Fran

Well, I know that we are still in 2025... but there`s already some news for 2026... The first one is GWH F6F-3 Hellcat!

And Kotare Hurricane is now in pre-order directly from Kotare!

wow!! great deal for those that are in that side of the pond!!!

Nice paintob on that walls!

👍 Good work!

Now thats a very good looking diorama project!! Looking forward to see the next steps!

Wow!! Very nice work! thanks for sharing!

Nice looking Mustang JohnB! I only see one photo but I like what I see!

1:48 Do-217 M-1 ICM Catalogue number 48274 Price: around 64,95€ The Dornier 217 M-1 was a German WWII era medium bomber, developed from the previous Do 217 E medium bomber series. Unlike the previous Do 217 E, and similar to the Do 217 K-1, the Do 217 M-1 nose and cockpit was redesigned and aerodynamically streamlined, resulting in lower drag and higher speed. The crew of five was sitting inside the new fully glazed canopy. Unlike all the Do 217 versions before, new engines were chosen as the radial BMW 801 engines were in shortage. Instead,the Do 217 M used inline DB 603A engines found in He 219 and Do 335 or Italian G.56 fighters. New engines drastically improved the top speed of the bomber which increased by approximately 80 km/h. The defensive armament was changed again, the forward 7,92 mm MG 81 was replaced by heavier 13 mm MG 131 and the rear facing MG 81 machine guns were changed from single to dual mounted. The offensive armament was removed. Maximum bombload of 4000 kg of bombs either in bomb bay or on external racks under the wings remained unchanged, although a single SC 1800 bomb could now be carried inside the bomb bay. The Do 217M took part in Operation Steinbock, the last Luftwaffe offensive against British isles aswell as in sinking of the battleship Roma on her way to Malta. The Do 217 M-1 was introduced in Update 1.29 together with the other planes of the Dornier 217 family. The Do 217 is faster than most of other bombers it will meet in battle, being capable of taking out up to four bombing points when utilizing the Flamm C250 incendiary bombs or up to four bases utilizing the four SC 1000 bombs, depending on the maximal battle rating of the said match. Do 217 M is also very capable CAS due to its heavy bomb load and the powerful SC 1800 bomb containing 1000 kg of TNT eq. and 30 metres wide destruction radius. Do 217 can also be used in naval battles as it comes equipped with a pair of F5W torpedoes with 3 km range and 300 kg TNT eq. However these might prove hard to use as the Dornier have to slow down to sub 301 km/h making it an easy target for the naval gunners. Despite being a bomber, the Dornier is also quite maneuverable with maximal structural limit being 700 km/h, rivaling fighters such as Bf 109, making the Dornier be able to run away in dive from opponents such as Spitfires or Yaks. (https://wiki.warthunder.com/unit/do_217m_1) So the main difference and it quite eaassy to see are the engines. While the Do-217 K-1 was powered by the BMW 801 engine, the M-1 was powered by the Daimler-Benz 603. So this kit has all parts of the K-1 version except the engine sprue. But first the box art! ICM really has some great artist painting or making such box art. This one is no exception as it´s, for me, very appealing! On his version you will get much less plastic as you don’t have the engine BMW sprue. On the K version you have a Daimler benz engine and the BMW engines. In this version, only the DB engines. The clear parts are perfect! Even in this shape… As usual are pristine and very clear with no distortion at all. This example has a little cloudy window in the from gondola but nothing that a bit of polishing would not solve. The cockpit is quite big and there’s a lot of glazing to see inside. So, straight from the box, you can get a good cockpit detail has you have in the box side consoles, small instrument panel with three-dimensional components. So, with some work, the decals and some carefully painting you can get a great cockpit straight from the box, excepted for the seatbelts. As usually, for the seatbelts you need to use some aftermarket seatbelts. Passing on a first general view, is a typical ICM quality plastic, with no distortion, no flash, with very good surface detail. The main different for the K version- The engines You can chance to chose between close engine and open engine. To open the engine, a minor surgery has to be made so you have to cut the gondola engines and start working on step 48A. If you want all close you start the 48b. The good of it is that you can have one close and one open. The instructions. The usual standard from ICM with a booklet with the first and last page in satin paper and the rest in normal paper. The color table chart only have ICM paint range and it start to make some sense (at least in Europe) as you start to have some online store that sell them as Art Scale Kit. Anyway, the instruction manual is detailed and easy to follow. It includes step-by-step assembly diagrams, color callouts, and decal placement guides. The masking templates is a nice touch but I would recommend some good masks like the ones from Art Scale. The decal sheet has a good color registration and supply 4 finishing options: Do-217 M-1, 2./KG2, France, Summer 1943 Do-217 M-1, 2./KG2, Culimiern, early 1944 Do-217 M-1, 1.(f)/Nacht, Kastrup, Spring 1945 Do-217 M-1, 2.(f)/Nacht, Prague-Ruzyne, 1945 The box profiles. Conclusion Well, ICM is filling up all D-217 variants in 1:48, all with very good models kits straight from the box. The M and K line were a must have to all Luftwaffe fans. The wait as worth it, no doubt about it!! As all latest ICM model kits, the detail out of the box is very good and it will make a very good replica. For the expert and keen modeler some AM will make some extra detail to make this beauty into a total masterpiece. That big clear gondola is begging for it. VERY Highly recommend this to intermediate modeler My thanks to ICM for making this fantastic model.

1:32 Henschel Hs 123 Legion Condor ICM Catalogue number 32016 Price: around 53,99€ The Henschel Hs 123 was a rugged German biplane dive bomber and close air support aircraft developed in the early 1930s, entering Luftwaffe service in 1936. Despite its dated biplane design, it excelled in maneuverability, short-field operations, and survivability during low-level attacks, seeing combat in the Spanish Civil War (as the "Legion Condor" variant), the one that we are reviewing here, the invasions of Poland and France, and extensively on the Eastern Front until 1944. Production ended in 1938 after about 1,100 units, but its simplicity kept it relevant. ICM release now the early version, that was present in the Legion Condor. We, at Large Scale Modeller, already reviewed the Late version here. Both share identical sprues (about 200 parts in medium grey styrene, plus clear parts), differing only in decals, instructions, and minor optional parts for historical accuracy, as the headrest. The kit arrived in ICM's sturdy, lift-off-top box with attractive artwork, please Revell, do it as well. Inside the box, eight grey sprues (A–G, with F duplicated for undercarriage/bombs), one clear sprue, a single decal sheet, and a 20-page A4 instruction booklet. The plastic is in gray color, a bit soft on touch, So, on the sprue A we got fuselage halves with excellent panel line detail, no rivets, upper front decking, external fuel tank. Sprue B and C, the Upper and lower wings with one-piece lower wing with flaps and separate ailerons/elevators for posing. The wings also have some really nice surface detail. Now the sprue D brings control surfaces, optional early/late hinge mounts, with the subtle internal structure details. As for the Engine, everything is in the sprue E and also for the cockpit. You got the BMW 132K radial engine (detailed cylinders, separate exhaust stacks, valve covers, and triform cowling braces) and tailplane. The engine cowling is supplied in nine parts. I personally don’t appreciated so many parts on the cowling but it`s probably the only way to open it to display the engine. Here you also find the headrest used on the late version. Concerning the cockpit, two instrument panels are included with raised detail to simulate instrument placement. You can choose if you want to paint or decal. The OOB cockpit detail is quite good as all ICM release with a minus, the seatbelts. There are none on the box and the seat don’t have them engraved. The sprue F comes in duplicated as it bring us the undercarriage legs, wheel spats and bombs. As for the G sprue, the final parts are the struts (as this is a biplane) for the cabane and interplane. These structs are quite thin and well-ejected. Here we also find some smaller detail like a flare gun, engiens exhauts, cockpy stic, elevatores etc. The decals, as usual are very good in color saturation, solid color, quite thin and perfect registration. All three options, all in pre-war RLM 61/62/63 splinter over 65: 1. Hs 123A "24 3" VJ/88, Spain, 1937 2. Hs 123A "24 4" VJ/88, Spain, 1937 3. Hs 123A "24 5" VJ/88, Spain, 1937 The Clear parts As usual are pristine and very clear with no distortion at all. Also in this clear part, of course, the wingtip nav lights. A masking template of the windshield is given. In this model, is a minor job and not hard to do. The instructions. The usual standard from ICM with a booklet with the first and last page in satin paper and the rest in normal paper. It has 70 building steps with exploded views, color call-outs (ICM paints only). Its quite clear and easy to follow. A side note for the engine assembly and those eight cowling parts, as take your time with dry fit and alignment of all parts. The color table chart only have ICM paint range so you can get the full range at Art Scale Kit Anyway, the instruction manual is detailed and easy to follow. It includes step-by-step assembly diagrams, color callouts, and decal placement guides. Conclusion ICM's 1:32 Henschel Hs 123 is a beautiful model kit, with very good detail out of the box. I really love the painting of the Legion Condor. So, if you like Legion Condor, 1:32 scale and biplanes you must get one of this beauties VERY Highly recommend this to intermediate modeler My thanks to ICM for making this fantastic model.

Yes, but after that, we move on and decided to allow non-LSM, specially Large scale Models ,like an 1:48 B-36, a 1:48 B-29... and 1:72 An-225. All of these are Large Scale Models... not a "large-scale"... But some brands still send us to review their products even if they really don´t "fit" in the full purpose of the forum.

a new book from Canfora is coming!! Wingspan 6!! https://canfora.se/wingspan-volume-6/

Great work! Taking notes to make mine soon!

Fantastic work! love it

1:48 Capture Heinkel ICM Catalogue number 48268 Price: around 47€ “The Heinkel He 111 is a German airliner and bomber designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development, it was described as a "wolf in sheep's clothing". Due to restrictions placed on Germany after the First World War prohibiting bombers, it was presented solely as a civil airliner, although from conception the design was intended to provide the nascent Luftwaffe with a heavy bomber. Perhaps the best-recognised German bomber of World War II due to the distinctive, extensively glazed "greenhouse" nose of the later versions, the Heinkel He 111 was the most numerous Luftwaffe bomber during the early stages of the war. It fared well until it met serious fighter opposition during the Battle of Britain, when its defensive armament was found to be inadequate. As the war progressed, the He 111 was used in a wide variety of roles on every front in the European theatre. It was used as a strategic bomber during the Battle of Britain, a torpedo bomber in the Atlantic and Arctic, and a medium bomber and a transport aircraft on the Western, Eastern, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and North African Front theatres. The He 111 was constantly upgraded and modified, but had nonetheless become obsolete by the latter part of the war. The failure of the German Bomber B project forced the Luftwaffe to continue operating the He 111 in combat roles until the end of the war. Manufacture of the He 111 ceased in September 1944, at which point piston-engine bomber production was largely halted in favour of fighter aircraft. With the German bomber force virtually defunct, the He 111 was used for logistics. Production of the Heinkel continued after the war as the Spanish-built CASA 2.111. Spain received a batch of He 111H-16s in 1943 along with an agreement to licence-build Spanish versions. Its airframe was produced in Spain under licence by Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA. The design differed significantly only in the powerplant used, eventually being equipped with Rolls-Royce Merlin engines. These remained in service until 1973.he H variant of the He 111 series was more widely produced and saw more action during World War II than any other Heinkel variant. Owing to the uncertainty surrounding the delivery and availability of the DB 601 engines, Heinkel switched to 820 kW (1,100 hp) Junkers Jumo 211 powerplants, whose somewhat greater size and weight were regarded as unimportant considerations in a twin-engine design. When the Jumo was fitted to the P model it became the He 111 H. The He 111 H-1 was fitted with a standard set of three 7.92 mm (0.312 in) MG 15 machine guns and eight SC 250 250 kg (550 lb) or 32 SC 50 50 kg (110 lb) bombs. The same armament was used in the H-2 which started production in August 1939. The P-series was gradually replaced on the eve of war with the new H-2, powered by improved Jumo 211 A-3 engines of 820 kW (1,100 hp). A count on 2 September 1939 revealed that the Luftwaffe had a total of 787 He 111s in service, with 705 combat ready, including 400 H-1 and H-2s that had been produced in a mere four months. Production of the H-3, powered by the 895 kW (1,200 hp) Jumo 211 D-1, began in October 1939. Experiences during the Polish Campaign led to an increase in defensive armament. MG 15s were fitted whenever possible and the number of machine guns was sometimes increased to seven. The two waist positions received an additional MG 15, and on some variants a belt-fed MG 17 was even installed in the tail. A 20 mm (0.79 in) MG FF autocannon would sometimes be installed in the nose or forward gondola. After the Battle of Britain, smaller scale production of the H-4s began. The H-4 was virtually identical to the He 111 P-4 with the DB 600s swapped for the Jumo 211D-1s. Some also used the Jumo 211H-1. This variant also differed from the H-3 in that it could either carry 2,000 kg (4,400 lb) of bombs internally or mount one or two external racks to carry one 1,800 kg (4,000 lb) or two 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) bombs. As these external racks blocked the internal bomb bay doors, a combination of internal and external storage was not possible. A PVR 1006L bomb rack was fitted externally and an 835 L (184 imp gal; 221 US gal) tank added to the interior spaces left vacant by the removal of the internal bomb-bay. The PVR 1006L was capable of carrying a SC 1000 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) bomb. Some H-4s had their PVC racks modified to drop torpedoes. Later modifications enabled the PVC 1006 to carry a 2,500 kg (5,500 lb) "Max" bomb. However 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) "Hermann" or 1,800 kg (4,000 lb) "Satans" were used more widely. The H-5 series followed in February 1941, with heavier defensive armament. Like the H-4, it retained a PVC 1006 L bomb rack to enable it to carry heavy bombs under the fuselage. The first ten He 111 H-5s were pathfinders, and selected for special missions. The aircraft sometimes carried 25 kg (55 lb) flashlight bombs which acted as flares. The H-5 could also carry heavy fire bombs, either heavy containers or smaller incendiary devices attached to parachutes. The H-5 also carried LM A and LM B aerial mines for anti-shipping operations. After the 80th production aircraft, the PVC 1006 L bomb rack was removed and replaced with a heavy-duty ETC 2000 rack, enabling the H-5 to carry the SC 2500 "Max" bomb, on the external ETC 2000 rack, which enabled it to support the 2,500 kg (5,500 lb) bomb. Some H-3 and H-4s were equipped with barrage balloon cable-cutting equipment in the shape of cutter installations forward of the engines and cockpit. They were designated H-8, but later named H8/R2. These aircraft were difficult to fly and production stopped. The H-6 initiated some overall improvements in design. The Jumo 211 F-1 engine of 1,007 kW (1,350 hp) increased its speed while the defensive armament was upgraded at the factory with one 20 mm (0.79 in) MG FF cannon in the nose and/or gondola positions (optional), two MG 15 in the ventral gondola, and one each of the fuselage side windows. Some H-6 variants carried tail-mounted MG 17 defensive armament.[54] The performance of the H-6 was much improved. The climb rate was higher and the bomber could reach a slightly higher ceiling of 8,500 m (27,900 ft). When heavy bomb loads were added, this ceiling was reduced to 6,500 m (21,300 ft). The weight of the H-6 increased to 14,000 kg (31,000 lb). Some H-6s received Jumo 211F-2s which improved a low-level speed of 365 km/h (227 mph). At an altitude of 6,000 m (20,000 ft) the maximum speed was 435 km/h (270 mph). If heavy external loads were added, the speed was reduced by 35 km/h (22 mph). Other designs of the mid-H series included the He 111 H-7 and H-8. The airframes were to be rebuilds of the H-3/H-5 variant. Both were designed as night bombers and were to have two Jumo 211F-1s installed. The intention was for the H-8 to be fitted with cable-cutting equipment and barrage ballon deflectors on the leading edge of the wings. The H-7 was never built.” The H-9 was intended as a trainer with dual control columns. The airframe was a H-1 variant rebuild. The powerplants consisted of two JumoA-1s or D-1s.[56] The H-10 was also designated to trainer duties. Rebuilt from an H-2 or H-3 airframe, it was installed with full defensive armament including 13 mm (0.51 in) MG 131 and 7.92 mm (0.312 in) MG 81Z machine guns. It was to be powered by two Jumo 211A-1s, D-1s or F-2s.”* The last major production variant was the H-20, which entered into production in early 1944. It was planned to use two 1,305 kW (1,750 hp) Junkers Jumo 213E-1 engines, turning three-blade, Junkers VS 11 wooden-bladed variable-pitch propellers. It would appear this plan was never developed fully. Though the later H-22 variant was given the 213E-1 engines, the 211F-2 remained the H-20's main power plant. Heinkel and its licensees built 550 H-20s through the summer of 1944, while 586 H-6s were upgraded to H-20 standard. In contrast to the H-11 and H-16, the H-20, equipped with two Jumo 211F-2s, had more powerful armament and radio communications. The defensive armament consisted of an MG 131 in an A-Stand gun pod for the forward mounted machine gun position. One rotatable Drehlafette DL 131/1C (or E) gun mount in the B-stand was standard and later, MG 131 machine guns were added. Navigational direction-finding gear was also installed. The Peil G6 was added to locate targets and the FuBI 2H blind landing equipment was built in to help with night operations. The radio was a standard FuG 10, TZG 10 and FuG 16Z for navigating to the target. The H-20 also was equipped with barrage balloon cable-cutters. The bomb load of the H-20 could be mounted on external ETC 1000 racks or four ESAC 250 racks. The sub variant H-20/R4 could carry twenty 50 kg (110 lb) bombs externally.” *History from Wikipedia. Now, let´s go to the model kit. Checking the box, is the usual ICM flip top cardboard with a separate card lid showing the artwork. Speaking of artwork, I really love ICM boxart. No idea who is the author but kudos to his work. All the plastic sprue are in two plastic bags with the clear parts in other plastic bag inside. Checking the plastic parts, the injection markings are very subtle and mainly in places that will be hard to see when build. Its evident that ICM made the home work to make modeler live easier. The actual ICM models kit have excellent recessed lines, rivets, and part quality. The surface textures are refined, with slightly proud wing root fairings and no extraneous rivets elsewhere I`m very pleased to see all the internal structure present in the fuselage halves and the internal detail. As in others He-111, here there`s also two full detail engines straight from the box that you can used like that and left it open or hyperdetailed it with some plugs and wires and simple close all up. It`s really up to the modeler. As for the clear parts, once again are clear and free from distortion, allowing for excellent visibility of interior details. I have had the pleasure of reviewing several ICM models kits and no one had the clear parts damage or broken. And every single one were perfect crystal clear. The decal sheet is compact but well-printed, with fine registration and minimal carrier film. Colors appear slightly pale in photos but should perform well with proper application. Two marking options are provided: - He-111 H-20, 56th Fighter Group (USAAF) Boxted, July 1945 - He-111 H-20, Farnborough, November 1945 These post-capture schemes are very good, for me specially the RAF one. However the painting of the egnines gondolas it very hard and It would be great to have some painting masks for that. As for the instructions, the typical booklet with the satin paper in the firts page and last. The parts indicatiosn and color are good. Conclusion The ICM 1:48 Captured Heinkel He 111H-20 (kit number 48268) is a 2025 rebox of ICM's earlier He 111H-20 kit, featuring new decals for aircraft captured and operated by Allied forces during World War II. This version appeals to modelers interested in unusual markings, such as those in USAAF or RAF service, rather than standard Luftwaffe schemes. And in these colourfull schemes, it will stand out from the rest of the models. Highly recommend this to intermediate/expert modeler