Kits

History

There was considerable industrial collaboration between Germany and Japan before and during World War II, and the fact that the Germans were able to send complete aircraft to Japan after Pearl Harbor was surprising, especially since they almost had to be sent by submarine.  During 1941, the Japanese Army received 5 Bf-109E-7’s, and these were thoroughly tested by the Army, who did not select the type for production, but they did use the DB-601 engine in its Kawasaki Ki-61 “Hein” (Tony) fighter of 1942.  These aircraft were delivered in standard Luftwaffe camouflage, were marked with standard Japanese Hinomarus, and lacked at least wing armament and pilot armor.  From available photos, it is not possible to tell whether the aircraft retained their fuselage-mounted machine guns.  However, the spinners were the type which equipped engine-mounted cannon-armed fighters, so the question of cowl machine guns is not possible to determine.  Some accounts state that the aircraft were unarmed.  Your choice on this one.  Photos and information are available on http://www.j-aircraft.com/captured/testedby/me109/me109.htm

History

The Focke Wulf Ta-152H series was the ultimate development of the FW-190 design, and appeared in small numbers right at the close of World War II in Europe.  Most of our readers are probably familiar with the history of the type, so I won’t go into many details.  Needless to say, the Ta-152H series, which was powered by a Junkers Jumo 213E-1 engine of over 1,700 hp., was as good as any of the piston engine fighters that were operational at the end of the war.

The arrival of the Zvezda Bf-109F-4 has been highly anticipated by this modeler.  Having built the Bf-109F-2, I was excited about the possibilities.  Packaged in an extremely sturdy cardboard locking-lid box, the kit features a beautiful painting of a JG54 aircraft in combat.  This is just an exciting beginning to the model.

Inside the cardboard box, you are treated to three large light grey sprues, two smaller light grey ones, and a sprue of clear parts.  There are over 200 parts and they are beautifully rendered, although my lower wings were slightly warped.  This would be no big deal, as the upper wings would take care of the warp.  The detail is gorgeous and perfectly rendered with no flash anywhere.  You get parts for the F-4 and F-4/Trop.  A relatively complete engine is included, and you’ll have to use most of it regardless if you have the engine cowlings open or not.

Items in the box

The model is made of injection molded plastic, gray in color. The instructions were made up in book form printed both sides. Clear plastic parts were also included, along with two small sheets of photo etch details (brass material).

History Brief

The T-26 tank was a Soviet light infantry tank, and was a development of the British Vickers 6-ton tank. Many consider it to be one of the most successful tank designs of the 1930’s. With more than 11,000 made, it was the most produced tank of its period.

The T-26 Served in many conflicts of the 1930’s and was used during World War 2. The tank served with the armies of Turkey, China, and Spain. In addition, the Finnish, German, Romanian, and Hungarian armies used captured T-26s.

The Product

The kit is 100% all-new tooling and consists of over 988 parts. It comes packaged in a very sturdy corrugated box featuring an interesting illustration of T-26s parading across a stream. The bulk of the plastic is molded in dark green while the elaborate track system comes in a neutral brown. The kit also included a comprehensive 30-piece photo etch set. Hobby Boss offers different radiator and turret options. Other items included are well-illustrated instructions and a small decal sheet. Lastly, there is a double-sided multi-view color plate featuring the two decal options.

This aircraft need little introduction, being one of the two major fighters of the German air force in World War 2.  The Bf-109E-1 was the first of the Emil versions and lead to the F through K versions.  The Emil was also the basis for the ill-fated carrier fighter for the Graf Zeppelin.

The Kit

This kit is pretty similar to my last review of the MiniArt buildings; most of the parts are the same injection molded plastics. However, the parts in this kit are molded in brick red, black, white, blaze orange, and gray. All parts are mostly free of flash, with the small exception of a minor piece of flash next to every one of the connecting blocks, which, if left untrimmed, will skew the walls during assembly. I approached this one with some trepidation, as it is much larger (233 parts). However, in the end it was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.

Airfix is releasing all sorts of interesting/strange subjects in their current burst of productivity and this is one of them. It's an old kit that originally dates from 1972, at one point was motorized, and is now billed as part of their Museum Collection. I selected it thinking it would be a fun diversion from my more "intense" projects. Wrong. This is not a simple build. You need to pay attention to what's going on and what goes where and, because it's a cutaway, what needs to be painted before you do anything. There are leftover parts when you're done that I can only assume were once part of the motorization, and some of the rest of the parts are similar to each other, so you need to pay attention to parts' numbers. Be careful during assembly, as some parts need to go together in a certain order and in particular orientations. In addition, since many of the parts are functional, you need to be careful in cleaning them, up as there are a lot of mold seams and some flash that, if not cleaned up, it will impair the function of the finished model.

Items in the box

The model is made of injection molded plastic, gray in color.  The instructions were made up in book form, printed on both sides.  Other parts were clear plastic, such as windows and headlights; also included are two small sheets of photo etch details (brass).

Construction

I started by assembling the chassis, muffler, and suspension systems, as well as the drive shafts, differentials, and forward steering details.  Next came the engine and transmission with their details.  The radiator came next (I used the photo etch grille instead of the cast plastic grille).  I followed with the truck body, seats, rear trunk enclosure, rifle supports, and shifting and brake levers.  The body, wheels, engine, and engine radiator were attached to each other.  These assemblies were all pre-painted, decaled, and dullcoated upon final assembly.  The windows, rifles, spare wheel, and spare fuel tank finished the assembly.  (Note: I added extra details – the case of soda, decals, and an extra fuel tank.)  This model came in two configurations, with the top up or down, builder’s choice.

• Hobbyboss F4U-4 Corsair, # 80387, $55.99
• True Details Propeller and Cowling Set, #48552, $12.99

Huge thanks as usual go to our friends at MMD Squadron for providing us these great kits and manufacturing the accessories to improve them.  We at IPMS USA appreciate your support (and thanks, Dick and Steve, for trusting my questionable skills to execute a review!).

This kit brings yet another Corsair to the stable. In the box is, of course, an excellent F4U-4 kit with minute, delicate surface detail.  Multiple options such as antennas, folded or extended wings, and an open canopy are offered.  A decal sheet with two Korean War marking options is provided, and a full-color “here’s what it should look like” paint leaflet is also there.  All parts are individually bagged and protected; the cowl and clear parts are separated from the main parts by a cardboard divider.