There are many ways to fold photo etch, using a folder with a safety razor has been the go-to method for me. Not anymore! This tool set is much more ergonomically friendly. I found it much easier to use because it is easy to control, fits in you hand, is easy to manipulate, and keeps the photo etch in place when using it without a jig. \

Available individually ($4.16), or as a set of three for $12.96 at https://umm-usa.com/onlinestore/index.php

Highly Recommended

Many thanks to UMM for providing this product and IPMS/USA for the chance to review it.

Zoukei-Mura has graciously provided the IPMS Reviewer Corps with a first look at their brand new 1/32nd scale Kawasaki Ki-100-I Otsu Type 5 Fighter. Parts 1 and 2 of this review looked at the box contents and initial assembly, respectively.

Part 1 can be viewed here: https://reviews.ipmsusa.org/review/kawasaki-ki-100-i-otsu-type-5-fighter-part-1-kit-inspection

Part 2 can be viewed here: https://reviews.ipmsusa.org/review/kawasaki-ki-100-i-otsu-type-5-fighter-part-2-assembly

Final Assembly Process

This is a box stock build with no aftermarket add-ons or modifications.

The late Dr Leopold Scholtz was a senior journalist, political commentator and a highly regarded military expert. He was deputy editor of Die Burger until 2007 and was the European correspondent for Media24's Afrikaans dailies. Scholtz obtained his doctor's degree from the University of Leiden and was a research fellow at the University of Stellenbosch. He wrote several books and over 40 academic articles, most of which are about military history. He was a captain in the Reserve Force of the South African Army. His books include "The SADF in the Border War 1966-1989" [2013], "General Christiaan de Wet as Veldheer" [1978] and "Terror and liberation: The ANC/SACP, Communism and Violence (1961–1990)" [2022]. Scholtz died of leukemia in 2022 in Delft, the Netherlands, and is survived by his wife Ingrid, also a historian.

Special Hobby has provided this beautiful 2024 release of the First French Supersonic fighe the SMB2 Super Mystere, in 1/72 scale model.

• Nine grey Sprues
• One Clear Sprue
• Three resin parts
• Two Decal sheets
• One Instruction guide

The detailed quality is excellent in every way with this kit; crisp and detailed molding. The kit can be built in two versions: one the French version and there other the IAI Sa’ar Honduran version. You need to decide which version before you start the building. I when with the version A – French Air Force May 1961.

The Assembly is quick and easy.

The assembly starts with the engine and jet pipes in stage 1 and 2. There are several ejection pin marks that need cleaning up.

The Cockpit is next at stage1 and 2 this was straight forward just watch for part C39 as it is a tight fit.

Detail & Scale’s Color & Markings first series was launched in 1984 with Volume 1 focusing on the Convair’s F-106 Delta Dart. Authored by Bert Kinzey and published by Tab Books [ISBN-13 978-0816845255], the first volume was largely in black and white with 16 pages of color. Thirty-six years later, this new publication, Colors & Markings of the A-7 Corsair II significantly revises and expands the original coverage of the original volumes, Colors & Markings Volume 15 of The A-7E Corsair II: Pacific Coast Squadrons [1990]. Authored and illustrated by Colonel Richard S. “Rock” Roszak and Mike Heideman, Volume of 10 of the new series of Colors & Markings is all in color and double the size: 64 pages vs. 127 pages. This English edition was released on June 26, 2026, and is available in soft square bound format [8.5” x 11.0”] or in digital format.

This is part of a series of books by Kagero on warships and I have a few of these and are truly indispensable when building a model of the subject matter.

This book goings into great detail via illustrations of the Royal navy light Aircraft Carrier HMS Invincible –entering service in 1977. It served in the Falkland war in 1972. After the Falklands war it was to be sold to the Australian Navy but that was cancelled and remained in Royal Navy service until 2005. Before this HMS Invincible also served in the Gulf War in 1991 and 1993

The book is lavishly illustrated and shows every aspect of the ship in great detail. The book also comes with two large scale fold out poster size ship outline drawings in 1/400 scale

The illustrations give so much details as one could wish for as a modeler or history buff.

Bottom Line Up Front:

Building a Gunpla is for sure out of my lane. For those that don’t know, Gunpla is the kit, and Gundam refers to one of many TV shows. In other words, Gundam is animated Gunpla. This is the second Gunpla I have built. The first was a simple small kit for an in house model contest for my local club. Gundam Barbatos is a much more complex build. Having said that, assembly was straight forward as long as the instructions are followed closely. It turns into a nice kit, if you make a mistake, like I did, it is easy to recover from since no glue is involved. It is a fun build that doesn’t really take that much time to finish. Highly recommended for Gunpla modelers or for those modelers looking to try something different. For those looking for an enjoyable build, this is a good option. Highly recommended.

Box Art / Packaging

The Tamiya RSO/01 German Tractor is a brand-new tooled release presented in Tamiya's typical rigid top opener with crisp artwork depicting a unit from the 1st Skijager Division, Eastern Front, 1944.

This 100% newly tooled kit complements the existing 1/35 scale line up of German WWII vehicles in the Military Miniature Series and is also designed to be used with last year's release of the 50mm Pak38, kit # 35392.

The box contains a normal Tamiya instruction manual with clear construction steps, 37 in all, to complete this kit.

Also included is a glossy ‘background information’ leaflet which provides some history and details of the different designs and variants for the RSO through the WWII campaign.

So, you want to put your Italeri M-8 or M-20 in a winter scheme and you want some snow chains. Hauler has you covered.

Ok, just to preface this, photo-etch (PE) and I don’t get along. Also, I am not actually planning on putting my M-8 in a winter scheme so this review is just my attempt to show what they would look like. Your mileage may vary.

That said, the set includes enough brassand PE chains for 6 wheels, which is perfect for an M-8 or M-20. The product also says it can be used on a Dodge halftrack but it doesn’t tell you which kits to use. In fact, it doesn’t tell you anything, as there are no instructions included.

This review has been a long time coming both in build time and in life. I received the kit in October of 2024, coming off my first win at nationals that year and wanting to branch out from aircraft and turrets I quickly sent in my request for this kit when I saw it in the stash list. I was granted the kit and, in a week, or so it arrived. I started digging into it (researching the vessel checking for inaccuracies etc.) and then around Thanksgiving of that year my world flipped upside down. My father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Hobbies and the like were put aside and thus Naiad stayed on the workbench. Jumping forward a year and I finally got back to taking some time for myself and got back to working on the ship and review.

Originally founded in 1968, Squadron / Squadron Signal / MMD is back in business again after bankruptcy and are now based out of Ringgold, Georgia. Their web page was re-activated in January 2022 for plastic kits. A retail store was opened in 2025 at their Ringgold address and is open from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm Monday through Friday. They have invited The Chattanooga Scale Modelers Club to meet at their warehouse, which occurs on the third Monday of the month. If you can’t make it, be sure to check out their YouTube channel where Brandon and guests are live every Wednesday night. Brandon Lowe and his father, Russ Lowe, re-acquired the Squadron Tools Product Line and are now marketing them once again.

This figure kit is produced by Aerobonus and is designed to be used in conjunction with several Korean War aircraft subjects or as a stand-alone figure. It’s nicely cast in 1/32 scale from a medium gray resin. The casting is crisp and clean, and contains four parts which include the main body, a head and a right and left arm. Assembly was very easy and there was no flash present on any of the castings.

Representing a US Air Force mechanic on a winter flight line somewhere, the figure is dressed in typical grab found during this time period in a cold weather environment, A coat with hood and heavy gloves cover the upper torso. A baseball like cap covers the head. And the lower torso has Utility style trousers and boots.

About the Author

The following is taken from the jacket cover.

Jean Paul Pallud was born in France in 1949 and studied physics at Grenoble University, graduating as a physicist engineer. Specialising in the history of the Second World War,he has worked alongside After the Battle for over 43 years, his first submission to the magazine appearing in 1979 and his last in 2022.

UMM-USA has provided four versions of their Wooden Epoxy Stands:

• JH-S04 Wooden Epoxy Stand Durafix 12 & 180 Minutes
• JH-S05 Wooden Epoxy Stand BSI 5 & 10 Minutes
• JH-S06 Wooden Epoxy Stand BSI 20 & 30 Minutes
• JH-S07 Wooden Epoxy Stand BSI 15 & 130 Minutes

The stands are packaged unassembled; they are made up of 7 wooden pre-cut parts that slot together. They can be glued with either CA or White Glue. The instructions are printed on the packaging and are very straightforward.

These are very useful when using Epoxy’s and help to keep them organized.

The front and top parts have engravings showing the information for each epoxy.

In conclusion these are handy for your work benches.

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

MMP was founded in 1996 by Roger Wallsgrove, to publish "Mushroom Model Magazine". This quarterly modelling magazine was developed from "Mushroom Monthly”, a club newsletter which ran from 1985 to 1995, achieving a world-wide reputation for quality articles, fearless and honest reviews, and a great sense of humor. From 1997 the magazine was produced in collaboration with Robert Peczkowski and Artur Juszczak (Stratus), which meant a big leap in print quality and design. MMP expanded into book publication in 1999 with Stratus, and since then they have built up a list of hard cover and soft cover titles on aircraft and aviation, naval, military vehicles, and military history. Stratus / MMPBooks are distributed in North America by Casemate Publications. Check out their Facebook page for additional information. This English language book, Hungarian Bomber Colours 1927-1945 Vol.

Hasegawa first released their 1/72 B-25J in 2003 and followed up thereafter with a

B-25H, both released in various boxing’s since. This welcomed kit is likely the most accurate in this scale and yet it benefits from aftermarket details. Quickboost manufacture a closed cooling flap and open cooling flap version of the cowlings. This review focuses on the open cooling flap version. Since Eduard chose to release some limited edition 1/72 B-25s with interesting decal options, precut masks and photo etch details, these replacement cowlings will fit their 1/72 Angel of Mercy, Guns Bunny and Strafer kits.

In the Box

Cowling parts in pairs, consisting of cowls, cooling flap rings, carb intake scoops and mounting lugs, all indexed to fit exactly with the kit engine nacelles.

The Westland Wessex was a British license-built version of the Sikorsky H-34 and in it’s HAS.3 anti-submarine version, was a capable hunter/killer and saw combat in the Falklands War, where one machine nicknamed ‘Humphrey’ seriously damaged the Argentine submarine Santa Fe, which subsequently had to be scuttled, and also rescued SAS troops from a glacier in bad weather after their helicopters had crashed.

Italeri’s Wessex HAS.3 kit was released in 2013 and is a very nice kit, though it has a few issues and is lacking finesse in some areas. One such area is the mesh cover for the gearbox compartment. This compartment sits atop the Wessex’s distinctive ‘humpback,’ just under the rotor and rotor head. Quickboost labels this as an ‘engine grille,’ though as the Wessex’s engines are housed in the nose, this seems a little unlikely!

The Westland Wessex HU.5 was a British commando/utility helicopter upgraded from the Sikorsky H-34. They were also used by the Royal Navy for SAR work and I was lucky enough to spend a week with our local SAR Flight at HMS Daedalus back in 1981 as part of a work experience programme. I was taken for a number of flights including one where I played the part of a ‘survivor’, being winched up and down from the cabin. Fun times!

Zoukei-Mura has graciously provided the IPMS Reviewer Corps with a first look at their brand new 1/32nd scale Kawasaki Ki-100-I Otsu Type 5 Fighter. Part 1 of this review looked at the box contents: Sprue-runners, decals, masks, and instructions.

Assembly Process

The instruction booklet is 75 pages of very well illustrated pictures and graphics of each step. One of the great things that impressed me about the instructions are the parts are properly named and this gives the functional operation use within the mechanical system of the airplane. Very informative and educational.

The instructions are broken down into 5 sections of the assembly process:

Modern soldiers today most likely wear body armor in combat to protect against bullets. That was not always the case as body armor designed to stop rounds really came about in the early 2000s. Prior to that flak jackets, designed to protect US airmen against shrapnel and explosives from German “flak” rounds, and evolved to protect US ground troops in Korea through the 1990s. Body armor hails back to antiquity and knights were the penultimate examples.