Product Reviews
Here I have review several models that I have built. I'll be adding more as I build more. If you have something to add, PLEASE send it in. The more content this site has, the more useful it is.
Hasegawa 1/72 scale Wildcat: This is a very easy model to build. The pieces fit very well. The plastic was molded very well. Seems were barely there after gluing and and there were no gaps to my knowledge. The wing support design on this model is rather weak, the wings can break off pretty easily, this shouldn't be a problem if your careful though. It has very few pieces, less than 30 I believe. It has only 3 windows. Two inspection windows and the canopy, they fit amazingly well. This model has recessed panel lines and the two decal sets for the kit go on wonderfully. It is sparce on detail, but I think this is due mainly to the fact that it's a 1/72 scale model. Either way, I would recommend this model to any person of any skill level.
Hasegawa 1/200 scale Boeing 777: I think this was 1/200 scale, or something in that range. I threw away the box, so I guess I'll never know for sure. I built this model for my grandma, and frankly, it wasn't that great. It was sparce on detail and had decals to put on for the some details rather that actual panel lines. It has few pieces, and among those few, some didn't fit that well. Most were ok, but the fuselage was the worst. It was like trying to fit two pieces from two different kits together. They were warped pretty bad. I think I may have gotten a slightly defective kit, but I'm not sure. The only redeeming value of this model is that the decals are high quality and go on very well. I wouldn't recommend this model to anyone.
Italeri 1/48 scale C-130 Hercules: This is the most recent model I finished. If you like big models, this might be one for you. Overall it's a good kit. It has a pretty good basic design. I was amazed out how stable the HUGE wings on this thing are. The pieces fit together well. For a model this big, you still have to be careful with them though. When parts are as big as the ones on this model, they can change shape a little without breaking if you apply pressure to them. Anyway, the parts fit good, it's pretty good on detail and has two slightly different versions to build within the kit and has decals for 4 different countries. (USA, Canada, France and Italy) The only complaints I have about this model is that it does not have recessed panel lines. This made it hard for decals to go on correctly. The main canopy doesn't fit right to begin with either. I wouldn't strongly recommend this kit, but I'm not against it either. Make your own choice.
Tamiya 1/48 scale P-51D Mustang: This is a VERY good model. The architecure of this kit is superb. Some pieces fit so well that where they conneced looked more like a panel line than a seam. With the exception of the main fuselage this is almost a putty free model. The instructions are good and the kit includes directions and decals for four different styles of Mustangs. I folled directions for an early model mostly bare metal mustang, you can see it in the Gallery section of my page. It has lots of decals, and comes with two canopies. (though I can't tell the difference between the two) I strongly recommend this model to WWII aircraft modelers like myself. This kit, like many of Tamiya's is more expensive, I paid a little under $30 for this kit, but I believe it was worth the money.
AMT/ERTL Kits: I suspected that AMT/ERTL kits were bad. Here is a review of the kits by a viewer. ""The old "AMT" (mostly big-rig trucks) kits had BIG problems with parts fit well, and their instructions were the worst. I think "ERTL" has taken up the line in later years, but I don't know if it was an improvement or not"" I myself have heard before that you should figure out your own color schemes for AMT's startrek kits because the colors for painting they prescride are all wrong.
AMT/ERTL N/S USS Defiant: I haven't finished this kit yet, but I can already tell its strengths and weaknesses. And basically, it has no strengths. Its a level one/snaptite, so the pieces are designed to have a tight fit. They have a VERY tight fit, and the pieces leave some nifty gaps. The detail is reasonable. Its a very high scale model, so I didn't expect to much detail in it. It could definetly be better though. Unfortunatly, if your looking for a USS Defiant kit, you may have no other choice than this. It was the only one I could find. Its not a good kit, but since it may be the only one out there, just enjoy the challenge if you build it.
ProModeler Kits: (Review by Lowell S.) A good company (although their selection is a bit limited) is ProModeler. Its a Revell-Monogram hybrid. The kits don't have any problems going together and it comes with a excellent instruction book that has close up photos of actual planes for getting the detail just right. I've made an 1/72 FW-190 and an 1/72 ME-262 using ProModeler.
AirFix: (Review by Lowell S.) One
company I perfer to avoid is a british company called Airfix...Although they have
a great selection of british models (and they were the only company to have a 1/72 scale
DH mosquito), they have a lot of problems. I named the mosquito "Model from
Hell". Perhaps I lack experience, but the tail, low-detail instructions, landing
gear, ripping decals (airfix ones aren't as good as other companies) and an engine that
wouldn't fit right made me want to chuck
this model out a window. Another thing...They give you only the numbers of the paints
produced by the company that owns them. Since those paints are not carried often, it can
be confusing to get paints that are the right color.
"Mask-it-Easy" masking film: I bought some of this masking film from Micro-Mark. It is basically a goo that you can paint on with a brush, then paint over. The stuff is light green and rather thick. It says on the bottle that you can add water and use it in an airbrush. I've never tried it in an airbrush though. It's easy to apply and doesn't run. It takes a couple hours at least to dry, then you can paint. After the paint dries, the goo, which is now rubbery peels off easily and leaves no residue. This stuff does not let paint bleed around the edges at all, it works very well. I applied it both thickly and thinly. Both worked, although I would play it safe most of the time and put it on at least 2mm thick. I think this stuff works pretty good. I recommend it for anyone having problems with masking small areas like windows, doors, etc. One thing you may not want to do is put it in a place like a complex landing gear bay. I did this and had a hard time getting it out. Luckily, the stuff dissolves in water, but even so, it probably took over 20 minuets to get all the stuff off.
Model Master Metalizers: Model master makes a complete line of metalizers. There are aluminum plate, steel, brass, gunmetal, titanium and some others. These metalizers are sold airbrush ready. That means that these paints aren't designed to be brushed on. I brush them on all the time though. In there thinned form they cover things very easily with both brush and airbrush. That's a big plus, since you don't have to worry about coverage any more. Some of these are buffing and non buffing metalizers. Buffing is just taking a cloth and rubbing around the metalizer when it's almost done drying. If you don't buff the metals will come out a little bit grainy. I believe something like terrycloth works best for buffing. These metalizers are great! They cover good, look pretty good and don't settle. Just be careful with them, there a little more toxic than your average paint.
Micro-Mark paint mixer: Ok, this is just a Al-cheapo mixer. It runs off two double A batteries. It spins very fast though and gets the paint mixed. It's only problem is that if you don't hold the power button down hard enough it rattles a lot. It's a real bargain. After buying it I think that a paint mixer is essential. $5.00 a piece.
PollyScale decal setting kit: This set that I bought from Micro-Mark consists of one 1/2 once bottle of -- Decal setting solution, decal softening solution, gloss clear coat, satin clear coat, flat clear coat-- I like the clear coats a lot, especially the flat one. These work great on Italeri decals. I've tried it on Tamiya decals, and it works ok, but not as good as it did on the Italeri decals. It didn't have as much effect on the Tamiya decals, so I used a lot more coats of solution, even then they didn't turn out quite as good as the Italeri ones. It does basically everything I want it too. I think this a good set to buy, and if you don't buy this set, get another type. A decal setting kit is the best way to get professional quality decals. This set costs about $8.50.
MicroMesh sanding kit: This sanding kit has extremely high grit numbers. It has has 2400-12000 grit. It is coated on cloth rather than paper or plastic. The lower grits in this set do not polish, but the 12000 grit can give painted finishes an extremely smooth finish. This kit includes the sandpaper, instructions, a firm foam sanding block (which turned out to be very useful), a white cloth, and a small bottle of some type of finishing cream. You rub the cream on a smoothly sanded surface and it will return about 90% or more of its original shine if there was any. This is a very good set, comes with one small piece of each grit. A little spendy, at least from Micro-Mark. about $17.50.
Zap-a-Gap super glue: This super glue is put out by Pacer technologies. I had seen many pictures of the workbenches of great modelers, and many had this on it, so I decided to get some. It fills in small gaps very good, and although it is more expensive than putty, I think it is far superior. Since it is liquid, it seeps into cracks and doesn't get gouges like putty. It is hard, and sands easily. Only a drop of glue is recommended for one squar inch. I've used a little more than that, and it works ok, it just takes longer to dry. Normally it will take a few minuets to dry to a touch. Don't touch it too early though, or get it on your fingers, it will bond your skin, and anything else you touch it to it seconds. This cost me about $6.00 at a local hobby shop, it costs somewhere around double that from Micro-mark. Pacer technologies offers a whole line of other products as well.
That's all I have for now, so in the mean time I need YOUR reviews. E-mail me at Tokan17@hotmail.com