Hello, dear friends!

Even before the end of the first half of this year, we managed to move our model packaging operation to our new facility in Sedlec. This significantly simplifies our logistics, because until now, we would typically move the plastic pressings from Obrnice to Most, where they would be packed into kits, and then transported them to our warehouse and sales department in Sedlec. These places are not far from each other, amounting to a few kilometers, but it still involved a lot of driving. Now, just one wall and two doors separate the model packaging department from the warehouse and sales section, and the plastic sprues are stored across the yard. Sure, in the big scheme of human evolution, it’s a small step, but still, a huge help. Among other things, we have an archive of kits that have not yet been restored, of which there are still some sixty, and this is a big step in their eventual return to our range as well. The list of new releases for July thus includes the Spitfire Mk.IXc in 1:72nd scale, along with the Fw 190 A-4 and the Roland C.II in 48th. A few hundred pieces are available from each of these kits. Since we have most of the components in stock, we practically do not need to add anything except the sprues, and we can afford to sell these kits at old, pre-inflation prices. I suspect no one will mind.

Let’s turn our attention to July’s new releases. They have been on sale for a week now, but I don't think this will matter too much.

Model Kits

Since the first release of our 48th scale P-51D Mustang, we’ve been thinking about how to handle the unprecedented amount of color schemes of this aircraft and especially of the centerpiece of this wealth of possibilities, the USAAF 8th Air Force. For a long time, I myself have toyed with the idea of a gradual progression of attention bestowed upon the individual Fighter Groups in my head, but there was still a doubt as to how interesting such a concept would be and how it would pan out. Of course, you can imagine it with decal sheets, but the kit is a little bit different. It would probably be very difficult, if not impossible, to release such a large number of kits and to maintain a consistent level of interest in them. On the other hand, to issue only one Limited Edition kit dedicated to the Mustangs of the 8th Air Force would mean barely scratching the surface of the entire theme, while being somewhat repetitious in covering the most famous airplanes flown by the most famous pilots. After long discussions, we finally decided to release three separate items, dedicated to the three Fighter Wings of the 8th Air Force. After going over dozens of aircraft that offered themselves to us, we put together a mix of ten birds that well document the deployment of the Mustang over the last year of the war. The fact is that we have repeated just one previously released subject in this kit, the famous “Big Beautiful Doll” flown by Lt. Col. Landers. And even this was not taken over from previous releases, but changed to a later version of the marking. The result is a mix of ten aircraft, some of which are the most famous flown by the most famous pilots, and the rest, it must be added that the majority, are lesser known and definitely less covered Mustangs. We assume that anyone who decides that they cannot live without this Limited Edition release will be able to make a choice quite easily with this type of presentation.

However, the fine tuning of the concept of this kit does not end there. The kit contains only one set of sprues, so only one model can be built from it. On the other hand, the decal sheet is doubled up as needed for two complete models, the stencil data and national insignia are duplicated. If someone decides to take advantage of this option, the Overtrees offer will be a great way to go. And those who don’t use it won’t lose anything. The price of the kit, despite the large decal sheet, etchings, masks and Brassin wheels and exhausts, all included in the kit, remains the same as for the standard ProfiPACK item.

And while on the subject of ProfiPACK kits, this month we have the Rufe available, the float version of Zero. After all, the Rufe was actually a conversion of a Zero with the classic land based landing gear. This kit offers five color options covering different deployments of the type. The second ProfiPACK release for this month is a reissue of the 1:48th scale Bf 109F-2. I should probably also mention that the Rufe is in 1:48th scale as well.

In the Weekend line, those who have been waiting a long time for a new edition of the Bf 110 G-4 will have something to smile about. The ProfiPACK Bf 110 G-4 kit (Cat. no. 8208), originally released in January, 2021, is also ready to be re-introduced to the market. This kit was planned for January 2021 release, but December 2021 blaze in our warehouse destroyed all unwrapped sprues, so only a small number of packaged kits went to customers. We are now ready for a second attempt with the with the newly manufactured sprues. It will go on sale in August or September. There are less than 1,000 boxes left, so expect them to sell out quickly. The second July Weekend release is the Fw 190A-5 in 1:72nd scale, and in this case, the choice of color markings are mostly for aircraft with the four-cannon wing.

ACCESSORIES

In our new releases for accessory items, we typically focus on the correspondingly fresh items introduced to the market by the world’s kit manufacturers. Among the photoetched brass and masks, we have the Mi-4A in 1:48th scale from Trumpeter, the MiG-17F from Ammo MiG, the Hurricane Mk.I from Hobby Boss, the Do 335 from Tamiya and the F-4E from Meng. All of these are in 1:48th scale. We also have a new ZOOM set for our Bf 110 G-4 in 1:48th and Fw 190 A-5 in 1:72nd. Keeping in 72nd, we are covering the Mosquito PR Mk.XVI as well. In 1:32nd, we have sets for the F-35A from Trumpeter and the A-20G Havoc from HKM.

As for the new Brassin sets, I would point your attention to the collection of sets for our still new Bf 109F in 1:72nd scale, or to the 48th scale sets for the Do 335 from Tamiya and the gorgeous engines for the no less charming Anson Mk.I from AIrfix. Also standing out among the 48th scale releases is the radiator for our P-51D Mustang. I admit that the execution of this part of the kit was not its high point, and I am happy to report that this is being addressed in the forthcoming P-51B . Even so, the printed parts will generally be an advantage over the original injection molded items, and these are very nice replacements indeed. Certainly, those that don’t go down the road of replacing this part with the Brassin accessory won’t be forced into feeling that the kit they purchased has been compromised in any way in its design and production. We also redesigned and printed the cockpit for the Bf 109F-2, part of a gradual redesign of the old Brassin cast cockpits. There are also attention worthy sets for the F-35B from Italeri in 32nd, as well as an exhaust nozzle for the F-16 from Tamiya and several smaller sets we put together for the Spitfire Mk.I from Kotare, whose creators we wish good luck, much success  and a long career as a successful manufacturer of plastic model kits.

We also have the usual new LööK and Space sets, Big Eds and Big Sins that are also worth checking out. Of course, further descriptions of these may be found below in this newsletter.

Articles

I had the ambition to write an article describing the story around the Bf 109F flown by Werner Mölders, but I couldn’t do it. I managed to put together quite a respectable collection of photos, but after analyzing them, I still had nagging doubts and gaps in the information I was able to obtain. In addition, we have not yet been able to find photos that we can legally publish, and without photographic documentation, such an article is meaningless in my opinion. So I will continue to search for more information, consult with people who know a lot more about the Luftwaffe than I do, and hope that something publishable will come out of it. But at this moment I apologize for my inadequacy!

Fortunately, we have plenty of articles in this month’s newsletter to ensure that the forces of boredom are kept at bay. We have the next installment in the report on the air war over Ukraine by Miro Barič. May certainly provided something to report on. Perhaps, you noted that at the end of June more things happened in Russia than in Ukraine, so the next installment will be even more interesting. Maybe it’s not just a passing thing! That Russia is truly a land of miracles where the unseen happens and the impossible becomes reality became clear to me during my service days when I was able to get to know the then Soviet Army quite well. I firmly believe in the inability of the Russians to win anything in the foreseeable future in a prolonged regular war. And it won’t help them to talk about their wars tooth and nail and call them various obscure descriptions like “Special Military Operations” or “brotherly aid”. So I wish for the Ukrainians that their homeland, which the Russians currently consider theirs, be returned to them as soon as possible. It took twenty years for us, I firmly believe that the Ukrainians will do it faster. I hope that the Russians get out of their current mess as quickly as possible and, above all, permanently, because this is really not worthy of a cultured nation and the fact that the Romans once did something similar is not exactly a good argument. Where are the Romans today?

We also have a great piece of an article about the 66th Fighter Wing by Jan Zdiarský. But this issue does not only contain historical articles. We have a report on this year’s 24-hour Iron Bunny event in Bublava written by a member of the winning team, Lukáš Loučka, and another Iron Bunny participant, Jan Baranec, weighs in with a description of the Brassin engine assembly for the Wildcat. Jakub Nademlejnský submitted an article about masks for this month’s newsletter.

I sincerely wish you all a pleasant read with this month’s newsletter.

Happy Modelling!

Vladimir Sulc