At the start of WWII, the Royal Australian Air Force was little more than a glorified flying club with few pilots and only a couple of hundred effective aircraft. With the outbreak of war, the Australian Government committed to a large and rapid expansion of RAAF airpower, including the formation of a number of units in Britain to serve alongside the RAF. One of these squadrons was 452, a fighter squadron formed in April 1941 and manned by RAAF personnel but operationally controlled by the RAF.

Aries has provided this very nice Resin upgrade for the Italeri Kit for the wheel bays and gear bay doors. The set includes 27 resin parts and a double-sided instruction sheet. All the parts are very detailed and will add a lot of details to the current kit details. The photos show how good these parts are. The parts are produced with very little flash or material to remove. In conclusion these parts will add so much more details to the standard kit.

Thanks go to Aries for providing this kit to review and IPMS/USA for allowing me to review it for them.

DXM (Double Excellent Model) Decals is a hobby company based in Taiwan and has been producing models since 2018. DXM produces modern jet aircraft (primarily United States, Japan, and Israel, but there are some other unique air forces – Hellenic, Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force, etc.) decals in 1/144, 1/72, 1/48, and 1/32 scales. In addition, there are weathering/rusted airbrush templates, 3D parts, and conversion sets. The decals are printed by Cartograph. You can see their amazing products on their homepage and even have a YouTube video reference for applying their decals.

DXM’s 1/48 scale USMC F/A-18C/D VMFA-312 & 115 Decals Set has five options from MCAS Iwakuni, Japan, all from VMFA-312 DR 214:

Quickboost recently provided the Reviewer Corps with drop-in resin replacement exhaust pipes for Arma Hobby’s P-39Q/N Airacobra in 1/48 scale. The sample item came in a plastic bag with cardboard backing. There are no instructions for this set. For the Arma Hobby kit and they are direct replacements for part A22.

There are two exhaust pipes (left & right) from the traditional pour moldings for these resin replacements (not 3D generated). The quality is excellent, and the exhaust pipe ends have holes molded in, so no drilling is required.

An awesome pickup HEMTT & a historic Fletcher-class destroyer are the latest releases from I Love Kit. Art, info, sprues & built-up test kits in our preview...Read on... »

Eduard has the usual massive list of aftermarket and add-ons along with four kits for modellers to ogle over this month. We look at September's selections - with art, box contents, colours & decals in our preview...Read on... »

Miniart have combined their excellent 35th scale D8506 tractor & "gulashcannone" to make a combination set of two to fill your dioramas. We have the colour schemes & features of the kit in our preview...Read on... »

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Clayton Ockerby has taken time to give us a look at Ginger Cat's heavily updated Sd.Kfz.251 with ICM plastic & 3D-printed upgrades. See what's inside the kit in his video review...Read on... »

The Cincinnati Scale Modelers are becoming the scale modeling equivalent to "The Big Red Machine"!  Join us as we discuss their upcoming show, and then pivot to a conversation regarding their Junior Modelers Chapter!

A model contest inside a warbird museum is already a strong idea, but Cincinnati Scale Modelers are pushing it further with the kind of details that make a show feel effortless for builders. We sit down with club president Will Kurt to get the full rundown on the upcoming Cincinnati show at the Tri-State Warbird Museum in Batavia, Ohio, including what time the doors open, how the museum space stays accessible all day, and why that setting makes the contest tables more inspiring. If you’ve ever wanted to study real aircraft shapes, finishes, and markings while thinking about your next build, this venue delivers.

We also get practical about how to attend and compete: online registration versus on-site paperwork, clear fee structure, and the on-the-ground improvements like prominent signage, a front-door greeter, and club members in branded shirts so you always know who can help. Then we dig into what makes the awards special. Alongside the returning Boss Hog Award with Mission Barbecue, Will shares the story behind a brand-new Colonel Robert Rogers “Little Buckaroo” P-38 Lightning award that will be presented by the pilot’s son, plus the Spirit of Cincinnati Award sponsored by LaRosa’s Pizza, built around local pride and local history.

The second half turns into a bigger conversation about the future of the hobby: how Cincinnati Scale Junior Modelers became a free youth model club, why a public library is a perfect meeting spot, how donated kits and supplies keep costs out of the equation, and what kids learn beyond glue and paint. If you’ve wondered how to start a junior chapter inside IPMS, this is a real-world playbook, complete with recruiting tactics, mentoring lessons, and a reminder that mistakes are part of every build.

Subscribe for more scale modeling talk, share this with a friend who needs a fall show to attend, and leave us a review if you want more interviews like this. What would you bring to the contest table, and what story would your model tell?

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MiniArt has released a new set of German Army Officers & accessories from WWII in 35th scale. We look at the box contents & art in our preview...Read on... »

I’m gonna kick this off with a little background on the concept for this AMT kit. Motörhead was a hard rock band that started out in the 70s and was super popular in my high school years in the 1980s. They were out of the UK and had a number of top 10 singles and albums. Being a car guy, Motörhead just fit my mentality at the time, even though I wasn’t as much into hard rock in that era. Ace of Spades was one of their singles on an album of the same name. It was on their second album and reached pretty high in the charts. Doing a themed Camaro based on this band just seems to be a natural thing to do!

The book examines the early development of German armored forces in defiance of the Treaty of Versailles. It traces the evolution from experimental prototypes in the interwar period to the Panzer I (Panzerkampfwagen I / Sd.Kfz. 101), Hitler’s first mass-produced tank.

Although small, lightly armed, and limited in combat performance, the Panzer I played a key role in training Panzer crews and enabling the early Blitzkrieg campaigns. It saw action in the invasions of Poland, Denmark and Norway, the Low Countries, France, and the early stages of the campaign in the Soviet Union. The volume covers design innovations across models and variants, combat history, operational performance, pre-war training, and its contribution to later, more powerful German tanks.

Quickboost has provided the Reviewer Corps with a resin upgrade replacement detail for Tamiya’s F4U-1A or D Corsair Headrest Type B in 1/72nd scale.

In The Package & Product Notes

The sample review came in a plastic bag with cardboard backing. There are instructions for this set and it will show the removal of the headrest pad for parts B15 & B16. This will allow the new headrest to be installed on the forward side of the bulkhead.

Note: this part cannot be used on F4U-1 “Birdcage” variant with the aft scalloped windows.

There are two headrests provided and they are the traditional pour moldings (not 3D generated). The quality is excellent with very fine detail.

Please note, since this is a resin part, Superglue (CA) or other bonding agent will be needed to secure the headrest to the kit plastic.

CONCLUSIONS

Jacek Zabielski’s new monograph arrives as a welcome addition to the literature on early-war light tanks. The LT vz. 35—better known in German service as the Panzerkampfwagen 35(t)—has long occupied an awkward middle ground: important enough to appear in most general accounts of the 1939–41 campaigns, yet rarely given sustained, dedicated treatment in English. This book sets out to correct that imbalance.

Scope and approach

This wonderful decal set covers USMC F-4B Phantoms from the following squadrons:

• VMFA-531 Grey Ghosts
• VMFA-542 Tigers
• VMFA-513 Flying Nightmares
• VMFA-122 Crusaders

I had been eager to build the Crusader’s 3-gunned F-4B that flew from Da Nang with 3 Mark 4 gun pods for several missions, so I was eager to try out these decals. I was not disappointed. Printed by Cartograph, they are very crisp, and include various options for each squadron’s markings, a set of walkway decals, and all the stencils needed. The stencils include some specific for the J model, but they are called out on the instruction sheet so just pay attention.

ICM has done it again with a great combination kit containing three vehicles currently serving Ukraine against the Russian invasion. This boxing Military Vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (DS7205 – Diorama Set) has three complete kits: Ural-43203, BM-21 ‘Grad’ and SPz Marder 1 A3. From the ICM webpage for the Military Vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine:

The Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine operate various military equipment, primarily consisting of Soviet-era models. Most of these vehicles have stood the test of time and remain effective for combat tasks.

Linden Models has been hard at work, with several new figure sets, all unique & steeped in historical interest for modellers. We look at their latest sculpts in our preview...Read on... »

Background

Being that other builders have provided explanations about Gunpla and Gundam in their reviews, I will forego that. This particular figure, the Rosan Swordman, is part of the ’30 Minutes Fantasy’ series. The Bandai website offers seven pages of various kits and upgrades for this series.

The Figure

Per the enclosed guide, the Class I soldiers specialize in swordsmanship and fight in the Colosseum. They wield various types of blades including one-handed, and two-handed swords, and they have an excellent balance of offensive and defensive skills. They have precise techniques and calmly make decisions, demonstrating their proficient skills when fighting alone or with allies.

For background information on the main figure, please see the review I wrote titled “Bandai Rosan Swordman”.

This set, like the Swordman kit, is part of the ’30 Minute Fantasy’ series. There are various Class Up Armor sets available for the different figures throughout the series.

The Kit

Included in the box are three trees: one is bright blue and the other two are silver. The silver trees are mostly duplicate parts from the man Swordman kit 5072036.

The assembly process guides you through a series of steps where you essentially take apart the Rosan silhouette figure. This means removing the head, the arms, and the legs.

As with all Bandai kits, careful study of the instructions in advance is very important because, depending on certain poses or accouterment features selected, you will need to vary the assembly.