FineScale Modeler

fsm is more than paper

For readers who like to have a copy of FineScale Modeler wherever they are, we’ve got great news. Starting with the April 2020 issue, the digital edition of your favorite modeling magazine is now included with your print subscription. This gives you access to all of the magazine’s how-to stories, reviews, and more, on any computer, tablet, or phone. So if you want to check the comments from one of our reviewers while you are at the hobby shop, the review is always at your fingertips. Or maybe you can’t remember the kit or aftermarket set you needed to re-create an author’s project, but you left the magazine at home when you left that morning — who are we to judge if you are shopping for models and browsing FSM at…

scale talk

The state of the hobby industry Ed.: Since the high-profile demise of Testors Model Master, Wingnut Wings, and Squadron, FSM has received several letters decrying the hobby’s future. The debate has played out in Scale Talk with correspondents on both sides of the issue arguing the future is either bright or dismal. (I believe it is the former!) Below is a view from inside the industry from one of its leading players, Alan Bass of Stevens International, an FSM advertiser. For the most part, we don’t say much publicly. As the premier importer and distributor of hobby products in North America, we often feel it is not our place. Our job is to procure products from around the world and get it into the hands of hobby retailers as quickly as possible.…

q&a

How do remove old paint Q What product can I use to remove old paint from a mostly unfinished model? I have had a few in my stash since school — I am 78 years old — and getting back into the hobby. I was told a few years back that an automotive product would remove the paint without damaging the plastic. Of course, I can’t remember the name of the product. – John Hovdenes Detroit Lakes, Minn. A A few model-supply outfits have products to strip paint from plastic models. They include Scalecoat II Wash Away Paint Remover (No. S56), AK Interactive Paint Stripper (No. AK186), and Deluxe Materials Strip Magic (No. AC22). Don’t use hardware store paint strippers because they can attack plastic. I have also seen people use these cleaners to remove…

new products

AIRCRAFT 1/24 SCALE P-47D Republic Thunderbolt Mk.I from Kinetic, No. K3212, $TBA. 1/32 SCALE CR.42 Falco from ICM, No. 32020, $64. WBR DH.82A Tiger Moth from ICM, No. 32035, $79.99. WBR 1/48 SCALE MV-22 Osprey from HobbyBoss, No. 81769, $159.99. WBR Sukhoi Su-57 “Felon” from Zvezda, No. 4824, $69.99. WBR Spitfire Mk.IIa from Eduard, No. 82153, $54.95. IA 58 Pucará from Kinetic (Gold), No. 48078, $54. WBR AV-8A Harrier USMC from Kinetic (Gold), No. 48072, $66. Harrier GR1/GR3 (2 in 1) from Kinetic (Gold), No. 48060, $66. Kampfstift (Dornier Do 17) from Eduard, No. 11147, $79.95. 1/72 SCALE Nieuport Ni-17 Weekend Edition from Eduard, No. 7404, $14.95. ARMOR 1/35 SCALE Leyland Retriever General Service (early production) from ICM, No. 35602, $79.99. SdKfz 247 Ausf B with crew from ICM, No. 35111, $65.99. FCM 36 (WWII French Light tank) from ICM, No. 35336, $54.99. WBR ZSU-23-4M “Shilka” from Zvezda, No. 3635, $55.99. 7TP…

weather a warhawk for the cbi

Derek A. Jordan says the CBI (China Burma India) is often called World War II’s forgotten theater because it doesn’t get the same level of attention as Europe and the Pacific. “That is a shame because the conditions for those men was brutal, often lacking supplies, fighting malaria and other environmental issues. And doing so valiantly with equipment that might be considered obsolete in other theaters,” he adds. That’s why he built Eduard’s 1/32 scale P-40N in the markings of Lulu Belle, which operated with the 89th Fighter Squadron on Nagaghuli, India, in 1944. After building the kit (Hasegawa plastic with Eduard photo-etched metal and resin parts) and masking the clear parts, Derek primed the airframe with a combination of black and gray Mr. Finishing Surfacer 1500 mixed to a charcoal gray.…

fast boat boot camp

Known to the Allies as E-boats, the German navy’s schnellboots (fast boats) were potent weapons in World War II. Armed with torpedoes, depth charges, or mines, 20mm and 37mm guns, and capable of speeds of more than 43 knots, they sank more than 100 merchant and naval ships during the war. Italeri has 1/35 scale kits of both the early S-38 and late S-100 variants. I built the former (kit No. 5620), which has an unarmored bridge. I added a few details to improve the deck guns, but my aim was to build a well-weathered boat in wartime service. FINAL THOUGHTS NEITHER COMBAT NOR THE CONDITIONS AT SEA are kind to ocean-going vessels. With layered paint and weathering, I think my schnellboot looks like a veteran of several long patrols in the English…