ICM has reboxed its He 111 kit for a unique Captured Heinkel scheme in 1/48th scale. The Part 2 review is a continuation and conclusion of what was written from Part 1.

Review Process for Part 2

This is a box stock build with no aftermarket products used during the assembly process. From Part 1, we move on to painting and final assembly.

The landing gear parts are thin and fragile. It is highly recommended to use good side cutting nippers to remove them from the sprue tree. For assembly, I used the wheel wells as a jig to put the parts together but waited to permanently install them later down the road after painting.

The model is primed with Mr. Surfacer 1000 gray. The engine nacelles, vertical tail edges, rudder, and some windows were painted flat white in preparation for masking to match the box illustration.

ICM has reboxed its He 111 kit for a unique Captured Heinkel scheme in 1/48th scale. The instructions give a very interesting history of this captured He 111H-20 transport variant:

The Armed Forces of Ukraine use a wide variety of trucks for different purposes. One notable example is the all-wheel drive ZiL-131, which was mass-produced throughout the 1970s and 1980s for both civilian and military use. Known for its high reliability and exceptional off-road capabilities, the truck proved versatile in many applications.

In the Armed Forces of Ukraine, some of these vehicles received field modifications—being equipped with heavy machine guns or light artillery weapons. Notable examples include ZiL-131 variants fitted with DShKM heavy machine guns, mounted on various pedestals or mounts in their cargo beds. These modifications transform the trucks into fire support vehicles, capable of engaging lightly armored targets and slow-moving aerial targets.

The Tiger I, or Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger Ausführung E, remains one of the most iconic tanks of World War II. Its reputation for firepower, armor, and sheer presence on the battlefield has made it a favorite for scale modelers. In 2015, Italeri offered a New Tool 1:56 scale rendition of this legendary vehicle that targeted the Wargame Community.

Inside the box, you get two sprues, both sealed individually, a set of directions and a set of decals for two similar paint schemes.

First is Tiger ‘3’ from Schwere Panzerabteilung 508 (Heavy Tank Battalion 508) in Italy, September of 1944.

Second is Tiger ‘211’ from Heavy Tank Battalion 504 in Italy, early 1945.

Both paint schemes have a Dunkelgelb base with Olive Green and Red Brown wavy stripes covering the entire tank. Color references are provided.

A great surprise upon opening these decals is finding a set of masks as an alternative to the decals themselves. Then the secondary surprise was finding out that you’re provided enough information to do either the 2001/2002 early type or the 2003/2004 late type Demo scheme. This isn’t obvious from the cover sheet for the decals so it was definitely nice to find in the package. Someone who really knows the display teams would probably recognize the different schemes by year without needing a reference on the cover page. The decals are for the early type and the masks are for the late type. The decals on what I’m learning are a classic dark blue and white background for Syh@rt, making them stand out clearly. All of the decals for the paint scheme are in the gloss black striping. The modeler will need to paint all of the other shades of gray and silver.

ICM has reboxed its He 111 kit for a unique Captured Heinkel scheme in 1/48th scale. The Part 2 review is a continuation and conclusion of what was written from Part 1.

Review Process for Part 2:

This is a box stock build with no aftermarket products used during the assembly process. From Part 1, we move on to painting and final assembly.

The landing gear parts are thin and fragile. It is highly recommended to use good side cutting nippers to remove them from the sprue tree. For assembly, I used the wheel wells as a jig to put the parts together but waited to permanently install them later down the road after painting.

The model is primed with Mr. Surfacer 1000 gray. The engine nacelles, vertical tail edges, rudder, and some windows were painted flat white in preparation for masking to match the box illustration.

ICM has reboxed its He 111 kit for a unique Captured Heinkel scheme in 1/48th scale. The instructions give a very interesting history of this captured He 111H-20 transport variant:

Unique History

The non-profit UK based group known as the Great War Aviation Society publishes their journal, Cross & Cockade International, four times a year. Issues are available in English as printed [Softbound, A4 (8.27” x 11.69”), 80 pages plus centerfold] as well as digital copies (or both). A new magazine, Contact!, is now available in both print and digital download. The Society also provides a free newsletter (sign up on their website) and occasionally publish WWI themed books like the Sopwith Dolphin monograph I reviewed earlier for IPMS USA. This Journal is the sister of the US Journal, Over The Front. The Great War Aviation Society also hosts a lecture series available through Zoom. If interested, you will need to register early as the call is limited in attendance.

If you believe the Pacific Air War, particularly the Solomons and Southern Pacific theaters haven’t been properly chronicled, you have never heard of author Michael Claringbould. As a fan of his Pacific Profiles series, I was eager to read more of his series, and I was not disappointed. I was introduced to Peter Ingman in this book and thrilled to learn that he partnered with Michael Claringbould for the aforementioned series with three volumes of the Solomons Air War and this, the sixth volume of the South Pacific Air War.

From the Casemate Publishers website (https://www.casematepublishers.com/9780975642368/south-pacific-air-war-volume-6/),

“The Armed Forces of Ukraine use a wide variety of trucks for different purposes. One notable example is the all-wheel drive ZiL-131, which was mass-produced throughout the 1970s and 1980s for both civilian and military use. Known for its high reliability and exceptional off-road capabilities, the truck proved versatile in many applications.

In the Armed Forces of Ukraine, some of these vehicles received field modifications—being equipped with heavy machine guns or light artillery weapons. Notable examples include ZiL-131 variants fitted with DShKM heavy machine guns, mounted on various pedestals or mounts in their cargo beds. These modifications transform the trucks into fire support vehicles, capable of engaging lightly armored targets and slow-moving aerial targets.”

David Doyle's book on the US Coast Guard Cutter 37 is one of the latest entries in the 'Legends of Warfare' series with entries in Ground, Naval, and Aviation. Schiffer Publishing’s The Legends of Warfare series has expanded rapidly since its 2017 debut in the market with now over 100 titles released. This hard cover series covers a wide variety of monographs at a good price point. Catch up with Schiffer Publishing at https://www.facebook.com/schifferpublishing.

The Tiger I, or Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger Ausführung E, remains one of the most iconic tanks of World War II. Its reputation for firepower, armor, and sheer presence on the battlefield has made it a favorite for scale modelers. In 2015, Italeri offered a New Tool 1:56 scale rendition of this legendary vehicle that targeted the Wargame Community.

Inside the box, you get two sprues, both sealed individually, a set of directions and a set of decals for two similar paint schemes.

First is Tiger ‘3’ from Schwere Panzerabteilung 508 (Heavy Tank Battalion 508) in Italy, September of 1944.

Second is Tiger ‘211’ from Heavy Tank Battalion 504 in Italy, early 1945.

Both paint schemes have a Dunkelgelb base with Olive Green and Red Brown wavy stripes covering the entire tank. Color references are provided.

A great surprise upon opening these decals is finding a set of masks as an alternative to the decals themselves. Then the secondary surprise was finding out that you’re provided enough information to do either the 2001/2002 early type or the 2003/2004 late type Demo scheme. This isn’t obvious from the cover sheet for the decals so it was definitely nice to find in the package. Someone who really knows the display teams would probably recognize the different schemes by year without needing a reference on the cover page. The decals are for the early type and the masks are for the late type. The decals on what I’m learning are a classic dark blue and white background for Syh@rt, making them stand out clearly. All of the decals for the paint scheme are in the gloss black striping. The modeler will need to paint all of the other shades of gray and silver.

For some time now, I have been wanting to check out a Kagero publication. I see them for sale at the IPMS shows from time to time and I can’t believe I waited this long to get my hands on a copy. The only Aircraft Carrier I have in my stash is the Akagi so I thought this a fitting edition to start with. First of all, I have to say I was gob smacked at the quality of the print. The book is softbound, and contains amazing color images on a full color, gloss A4 sized paper.

In this episode the boys are joined by Mason and Spencer to talk about the upcoming PatCon 2025 being held at the American Heritage Museum September 28. 

 

PeKo Publishing's brand new "Through the Lens", No. 7, is on pre-order at a discount for a short time. We check out some contents in our preview...Read on... »

I ordered the Osiris Models (now no longer operating) Matilda flail. It was very nicely detailed, amazing in some respects actually if you look at the chain flails, but the Matilda used in the kit was one of the very earliest ones with the armored co-axial M/G and the different exhaust system. I couldn't find any photos of the use of these earlier vehicles, so I went on the hunt for an ESCI Matilda, it being the most readily, if rare, 1/72 version of the later mark vehicle. I finally tracked one down (no pun intended) and set to work adapting the Osiris flail mechanism to the ESCI kit. It fit quite well actually and took minimal work with only the addition of the support beams to the sides of the Matilda being necessary. I did need to add the lane indicators to the rear however, but these hadn't been included in the Osiris kit either. One other small addition was the flail operator. He is a modified seated figure that has lost his arms and legs but he now fits in the rather cramped space. One drawback is that the commander figure from the ESCI kit has a face more reminiscent of a chimpanzee than a brave warrior.

Staying with the horror theme a little longer, Fr. Damien Karras the troubled priest from the 1973 Exorcist film went on the hobby table. The character was played by Jason Miller who sadly passed away in 2001. As a sidebar his son is Jason Patrick of Lost Boys fame! The kit is in 2 simple parts - the bust and the base. Looking it over there was only the slightest flash line in the hair, which was easily removed. The sculpt IMO is a freeze frame of when the demon enters the priest, saving Regan. I was surprised that looking for a screen grab of that part of the scene was harder to find than I thought. With the black priest garb this is going to be an easy paint up. I start as usual with my "pinkle" and red base coat to the skin. While that was drying, my plan was to make the name plate a tarnished bronze. I saw a tutorial where the tarnish is painting in first and then the metallic is dry brushed on later. So lets see... Then the bronzing... Next up is the face colors, and despite him looking very pale in that last image, I felt he needed a little coloring as the first skin application. The priest garb is simply black, and then I added some black gray as a highlight for the shoulders etc... V's Pale Flesh was added to the face and then with the outline of his eyes sculpted it, I added a little Agrax Wash to the round divots and then a greenish yellow to the irises once the Wash dried. The final need was taking my stylus tool and with a dip into black made the pupils. He was finished. He can now join his partner Fr. Merrin who was previously done. Thanks for looking. (apologies for the bad pic...)

The recently revealed 8-wheeled PLB625 AA Gun & Missile Integrated Weapon System is another in Meng's great new 72nd scale range. We have art, CADs & the real thing in our preview...Read on... »

MiniArt adds a crew to their 35th scale Sd.Kfz. 234/4 Schwerer Panzerspähwagen to better "populate" your diorama. Colours, sprue layouts, crew & profiles in our preview...Read on... »