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From the website - Mike Reeves has been an aircraft nut his entire life. It all started when he was a kid growing up in Phoenix, Arizona watching the Blue Angels flying their A-4 Skyhawks practicing for their air shows at Deer Valley Airport from the roof of his house after school. When he got to meet the Blues pilots he was hooked and his love of military aircraft began. He served in the USAF and spent a lot of time in and around fighter jets both in the CONUS and abroad in Germany.

His love of the hobby began at a very young age when he would watch his dad and brother build models at the kitchen table at their home in Michigan. His dad and brother built cars and trucks but Mike always wanted to build airplanes. His first model was a Revell 1/72 Blue Angels F-4 Diamond set! Testors tube glue and sloppy paint work started the journey through the hobby that continues today.

The HK B-17F & G are really nice kits. Much nicer than the venerable Monogram B-17G and the Revell B-17F, however there are some areas where I prefer the older kit. One of those areas is the engines.

There are a variety of companies that have made update sets for the engines. For me the best and easiest to use is this Aires set.

Packaged in the typical Aires cardboard box are four beautiful engines. The detail is exceptional with the cooling fins on the cylinders being the deal cincher for me. Included in the box are the four engines and four ‘banks’ of push rods with plenty of extras. There are also four spacers included. Also in the box is a fret of brass ignition leads for the cylinders. Illustrated instructions are also included.

The ICM Do-217N-1 is a nice kit but it could use some updates. One of the big ones is in the propeller blades and prop hub. The kit offering is not quite correct in shape and the prop blade profile is off slightly with the propeller tips being a little too pointy.

Quickboost recognized this and offers up this easy and convenient prop set. Included in the typical resealable bag with card stock backing are eight propeller blades and two spinners. The only thing missing is a tool to set the angle of the blades. Removal of the parts is simple enough. You will have to drill a center hole to mount the spinner with the props installed. This will require some brass, not included, or some other form of support. You could always just mount the prop spinners directly to the cowlings.

The HK B-17s are really good kits. They could use some details added here and there. One of those places is the props. They are slightly misshaped. They are wider than they should be at least to my eye and to obviously Quickboost as well. Judge for yourself with the photos.

There are four prop hubs and 12 prop blades. They are all packaged in the resealable packaging that Quickboost uses with a card stock backing to protect the parts. There are 16 flawlessly cast light grey resin pieces included, four hubs and 12 blades. The blades are keyed to the hubs so there is no need for an alignment tool. The detail on the hubs is flawlessly executed and the blades are suitably thin and correctly shaped.

The only real work is to drill out the back of the hub and insert your own mount or wire.

Painting is easy enough with the yellow tips and the hubs and blades being flat black. You will have to supply your own decals as none are provided.

Brengun Models is a scale model and detailing parts manufacturer located in the Czech Republic. Their lines include limited production run multi-media kits and exquisitely detailed photo-etched, turned brass and white metal replacement parts for aircraft in the most commonly produced scales.

Brengun has produced a set of engine nozzles for any 1/72 scale F/A-18E/F Super Hornet kit. The parts should fit the F/A-18G Growler kits as well. Any modeler familiar with resin parts will have no issues installing these exhausts in lieu of the kit parts. A close-up evaluation of the parts (see photos), indicates a simple cut and replace installation that provides realistic scale-detailed exhaust cans and afterburner rings with significantly improved appearance to molded plastic kit parts. The photo comparison is to the exhausts supplied in the 1/72 Hasegawa F/A-18E kit. The Brengun exhausts have superior component detail to those supplied in the Hasegawa kit.