Quickboost

1/72 Engines, Gun Barrels and Exhausts For the P-51, P-39, B-25, S2F, Tempest

Reviewed By  Howie Belkin, IPMS# 16

#72-058 B-25H Gun Barrels, $5.95 #72-059 S2F-1 Tracker Engines, $8.95 #72-060 P-39Q/N Exhausts, $5.95 #72-061 P-51A Engine, $8.95 #72-063 Tempest Exhausts, $5.95 Quickboost is a fine line of resin aircraft gunsights, gun barrels, exhausts props, cowlings, engines "and more" in 1/72, 1/48 and 1/32 scales produced in the Czech Republic by Aires. This series gives the modeler a quick replacement that boosts the quality level of your model to a much higher degree with minimal work. Hence: Quickboost! Pretty good play on English words, these Czechs! Not every item is available in every scale. The samples I received are all in 1/72, medium grey, flash free resin that separates from its plug with just a few saw strokes. The gun barrels and exhausts are $5.95/set MSRP. The gun barrels each have a recessed hole in the end so you don't have to drill them, plus they have exquisite air cooling perforations and no seam lines. There are ten .50s and one short, fat and deadly 75mm canon barrel for the B-25H. Before IPMS received these I ordered Quickboost's set of 1/72 Lancaster gun barrels with elliptical perforations and they are really going to make my Lanc stand out, as will my B-25H. The P-39 Airacobra and Tempest exhausts are meant for the Academy kits, and like the gun barrels, each end is hollowed out. Further, if the real exhaust pipes stood proud or separate from each individual exhaust pipe, then so do these. This would require a lot of fine carving and engraving if the kit plastic parts aren't molded that way. And if the real ones had a weld seam - so do these. Don't remove them - but spell it out for the judges if you enter a contest, that they belong there!! The P-51A Mustang engine (and exhausts) and the set of two S2F-1 Tracker engines are each $8.95 MSRP/set. The Mustang in-line engine is recommended for the Academy kit and directs you to remove the port engine panel and replace it with the resin engine, while replacing the starboard exhausts with the resin part. The Mustang engine should drop right in place and when painted give the impression of a complete engine compartment with plumbing and mounting frame - and excellent exhaust pipes right and left with hollowed ends, spacing between each pipe and appropriate weld seams.

Part of the S2F-1 Tracker's personality is its two prominent engine cowlings encasing those mighty radial engines bracketing the cockpit. If you build a model of this airplane your eye is going to be drawn to that main focal point. These two radial engines are ready to drop in and replace the Hasegawa kit's injection molded parts. They are crisply molded with sharp detail of the cooling fins and prominent nuts and bolts. Not included, and what would make these excellent engines unbeatable, are photo etched wire harnesses and pushrods which the perfectionists among you would have to add on his own.

The Quickboost line is new to many of us but it has already been available in Europe and has grown to become a fairly exhaustive range covering all three popular aircraft scales. Some of their items are I believe, unique to Quickboost, like those Lancaster machine gun barrels and Japanese gun sights. The parts come in resealable clear plastic packaging which makes it easy to store, protect and find them when you need them. Available in better hobby or mail order shops like Great Model and Hannants, their website is www.quickboost.net or order direct from www.modelchoice.net. A quick look at their site showed they also have a line of armor under Plus Models, Calibre 72 and 35, Aires, etc. As a "quick boost" to simply upgrade your model, these parts certainly do the trick. For someone like myself with aging Mk I eyeballs and shaky hands, seamless, hollowed out gun barrels and exhausts are really looking good and highly recommended! Thanks to Quickboost for the review samples.

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