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Fran

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  1. Thanks Ernie. I agree with you... it`s probably an easy fix thing to do.. but however, it shouldn`t happen in a model kit that cost 300$... And the problem is notthe 3D Print technologie. I talked with a friend that is a 3D expertise and have a 3D print business and he told me, after see the images, that the fuselage was printed at 0,05 microns definition when it should be printed in 0,02 microns. The difference? The printing time. More the double it!! Being 500 pieces, of that side, probably could take them more than 6 months to make in 0.02 microns.
  2. Not the final test shot but the one before that (As I was told) was "review" here. I`m building it (not as fast as I would like but no instructions in the begging and now with test instruction) and it`s flawless! Its the best HK Models until now, that`for sure.
  3. Great review Ernie!! I`m expecting the X-3... but i confess i didnt like the look of the 3D fuselage for the price you pay for these kind of limited kits.
  4. I already made this model and this scheme! Its a beauty!! Thanks for sharing!!
  5. Great review Ernie!! I waiting thatr it arrived in EU, to my usual HB so I dont want to pay 50% of the kit of taxes!
  6. A WORLD OF DIORAMAS (Master Collection Series Vol.2) Canfora Publishing Author: PER OLAV LUND ISBN: 978-91-984776-9-6 Price tag: 29,50€ (plus shipping) Seven years ago, I have had the true pleasure of receiving a book directly from Per Olav Lund. It is still a book that I open, read and contemplate those fantastic dioramas. And now, seven years later, Toni Canfora gives me another opportunity to read and appreciate the fantastic and extraordinary work from one of most talent modeller in the world. This second book of A World of Dioramas has several new Per Olav Lund works, some of them which I never saw it before As the previous book, this is not a step-by-step technical book but a book where some of the steps of these master pieces are explained (almost like a step-by-step for that figures or animal, or a simple detail) and several work in progress are photographed and explain Inside you will find twelve (12!) new works from the Author: 1. Starvation Cove; 2. For Valour; 3. Forgotten Walker 4. Abandoned; 5. Sacre Bleu!; 6. Shutterburg; 7. Passchendaele; 8. Childhood 9. Angel 10. Anne Nicole 11. The Fisherman 12. Kiiling Moon And a final chapter: “More Houses” Just a look on the cover first: Is amazing. A central and big photo of Mark I tank in Passchendaele in a satin finish. The cover is in soft cover with a high grade paper and satin finish. The cover is A3 folding sheet so you got on the front cover the already mention diorama, and opening the paper, you got Per Olav Lund introduction. Starting flipping through the book, I really do not know where to start! Almost mental block with all the fantastic photos. All the 128 pages have a fantastic color printing in a satin finish touch. In general, all the impression and color quality is not an issue for sure! In every single diorama, Per Olav gives you, a small well written text that tells how the author got inspired and what he wants to represent with that work. I will not comments all the work that are inside this book. These are pure art. Everything is perfect balance, with no extra things or confusion just to fill empty spaces.... Per Olav Lund almost in every work (probably in all) make figures transformation so he posed them in the position desire and he don’t need to rely only in figures manufactures to achieve his goal, to have a dramatic scene or a moving look scene. On the first work (“Starvation Cove”(, the polar bear is impressive piece of art by itself and all the scene is perfect balance to the dramatic encounter with the polar bear. The work “For Valour” is a great piece and as Passchendaele work, the side wood presentation are fantastic. Both work are very dramatic, with the terrain fantastic made, with woundens and deaths soldiers to show the horrors of the WWI. And as usual the author reach his goal: to impress the reader with the scenic real scene. Outstanding. The other military work, “Scare Blue” add to the drama, a sense of action, with a german soldier being hit and falling back to outside of the diorama scene! No words. This book also get to sci-fi with the “Abandoned Walker”. The nature is reproduce in perfection. There`s some civil dioramas being my favourite “The Childhood”. A balance, comic, dramatic and truly representing the childhood of many of us! A piece of art! To see it, you will have to buy this book! It`s worthy it! The Fisherman is a large scale diorama, with a man fishing with river water by his knees. It`s perfect balance with the right sense of movement! As I said I will not talk about all the works in the book, but I have to finish with the two diorama boxes, one of them in full scratch, “Killing Moon”, part of a Zeppelin Gondola, more specific the weaponary of the engine gondola, with all the infrastructure inside and the crew. All that in a big box with a moon and a Se5 in the back, making this a truly amazing box diorama. CONCLUSION Per Olav Lund, how could you do it all over again? It’s a art book! The text is quite simply, very comprehensive and an easy reading. The print quality is very good, on satin paper. But Per Olav Lund work is simply amazing! It`s inspirational. So Just do yourself a favor, and get one! Very Highly Recommend Francisco Guedes A very special thanks to the author, Per Olav Lund for this review sample and all the support. To purchase this directly, click THIS link. If you found this review helpful and decide to purchase this product, please tell them you read about it at Large Scale Modeller! Disclaimer: all photos all in low quality to preserve and prevent all copyright.
  7. On the Deck Naval Aviation in Scale Canfora Publishing (Grafisk Form & Förlag) ISBN: 978-91-984776-7-2 Price tag: 15,00€ (plus shipping) Back on book review and back to one of the most profilic publisher of modelling book. Canfora book mean quality paper and very high quality modelling pages. Today, I have had the pleasure to read the “On the Deck – Naval Aviation on Scale”. This book is a soft cover one, A4 size, with 80 pages of aircraft modelling heaven. The inside paper is satin finish with high quality definition, giving a killer quality overlook to the book. This book is a pure modelling book with several construction with finish models and several wip pictures. The articles show, between text and pictures what the author did to achieved that result. It`s also no a truly FAQ/Step-by-step modelling book So on the book, all dedicated to naval aviation, you get full articles of several planes, almost all in 1:48 (two in 1:72) and all with tons of aftermarkets on. In total, you get 7 full build articles and one in the gallery. So the 7 are: - A-7E Corsair II – Hasegawa with all there is from Aires - Firefly Mk . I – Grand Phoenix (mix with Special Hobby parts also); - Sukhoj Su-33 Flanker D – Kinetic with new decals from BEgemot, resin quickboost, PE from Eduard and extensive exhaust set from Dream Model. - F4U-7 Corsair - Hasegawa with everything in it, and I mean everything: Eduard PE set, Aires Cockpit, Quickboost engine set, Wolfpack Wing folded set, Pavla Model control surface, obsureco models wheels and MDC decal set. - Aichi B7A2 Ryusei Kai – Hasegawa with Eduard Set - FM-2 WildCat – Arma Hobby 1:72 ( no AM this one as it’s a expert kit set with its own PE) - Buccanner SS.2C – Airfix 1:72 with Eduard set, Master Model and CMK port engine And the Bonus Galleria Well, there`s no identification of th author, but I saw this work already somewhere! CONCLUSION It’s a very interesting aircraft modelling book, a must have to all Naval aviation modeller. All the builds are stunning (made by expert modeller), with detail to maximum, using in most of case, all aftermarket that exist for. There are very several good tip to use in thse build that can be used in all other aircraft builds. The content of this book is a quite inspiration (I just regret to sold my Grand Phoenix FireFly) and a very good consulting guide for any kind of aircraft build. Highly Recommend Francisco Guedes Our thanks to the Toni Canfora and Canfora Publishing for this review sample and all the support. To purchase this directly, click THIS link. If you found this review helpful and decide to purchase this product, please tell them you read about it at Large Scale Modeller!
  8. Wow!! Great review Ernie!! Thanks so much!!
  9. Love it! Great Work!
  10. AH-1 Cobra EARLY TAILS OVER VIETNAM 1:32 Special Hobby Catalogue number SH32082 Price range: €55,62 “The Bell AH-1 Cobra is a single-engined attack helicopter developed and manufactured by the American rotorcraft manufacturer Bell Helicopter. A member of the prolific Huey family, the AH-1 is also referred to as the Huey Cobra or Snake. The AH-1 was rapidly developed as an interim gunship in response to the United States Army's needs in the Vietnam War. It used the same engine, transmission and rotor system of the Bell UH-1 Iroquois, which had already proven itself to be a capable platform during the conflict, but paired it with a redesigned narrow fuselage among other features. The original AH-1, being a dedicated attack helicopter, came equipped with stub wings for various weapons, a chin-mounted gun turret, and an armored tandem cockpit, from which it was operated by a pilot and gunner. Its design was shaped to fulfil a need for a dedicated armed escort for transport helicopter, giving the latter greater survivability in contested environments. On 7 September 1965, the Model 209 prototype performed its maiden flight; after rapidly gaining the support of various senior officials, quantity production of the type proceeded rapidly with little revision. During June 1967, the first examples of the AH-1 entered service with the US Army and was promptly deployed to the Vietnam theatre. It commonly provided fire support to friendly ground forces, escorted transport helicopters, and flew in "hunter killer" teams by pairing with Hughes OH-6A Cayuse scout helicopters. In the Vietnam War alone, the Cobra fleet cumulatively chalked up in excess of one million operational hours; roughly 300 AH-1s were also lost in combat. In addition to the US Army, various other branches of the US military also opted to acquire the type, particularly the United States Marine Corps. Furthermore, numerous export sales were completed with several overseas countries, including Israel, Japan, and Turkey. For several decades, the AH-1 formed the core of the US Army's attack helicopter fleet, seeing combat in Vietnam, Grenada, Panama, and the Gulf War. In US Army service, the Cobra was progressively replaced by the newer and more capable Boeing AH-64 Apache during the 1990s, with the final examples being withdrawn during 2001. The Israeli Air Force (IAF) operated the Cobra most prolifically along its land border with Lebanon, using its fleet intensively during the 1982 Lebanon War. Turkish AH-1s have seen regular combat with Kurdish insurgents near Turkey's southern borders. Upgraded versions of the Cobra have been developed, such as the twin engined AH-1 SeaCobra/SuperCobra and the experimental Bell 309 KingCobra. Furthermore, surplus AH-1 helicopters have been reused for other purposes, including civilian ones; numerous examples have been converted to perform aerial firefighting operations. Historical text from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_AH-1_Cobra I must confess. I`m thrilled for the opportunity for reviewing this beauty. First, the plastic on the box is from ICM back in 2021. The ICM kit was very well received with very good feedback from modellers. I read a lot about it and all the good feedback for modellers that build it. Just look at it, the simple plastic, and you know that this release eclipses the Revell one (to be fair, the Revell lived a long happy good live). However, it`s my first look in the Cobra, no matter the boxing. This edition is a hi-tech edition bring by Special Hobby, with lots of extras that I will be looking carefully here. First the plastic sprues, four in grey and one clear sprue. The clear sprue come in a separate bag to protect the big windows. It has great clarity with no distortion at all, quite thin and in a perfect shape. You have the option of finishing the model with the access windows open or closed. This Special hobby box also give us a masking set tape for making the masking process much less time-consuming and painless. All the other sprues, the plastic is a soft one, good to work with. All the parts have no flash, with great surface detail, both raised and engraved detail. The surface detail is very good, with a special thing: you got recessed panel lines and raised rivet detail, which is a great point for detail from ICM. In the sprue A, you get the fuselage halves (only the halves as it doesn’t have floor) and cockpit hub. On sprue B, the vertical stabilizers, the main rotor blade, fuselage side wings and tail rotor blade. You can build both early and Late G model as both vertical stabilizers are provided. Sprue C we got mainly the skids, stabilizers rotor wings, bottom fuselage The skids of the cobra are quite correct, at least from pictures (and I really like the nice touch of the resin wheels set and towing set to put on the skids). Sprue D (x2) you got small details and all the armament to equipped your Cobra. 4 x XM-159 19 tube rocket pack 2 x XM-157 7 shot rocket pack 2 x XM-158 2.75 inch forward firing rocket pack 2 x M18E1 7.62mm mini gun Now, the extra details parts that make this box a hi-tech one. Starting with the cockpit and their large area, the original ICM leaves lots of room for extra detail which is not the case of this special edition. So for the cockpit the Special Hobby Hi-tech offers the modeler, new resin seats, resin console levers, both joystick in 3D printing (The 3D printing looks fantastic and very well detail). And two helmets!! These are a perfect touch!! The two helmets: Also you got PE seatbelts, fire extinctor, side armour console, and both sights in a mix of resin and PE. Talking about the PE, there´s two small sheets (one nikel, one brass) , with fantastic detail and the color one, very well done. Basically, one of the fret sheet is the front and rear instruments panels, full set of seatbelts, and the brass one engine bay panel grill, some internal parts and the mounting plates for the rocket launchers. I can`t tell for the macro look of it but if I had to bet, I would bet that these are made by Eduard. So it`s a top noch product with quality guaranteed. The instruments panels are all in color PE. The cockpit is sparse in the original ICM offer, turn into a really good detail cockpit with this edition. The armament also get so some extra detail in this, more specifically, two XM-158 2.75 inch forward firing rocket pack, in full resin with awesome detail) and M18E1 7.62mm mini gun, also get some add ons with extra detail resin part. The decals have a very good color registration (love the shark mouth), quite thin. A full set of stencils are also on this very complete decal sheet. Looks like a Special hobby direct product so I have no clue how they will react to Micro Sol or Micro Set. But I will soon! The decals give four schemes and markings: - AH-1G, s/n 68-15183, flown by Neil McMillan, C/2/20 ARA, C Battery, 2nd battalion, 20th Regiment, Aerial Rocket Artillery, Phuoc Vinh, Vietnam, 1971; - AH-1G, s/n 68-15049, flown by 1Lt George Alexander and WO1 Jim Moran, C72/20 ARA, Bu Dop, Vietnam, June 1970. ((Comments from Special Hobby to this sheme: “helicopters participating in the Cambodian invasion had their tailbooms painted in black to obscure the US markings); - AH-1G, s/n 66-15259, Cobra NETT, New Equipament Training Team, Vung Tau, Vietnam, December 1967 (Comments from Special Hobby to this sheme: “Wearing a USAF-Style camouflage pattern, this machine also happened to complete the first AH-1 flight in South Vietnam on 4 September 1967) - AH-G1, s/n 68-15168 D Troop, 3rd Brigde, 4th Cavalrym Chu Chi Vietnam, 1971 ((Comments from Special Hobby to this sheme: “In 1972, Wretched Mildred sustained severe damage to her tail boom which was then replace with a new one, with the tail rotor on the starboard side. The sharkmouth was repainted, Chinese s/n appeared on the fin and the word snake in Chinese under the pilot canopy.” Over the years I start hating one thing in aircraft modelling: masking canopies. Not that the Cobra canopies look hard to mask but Special Hobby also cover that and gives a full set of mask for inside and outside. Nice touch SP. At last, the instructions come in a stain quality paper, with good drawings and part indication and color. It have 20 pages, with a historical introduction of the model in English and Czech, you are about to tackle, sprues drawing, part indication of the resin, 3D printed parts and PE. Conclusion Well, what can I tell about the Special Hobby Hi-tech box AH-1G Cobra? One of the most complete box model that I have the pleasure to open in the past!! This 1:32 AH-1G Cobra is fantastic. The plastic is great with good detail, pin locations, a truly modern high standard injection mold kit with a lots of detail bit to make it even better. The lacks of detail of the original ICM kit are cover with the extra bits given by Special Hobby making a very good detail model kit straight from the box. VERY VERY Highly recommended. My trully Thanks to Special Hobby for the review sample.
  11. hi Mark!! Please can we see some pics of the contents?
  12. I got an email from Petr from ASK just informing tat they dont use laser cut machine but, and I qoute: " We dont use laser cut, we have in use very very high qualuty cutter. The service, the different cutting speed we use and the daily changing knifes made the small - but on the end the big difference to the other producers" Thanks for the intel! Fran
  13. I got an email from Petr from ASK just informing tat they dont use laser cut machine but, and I qoute: " We dont use laser cut, we have in use very very high qualuty cutter. The service, the different cutting speed we use and the daily changing knifes made the small - but on the end the big difference to the other producers" Thanks for the intel! Fran
  14. Yes. Its a fantastic mask and I already using it for the B-25. Perfect fit!!
  15. Thanks!! Somehow the link is for this page... I put it wrong for sure!
  16. ART SCALE KIT Masks 1:32 A-20G (HK MODELS kit) Cat. N. 200-32062 Price tag: €13,70 plus shipping Available at ASK store, here One of the aftermarket that I usually get to my builds is canopy mask. For one main reason: time! With a much less amount of time you get a very good result that you also can get in the tradicional way, but with lots of time “wasted”… So, I had the luck to get some samples from ASK Productions canopy mask. It was a product that I was keen to see and to try. So, last week, I got this mask for my upcoming build for MAI/MMI, the future 1:32 Hong Kong Models A-20G, that I was lucky enought to get a test sample. It’s a plastic bag like all other mask set from other brands. The mask itself is made from a tape very similar to kabuki tape, only a bit darker. The inside instructions are very clear and every mask it has it`s on number. Great touch to make your live even easier. This particular sample is the double-face mask so you can mask inside to make more realistic your build. It`s praticaly impossible to paint inside without this. Let`s see what I can get with this set mask. So I decided to work immediately with it, so I start to use the inside tape… The mask is easy remove from the sheet with a fine tweezer. The glue on the tape is very good and it is resistant so you can glue and unglue form the clear part to get the perfect alignment without worries of losing the tape glue. The numbers are simply a perfect indication! A great add to find that small mask in the full yellow sheet. I finish the interior cockpit canopy mask in less than 10 minutes work!!! CONCLUSION: I love this lasercut mask set. I really do because is a great product (perfect tape glue, perfect tape), with super clear instructions with the numbers of the mask that makes the job super easy and super fast. I have tried several other mask products (kabuki and vinyl mask) and this product, with the quality tape and the mask number indication makes to the top of my favorite mask canopy set. Very Highly recommended Fran Our thanks to ASK – Art Scale Kit for the review samples. You can get this set and all mask set at Art Scale Kit webshop
  17. ART SCALE KIT Masks 1:48 B-25 J Glazed Nose (HK MODELs kit) Cat. N. 200-48109 Price tag: €11,60 plus shipping Available at ASK store, here One of the aftermarket that I usually get to my builds is canopy mask. For one main reason: time! With a much less amount of time you get a very good result that you also can get in the tradicional way, but with lots of time “wasted”… So, I had the luck to get some samples from ASK Productions canopy mask. It was a product that I was keen to see and to try. So, last week, I got this mask for my upcoming build for MAI/MMI, the 1:48 Hong Kong B-25 J. It’s a plastic bag like all other mask set from other brands. The mask itself is made from a tape very similar to kabuki tape, only a bit darker. The instructions are very clear and every mask it has it`s on number. Great touch to make your live even easier. This particular sample is the double-face mask so you can mask inside to make more realistic your build. It`s praticaly impossible to paint inside without this. Let`s see what I can get with this set mask. So I decided to work immediately with it, so I start to use the inside tape… The mask is easy remove from the sheet with a fine tweezer. The glue on the tape is very good and it is resistant so you can glue and unglue form the clear part to get the perfect alignment without worries of losing the tape glue. The numbers are simply perfect! A great add to find that small mask in the full yellow sheet. I finish the entire interior canopy mask in less than 30 minutes work!!! CONCLUSION: I love this lasercut mask set. I really do because is a great product (perfect tape glue, perfect tape), with super clear instructions with the numbers of the mask that makes the job super easy and super fast. I have tried several other mask products (kabuki and vinyl mask) and this product, with the quality tape and the mask numberindication makes to the top of my favorite mask canopy set. Very Highly recommended Fran Our thanks to ASK – Art Scale Kit for the review samples. You can get this set and all mask set at Art Scale Kit webshop
  18. In fact, a Fulmar and a Batlle in 1:35?? Must be a typo error no?
  19. Sorry to hear about your situation, Harv. Even friendly, still is a big chance in life! Well, with the move you will find lots of stuff that you dont even remember, I think!
  20. yes... there`s several almost most wanted models for me, in 1:35 and in 1:48!! Love to get me hands in some like the He-111 H8 Paravane, Ki-21 Sally, the Hs-123 and the Sikorsky CH-54A Tarhe... The B_26 too but I would prefer in 1:32!
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