing immediately to the MiG-21F due to upgrades that had been forthcoming during the years of development, commencing production just prior to the end of the decade in small numbers as a day fighter. With the inclusion of the requisite missile systems to attack bombers, the MiG-21P variant could carry K-13 missiles, a system that was also used by the mass-produced MiG-21F-13 that was one of the most produced of the first generation of this type. In the early 60s, work began on a significant upgrade that utilised the same basic airframe, but incorporated technological advancements that had weren’t integrated into the initial design. The PF, PFL, PFM, and RFM were just some of the variants that stretched the capabilities of the jet, leading to robust overseas sales, and a third generation that began with the MiG-21M. As late as 1971 the MiG21Bis was yet another upgrade to the Fishbed, which the NATO code system had already allocated several suffixes to cater for the myriad of variants, giving this variant the Fishbed-N designation. The new Tumanskiy R25-300 engine gave it yet more speed and power, with its weapon carrying capability broadened thanks to advances in avionics, again selling well to Soviet satellite states and aligned nations, China license-building F-13s as the Chengdu J-7. The MiG-21 stayed operational for a considerable period before being replaced in Soviet service by more modern next-generation jets, and many nations kept theirs substantially longer, some still in service after unofficial upgrades to capability to keep pace with modern military aviation. The Kit This Dual Combo Limited Edition is based upon the original 2018 tooling by Eduard, updated with new parts that represent this later variant, with sprues for two models in the box. The kit arrives in a Limited Edition box with a painting of a brightly coloured MiG passing over water at high speed, and inside the box are eight sprues of blue-grey styrene, two clear sprues, two frets of pre-painted Photo-Etch (PE), a single sheet of pre-cut kabuki-style masking for the canopies and dielectric panels, three decal sheets, one of which covers national and unit markings for the decal options, with two identical sheets of stencils, one for each kit. The final item is the instruction booklet that is printed in colour on glossy white paper, with the profiles for the decal options on the back pages in full-colour. Detail is excellent, as we’ve come to expect of Eduard over the years, with a quality package that includes items that other manufacturers would consider to be aftermarket. There are sufficient parts to build two models, the box contents consisting of two of each sprue, two frets of PE and one sheet of masks, plus doubling of the stencil sheets, while the main sheet contains markings for all decal options. Each of the sprue photos below depict just one of the two, so please bear this in mind. Construction begins with the cockpit, building the nose gear bay with the floor inverted to add the detailed sides, plus a pair of struts on the sides of the bay. Flipping the floor back over, the control column and rudder assembly are added, then a choice of using a three-part styrene instrument panel, or more complex two-part flat panel with two layers of PE, plus another two smaller PE parts and a styrene part that is applied over the top layer of PE. A similar process is carried out for the side consoles, using detailed styrene tops or blank tops with PE covers applied to the console sides that fit over the raised edges of the floor. The aft bulkhead, your choice of instrument panel style and a forward bulkhead are fixed in place, using a scrap diagram to the side for correct alignment, and finally adding a throttle quadrant to the port console. Before the fuselage is closed, the main gear bays must be made from four detailed parts, and the exhaust is fabricated from a succession of four cylindrical parts that trap the afterburner ring in place, attaching the completed structure to a bulkhead that has the rear face of the engine moulded-in, plus a long tapering tube in the centre. The cockpit sidewalls moulded into the fuselage sides are outfitted with either a styrene or styrene plus PE lamination to depict the detail found there, painting as you go, and painting the intake area a burnt iron colour before closing the fuselage around the cockpit, exhaust, and an internal ring within the nose area. The delta wing lower is full span, and incorporates a section of the lower fuselage, drilling out small holes around the leading edges and wing roots, then adding detail parts behind the main gear bay cut-outs before closing the assembly by gluing the two upper wings over the top. This allows the main bay insert and the wings to be offered up to the lower fuselage, gluing them in place and installing an exhaust tube at the rear, plus a spine with moulded-in fin on top, and a coaming with clear HUD glass at the front of the cockpit cut-out. The intake is tidied up by fitting a fine ring to the front, and if you feel it a good idea at this stage, a triple antenna on the tip of the fin is removed and replaced by PE, mounting another part to the exhaust, and a styrene antenna on the spine. The nose is fleshed out by an insert that closes the area in front of the windscreen, adding a circular part to the coaming, then covering it by gluing the windscreen in place, thereby protecting the HUD from damage during the rest of construction. The tail is completed by a pair of elevators on tabs, mounting a probe on the top of the fin, and several intakes around the rear of the fuselage. The flying surfaces are each individual parts that are glued to the trailing edges of the wings, two per side, and they can be offset if you wish, checking your references for suitable arrangements. There are several choices of sensors under the nose, while the nose gear leg has a separate yoke part that traps the two-part wheel in place, slotting it into the bay and installing the bay doors on either side. Moving aft to the underside of the wings, inserts are added to the fuselage, with a choice from two for the larger aft section, in front of a large tapering strake under the exhaust, and yet more intakes/outlets and probes around the area. The main gear legs have separate oleo-scissor links, and a captive bay door that is bent along a pre-weakened line according to a scrap diagram nearby, fitting the one-part tyre and hubs from both sides to the short axle at the lower end of the legs. A scrap diagram shows the correct orientation of the wheel to the leg from above to assist with alignment, then they are inserted into sockets in the main bays along with a retraction jack and control linkage, which are again shown from a different angle in a scrap diagram nearby. The inner bay doors have retraction jacks to hold them in position, with a scrap diagram showing where they mount on the bulkhead (part D53) within the fuselage. A pair of RATO packs can be fitted under the wings, each one made from two halves, with more scrap diagrams showing where they are located, using alternate small parts instead of the packs if you omit them. An airbrake folds out from a location in front of the tail strake, and it is held at the correct angle by a retraction jack, painting the interior the colour suggested by the instructions for the various decal options. Much of the airframe is now complete, but there are still many tasks left to do on this detailed model. PE blade antennae and static-wicks are applied to the tail feathers, removing a few small bulges near the tip of the tail for some decal options, a task that is best done early in the build before you add too many details. The pilot’s KM-1M ejection seat is built from four styrene parts with the help of a scrap side-view, plus five PE parts to represent the crew belts, pull-handle, and seat controls on the port arm, sliding the finished assembly into the cockpit. The canopy can be posed open or closed using the same part, but propping it open to the side with a retraction jack to leave it open, mounting a probe on the starboard nose, and a long pitot probe over the intake, which you can relieve of its chunky fins using a sharp blade, replacing them with PE parts that whilst more delicate, are more in-scale once glued on later in the build. The nose cone that protects the radar is slipped inside the nose after painting and applying a ring decal near the base, locking it in the correct position thanks to a keyed base. To pose the canopy open, additional PE detail parts can be fitted to the lower sills and in the centre of the opener, plus some stencil decals to improve it further. A host of antenna of different sizes and shapes are shown in the last main step, your choice depending on which decal option you have chosen. Two sprues of weapons are included in the box, allowing you to build the following: 1 x 800L fuel tank 2 x 490L fuel tank 2 x R-13 A2A Missiles 2 x R-3S A2A Missiles 2 x R-3R A2A Missiles 2 x UB-16 rocket pods A page of the instructions is devoted to the locations suitable for each of the included stores, which are fitted under the wings on simple pylons on a busy diagram that also includes some optional antennae that require drilling of holes for some of the decal options to complicate them further. Markings There are an impressive ten decal options on the three sheets, giving you plenty of choices for your two models. The MiG-21 was covered in many stencils too, which adds visual interest to the model, but of course these things take time. From the box you can build two of the following: MiG-21bis, c/n 75061904, 2 Fighter Squadron, Taszár Air Force Base, Hungary, 1993 MiG-21bis, 115 GIAP, Soviet VVS, Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan, 1980 MiG-21BIS, c/n 75084300, HävLLv 31, Kuopio airbase, Finland, 1980 – 1981 MiG-21bis, No. 47 Squadron, Iraqi Air Force, Al Hurrya Air Base, Iraq, 1990 MiG-21bis, Free Libyan Air Force, Tobruk, Libya, November 2011 MiG-21bis, 797, German Democratic Republic, Holzdorf, 1990 MiG-21bisD, Eskadrila borbenih aviona, HRZ i PZO, Zagreb-Pleso, Croatia, December 2016 MiG-21bis, San Antonio de los Baños, Cuba, 1990 MiG-21bis, c/n 75080880, 1 Pucki DLMW, Lotnictwo Marynarki Wojennej, Gdynia-Babie Doły, Poland, late 1997 MiG-21bis, C2776, No. 26 Squadron “The Warriors”, Indian Air Force, Adampur, 1990 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. Supplied on a sheet of yellow kabuki tape, the pre-cut masks supply you with a full set of masks for the canopies of both models, with compound curves 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 masks for the dielectric panels on the tail and strakes, plus masks for the HUD glazing. Conclusion The kit is a good one, improved further by the addition of PE parts to detail the cockpit, which coupled with a range of colourful and interesting decal options, plus masks should make for an entertaining build that will look good in your cabinet once completed. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

15,000th P-40N Warhawk Limited Edition (11193) 1:48 Eduard First flying before the outbreak of WWII, the Warhawk was a development of the P-36 Hawk, and although it was never the fastest fighter in the sky, it was a sturdy airframe that took part in the whole of WWII in American and Allied hands, with large numbers used by Soviet pilots in their battles on the Eastern front. The various marks garnered different names such as Tomahawk and Kittyhawk, so it can get a mite confusing if you're not familiar with the type. It was unable to keep pace with the supercharged Bf.109, but was used to great effect in the Far East and Africa, which may have assisted in the feeling that it was a second-string aircraft of inferior design, when this wasn’t really the case – certainly not to the extent inferred. It was robust, cheap to make, and easy to repair, although its high-altitude performance dropped off somewhat. The early marks were under-armed with just two .50 guns firing through the prop from the top of the engine cowling and a pair of .303s in the wings, but later models benefited from improved armament. The B model was a revision of the initial airframe with lessons learned from early production, self-sealing fuel tanks and armour in critical parts of the airframe, although this extra weight did have an impact on performance. The -D was a partial re-design, eliminating the nose guns, narrowing the fuselage and improving the cockpit layout and canopy. In British service it was known as the Kittyhawk Mk.I, but only a small number were made before the -E replaced it with a more powerful Allison engine, and an extra pair of .50cal machine guns in the wings bringing the total to six, but even that wasn’t sufficient to let it keep up with the opposition. It wasn't until the –F model that the Allison engine was replaced by a license-built Merlin that gave it better high-altitude performance and a sleeker chin, with the -L having the same engine. The next main variant was the -K, which retained the Allison engine and nose configuration, after which the M was produced with a more powerful Allison engine primarily for the Allies, and the final production variant, the -N, with more power, a reduced spine, the same longer fuselage of the -L, and a drop in weight to increase top speed. A proposed -P variant was instead built as more -N airframes, while the bubble-topped -Q with more power and four-bladed prop wasn’t able to compete with the Thunderbolts and Mustangs that were streaming off the production lines by then, so it never made it to production. The Kit We’ve been looking forward to this kit for some time now, and after the initial run of Royal Class boxings, we now have a Limited Edition that allows the modeller to depict the 15,000th Curtiss aircraft off the production lines, showing just how prolific the company was, although their Warhawk seldom received the attention of other types that flew during WWII. As a secret admirer of the lines of the P-40 in its various guises, including being the proud owner of a resin P-40Q kit, I have been looking forward to getting my grabby hands on an example, so I’m very happy. Eduard bringing their talents to the P-40 can only mean good things, as well as plenty of detail, and as much or as little aftermarket that’s been specifically engineered to fit the kit by Eduard as you could possibly want. The kit arrives in an attractively styled top-opening box with a side-profile of the headline decal option on the top, and the other on one of the sides. Inside are six sprues of grey styrene, a clear sprue in a separate Ziploc bag, a large sheet of Photo-Etch (PE) that is nickel-plated and pre-painted, two decal sheets have their own resealable bag, and the components are rounded off by a sheet of pre-cut kabuki-style masking tape (not pictured) for the canopy, wheels and other clear parts. The package is completed by an A4+ instruction manual that is printed on glossy white paper in colour, with a set of profiles for the decal options and stencils on the rearmost pages. We expected that Eduard would bring all their talents to bear upon this release, and we weren’t wrong. The kit exterior is fully riveted with finely engraved panel lines, plus raised and recessed features where appropriate. Inside the fuselage halves are recessed lines and raised areas that will assist any modeller that decides to opt for the many aftermarket enhancements that Eduard have created to coincide with this and subsequent releases, making the task of integrating them much easier than it was in the past. Detail inside the cockpit and gear bays is excellent, and this attention to detail extends to the intakes around the nose, giving the model a realistic look once built, even if you build it from the box, as many of us will. There are also numerous weapons options included on the sprues, from bombs to rocket tubes, and with the choice of extra fuel carriage in the form of two style of drop-tanks under the belly. Construction begins with the cockpit, starting with a seat that is made from three parts, and is mounted on a bracket attached to a low bulkhead, with rear armour sited between the seat and bulkhead, which includes two side projections and a round headrest. Four-point harnesses are provided on the PE sheet, pre-painted for your ease, mounting the assembly at the rear of the cockpit, then adding a control column, lever and two other controls on the floor, applying a PE dial, or using another decal. The instrument panel can be made using either a styrene panel with decals with different options for each decal option, adding a rear coaming and gunsight, or using a blank panel that is detailed with laminated PE with the dials printed on the rear layer, plus a single-layer ancillary panel at the bottom, removing a smaller sub-panel from the bottom of the part. The sidewalls are detailed with styrene and decals, with the cooling flap control linkage swapped out depending on whether you intend to have the gills open or closed under the nose, which shows avid attention to detail. With the addition of two small PE parts on the port wall, they can be installed on the cockpit sides, supporting the instrument panel and two-part rudder pedals at the front of the tub. To be able to close the fuselage, the exhaust stubs are placed behind their openings in the nose, building the intakes under the prop, depending on whether you are posing the gills open or closed, requiring a little surgery with a 0.2mm drill to an insert to correctly depict the internal configuration. The three circular mesh airways are depicted by PE parts front and rear, completing the ducting with a lower insert, following which there is a choice of styrene or PE cooling gills, using different parts for your chosen option. For the PE gills, the base of part F16 is retained after cutting the gills off, pressing-in strengthening ribs with a ball-point pen from the rear where the PE is thinned down, then fitting brackets to the inner face before they are inserted in the nose behind the duct-work. The cockpit tub and a tail-wheel bay are installed during fuselage closure, trimming a small area of the tail fin mating surface to accommodate a PE antenna bracket on the centreline near the tip. Once the fuselage is closed and the seams dealt with, the cut-back insert behind the pilot is installed along with the front portion of the intake, a section of trunking for the upper intake, and each of the individual exhausts are pressed into the stubs, noting that they don't have hollow tips due to their necessarily small size. The main landing gear bays of the Warhawk could be fitted with canvas covers that were custom-fitted to prevent dirt and debris ingress in the wells, but as these weren’t always present, Eduard have provided both options for your use. Each option is made from different parts, comprising two L-shaped walls, and a flat(ish) roof that fits into the recesses moulded into the upper wing parts after installing the inserts in the full-span lower wing, and drilling out any necessary holes for underwing stores if you intend to use them. A panel line is filled on the upper wing halves, which is probably easiest to do before adding the “knees” to the leading edges, which can be left off until later if you wish. The ailerons are each single parts, with fine detail moulded into both surfaces and no a sign of any sink-marks that you might have expected back in the “good old days” when injection moulding wasn’t as advanced as it is now. They slot into their recesses on twin pegs that allow some deflection, should you wish to project a more candid appearance. Two more inserts are placed in recesses in the lower wing to cover the shell-ejection chutes for the wing armament, adding more holes if required, and the gun barrels that are moulded on a carrier that fits inside the leading edges. Once everything is in place, the upper and lower wings can be joined together and the seams dealt with for later installation under the fuselage. Meanwhile, the elevator fins are made from two parts each, installing them in the slots each side of the tail, then finishing them off with the separate flying surfaces, which are again single thickness parts with detail moulded-in. PE trim-tab actuators are applied to the elevators after trimming the styrene alternatives, followed by a two-part rudder post, which is hidden by the rudder surface, giving you options to deflect it as you see fit. Mating the wings to the fuselage is followed by wingtip lights top and bottom, plus a circular landing light under the port wing, another on the trailing edge where the wing meets the belly, and a smaller light further aft. The wingtip lights should be painted with clear paint, the colour depending on which wing they are on, using red for the port lights and green for those on the starboard. The landing gear legs are simple struts with PE tie-down loops and brake hoses, fitting the wheel to the stub axle at the bottom, which is built from a two-part tyre that has diamond tread, and two hub parts that fit in the centre. These plug into sockets in the front of the main gear bays, adding the tail wheel that has a single-sided yoke and separate tyre, then fixing bay doors to the wells, the inner main doors made from two parts each. The retraction jacks are added before the main bay doors, as shown in a scrap diagram nearby, and a single actuator is located between the tail wheel bay doors to complete them. Turning the model over, the canopy is next on the agenda, starting by adding a PE rear-view mirror to the windscreen, then gluing it and the fixed rear canopy to the model, and choosing part G10 for a closed canopy, or the slightly wider G9 if you intend to pose it slid back. An aerial mast is sited just aft of the canopy slightly off to the starboard side of the spine, and the next drawing shows the location of the antenna wire and fly-lead in blue, along with the location that you need to drill out to admit the wire to the rear of the cockpit area. A PE ring and bead sight is mounted on the nose in front of the windscreen, adding a PE balance to the rudder, and a styrene pitot probe to the port wingtip, then building the prop from a single three-bladed part that is trapped between the pointed spinner and back-plate, sliding the shaft into the hole in the front of the nose. There is the choice of two types of drop-tank under the belly, both using the same style of sway-braces, although the part numbers are different, with lots of detail moulded into the two halves of the tanks. Alternately, a central bomb can be mounted, making the body from two parts and folding up the fins from a long piece of PE, then installing it on similar braces as the drop tanks, after removing a nub from the contact points that glue to the sides of the bomb. There is another choice for underwing stores, consisting of three rocket tubes that are made from four parts including a pair of hollow tips, or two more bombs that are made either in the same manner as the belly-mounted option, or can be fitted with a two-part styrene fin-box if you prefer, as can be done for the belly bomb if you wish. The PE option isn’t mentioned for the underwing bombs, but it is there all the same, while the mounts are different, with a choice of two fixture styles, sharing the same locating palette, but with a choice of either four tubular braces, or two solid panels, one on each side that form a triangle when viewed from the front. Your choice of ordnance is then located under the wings using the blue areas on the final drawing as a guide, but remembering to fit one or the other, not both. Markings As this is a Limited Edition, there are only two decal options, the first the one depicted on the box art festooned with roundels from all the various operators that used the P-40 in celebration of their achievement. The other is a Chinese-American airframe with Chinese marking. From the box you can build one of the following: 15,000th Curtiss Aircraft delivered to customers worldwide, Buffalo, NY, US, November 1944 Capt. Philip E Colman, 26th Fighter Squadron, 5th Fighter Group, Ankang, China, 1944 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. The stencils are handled on a separate page of the instructions to prevent the profiles devoted to the main markings from becoming muddled and complicated, including stencils for the landing gear and prop blades to add realism. The masks supplied on a sheet of yellow kabuki tape provide you with a full set of masks for the canopy, using different sections for the open and closed canopy options. In addition, you get a set of hub/tyre masks for the wheels, allowing you to cut the demarcation perfectly with little effort, plus a mask for the landing light into the bargain. Conclusion Another high-quality offering from Eduard that deserves to become the de facto standard for the scale once they have populated their range with more of the major marks. The detail is excellent throughout, and raises the bar for this type to new levels. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Hi I will enter an Eduard Weekend kit to be built in one of these two options.

Hello there, this is my first post on the aircraft section on BM, I normally do Armour modelling and have made many models in that section. I needed to have a break from armour, I've done so much in the past I needed to do something different. I saw a photo on the internet with a group of Japanese in the water next to a Rufe which looked brilliant and I thought I'd love to do that plane in a water scene. So the plane was from Eduard, a really nice plane to make, I particularly enjoyed doing the weathering. I used AK water products for the sea, I must say it was a bit of a heart in mouth moment when I applied the resin, but all came good in the end I think... Here are a few photo's hope you like it all the best Ed

1/48 Avia S-199 (post war Bf 109) is planed for next two or three years. source: http://modelforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=95280&start=4005#p1897662 downscale to 1/72 is planed too (like all Eduard projects) but more years in future.

Bf 110E 1.(Z)/JG 77, LN+LR, Lt Felix-Maria Brandis, Malmi, 1942 HISTORY One of the planes of 1.(Z)/JG77 commander Lt. Felix-Maria Brandis. He achieved 14 kills of which five were British (including couple Fairey Albacores). The nine other kills were against the Russians. Felix-Maria Brandis perished in February the 2nd 1942 in a bad weather while flying Bf 110E W.Nr.2546, LN+AR. Unit emblem was a dachshund biting a I-16 'Rata'. Unit had several dachshunds as mascots which sometimes flew combat missions with the crews. LN+LR was lost with it's pilot Lt. Harry Kripphal June 18th 1942 while facing off anti-aircraft fire 30 kilometers west of Murmansk. MODEL KIT This kit is originally from 2007 and represents a time when Eduard had most of the details down but fit was not always perfect. The cockpit had no issues and provided nice details and so did the canopy which is nice and clear. The engine gondolas on the other hand required some plasticard & putty in order to get a nice fit. Also the landing gear proved to be quite fiddly to put together. Model was painted using Vallejo colors - RLM74, 75 and 76. Camo dots were painted using RLM02 and RLM74. Cockpit and landing gear bays RLM02. Weathering was done with Ammo products apart from exhaust stains which were airbrushed with Vallejo paints. Pigments were used on the tyres. ----- Future plan for this model is to make a diorama with it based on Malmi 1942 together with Finnish Fiat G.50.

With the Sukhoi going nowhere fast I have had to make a decision on what will act as it's replacement and have decided to say with something from the same side of the Iron Curtain in the form of a Mig-21, a true classic. The kit I will be using is an Eduard 1/48 Mig-21 PFM with one small aftermarket addition and in markings as yet to be decided. We'll start with the box top; She has been started but only to the extent that some paint has been sprayed on the interior in a representation of that lurid colour so beloved by Soviet manufacturers; The only aftermarket will be an Eduard 3D cockpit set; And some decals; Not 100% sure which option to go with yet but am leaning towards one of these two, either Bulgaria; Or East Germany; As the airframes are identical thats a decision I can put off for now. Now I just need some time so I can make a proper start on her! Thanks for looking in and as usual all comments and criticisms are gratefully received. Craig.

I’d like to present my finished vignette of a crashed Focke Wulf 190. I made a WIP thread here, and I have a YouTube build video with the link in my signature.

So, the plan is to turn this into a model a model of this aircraft I've also got the Eduard single seater Ltd Edition kit, so "58" might also make an appearance to accompany "71" (and also have a standard Academy SU-27P kit which will become "711" the SU-37 "Terminator"). This won't be a quick build as I intend to return to it about once a week while other GB are in progress. The kit includes resin cockpit and PE but strangely the latter doesn't include the side panels so they will need to be painted. Digital camouflage to be done using Foxbot masks (and decals). Again I've also got their masks for "58" BUT they are identical to those for "71" despite the camo being applied differently to both airframes - anyway that stage is a long way off. Mike

I’ve honestly lost track of how many “I’m back at the workbench” builds this is by now, but hey, it’s done, and the motivation to keep going is enormous right now. The Luftwaffe Starfighter in its Norm 62 camo is pure childhood nostalgia and aircraft fascination for me. I had it on a Luftwaffe poster as a kid, I brush-painted one in 1:72, played with it – in short, there was proper passion involved in this build. The Eduard kit, complete with PE parts, canopy masks and a resin ejection seat, is full-on luxury. Went together beautifully – fit was excellent and made for a very enjoyable build. Especially noticeable when you’ve got the Kinetic Sea Harrier lined up next and suddenly learn what a real gap looks like... I went with the "26+24" – there are some decent photos of it online. Decals are from a specialist for German military aircraft, HaHen, and honestly, the decals were my biggest issue. Since they’re printed on continuous carrier film, they need to be cut to shape. And I, not thinking, cut them out with scissors and the backing card. What I should have done was cut the carrier film precisely with a scalpel and leave the paper intact. So now I’ve got way too much clear film around the decals, and it just refused to disappear. I used a generous coat of Humbrol Clear before decal application, then MicroSet to settle them down, pressed everything in nicely, smoothed out air bubbles, and sealed with several layers of Clear – still too visible. Lesson learnt: cut to shape next time. And I might switch back to Future/Klear as my gloss coat before and after decals. Oh – and yes, I did take some pics too: And a gust of wind flipped the 26+24 over: But it got on its wheels again, flew off and visited JG71:

I've had this model kicking around the stash for many years and thought while I'm a bit crook with some head cold and currently high on cough medicine, it might be time to start a WW1 aircraft. I don't usually build WW1 so fitting the struts was interesting, I think I managed to get them mostly lined up. I also in my haze, decided rigging would be a good idea. I drilled small holes and threaded some stretchy line through them. It took me a day but it does look nice. A simple little base was made from a wooden thing i found at a good will shop, grout, some spares box stuff, CMK resin pilot and Mini Natur grass tufts. I left the aircraft pretty clean and glossy, I've read that WW1 paints were high gloss and then faded off, but as this aircraft was not in use long I figured a dead flat finish wouldn't be realistic. The aircraft is apparently one flown by Olivier Freiherr von Beaulieu-Marconnay in probably Jagdstaffel 18, some time in late 1917 or early 1918. He would score 25 victories flying mostly the Fokker DVII between March and October 1918. On October 18th he was hit in the leg, probably by friendly fire. He managed to get back to base but was not expected to survive his wounds. His recommendation for the Blue Max was rushed through, but he would not live to know he'd become the youngest recipient of the award at just 20, dying in hospital 10 days later, only a few hours before confirmation of the award arrived.

I have finished my 1/48 Eduard Spitfire Vb representing my Aims decal options 'JU-T' 'Little Audrey' of 111 Sqn, December 1941, Debden, Essex. Note that the machine sports the latter blown hood and windscreen. The Eduard kit has been further detailed with the Eduard Mk V cockpit set and armament set, plus wheel and exhausts and radio compartment sets. The door is from Barracuda Studios to which I added a crowbar and the decals are from Aims sheet 48D028. I also used my Aims RAF wheel chocks. Paints are mostly MRP. Thanks, John

Thanks "hawkeye" Tbolt (link) ! Is Eduard to release soon a new tool (?) 1/72nd North American P-51D kit? Let's have a look at page 52 of this month Eduard Info Vol.20 May 2021. Source: https://www.eduard.com/out/media/InfoEduard/archive/2021/info-eduard-2021-05-enrr.pdf V.P.

Lysander Mk.I/Mk.III Löök (644305 for Airfix) 1:48 Eduard A lot of modellers got very excited when Airfix announced their new tooling of the Westland Lysander Mk.I/Mk.III, and they weren’t disappointed by the resulting kit, which we reviewed here. As you’re probably tired of reading, you can always improve on injection moulded styrene when it comes to detail, and Eduard are renowned for doing just that. This set contains a combination of pre-printed resin and PE parts to detail up your cockpit quickly and efficiently. There are two resin parts that make up the instrument panel in front of the pilot, the second part a compass on triangular support that slots into the bottom of the panel, with glossy faced dials and switch gear already painted for you at high resolution on black resin. Additionally, the PE set of four-point belts for the pilot that requires cutting of a lozenge-shaped hole in the back of the seat, and a pair of lap-belts are supplied for the rear gunner or passenger on his/her stool in the compartment behind the pilot. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Hello, Here's another project of mine. 3 american aircrafts including 1 and a half under british management. Both are early Mustangs with différents armament and of course different wing. 1 MTO, 1 ETO and the last from CBI There's an Accurate min and 2 ICM, serioulsly they're almost identical. The first to be finished, I guess will be the MTO one a P-51A from an US Sqdn on loan to an brit squadron. The colours will be ... Let's say, unusual. One of my favourite game , you both should know the kind of remark "are you sure about the colours ???" I modify the camera rack for 2 of thede Mustang, because, you receive this... And you must have that... So, I cut the brackets, throw away the original support, add an armour plate ( from her cousins ) slightly modified. Add wiring to the camera, That seem promising, there's also lots of sanding but the ICM are worst. I keep on going, modifying the wings according to the 3 different type of early mustang is funny. Thank for watching. Corsaircorp

Eduard is to release a new mould from the 1/48th Focke-Wulf Fw.190A. Source: http://www.detailscaleview.com/2015/11/new-products-from-novemberfest-2015.html 3D renders V.P.

P-39K/L Airacobra Weekend Edition (8463) 1:48 Eduard The P-39 was Bell’s response to a specification requested for a fighter from the USAAC, which was to be a high-altitude interceptor. With Bell’s usual left-field approach to aircraft design, the team produced the world’s first tricycle landing geared prop-driven aircraft, as well as the first aircraft to site the engine behind the pilot, while the airscrew remained at the front. The prop was driven by a long drive shaft that ran under the pilot’s floor, with a coaxial 37mm cannon firing through the centre of the spinner, in a quest for high penetration and accuracy. Ancillary armament varied depending on model, from nose mounted .50cals to four 7.62mm machine guns in the wings. The Airacobra had limited internal space for fuel thanks in part to its tapered nose, and the lack of a supercharger substantially limited its abilities at higher altitudes. Despite these drawbacks, and the likelihood of engine failure after hits from a rear attack, the Airacobra flew in most arenas of combat, but distinguished itself best on the Eastern Front in Soviet service, where almost 5,000 were flown with some notable aces racking up victories whilst flying them. The K model was fitted with an Aeroproducts prop and a more powerful engine that output over 1,300hp, and with a Curtiss Electric prop it was designated L, with a total of around 500 of the two subvariants made. One K airframe was taken from the production line and converted into the prototype of the later N series. The final variant was the Q, which ceased production in 1944 after a variety of sub-variants and one-offs were created. The Kit This is a reboxing of a tooling with origins in 2000, but to which additional parts have been added over the years. It is a Weekend boxing too, which as the name implies has just the styrene and some decal options for a simple build, rather than adding Photo-Etch (PE) and other such extras that might slow you down. The kit arrives in a blue-and-white themed top-opening box with a painting of a brace of Airacobras flying low over shipping, and the profiles for the decal options on the side of the lid. Inside the box are three sprues of bluish grey styrene, a clear sprue in a separate Ziploc bag, two decal sheets split between markings and stencils, and the instruction booklet that is printed in colour on gloss white paper, with the full profiles of the decal options on the back pages. Detail is good, especially for the era, and the decal choices offer a range of schemes. Construction begins with the cockpit, starting with the floor, to which a bulkhead with clear armour is fitted, adding a suspended radio shelf that is supported by another bulkhead at the rear, and a portion of the intake behind the cockpit at the very rear. Additional small parts are mounted in the forward cockpit, including the control column, extra levers, the pilot’s seat with decal four-point belts, and of course the instrument panel, which has rudder pedals fixed in the rear, and a dial decal applied to the engraved details on the front. Another bulkhead is mated to the front of the cockpit assembly, attaching the five-part nose gear bay to the front, tipping upward so that it fits snugly within the nose. The cockpit sidewalls are moulded into the fuselage halves, adding a throttle quadrant to the starboard side, plus stencil decals to add extra detail and realism. A cartoon bunny in the corner of that step reminds you to add nose weight to prevent a tail-sitter, but doesn’t give a value for the weight needed, so you will have to tape the main parts together to achieve balance. Once the fuselage halves are joined around the cockpit and nose weight, an insert with the nose guns is added to the nose, which will also give you one last chance to install nose weight. Once you have dealt with the seams in your preferred manner, the elevators are slotted into the sides of the tail, and the wings are built. The lower wing is full-span, and has the main gear bay walls moulded-in, adding the roof panels, and installing the radiators in the leading-edges of the wings, boxing them in with the intakes that follow the contours of the wings. A small piece of the leading edge of the wing should be cut away to accommodate the wing mounted guns, gluing the upper wings over the completed lower, then mating it with the fuselage. Flipping the model over, the radiator exhaust ducts have their cores installed, followed by the cooling gills, with a scrap diagram showing how they should be arranged. While the model is inverted, the main gear legs are fitted with separate scissor-links, captive door bays, and a choice of two styles of two-part wheels, one with a flat-spot to imply weight of the airframe on the tyre, the other without, whichever you prefer. Two decal options have the majority of the bay door removed, so bear this in mind before you apply glue, adding the inner bay doors and their retraction jacks on the central edges of the bays. The nose gear leg also has separate scissor-links and the same choice of two styles of wheels, adding a small door to the base of the leg, a long two-part retraction jack behind the strut, and a pair of long doors down the sides of the bay. Righting the model allows fitting of the exhaust stacks on either side of the cockpit, gluing the main canopy and windscreen as one part over the cockpit, and an optional radio mast behind it. The two clear “car door” style doors are painted on the inside and have stencil decals applied before they are fixed to the cockpit, with a choice of inserts on the nose that depends on which decal option you have chosen. The propeller is built from a back-plate with three grooves for the individual blades, of which there are two choices, trapped in place by the spinner with gun barrel in the centre, while a scrap diagram shows the 37° angle of the blades to the back-plate. It is glued in place on the axle moulded into the front of the fuselage, then the model is completed by sliding the two gun barrels into each wing, and a pitot probe near the tip of the port wing. Markings There are four decal options on the included sheets, with a choice of different schemes to appeal to a wider audience, each option having a full page dedicated to it, and the common stencils shown on a separate set of line drawings to avoid over-complicating the main profiles. From the box you can build one of the following: P-39L, 42-4558, 93rd FS, 81st FG, Sidi Ahmed, Tunisia, summer 1943 P-39K, 42-4275, 70th FS, 347th FG, Guadalcanal, spring 1943 P-39L, 42-4472, 346th FS, 350th FG, Tunisia, spring 1943 P-39K, 42-4358, Lt. William McDonough, 40th FS, 35th FG, Port Moresby, New Guinea, February 1943 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 reboxing of this Eduard staple in 1:48, with four decal options adding value to the Weekend boxing. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Yes as the topic says, its finnished. This is my interpret of Hermann Graf BF109G-6, field worn.

A great kit made a little better with: Eduard PE cockpit Eduard Zuni Rockets Hasegawa Weapons Set bombs SkunkModels MD-3 Tractor Helmet and oxygen mask from manufacturer I cannot recall. I used the kit decals and found them to be a little fragile and impossible for me to place the CAG color flashes on the rudder. Instead the build represents the CAG bird following a rudder replacement carried out in 1970.

F-35B Exhaust Nozzle (6481091 for Tamiya) 1:48 Eduard Brassin Tamiya’s 1:48 range of F-35 super kits has grown to encompass the full trio of available variants with the recent addition of the F-35C, and Eduard are working through the range to offer upgrade options to the major areas where detail will be needed. This set is appropriate to the STOVL F-35B, which is the option chosen by the Royal Air Force for their carriers, in addition to the US Marines, Italy, and possibly Korea. As is usual with Eduard's larger resin sets, they arrive in a Brassin-themed black-and-yellow cardboard box, with the resin parts safely cocooned in bags between two layers of grey foam, and the instructions folded around acting as additional padding. Inside the box are five large 3D printed resin parts, all of which are roughly cylindrical, as you might expect. Detail is astonishing if you haven’t yet seen the level of quality that is achievable using this new technology, and is still impressive to the hardened viewer of these things. The exhaust “can” is covered with fine detail that is seen on the real things, and this attaches to a length of trunking that is covered with a waffle-texture on the outer face, and ribbing on the inner, plus a few diagonal strips that are where the nozzle rotates during the transition from horizontal flight to hover. The aft section depicts the rear portion of the engine, starting with another cylinder that fits to the trunk, all of the parts keyed so that they can only fit the correct way. Inside the shorter section are two fan sections that represent the aft face of the engine and afterburner ring, each one a separate part that should make painting straight forward. The fit is extremely snug however, so it is worthwhile sanding a little material from the two inserts, or leaving insertion until everything is painted and weathered. Once the assembly is complete, it locates in the fuselage on two cylindrical tabs of differing length on the top of the main trunk section. Painting instructions are given throughout the instructions in Gunze H and C codes, with colour names below. The lack of seams on any of the parts, increase in detail, and more realistic scale thicknesses where appropriate should result in a more accurate representation of this powerful and innovative focal point for your Tamiya F-35B model in this scale. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Fw.190A-6 Engine & Fuselage Guns (6481102 for Eduard) 1:48 Eduard Brassin We’ve just reviewed the new Fw.190A-6 kit in 1:48 from Eduard here, and it’s a great kit that will satisfy many builders straight from the box. If you’re hungry for more detail however, this new engine set will upgrade the kit with an extremely high level of detail that peels back the skin of the fuselage to expose the motive power of this WWII fighter, adding an extra focal point to your model. As is usual with Eduard's larger resin sets, they arrive in a deep yellow and black themed Brassin cardboard box, with the resin parts safely cocooned in bags, a foam sheet top and bottom, and the instructions folded around acting as extra padding. Inside the box are a large quantity of highly detailed resin and PE parts to construct a complete BMW 801 engine for the deadly Fw.190, which is so detailed due to Eduard's advanced CAD prototyping, 3d Printing and casting facilities, and their extremely talented model engineers. Incredibly, much of the detail is amalgamated into monolithic parts to reduce the number of castings, starting with the gun bay between the cockpit and the engine. The two ammo boxes have PE handles fitted, and are then glued into the single-part stepped bulkhead at the rear, which shows a triangular length of scrap resin behind that must be removed before construction. A hose it applied into a groove in the front of the bulkhead, followed by a single part that depicts the entire engine mount, attaching by its four location points astride the ammo boxes. The twin MG17 cannons on their supports are fitted to the top of the bulkhead after removing additional resin marked in red, adding wire around the bases for realism, and another resin part depicting the operating mechanism on each side. Additional wiring is added behind the gun breeches, their locations marked in colour, and their lengths given in addition to diameter. Both cylinder banks are printed as a single part, onto which the exhaust collector pipework is glued. A PE wiring loom and resin ancillary plate are added to the rear, the remainder of the exhaust tubing and clustered outlet pipes surround this, plus another wiring loom fitted to the front of the engine before the reduction housing, magneto, and optional prop-shaft are inserted, fitting several PE straps that hold the hoses and exhausts stable, and mounting a horseshoe-shaped reservoir and ancillary parts around the rear. Once completed and painted, the engine can be mated to the nose gun bay, setting it aside while the fuselage and lower wing parts are adapted to accommodate it. Red areas mark the parts of the fuselage cowling and underwing areas that should be removed, and four slots made in the skin around the gun bay to accommodate the closures, trapping the combined engine and gun bay between the fuselage halves, adding a gun trough panel with heater ducts fixed to the top of the engine, first slipping the barrels into the troughs, then mating the intake-ring to the remaining fuselage panels. The missing cowling panels are all supplied as thin resin parts, with exceptional detail, which is augmented by adding PE fasteners to the edges, and PE hinges where they join the fuselage. They are shown posed open to the correct positions, held in place by lengths of wire from your own stocks, and you can then choose to fit the kit prop on the axle, or leave it off and replace it with a resin shaft with splined ends if you prefer. There is also a resin update set available if you wish to augment the detail in that area too, which can be found by clicking here. Colours are called out during construction using Gunze H and C codes, the location of wires/hoses are printed in colour with lengths and diameters given to aid you in selecting suitable wires from your stock, which will help immensely with the complex task. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Allright. doin a quicky here, and yes all PE parts will be used, hmmm obsession after my ship build eh, waiting for few AM part to my Arado build, so meanwhile doin this,...5h later, this will do just fine for me, all the instrument got glasses aswell... so enjoy. Here is the kit, got it cheap second hand, unbuilt and sealed in bags...as usual, usually never buy new...money saver, spend big bucks on quality tools and material instead.