NigelR32

Those PE jerry can frames are begging to be bent and battered Jeroen. I'm surprised they stayed in place for so long in storage??

Thanks for your kind words and compliments guys. it's been a while since I posted some pics so I thought I should keep you all up to date with this build. Well, here we are, the chassis is all but done and VERY detailed. I have broken away slightly from the build process as instructed... Mirror models suggests you fit the brake drums and backplates to the wheels in step one, whereas I decided to glue on the backplates first so I could set them square and vertical to set. If any shims are needed to set the wheels to look right they can be added between the drum and backplate without affecting the overall look of the model... The underside of the chassis is as good looking as the top. Note I have replaced the brake actuating rods with 0.8mm plastic rod as it saves having to remove the seams from the moulded rods. I have also added a brass rod at the main pivot so i can ensure all 10 wheels touch the ground. This is why the prop shafts are not yet added. I have also not added the brake cylinders as I want to add brake hoses and don't yet have any reference shots of the plumbing. I figure they'll be easier to drill on the sprue. You will notice the detail in this kit is stunning, this is all OOB!! The fuel tanks fit together very well with only a small trace of Mr Surfacer required on the joints. Those who say there are fit issues with this kit are wrong. It all goes together very nicely. The only fit issues I have found are that some holes are too small for the relevant pin to fit into. Big issue right, each hole must take at least 10 seconds to drill!! This is the best injection moulded chequer plate I've ever seen, it's a shame it wasn't slide moulded so it could have just wrapped around the radius at the top of the fuel tank.. I don't quite know how I'm going to sort this?? As a final pic for this post I thought you might like to see the repaired wrecker bed. as we all know there are reported massive sink marks in the surface of said part. Well, the "massive" sink marks took one application of Mr Surfacer 500 to sort out following a quick rub down with a flat sanding stick the divets have disappeared. I am thoroughly enjoying this build and am confident I will see it through to the end. If you like what you see here, go buy it. It is a joy to build if you enjoy actually "building" models.

OMG Peter!! You really are one of the best modellers there is!! Talk about "in at the deep end"!!

Mike, i have the Archer and the HGW. As already mentioned, i found the HGW to be flat and really meant for use after paint I think? I guess that's why they make them in different colours? The Archer rivets are quite expensive in the UK, so i bought 20 sheets from the USA to make the postage worthwhile.

just as Krow has said, the plastic pivot is rubbish, throw it away and replace it with a steel bolt or pin of some sort, or buy a riveting wheel from Radu Brinzan .

Thanks Martin and Erik for your compliments... I have started on the chassis, and would like to offer some tips to our less experienced modellers on how to build a chassis. Basically, you need to study the parts and initially add only the crossmembers that won't impede you laying the chassis flat on the bench. for example, look at this picture, and notice how I've only added the flat members. It's also a good tip to measure all the x members that go inside the chassis rails to check they are the same length. This will help you keep the frame rails straight and parallel. This allows you to lay it flat on a flat surface and place weight on top whilst it dries. I use rules and square blocks to check for squareness at every step. Once this is dry, it can be handled and the other parts can be added. I left mine for a couple of hours, then added the winch assembly and clamped it all up to dry for approximately an hour before adding the rest of the parts you see here.. As you can clearly see in the last picture, the level of detail coming your way is simply astounding.. and it's all OOB!!!

Those tracks look lovely!! You'll sure have some fun with them!! I always thought the Zvezda T-90 was awful? Like you, I started it and binned it due to it's too tall errors. I have bought the Meng kit..

Here we have a build log of Mirror Models fairly new Diamond T Wrecker. There has been a lot said about this kit on various websites, complaining about issues such as difficult part identification and large sprue connectors, well, lets see just how much of a real problem these issues are?? I'll start by saying every part is identified by its part number and letter, yes, the numerals are small, but hey, we're into detailed scale modelling here? We must also consider the parts are put together by their relative assembly, for example the whole of sprue K is dedicated to the compressor. All the chassis x members are together in the correct order, same goes for the front winch. I mentioned this in my review, and now I've started the kit I can say the large gates are no problem whatsoever. The plastic is a joy to work with, it's not too hard or too soft and is very "durable". Even the thinnest of parts is easily cleaned up as it will flex rather than crack or snap. Tamiya Extra thin is the glue of choice for the kit, some glues don't work well at all. Remember, those large gates mean no ejector pin marks!!! (Except for the underside of the wrecker bed) You may have seen my review and thought to yourself, "That's a nice kit", but you may have also considered that these kits from the smaller companies are not up to scratch, with many fit issues and difficulties in building. Well, lets see about that?? I'll start with step one in the instructions.... wheel assembly. I hit a small problem straight away!! When assembling the wheel halves I noticed a gap in the wheel rim joint. I could have easily clamped the joint shut, but didn't want to risk the joint cracking later on. I cut some 19mm squares of 15 thou card and glued them to the outer wheel halves, then cut the bore out once dry. After gluing together a simple sanding will clean everything up, remembering that only the four outer rear rims will be visible anyway. You can see the plastic card inserts on the two top right wheels. Mirror models actually market a nice set of resin wheels if you want to avoid this little bit of extra work. On the subject of extras, there are also a PE set and soft top available, which I've ordered. I'll review them when they arrive. I wanted to show the lovely detail on the wheel hubs, and also how good the rear wheels look sat on them. to me these wheels just look "right". What do you think? I have started on the engine block and axles, here's where I am right now... The front axle is built up just like the real thing, with the hubs mounted on swivels, (Obviously there's no kingpins, but the ball is there). Only trouble is, the tie rod is designed to be glued into position, which would fix the hubs in one position, so I decided to drill the tie rod and hubs with a 0.5mm drill and pin the joint with brass rod. Now we have position-able wheels. I don't want to play with the truck, but I want the choice of angle to display the model. The detail on the brake backplates is astounding. The rear axles an their differentials are also multi piece assemblies, The detail is stunning in every area of the suspension. One part of this kit I really wanted to build was the Kellogg Compressor, which will be mounted behind the cab. It is a lovely little model in itself, built up from no less than 21 parts!! To show you just how small this compressor is, here it is on a bottle top... I have ordered the squadron walk around book so I can add some hoses and stuff to the model. the detail is so amazing in my opinion it would be a shame not to add at least a couple of flexi brake hoses. Thanks for looking.

I would like go back on what I said earlier about the best glue for this kit. It would appear my old bottle of Tamiya extra thin had become contaminated. When I try a new bottle it melts the plastic just right for a good strong weld. I think I must have topped up my old bottle of extra thin with some Tenax or something?? I would also like to say that the plastic properties of the parts is great!! not too soft, not too hard and very durable. I've assembled the engine block, gearbox and compressor so far (and some wheels) and haven't need any filler or found any fit problems as yet. I have read about pins not fitting in their respective holes, well, it takes at least 20 seconds to sand the pins off or drill the holes a little. Having said that, I normally remove location pins anyway when I sand the mating faces flat. I'm liking this kit so far...

I actually think your comment about not buying the kit having seen my review is a little strong. I think we should consider the price of the kit compared to the first release two years ago. I am in no way affiliated with Mirror Models, but will state that I think the price of this kit is what it is because they haven't added the extras. The built example I saw had a little PE on it, the soft top and some stowage stuff. Other than that it was OOB. It looked stunning. I don't think Mirror has taken a step backwards, I just think they've produced the kit to a price.

I agree, strange indeed?? However, the company have launched an aftermarket set of Resin wheels for it now. I have begun assembling this one, and straight away have discovered there is a small gap between the two halves of the wheel rims. I've added a piece of 0.010 card to one half of each wheel which will take care of it. You could sand the 0.010 off one half, but I am scared of making the tyres too skinny?? So, one may wish to buy the resin wheels rather than do the work I've done?

I don't think wheels "in half" are that unusual really? many older kits had them this way before the manufacturers decided to use vinyl tyres. Even the old Italeri 1/24 truck kits were this way. I prefer this to vinyl tyres if I'm honest..

This is one of the best review I've ever seen Erik!! The kit looks very nice indeed, I hope they do an accurate GPW, then I could review it with actual GPW parts from my restoration project.

1/35 M19 Tank Transporter (Diamond T 980/981) Merit International LLC Catalogue Number 63501 Available from All good Hobby Shops. Retail £89.99 Imported into the UK by Pocketbond Ltd Yes, I've gone all Diamond t crazy of late!! Truth is, I am a fan of all WW2 military equipment, being the proud owner of a '44 GPW and having a friend with a Diamond T 980. When I heard this kit was being released, I held back, waiting to hear reviews as I feared this kit would be a little "Toy Like" due to the Merit box labelling. How very wrong I was..... This kit has made it quite obvious to me that Merit are very closely linked with Trumpeter and HobbyBoss. I would love to know why this kit wasn't released under the HobbyBoss label?? Its up there with the quality of the brilliant M1070+M1000 kit in my opinion. The box is well packaged with two separate areas for the Sprues, split by a smaller box containing the PE frets, tyres, clear parts, Cab and Trailer bed. There are 581 crisply moulded tan plastic parts, 17 Clear parts, 27 PE parts, 37 Vinyl tyres, a length of thread and a comprehensive instruction booklet. There are two options on the kit decal sheet, but neither are backed up by actual unit locations or dates?? This is one side of the A3 full colour glossy print, showing the British option. If you want to build an accurate model, you will need to research your desired period/unit. Apparently the British didn't use the fairlead in the front bumper, so you'll need to fill the hole if you want to build an accurate British T980 model. So, lets have a good look at we get for our money in this well packaged kit... First up we get a separately packaged one piece cab.. And a separately packaged one piece trailer deck.. Sprue A covers the chassis assembly and fuel tanks. As you can see the chassis is a multi part affair, which will need to be flat and square throughout its assembly. This guarantees far superior detail compared to the one piece chassis mouldings out there. Each tank is vertically split onto two halves, but the upper seam will be covered by some beautifully rendered PE chequer plate. Some of the rivet/bolt detail on the chassis rail You get two of Sprue B, partly protected with the white foam, just like Trumpeter and Hobby Boss. believe it or not, those triangular parts at about one o'clock are the fan belts!! Here's some inner wheel detail for the rear wheels, very crisp indeed... The Leaf springs are moulded in two halves, yes you'll have a seam to clean up, but you get no sinking in the faces. Nice!! Sprue C covers the front body panels and some chassis crossmembers, all crisply moulded again and oozing with detail. It will be a real shame to cover the chassis up!! Here we can see the engine cover vents are moulded open so no special work will be required here.... Chequer plate panels on top of the wings.. Pretty crisp, but I have seen better ;-) Moving on to Sprue D, we have the rear "box" parts. These used to be filled with massive rocks to get some weight on the rear axles for traction when dragging tanks out of a ditch etc.. Sprue E covers all the little odds and ends found throughout the truck, along with the front axle and some brake parts. The engine Fan is crisply rendered.. The top of the gearbox is moulded with exquisite detail.. Sprue F covers the engines major components, a chassis brace and gearbox components. The Hercules engine block looks lovely!! The word Hercules has cleverly been mis moulded on the exhaust manifold... a simple scrape with a scalpel and the addition of a couple of bits of stretched sprue will have it spelt correctly in no time...copyright eh!!! And so, with Sprue g we move on to the trailer parts. obviously this is the massive one piece frame which is going to be fitted to the one piece bed shown earlier. The rest of the sprue is for the upper strengthening frame over the front bogie. Just look at this lovely moulding for the front bogies, see step 21 of the instructions. Sprue H has all the parts for the a frame towing bracketry and the fully detailed manual braking system You get for off of this sprue, J, in the box. just look at all those lovely wheel rims and hubs!! The wheel hub detail is amazing!! There are 2 of these Sprues in the box. Sprue K contains the parts to make the rear ramps and rear trailer suspension components. Once again, as with the front suspension units, the rear units are beautifully moulded. Sprue L has all the parts required to build the cab interior, floor and bulkhead. It looks like Merit will be releasing a soft top version at some point? The dashboard is a nice piece of moulding, and has a decal should you wish to use it? Door interior detail is provided, with no ejector pin marks, which is nice!! the clear sprue is small, but VERY clear. Clear parts just get better and better these days, some of the best I've ever seen are in this kit!! As previously mentioned in this review, you get two sheets of PE in the kit, even though 8 off parts from fret B are not required for this kit. You get no less than 37 tyres in the kit, if you don't like vinyl tyres, Real Model have produced a set of resin wheels and tyres for the kit for €27.00. The decal sheet is fairly comprehensive for the subject, giving US and British versions. So, all in all a lovely kit that will look great in your cabinet alongside your Dragon Wagon and Famo?? You could always add a captured Panzer IV for a little interest, there are actual shots of these things shifting Landing Craft!! Think how good that would look?? The next few images cover the instructions, with no text from myself, just lots of pretty pictures for you... ://i494.photobucket.com/albums/rr307/NigelR32/Merit%20Models%20M-19/Instructions16.jpg[/img][/url] What more can I say, I haven't had the chance to check accuracy of ALL the parts yet but it looks pretty good at first glance. It certainly looks like it will build into a beautiful model. I look forward to the aftermarket companies coming up with the dome shape canvas roof, characteristic of this vehicle.. Thanks to my pocket for buying this kit, and thanks to merit International for producing it. I got this one from Antics Online for a bargain price...

OK, I have done a trial... I cut some sprue from a frame, approx. 4mm in diameter. I sanded the ends flat and attempted to butt join them back together. Tamiya Extra Thin works, but not instantly. Humbrol Liquid Poly works, but not instantly Gunze Mr Cement S works very well, instantly. EMA Plastic weld, pictured above works best of all. So there you have it Erik, your friends at Flanders were correct.

Hi Erik, I will try this right away.. Mirror suggest using Tamiya Extra thin. If that is unavailable to you I know without even trying that this stuff will work... I have used this glue on ABS parts and it works well.

1/35 Diamond T 969A Wrecker Mirror Models Catalogue Number 35801 Available direct from LZ models at €55.00 For many years the modelling fraternity has been waiting for an injection moulded Diamond T in 1/35 scale, low and behold, we get two at the same time!! The Merit Models 980/981 M19 Tank Transporter has recently been released, but if, like me you are a real fan of everything Diamond T, you will want to buy both kits!! Sure, the 980/1 is a big old hulk of a truck, but this 969A Wrecker is so sweet, you just have to have one!! Mirror models is a fairly new company, who make a small range of kits, all being unusual subjects not commonly covered by the big injection moulded manufacturers. They make a great little line up of CMP chassis' based vehicles with resin and PE in most kits. So, on to the subject for this review, the 969A Wrecker. This is one of those models that you just "need" when you see it built up, it certainly captured my imagination when I saw the beautiful example built at Milton Keynes today!! I will say this has to be the most crammed box of plastic out there!! Once you take the 12 Sprues out of the box you will not get them back in easily!! On top of the 12 Sprues of grey plastic and one of clear, you get a small decal sheet, two frets of Photo Etch, some rope and a chain. Did I mention the box is crammed full!! On the side of the box there is a brief description of the contents which don't go half way to explaining just how good this kit is. Now, if you've heard of this kit, you will have no doubt read about all the so called "issues" with it. Basically people are slating the kit for having very heavy gates on every part, which will make some difficult to remove from the sprue. I intend to use a razor saw, which will make light work of the job, especially as the gates are so shallow. Yes, they are wide, but on the whole they are very shallow. Stop and think for a moment though, the wide gates are there for a reason... there are no ejector pin marks on any of the parts!! Alleluia!!! If you want a quick build kit, pass this one by, with over 570 parts and all the clean up you'd expect from a limited run kit this won't be a weekends work to complete, but just think, after all the work is done, how satisfying it will feel knowing that you actually "built the model rather than just "put it together" So, lets look at all these Sprues in more detail... There are probably going to be more variants of this truck released from Mirror Models, as the Sprues don't follow the alphabet entirely?? We have one off A, B x 4,C,D K,S, U,X and Y x 2. Sprue A contains 68 parts, mostly major chassis parts and axles. The chequer plate on the steps is some of the best I've ever seen in injection moulded plastic. Note the holes all over the sprue. This would normally indicate moulding issues, but all the actual parts look fine on my sample. Lovely detail on the transfer case halves.. Sprue B has some small suspension components and the wheel halves, made up of 19 parts. There are two of these Sprues in the kit. Crisp detail on the wheel hubs. Mirror Models have made a set of resin wheels for this kit, should you wish to upgrade. I personally think the injection moulded wheels are lovely once built and painted. here things get a little confusing?? This Sprue is also B, containing no less than 91 parts. Note the springs are moulded in two halves each. it means you'll have a seam to deal with, but there are no sink marks whatsoever. There are also two of these Sprues in the box. Some very crisp detailing on this mounting part. Moving on, we now look at Sprue C. made up of 67 parts, mainly covering engine components. the basic engine looks good built up, but would really stand out in the crowd if you some hosing and wiring were added. The built example I saw at MK had the bonnet open and the engine looked great OOB. The steering wheel is exquisite!! More crisp moulding on the fan belt and pulleys.. And the engine block halves.. Here we have a concoction of Sprues.. The engine cover and fender parts are on Sprue D, made up of 25 parts. The Kellogg Compressor uses the 23 parts of Sprue K and the two wedge parts are X parts for the main bed. Note we get another steering wheel here?? Note the beautifully moulded engine cover louvers. no need for a risky opening up session here.. As previously mentioned, some of the nicest chequer plate moulding I have ever seen. In scale and just right on depth. Note the seam to the side of the plate, again, well rendered. Sprue S next... Just 21 parts make up this sprue, which is all the parts needed for a soft top cab, maybe we will be getting a hard top version in the near future? I have noticed that the doors are incorrectly referred to in the instructions as "D" parts. Errors like this are common in short run kits. A crisply moulded dash panel. Gauge faces are included on the decal sheet, all you need to do is apply a blob of gloss black into each gauge and then apply the white decals. The cab floor, note again the gorgeous chequer plate, you'd never guess I like this chequer plate would you?? Sprue X is made up of 56 parts, all used in the wrecker bed and accessories. Again the surface detail here is very nice indeed. You may have read about the issues with the "Massive" sink marks in the flat bed.. I thought I'd take a shot just to show you all how "Bad" things really are, not bad at all really!! Now, don't get me wrong, but I think this is perfectly acceptable, and very easy to fix with a little Mr Surfacer. We must remember this is a limited run kit. The next four pics show the detail front and back of the forward and rear mudguards. Two points to not here.. the pressing detail is mirrored front and rear of each panel and no ejector pin marks!!! Alleluia!!! Rear............. Forward............ The last of the grey Sprues, Y, is up now. There are two of these Sprues in the kit, each made up of 53 parts. These parts are for the booms and other "Wrecker" bits and bobs. The booms are positively exquisite. I was convinced they were made up of PE when I saw the built and painted ones, but no, all made up of Injection moulded plastic!! The Wrecker hooks are nicely rendered as can be seen here.. The clear sprue, U is up next. The windscreen and light lenses are all that is here, but they are very clear indeed. We also get a bag of PE, Decals, Rope and chain. the PE is coated in plastic film, which is a nice touch in my opinion and prevents the parts pinging off into the carpet monsters mouth. The rope is nice and apparently "fluff free". The main PE sheet has various straps and buckles, the cooling fan and pioneer tool trays. The smaller sheet consists of two sprockets for the wrecker winch. The decal sheet measures 105 x 46 mm, printed with in black and white. The black square top right is for the winch control on the wrecker, a nice little touch... So, there we have it, a new plastic kit of a tough and well respected WW2 US soft skin truck. Mirror models have linked up with LZ models, where you can buy the kit itself and some upgrades. I have ordered the canvas roof and PE set, purely because they are so reasonably priced at only €3 and €14 respectively. I will review them as soon as they arrive. now we will have a browse through the instructions. Short run kits are sometimes supplied with a CD or DVD for the instructions, I'm pleased Mirror Models have gone to the trouble of printing out the instructions on A4 paper. There are 10 sheets in all, printed on both sides. There are line drawings, photographs and 3d CAD images throughout. I will show them here and make notes where appropriate... Sheet One, ensure to get the correct stagger in your tread pattern... Page 4, pay attention to squareness and flatness here.. Note that C59 and C60 may need slight modification here. Refer to Mirror Models website So, in summary, this is a very well detailed kit which will give many hours of enjoyment to the experienced modeller. If you're looking for a shake and bake kit that you can build in a weekend with a sharp knife and a file walk on by... Likewise, if you're a beginner, you might want to give this one a miss, you could always buy it for later on when you have mastered the art of modelling a little better?? I will thoroughly enjoy building this. I think I'll start right away? The first step of building this will be a good rinse in some dish soap in the sink. It appears to be quite oily so will pose problems when it comes to painting it. Thanks to my pocket for buying this kit and thanks to Mirror Models for producing it. To see the kit build go here

Beautiful!! I want one NOW!!!

1/35 Cargo Cabin detail set for Trumpeter Mi-24V Hind E Helicopter Part Photo Etch Poland Catalogue number S35-018 Available from JADAR Model.s.c. for USD $21.42 Part, a Polish PE manufacturer for all scales and genre's of scale models, make PE sets for many kits and are well respected in the world of modelling. I have heard of them being described as the Aber PE for aircraft? There's no pre printed parts or self adhesive parts, but the sets they make are very nice indeed. The Trumpeter kit, number 05103. It's one of Trumpeters best large scale kits available in my opinion. PE make four sets of PE for the 1/35 Trumpeter Mi-24V kit, Weapons, Exterior, Cabin Interior and Cockpit Interior. So, onto this set, the comprehensive Cargo Cabin detail set. As mentioned earlier, there's no pre-painted PE or self adhesive parts, but the multi layered construction of the panels and locations for plastic rod here and there will give a very 3 dimensional cabin. The set is delivered in a sealed envelope measuring 85 x 130mm. there are three frets of brass and one small sheet of acetate included along with an instruction sheet. The two larger frets each measure 61 x 122mm. There are more than 500 PE parts in this set, CRAZY!!!. Lets look at some of the detail on those parts. Here we can see the main switch panel located between the cockpit and cabin. This will be visible with the doors open and is very complete. I recommend replacing the PE handles with brass wire. I assume it is deigned so you glue the faces onto the back panel in one piece, then cut away the joining tabs?? here's more detail on fret one, this time looking at the lower half. This is gonna look great painted and weathered!! Moving on to fret 2, we can see all the fuselage ribbing supplied, all with lovely rivet detail, crying out for a wash!! Again, moving down to the bottom half of the fret, yet more gorgeous detail.. Just look at those gorgeous window frames!!! Close up detail of some of the buckles and brackets, the parts above them are mounts for the machine gun rails.. This is the third fret, measuring 61 x 31mm. Note the right side of the fret, marked, spare parts. Thank you Part.. , I wish other manufacturers of PE would do this!! On to the acetate for the cabin windows and some other small parts. A single sheet measuring 28 x 59mm. The instructions are supplied as one off A4 sheet of paper folded in half to give four A5 sides of black and white printed pages. Page one, giving a schematic view of the frets and starting on the assembly of the switch panel and opposite wall. Page 2 covers a selection of sub assemblies and sidewall construction. Similar sub assemblies are covered on page 3, then we start to put it all together into the fuselage. Finishing up with page 4, the final pieces are fitted to the bulkheads and the panels are fitted between the floor and roof of the cabin interior. All in all, this is a lovely set, if a little complex, that will greatly enhance the kit interior, especially if being displayed with open doors. All the buckles, clamps and eyelets will really pop under some weathering and dry brushing. You may have noticed a small amount of flash between some of the more intricate parts, it's actually like gold leaf and is very easily removed. Thanks to my pocket for the set, which I purchased from Model-art.eu.. delivery was £3.50 for four sets, packaging was brilliant and the sets only took 3 days to arrive!!

1/35 Mi-24v Airframe Stencil data set Linden Hill Decals Catalogue number LHD35003 Available direct from Linden Hill Imports or Hannants for £6.40 The good old 1/35 Mi24v kit from trumpeter has been around for a long time, but is still the best kit out there of the Hind in my opinion. It's one of their best large scale kits to date. Over the years, there have been a few aftermarket accessories made for the kit, one of which being this stencil set from Linden Hill Decals. The decal set covers all the stencils required both inside and outside the airframe, (Note no cockpit stencils are included). The set contains one off sheet measuring 130 x 203mm of beautifully printed decals, all perfectly in register and shaded correctly for what references I have. The sheet is divided up into the relevant sections to include; Air Cleaners, Tail Rotor, Rear Cabin, Weapons Pylons, main Rotor and Fuselage. Soviet and Russian Red Stars are included. The placement guide is printed in black and white on one folded piece of A4 paper. It is well printed and clear, with descriptions and notes of variations across different countries. The back page gives guidance notes, reference suggestions and even kit suggestions. Funny they suggest 1/48 and 1/72 kits but no mention of the Trumpeter kit? Linden Hill claim they get their references directly from the real aircraft, looking at their sets I can quite believe it. they are VERY good!! If you enjoy your models with a Soviet slant, you should give these Decals a try. Their 1/32 Su-27 sets are awesome!! Thanks to my pocket for this lovely set. See my other Mi-24V reviews in this review section.

1/35 Cockpit Detail set for Trumpeter Mi-24V Hind E Helicopter Part Photo Etch Poland Catalogue Number S35-017 Available from JADAR-MODEL.s.c. for USD$15,40 Part, a Polish PE manufacturer for all scales and genre's of scale models, make PE sets for many kits and are well respected in the world of modelling. I have heard of them being described as the Aber PE for aircraft? There's no pre printed parts or self adhesive parts, but the sets they make are very nice indeed. The Trumpeter kit, number 05103. It's one of Trumpeters best large scale kits available in my opinion. PE make four sets of PE for the 1/35 Trumpeter Mi-24V kit, Weapons, Exterior, Cabin Interior and Cockpit Interior. So, onto this set, the comprehensive cockpit set. as mentioned earlier, there's no pre-painted PE or self adhesive parts, but the multi layered construction of the panels and locations for plastic rod switches and knobs will guarantee a very 3 dimensional cockpit indeed. With the glazing and door open on the finished model, all this work will pay dividends. Once we unpack the small 85 x 130mm packaging we find all this inside. There are over 200 PE parts in this set alone!! The main fret measures 61 x 123mm. Upon closer inspection we can see how 3 dimensional the panels are. they will take some skill to paint, but will look incredible if well done. At the top of the main fret we can see these beautifully etched panels. The centre section of the fret... note the multi layer parts and holes and slots for switch gear. The second, smaller fret measuring 56 x 30mm contains 25 parts and carries on with the beautiful etch work found on the main fret. The clear acetate sheet is printed with all the gauges and dials. It measures 48 x 90mm and has 22 separate parts. Once painted behind with white paint it will really pop. ] The instructions are very small, being made from one sheet of A4, folded in half to give four sides of A5 instructions. There is no colour and the printing could be better, but none of the instructions are illegible. page one, showing the frets laid out and dealing with sub assemblies. Note the bottom left corner shows how the lovely switch panels will be assembled. Moving on to page 2 we can see the main instrument panel coming together and the gunners side panel and pilots starboard console. Page 3 covers the pilots port side panel, more IP work and some canopy details. Page four covers the main assembly of all the parts into the kit fuselage. Surprisingly, no harnesses are included??? In summary, this is a lovely set which will take a lot of work, but will be well worthwhile in my opinion. The fact that there are no belts included is a little disappointing, I guess I'll have to get the Eduard set as well?? Thanks to my pocket for buying this set. I purchased my sets from Model-art .eu.. The postage for all four sets was only £3.50 and they arrived, beautifully packaged in only three days!! Highly Recommended Watch this space for the other three sets reviews.

1/32 AIM-9P Sidewinder set Mk1 Design, (KA Models) Catalogue Number MA-32003 Available from Hobby Link Japan USD $24.46 For those of you who want the ultimate in weaponry for your F-14-15-16 or Phantom etc., are invited to have a browse over this update set. This set of Resin, PE, Decals and turned aluminium parts will build up into the ultimate 1/32 replica of two AIM-9P Sidewinders. Once unpacked, this is how all the lovely resin looks. Note a couple of the fins have become separated from their casting block, but there's no damage to the parts whatsoever. Note the set includes the nose covers which is a nice touch. Upon closer inspection we can see there are a couple of small bubbles present, but these will be taken care of with a spot of Mr Putty. The PE fret, measures 56 x 15mm and the decal sheets measure 56 x 40mm. PE fret close up shows the etched detail for the banding and tail support bars. The main turned bodies of the missiles are simply superb. Not only are they turned from lightweight Aluminium but there is also drilled detail for fin location and surface detailing. The smaller parts are the exhausts. Imagine how good this will look under a wash!! Finally we look at the instruction sheet, which is simple but perfectly adequate for the set. No painting guide is included. All in all, this is a lovely set that will take more effort than, say, a resin set, but I'm sure will look as good if not better? Dimensionally they appear to be accurate according to the length I found on Wikipedia. Thanks to Hobby Link Japan for the review samples.

1/32 500lb Bomb 4 set Mk1 Design, (KA Models) Catalogue Number MA-32005 Available from Hobby Link Japan USD $24.46 If you're planning on building a Diorama with your favourite Aircraft being loaded with 500lb Bombs, this set is a must. From the thin PE fins to the solid turned metal bomb bodies, they are superb. Here is what you get in the set once unpacked. It's a comprehensive set which will look far more accurate than any injected parts will look. The turned bodies and rear screw shaft are simply superb.. The larger PE fret, measures 87 x 42mm, covering the bomb fins, screws and lifting/mounting eyes. The second smaller fret has one set of four fins only. At the rear of the main body, the fins are mounted onto a screwed on "hub" which has been accurately captured by KA Models in resin. There is a small, but comprehensive decal sheet included in the set, covering all the stencilling you'd ever need. Finally, we have the small instruction sheet, showing assembly and decal placement, though I notice there is no mention of orientation between the lifting eyes and the stencils. All in all, a great little set for the Diorama, or to finish off that beautiful P-51or P-47 you've just built. Although they are constructed mainly from metal, they are very light so mounting on the pylons shouldn't pose too much of a problem. Thanks to Hobby Link Japan for the review sample. Highly recommended.

Hi Bob, I click on the bottom, 'img' link on PB. It should turn yellow and say "copied". Come back to your opened page in LSM, right click where you want the image and click paste. A window will appear the first time, asking if you want to allow the file to share or something like that.. click yes and the attachment will be pasted on the page.

It is now Monday Feb 10th and I have added some more to the review above.. enjoy.