IPMSUpdates

Bench Update, New Products & Kit ReviewView the full article

The Dornier Do217 K-2 was developed from the K-1 model designed to carry the Fritz-X gliding bomb. Its wingspan was extended by 25 meters or 82 feet to carry the extra load of the Fritz-X bombs which weighed 1570 kg or 3461 lbs each. They also added an additional 1160 liter/306 gal. in the bomb bay. There were special bomb racks on the inner wings, between the nacelle and fuselage, designed to carry the massive bombs. The most famous use of the Fritz-X was the sinking of the Italian battleship Roma on September 9, 1943 by Major Bernhard Jope of III./KG100 Included in the kit is: Ten grey spruesThree clear sprues One set of decalsOne instruction bookletThe instructions are pretty straight forward and the kit seems well detailed with fine panel lines and other fuselage detail. View the full review

Air Power and the Arab World, 1909–1955 Volume 12: Palestine War, 12 July - 14 October 1948 (Middle East @ War #67) continues the story of the men and machines of the first half-century of military aviation in the Arab world, focusing this time on the critical period between 12 July and 14 October 1948 — from the final days of the ‘Ten Days’ fighting through the Second UN Truce. While part of an ongoing series, this volume also stands alone as a history of the period covered. View the full review

AOA Decals has a good reputation for quality decals, and I was thrilled to have the opportunity to review one of their newest releases, the M-ATV (2) M1240/M1277 US Army (MFO), Poland, Croatia, & Ukraine (35-011). The decals come in two sheets, one of stencils and the other of markings for nine options. The Oshkosh M-ATV is a Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicle developed by the Oshkosh Corporation for the MRAP All-Terrain Vehicle (M-ATV) program, to replace M1114 HMMWVs (Humvee). It is designed to provide the same levels of protection as the larger and heavier previous MRAPs, but with improved mobility. With nearly 10,000 M-ATVs in service since their introduction in 2009, there are a lot of options for modelers to build. Fortunately for modelers, AOA Decals has provided two decal sheets for the M-ATV. View the full review

The origin of Pen & Sword Books is closely linked with its sister company, the Barnsley Chronicle; one of the UK's oldest provincial newspapers, established in 1858, and one of the few weeklies still in private ownership. The first books published by the company were in response to public demand following of a series of articles published in the newspaper: Dark Peak Aircraft Wrecks told the story of crash sites in the Dark Peak area of the Peak District National Park, and a further weekly feature on the history of two Kitchener battalions, known as the Barnsley Pals, aroused a thirst for more information. Following on from the success of those books, a number of local history paperbacks were produced along with a series of battlefield guidebooks. Battleground Europe proved immediately successful, and the company made the decision to launch a book publishing arm of the group. View the full review

Number 54 in Helion’s Asia @ War Series is the 4th Volume on the Sri Lankan War, from 1995-2002. Also called the Eelam War III, this Volume covers the Northern Theatre of the war to its conclusion. The author is a Swiss military researcher and has published 20 books on military topics. For this larger than normal Volume, he has done a brilliant and evocative job on bringing this civil war to light. Sri Lanka (formerly known as Ceylon) is a large island off the southern tip of India, and has a tumultuous history of internecine warfare. This volume is strictly about the military events, and does not cover the political situations, atrocities or human rights violations in detail - these have been manifested in the first three volumes, by Amnesty International and other NGOs. View the full review

Thanks to War Dog Modeling (WDM) for the Ship Stand to review, and the IPMS staff for their courageous work! WDM stands are available on their website, also reachable via Facebook. There are 4 stands available: Model Airplane Stand ($35.00)Model Armor Stand ($38.00)Model Car Stand ($30.00)Model Ship Stand ($35.00)I have never used jigs or stands for building 1/700 scale ships models, but after one look at War Dog Model Ship Stand, I had a Where-Have-You-Been-All-My-Life moment. I'm not letting this one go anywhere! Here's why... The stand arrived in a small box with all the parts mixed together. No instructions, which is not a problem. The contents make one stand with a light gray color. Looking at the finished stands on War Dog' online page made assembly easy. View the full review

One of the newest releases from venerable Tamiya is this wide-wheel version of the Schwimmwagen Type 166, which incorporates parts from their previous release (kit 224) back in 1998. The new release includes new sprues C and V which include the wide-wheel parts, new figures, and new weapons. As with any Tamiya kit, the engineering is perfect, which makes this kit ideal for modelers of nearly any skill level, and it is therefore highly recommended. View the full review

HistoryThe Model T was produced by the Ford Motor Company from 1908 to 1927 and regarded as the first mass-affordable automobile having sold over 15 million. The iconic name for the Model T, “Tin Lizzy,” originates from a 1922 race where the driver had affectionately named his Model T, “Old Liz”, and the spectators renamed it to Tin Lizzy due to its tin can appearance. It came equipped with a 2.9L 4-cylinder in-line 20 hp engine having a top speed of 42 mph. Henry Ford often said “Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black”. View the full review

History: The Model T was produced by the Ford Motor Company from 1908 to 1927 and regarded as the first mass-affordable automobile having sold over 15 million. The iconic name for the Model T, “Tin Lizzy,” originates from a 1922 race where the driver had affectionately named his Model T, “Old Liz”, and the spectators renamed it to Tin Lizzy due to its tin can appearance. It came equipped with a 2.9L 4-cylinder in-line 20 hp engine having a top speed of 42 mph. Henry Ford often said “Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black”. View the full review

I’ve built several jet fighter kits in this scale in the past year. They don’t seem to get much love and turn up in model club swap nights, usually for free. Granted, the size of these models can challenge the eyesight of us mature folks. However, I’ve found that if you’re careful with assembly, these 1/44 kits can build up into nice mini representations of the real thing. View the full review

In researching the company and these products, I found that the Kaleido ColorWorks primers and matte varnish from Gaahleri, which entered the global hobby market around 2023, represent a modern and user-friendly approach to water-based modeling paints. As part of Gaahleri’s ecosystem—a coordinated line of products designed to work together for consistent results—they are formulated to complement the company’s airbrush systems and simplify the overall painting process. On their website, they offer paints, airbrushes, and a range of airbrush accessories and replacement components. Built around RapidAir Technology, which enhances atomization and leveling so acrylics spray more like lacquers, these products provide smooth application with reduced tip dry. View the full review

Long-time supporter Ross and his team at SAC Supports IPMS/USA yet again with one of his gear sets to use and review! This set provides a sound basis for replacing the more delicate parts of the Spindly (in real life and modeling world) Fairey Gannet AEW-3 landing gear. Designed for the newly-released SWORD kit, it definitely addresses the question on whether plastic or metal is better for this task. The metal gear, once carefully installed (it is NOT an easy Geometric construction) is definitely “go metal”. Made up of eleven finely-cast metal parts, these bits are scale in size and flexible enough for initial installation, while work-hardening if required for additional stiffness. The truss angles and installation are a difficult design to address, and the idea the kit plastic would last was first in my mind. It’s a large aircraft, and unique in design and appearance. View the full review

The MICV-65 (Mechanized Infantry Combat Vehicle) was a project conducted by the United States Army seeking an armored personnel carrier vehicle to replace the M113, built by the FMC Corporation (Ford Machinery & Chemical Corporation). FMC was awarded to design and build the MICV and designated XM734. The XM734 utilized the M113 as basic platform, armed with a turret manned by a single crew firing a 20mm cannon. The newly designed vehicle was re-designated the AIFV (Armored Infantry Fighting Vehicle), but the United States showed no interest in the vehicle; however, the Dutch government showed interest and placed orders in 1975. Further modifications were made and the vehicle was redesignated YPR-765 (Pantser Rups Infanterie 765). View the full review

“I Don't Want A Pickle...” by Ben Morton I should explain the title so as not to throw you off from the get go. The more refined and worldly among us may recall the name Arlo Guthrie. A singer-songwriter that had some notoriety for being Woody Guthrie's son and a few FM radio hits like the “Alice's Restaurant Massacre” and of course, “The Motorcycle Song”. The opening line of which is: “I don't wanna pickle, I just wanna ride my motorsickle.” Now, on with the show. View the full review

The non-profit UK based group known as the Great War Aviation Society publishes A new magazine, Contact!, is now available in both print and digital download. The first two issues of Contact! Are available for a free digital download on their website. Their journal, Cross & Cockade International, is also published four times a year. Issues are available in English as printed [Softbound, A4 (8.27” x 11.69”), 72 pages [Including Covers] as well as digital copies (or both). 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. View the full review

Scale Aircraft Conversions (SAC) has provided the IPMS reviewer corps with a set of 1/48th scale metal landing gear for Trumpeter’s HU-16A Albatross. These parts are drop-in replacements and provide a more robust landing gear set given its metal properties. In the PackageThe metal pieces are packaged in a clear blister package with cardboard backing. No instructions are provided. Review ProcessThe metal landing gear set is used as drop-in replacements for the kit parts as noted View the full review

The iconic Mitsubishi A6M Zero was the Imperial Japanese Navy’s primary carrier-based fighter plane from 1940-1945. Over 10,000 of these ubiquitous fighters were produced, with the A6M5 Type 0 Model 52 being the last and most effective model. Scale Aircraft Conversion has produced its famous white metal landing gear for the A6M5/5a Zero in 1/48 scale. As aircraft modelers well know, aircraft models displayed on their landing gear are susceptible to damage from the weight of the model, especially on styrene landing gear. Scale Aircraft Conversion has had the solution since 1990. Their white metal landing gear is designed to bear the weight of the model and complement the detailed non-load bearing plastic parts. Their extensive range covers white metal landing gear from 1/144 to 1/18 scale aircraft. View the full review

This is another book in this series, each concerning itself with one particular type or class of ship. This one is about British Anti-/Aircraft Cruisers and includes ships specifically built for this mission or converted to it. As usual for this series, it is not so much a history of the ships, although brief accounts of their careers are included, as it is a description of the various specific modifications made to them that made them anti-aircraft ships. Included are the “C” class cruisers that were converted for this work, merchant vessels that were requisitioned and converted and the more-or-less purpose build Dido Class ships. View the full review

April 19th, 2026 Eboard & Staff Quarterly Meeting Present: John Noack (JN), Dave Morrissette (DM), David Lockhart (DL), Eugenie Taylor Ray (ETR), Chris Bucholtz (CB), Phil Perry (PP), Joe Terry (JT), David Knights (DK), Scott Hackney (SH), Nancy Kennedy-Hackney (NKH), Nate Pollock (NP), Eric Aitala (EA) Absent: Mike Oberholtzer, Steven Broughall Call to Order The meeting was called to order on April 19th, 2026 at 7:00pm EST by John Noack. Special Presentation by Will Kuhrt on Juniors/Youth Clubs Will Kuhrt discussed the success and challenges of the Juniors Club he has started in his area. The club has grown from 3 to 16 members over the last year and has shown the potential for these clubs. He will be conducting a seminar at the 2026 Convention on what they have done and how other chapters can also start Juniors Clubs. Discussion was held on what else IPMS/USA could do to assist in this effort, and many good ideas were brought forward. Staff Updates and Reports NP – Nothing new to report at this time. JN asked NP to get with MO on reviewing membership statistics for a project he would like to do. EA – Website continues to run well, will need to update the forums at some point. Continuing to make progress on the new website. Email issues seem to be resolved for the moment. NKH – Current membership status is 5218 members. Continues to field questions related to the Convention as well as normal member issues such as logging into WA. Worked on resolving the email issues that were causing emails to go to spam. Continuing to train new assistant on Office Manager duties. Will have 25 & 50 year pins completed by end of May hopefully. As Event Manager has been continuing to attend zoom meetings with convention team and preparing events for them. Has been training the registration team. Eboard Roundtable/Action Item Updates PP – Judges have made a “what judges look for” presentation, would like to have it available at Nationals for people to view. DM – Has contacted reviewers with late reviews to get those turned in. Continuing to get a variety of new things in for review. SH – Has zoom meetings scheduled to discuss certain parts of the convention with those involved. Mark Stevens has rebuilt the model registration system and it looks really good. Will be holding a “How to do a National Convention Talk” at Fort Wayne this year. Still need more trophy sponsors and to sell more ads for the convention journal. JT – Responding to emails that come in from the general inquiries form on the website. Has been meeting with the Tiger Meet Coordinator to help coordinate with SIGs. Looking into a possible SIG Leader get-together at Nationals. Encouraged SIG Leaders to participate and support the 2026 Convention through trophy packages and convention journal ads. Worked with EA to establish a SIG Leaders forum section, it is currently up and running with SIG leaders added to it. COI/COE forms have been completed by all Eboard members and returned. DK – Just returned from the AMPS National Convention. Has been in talks with a company about inserting IPMS/USA fliers into their boxes. DL – 22 Regional awards completed, needs assistance with the national awards. Members of the Eboard volunteered to help with certain categories. Award submissions continue to be limited, with very few being submitted. Two new chapters have been formed: Tuesday Night Model Club, Cottage Grove, OR and Memphis Belle Chapter in Memphis, TN. Two new potential chapters are also in the works. Certificate of Insurance has been going out, has created a poster for them. Planning a social for the RC’s and Eboard at the National Convention and a breakfast with just the RC’s. ETR – Some behind the scenes changes by Meta for Facebook that they have been having to deal with. Facebook posts seem to be getting less views, interaction with posts will help with this. This is also affecting the Nationals page, more posts and interaction needed there to keep the information in front of the members. Has been putting together the photography team for the convention. CB – Journal is on track and on time. Staff continues to do a great job and are looking at some new ideas for each issue that will be discussed. Continuing to work with staff on style guides to improve consistency across the journal. JN – Nothing to report, expressed his appreciation for all the hard work everyone has been putting in. Nothing Further the meeting was adjourned at 8:27pm EST. The next meeting is scheduled for May 17th, 2026 at 7:00pm EST via Zoom. View the full article