Books
Samples for review
Please send all items for review to the following address:
Model Airplane International, Doolittle Mill, Doolittle Lane,
Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, LU6 1QX, United Kingdom.
Companies in the European Union should also add our VAT number,
which is GB 789 7020 84● Second Edition, Updated and Expanded
● By Richard A. Franks
● Published by Valiant Wings Publishing Ltd
● Guide Price £16.95
● ISBN 978-0-9957773-3-0
● 112pp softback, 297 x 210mmT
he arrival of the 1:48 Airfi x Sea Fury
is as good a reason as any to initiate
a revision and reprint of one of your
older titles. Many of the Valiant
Wings profi les become rare and a
new kit release will have modellers amongst
the second hand book tables at shows or
browsing the internet, looking for research
material.
This book from 2012 does not look out of
place amongst Valiant Wings’ more recent
profi les but there are probably more technical
line drawings of Sea Fury innards than
we might see now. All of this is ideal for kit
builders, showing where all of those small
parts belong or areas where more detail
may be added to your kit build. Amongst the
drawings we see plenty of photos and a good
number in colour for reference.
For the many builders who are more
interested in the fi nal look of their model, the
section on Camoufl age & Markings may be
of most interest. The list of nations operatingthe Sea Fury is surprising long and there is a
wide range of schemes from which to choose.
One used in Germany as a target tug in overall
bright red is particularly striking amongst the
more standard schemes. Several pages of
colour notes and photos are followed by six
pages of excellent colour profi les to whet your
appetite.
One obviously new feature in this second
edition is a full build review of the new 1:48
Airfi x kit by Valiant Wings’ regular builder,
Steve A Evans who makes an impressive
model from the Airfi x box. As usual, his honest
and unbiased comments are interesting.
Steve also tackles the much rarer and very
taxing AMG kit of a two-seat 1:48 T.Mk.20.
The fi nished model also looks great in overall
aluminium fi nish after a lot of careful work.
The penultimate chapter in the book takes a
look at Sea Fury survivors of which there are
a surprisingly large number scattered around
the world, many of them fl yable. As usual,
the last handful of pages lists Sea Fury kits,
accessories, decals and research material.
Whether you are looking for help with a build
of one of the handful of Sea Fury kits around
or just interested in the aircraft, you will fi nd
plenty here to keep you happy. This is another
great title from Valiant Wings and highly
recommended.NORTH AFRICA CAMPAIGN – 10TH JUNE 1940
TO 13TH MAY 1943 – AIRFRAME EXTRA NO.9
● By Various Authors
● Published by Valiant Wings
Publishing Ltd
● Guide Price £9.95
● ISBN 978-0-9957773-2-3
● 80pp softback, 297 x 210mmA
quick fl ick through the
pages of this book when
it arrived the other day
reveals another excellent
Airframe Extra title from
Valiant Wings. The opening pages
take a look at the North African
campaign from the historic point of
view, looking at how the land and
air campaigns progressed. After a
series of defeats all over Europe at
the hands of the advancing Germans
it would be in North Africa where
the fi rst signs of a turning of allied
fortunes would appear. German and
Italian forces, both ground and air
forces were present in large numbers
and had the advantage of being
nearer home than the allies. This
book covers the period to when some
300,000 axis POWs were taken out
of the confl ict for the rest of the war
and North Africa was in allied hands.The interesting words are illustrated
using maps and photos throughout
this chapter.
The rest of the book consists of
six aircraft kit reviews and dozens
of pages of excellent colour profi les
of aircraft from both sides that
participated in the campaign. We are
surprised at the diversity of the types
used in North Africa and there are a
fascinating variety of colour schemes
applied. Most of these, especially
the Italian Air Force ones are going
to tax modellers’ airbrush abilities.
The kits reviewed covers a wide
range of interests and scales from the
smallest at 1:144 (a Ju 52) up to 1:32
(a Hurricane) with a couple of 1:48
and 1:72 kits. Each one is reviewed
in depth with excellent build photos,
notes and honest opinions at the
conclusion. There must be just about
something for everyone interested in
WWII aircraft.
This is another great addition to the
Airframe Extra list of publications –
highly recommended.
Thanks to Valiant for supplying their
latest excellent titles for review. (Alan
Firbank)THE HAWKER SEA FURY – A DETAILED GUIDE TO THE FLEET AIR
ARM’S LAST PISTON-ENGINE FIGHTER - AIRFRAME ALBUM NO. 2●
A
Valiant Wings. The opening pages
take a look at the North African
campaign from the historic point of
view, looking at how the land and
air campaigns progressed. After a
series of defeats all over Europe at
the hands of the advancing Germans
it would be in North Africa whereA
Valiant Wings. The opening pages
take a look at the North African
campaign from the historic point of
view, looking at how the land and
air campaigns progressed. After a
series of defeats all over Europe at
the hands of the advancing GermansIssue 155 - http://www.modelairplaneinternational.com 67model from the Airfi x box. As usual, his honestBOOKS 155.indd 3 04/05/2018 16:40