DAVE's, RAJENDRA's, JOE's, et al's list of SHIP KIT REVIEWS

Ver. 6.9.6 - 1 Feb 2022

SHIP KITS LIST

Table of Contents

Introduction

Welcome to the Ship Modeler's Review List: an ambitious (perhaps futile and/or insane) attempt by various members of the model ship community to catalog and review every plastic and resin model ship kit of all time.

This list was created by Rajendra Datta. Many rther people have since contributed, now it is maintained by David Wells and Joe Poutre. CComments, additions, and corrections should be sent to them. This list is intended to include all plastic and resin model ship kits.

A Non-commercial web site

From the beginning, this list was intended to be a non-commercial site, in the tradition of the pre-commercialized internet. There is no advertising, and it is available to modellers for free. It is written by and intended for ship modellers. Our goal is to improve the hobby of ship modelling, by making it easier to select good kits, and to provide information on how to fix some of the problematical ones.

While this is a non-commercial site, we are not anti-commercial. Most of us actually like the model industry, and we're happy that they support our hobby. We would even encourage the model companies to read our reviews, so that they can make better kits. Wholesalers and retailers could also benefit from this site by buying more of the highly rated kits. This will benefit modellers as well, by getting more good kits into the hobby shops.

Because this is a non-commercial site, we cannot accept reviews from kit manufacturers, retailers, wholesalers, or importers. We do accept other information (kit lists, basic kit data, etc.) from manufacturers, retailers, etc.

Contributing Reviews to the List

New reviews are always welcome. We prefer reviews from people who have actually built the kit. "In-box" reviews are acceptable if they are marked as such. Obviously, reviews must be kept relatively short.
Reviews should be sent to:
jccalipout@gmail.com
dave.wells@att.net

Linking to this site

If you wish to add the list to your site, we would prefer that to link to it at http://www.modelerjoe.net/shipmodellist.html

All kits are in 1/700 scale unless noted otherwise

Copying and re-use

This material should be considered copyright by the authors. This material may be redistributed for non-commercial use without explicit permission of the author(s) as long as the text is used exactly as is (except for reformatting) and the author is given full written credit for the material. Hobby retailers may display this information as a consumer guide, but may not sell it. Commercial use requires explicit permission of the authors.

Obligatory Disclaimer

The information contained in this message was contributed by individuals, who, unless otherwise indicated, speak only for themselves and not the institutions or buisnesses they are associated with. The author(s) and editor(s) of this material make no warranties as to the correctness of the information provided.

Version History

I haven't tracked down all the old versions yet, (they go back to the mid 1990s!) but here are the release dates on some past versions.

3.0 16 December 1999
4.8 31 January 2002
5.0 22 March 2002
6.0 7 December 2002
6.1 24 June 2003
6.3 1 March 2004
6.4 1 March 2005
6.5 1 September 2005
6.6 1 April 2006
6.7 1 October 2007
6.8 1 March 2009
6.9 31 March 2012
6.9.1 29 December 2014
6.9.2 3 January 2015
6.9.3 8 March 2017
6.9.5 24 August 2021
6.9.6 1 February 2022

Manufacturer Index

Academy Plastic Model Co. Adams Addar Admiralty Model Works Advent AER Moldova Aeroplast AFV Club
AHM Airfix Alanger Albatross Almark AMT Anmark Aoshima
Arii Armageddon L'Arsenal Artitec Atlantis Models Aurora Bandai Banner
BattlefleetModels Blue Ridge Models Blue Water Navy B-Resina Bronco Casadio Classic Warships CN
Combrig Corsair Armada Cyber Hobby Del Delphis Dragon Models Ltd. (DML) Doyusha Eagle
Eastern Express Eica Encore Entex ESCI Fine Molds FROG Fujimi
Glencoe Gowland (Shipyard) Gulfstream Gunze-Sangyo HapDong Hasegawa Hawk Heller
Hi Mold Hobby Boss HP ICM Iron Shipwright IMAI IMEX Imperial Hobby Productions
Innex ITC (Ideal) Italeri JAG Collective Jadar Jim Shirley Productions Kangnam Kitech
Kleeware Kobo Hiryu Kombrig Konishi Kopro C. C. Lee Life-Like Lindberg
Lone Star Models Loose Cannon LW Models Matt Stein Models MachPlast Maquette Marusan Marx
Matchbox Midship Models Mikro-Mir Minicraft Mini-Hobby Models (MHM) Mirage Modelcraft Modelist
Model Power Modelkrak Modelwerks Monogram MPC Nautilus Naval Works Models Nichimo
Niko NNT Novo and Soviet Manufacturers Old Steam Navy (Cottage Industries) Otaki OzMods Panda Polar Lights
Poseidon PT Dockyard Pyro Regia Marina Renwal The Resin Shipyard Revell Ringo
Sablon Samek Sanwa Sealine Seals SeaWolf/Combat Submarine Skywave Steel Navy
Tamiya Tauro Testors Thoroughbred Tom's Modelworks Trumpeter Tsukuda Universal Powermaster Corporation (UPC)
Viking Waveline White Ensign Models WSW/Doc Modell Yankee Model Works YS masterpieces Zhengdefu Zvezda

Sample

This section shows a sample of the format we use for kit reviews.

CompanyName:
GENERAL COMMENTS; Text of general comments about the company.

Era:

(rough divisions)

Ratings:

Abbreviations:

Reviewers:

SPE == Steven P. Allen (spallen@rolemail.ccis.edu)
FWA == Frank W. Allen (webmaster@hmshood.com)

Frank is our resident expert on HMS Hood. Make sure that you check out his website at HMSHood.com. (DRW)

EA == Espen Arnestad (Espen.Arnestad@digital.com)
BA == Bert Attwood (berta12@optushome.com.au)
RA == Rusty Ayers (ayersr@alpa.org)
NB == Ned Barnett (nbarnett@upstart.com)
LB == Larry Bartlett (LBart73@AOL.com)
RB == Ralph Batykefer (rbatykefer_jr@hotmail.com)
UB == Uwe Beskin (besken@gmx.de)
CB == Craig Bennett
RBB == Roger B. Besaw (rbesaw@bigfoot.com)
JPB == Jean-Paul Binot (jpbinot@cybercable.fr)
LLB == L. L. Bond (llbond@aol.com)

Yes, that Larry Bond. Creator of the Harpoon gaming system. Co-author of Red Storm Rising (DRW)

PauloB == Paolo Busnelli (paolo.busnelli1@tin.it)
PC == Pablo Cicero (pcicero@ucla.edu)
JRC == John Clements (john.clements90@ntlworld.com)
JC == Joe Costanzo (jaci@lehigh.edu)
MJD == Michael J. D'Silva (mdsilva@mira.net)
RND == Rajendra N. Datta (rajen@acm.org)

Rajen is a fellow escapee from Bell Labs. We started the list over pizza and root beer while we were still both employed there. Rajen has become busy with business and family in recent years (as of 2004) so he hasn't been doing much ship modelling lately. A good fellow, though. (DRW)

RD == Rod Dauteuil (rdauteuil@comcast.net)

Rod is another "good guy" who has helped me in numerous ways. His modelling tastes seem to be ecclectic, like my own, and he has reviewed a wide variety of kits. (DRW)

TD == Tom Dougherty (ascdr15@gmail.com)

Tom Dougherty is our resident submarine guru. When I have a sub question, I go to him. He's simply amazing. (DRW)

MAE == Michael Eisenstadt (maeisen@erols.com)
ME == Michael Emmerich (emmerich@german-navy.de)

Michael is a net.friend of long standing. He is a pragmatic modeller, and quite fond of scratchbuilding and conversions. Make sure you check out his web page at www.german-navy.de, which has pictures of his models, and many other articles and images on Kriegsmarine and Hochseeflotte subjects. (DRW)

RDF == Randy Fagan (harleighsdaddy@yahoo.com)
YF == Yohan Fernando (YOHAN.FERNANDO@Bain.com)
MF == Marc Flake (marcflake@att.net)
LDF == Les Foran (lforan@megavision.com)
JF == John Fox (Jowfx@aol.com)
ASG == Sean Glaspell (sean@glaspell.net)
DH == Doug Hallet (Dream286@sprintmail.com)
RH == Richard Hanson (BP Solar) (Hansonrl@bpsolar.com)
GH == Gernot Hassenpflug (aikishugyo@gmail.com)

Gernot is another early contributor to the list. He was the first to add reviews of Japanese 1/700 kits. He knows IJN subjects extremely well. He has high standards, and from the pictures I've seen on the net, he produces excellent work. (DRW)

PLH == Preston L. Hassler (skiphas@juno.com)
GJ == Gary Johnson (garyj36@yahoo.com)
DHJ == Daniel H. Jones (dhjonespsm@juno.com)
MWJ == Michael W. Jurijew (Michael.Jurijew@TELUS.COM)
cking == Chris King (kckingal@earthlink.net)
JK == James Kloek (jkloek1@rochester.rr.com)
DK == Dave Krakow (GrafSpee34@aol.com)
DRK == Duncan Kennedy (duncan.kennedy@charter.net)
MK == Mitsuaki Kubota (ironside@beige.ocn.ne.jp)
SCL == Stephen C. Larsen (stephen.larsen@earthlink.net)
MOL == Mark O. Leonard (mark_leonard@sbcglobal.net)
ML == Mike Leonard (mike.leonard@erols.com)
RM == Rob Mackie (Rmackie@pacbell.net)
GM == Graeme Martin (martz58@ihug.co.nz)

Graeme is a newcomer to the list as of late 2005, but he's no newcomer to the world of ship modeling. He's a professional. Check out his site: http://www.shipmodels.co.nz. (DRW)

DM == David Maynard (david.maynard@essexcc.gov.uk)
JimMc == Jim McCormick (jmac2@core.com)
AMc == Alastair McIntosh (cam@edinburgh96.fsnet.co.uk)
CM == Chuck Messer (chuck_messer@hotmail.com)
WLM == Bill Michaels (bill_michaels@earthlink.net)

Bill is our resident expert on US Coast Guard subjects, and also very well versed on the subject of sailing ships. Make sure you check out Bill's USCG Model Kit list. (DRW)

ARM == Alan R. Millen (amillen@seic.com)
JM == John Mills (jcmills@ozemail.com.au)
PKHM == Peter Mispelkamp (mispelkamp.peter@videotron.ca)

Peter is another helpful fellow. He seems to be most interested in Kriegsmarine subjects, and he favors 1/400 Heller kits. Peter also deserves credit for persuading WEM to produce an aircraft set for the Revell 1/720 Graf Zeppelin kit. (DRW)

RO == Raymond Okimura (rayoki@yahoo.com)
POR == Paul O'Reilly (navalaviator2@shaw.ca)
BMP == Steve Parsons (bobbie-p@msn.com)
JMP == Jodie M. Peeler (raisingirl@mindspring.com)

Jodie Peeler never fails to impress. Her knowledge of liners and aircraft carriers (especially Essex class) is truly amazing, but don't think she's limited to just those. She knows destroyers as well, and also is very familiar with the N/S Savannah. If that weren't enough, she's also a fan of turbine cars and airliners. (DRW)

PPete == Paul Peterson (tinaandpaul@attbi.com)
AP == Allan Plumb (plumb@airmail.net)

Allan was one of my first ship modelling friends on the internet. We virutally met back in the early 1990s on the newsgroup rec.models.scale. He was one of the first contributors to this list, and still gets a few words in now and then. (DRW)

EP == Ed Parent (Edwparent@aol.com)
FP == Falk Pletscher (raeplus@S-DirektNET.de)
JP == Joseph Poutre (jccalipout@gmail.com)

Joe Poutre is a good friend, a fellow New Jerseyan, and my co-conspirator on numerous projects. I have watched his modelling skills steadily improve, and he's probably better than me by now. He shares my sense of the bizzare, and it's always fun making up "hypothetical" ships with him. (DRW)

MSP == Matthew Prager (msprager@hotmail.com)
MJQ == Martin Quinn (martinjquinn@aol.com)
SR == Sam Reed (sam_reed@yahoo.com)
JR == Joe Reyna (reyna@spawar.navy.mil)
TR == Tim Reynaga (TReynaga@edd.ca.gov)

Tim Reynaga has been an enourmous help. His knowledge goes back many decades, and he knows things about obscure old manufacturers that I never would have found. He also seems to have a taste for really small scale ships. (DRW)

JRO == Joel Robinson (JOEL_ROBINSON@rsausa.com)
JosR == Josef Rocha(josefr007@yahoo.com)
BR == Bruce Ross (qbr000@motorola.com)
Brooks == Brooks A Rowlett (brooks.rowlett@gmail.com)

Brooks has been enormously helpful to us in researching old kits from long-gone manufacturers. His tastes are often similar to my own. (DRW)

GS == Gordon Scott (allangordonscott@yahoo.com)
MS == Mark Shannon (shingend@ix.netcom.com)
HS == Harold Shaw (HAROLDS32@cs.com)
HES == Harold Stockton (snolep@texas.net)
MDS == Morris Shirley (bukfitz@highstream.net)
RWS == Ron Smith (ronwsmithjr@verizon.net)
LS == Leif Snellman (Leif.Snellman@kolumbus.fi)

Leif is another early contributor to the list. He gave us his list of Airfix kits, and this became the basis for our Airfix section. (DRW)

AS == Alex Sokolov (shipbattles@yahoo.com)
AMS == Allen M. Stevens (astevens@rnli.org.uk)
JS == Jason Sou (jsou@comnorth.com.au)
MMS == Matt Stein (beyondsun@mindspring.com)

Matt Stein started writing reviews for the List in 2004. He's a fellow 1/500 fan, so I have to like him! He started a resin casting business, Matt Stein Models in July 2006. All of his reviews were written prior to that date. (DRW)

KS == Ken Summa (annamarie.summa@gte.net)
DS == David Summers (David.Summers@56mdg.luke.af.mil)
WJS == William J. Swan (wswan@ix.netcom.com)

Floridian Bill Swan is a newcomer as of 2006, but he provided an incredible number of resin ship kit reviews for Version 6.6. He has impressed me with his knowledge of Steel era and WW1 era battleships. I might have a few differences of opinion with him on the waterline vs. full hull debate. I really want to see his "team of trained spiders"!(DRW)

CT == Chris Tilley (kristee_2001@yahoo.co.uk)
DT == Daniel Taylor (d-taylor@dircon.co.uk)
SU == Steve Urdelac (rhinobones@aol.com)
PV == Pavel Vacata (paveljana@cableregina.com)
PVB == Peter Van Buren (travelwithyour@yahoo.com)
RLAW == Randy Lee Anne Ward (RandyLeeAnne@rlbeward.net)
CW == Charles Watson (Chir424@aol.com)
DBW == Doug Wilde (dbwilde@comcast.net)

Doug is another newcomer as of 2006. He tells me that he's a member of the Washington Ship Model Society, and that he's working on a history of the USS Wolverine (IX-64) and USS Sable (IX-81) (DRW)

DRW == David R. Wells (dave.wells@att.net)
TW == Troy Whigham (troywhigham@yahoo.com)
IW == Ian Wilkins (I.Wilkins@mailbox.uq.edu.au)
GW == Geoffry Woods (gcwoods1@triad.rr.com)

General Comments on Kit Standards

Gernot's Comments:
(Note: Gernot builds mostly 1/700 waterline ships these days, and his comments apply mostly to Aoshima, Fujimi, Hasegawa, and Tamiya). My criticism is as always the thickness of the sponsons and other deck overhangs, as well as coamings. Best to replace with plasticard. Except in the newest releases, there is also a lack of detail on the parts, leaving it up to the modeler to find references. Lastly, in 1/700 masts, most davits and guns need to be replaced or thinned down respectively. Unlike David, I prefer thin details on my ships to avoid them looking clumsy, so I add PEB wherever I can, and add flagstaffs etc where at all possible.

Editor's Note:OK, so I build kits out of the box. Sue me. ;-) DRW.

My advice is to buy Skywave armament sets to replace the often 1960's era kit parts, and use aftermarket PE sets for the particular type of ship to get an overall increase in quality without waiting for someone to retool the kit. Note that the newer releases of the Aoshima/Fujimi/Hasegawa/Tamiya1/700 waterline series come with the new Leviathan armament sets. Saves much trouble.

My opinion of FAIR would be GOOD if not for the replacement masts etc. I consider necessary to produce a good kit.

A Note on kit numbering: The last three digits are unique to a ship in the Waterline 1/700 scale series, regardless of manufacturer (see above listing of manufacturers). The first two digits identify the company, and the issue batch among other things. Recently, new series numbers have been give, advertised on the box top as "NO.xx", where xx does not necessarily correspond to the old two-digit code. Where there is a new series, it is noted.

David's Comments on Standards (DRW)
I will admit that I'm biased in favor of any full hull kit. I'm a sucker for a good looking hull, and I like working on screws, bilge keels, etc. I also tend to be more forgiving of kits made from older molds than I should be. In my defense, I would say that it's a little unfair to judge a 1950s vintage Revell mold against a modern Tamiya. Yes, it's better now, but considering what they were up against in the '50s, the Revell kits are quite remarkable. Further, Renwal, Revell and Aurora tackled some ships that manufacturers today wouldn't dream of making. Even though they often got some details wrong, these old kits are often all we have to work with.

Gernot has a point, I do tend to build out of the box, and I usually only fix gross, obvious errors. I prefer to modify the plastic parts from the kit than to scratchbuild or add PEB. I admit that there is a point, though, beyond which kit parts aren't worth fixing, and parts substitution becomes more practical.

Roger's comments (RBB):
I look at every detail of a kit from the box art to the very fine details molded in on the casting medium that comprise the kit. If I believe that a manufacturer has not done their "homework" and has put an inferior product on the market I will not hesitate to say so. On the other hand if a manufacturer has done a good job and has provided a historically accurate, well thought out kit I will also say so.

My main area of interest is the Kreigsmarine and I am knowledgeable of modern warships having served 21 years in the United States Navy and retired as a Master Chief Petty Officer.

Ron's comments (RWS):
Unless otherwise noted I only do build reviews. My rare foray into "inbox" reviews will be strictly for accuracy, parts quality, engineering, packaging and instruction clarity. No kit is perfect, some kits and manufacturers are less perfect than others and I refuse to sugarcoat a review or pull punches when a kit is deficient. My background is aerospace/defense manufacturing and engineering so I'm blunt in my assessments. Typical defects in plastic kits are ejector pin marks, sink marks and numerous seams that need to be filled and sanded. I will only be harsh where the seams are in a bad spot or could have been engineered or molded for better fit or easier sanding to reduce loss of detail. I will point out badly placed ejector pin marks and major sinks. Flash is not the problem it was back in the 1960's and 1970's and is rare today. Typical resin defects are minor pinholes, pour plugs, differential shrinkage and excess resin from mold tearout. As long as there aren't too many pinholes, major voids, or excessive tearout I accept the minor defects. I will point out large or badly placed pour plugs and any differential shrinkage problems. The last major problem with resin kits has to do with mold release, sometimes there's just too much and it makes paint adhesion a problem, this can vary from kit to kit. Most resin kits come with PE and white metal parts. PE varies from decent to excellent depending on the manufaturer and the kit's age. Rarely do I find defects in PE other than minor shipping damage and will point out anything other than that. White metal has its own set of common defects: short shots, flash, mold alignement problems, tearout, rough surface from insufficient mold or metal temperature. Minor flash and mold seams I ignore as they are no worse than you find on plastic parts. I ignore masts and yards for steelnavy era ships, regardless of medium, since I rig with a fair bit of tension I scratchbuild those parts out of brass or phosphor bronze wire and rod.

Tim's Comments on Standards (TR):
I am a diverse sort of modeler, having built ships of many types and scales from all eras, though I do have a preference for World War Two subjects. I also build them in multiple styles ranging from Advanced Modeler's Syndrome (AMS)- inspired monsters with extensive research and scratchbuilding to unpainted out-of-the-box relaxation builds. Of course I prefer model kits that are accurate and well detailed, but in evaluating kits I try to assess them in their own terms as well. For example, Revell’s 1/535 scale Missouri from 1953, designed as an affordable and simple build for children to have fun with, can hardly be compared with the 1970s Tamiya 1/350 scale Missouri which is a more expensive, accurate, and better detailed replica intended for more experienced builders. Yet both kits fill their niches very well. That said, I do look for basic accuracy in all kits. There is no excuse for Trumpeter’s awful 1/350 scale Hornet hull from 2002, for example, especially when Revell got it right on their smaller 1/480 version back in the 1960s! I also think it is important to note the kit history, if known. Is that new 2010 Revell USS Chicago really new, or a repop of the old 1970s Monogram Chicago kit? A great aspect of this List is the ability to see whether a kit is a unique tooling or simply a reissue, so I usually include links to other versions of the same kit when appropriate.

The Kits


Academy Plastic Model Co.:

Website: http://www.academy.co.kr/.
GENERAL COMMENTS: Academy is based in Seoul, South Korea.


Adams:
GENERAL COMMENTS: I know almost nothing about Adams, except that they were around in the late 1950s. Apparently, they didn't produce very many kits. Most were military kits. (i.e. tanks, etc.) The Savannah was their only ship kit. Some were apparently reissued under the brand name "Snap", but I've never seen any of these. Life-like eventually got the Savannah mold.

Thanks to Jodie Peeler for her help with the history of Adams. (DRW)


Addar:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Addar was formed by former Aurora employees in 1973 in Brooklyn, New York. Best known for their Planet of the Apes figure kits, they also seem to have specialized in scenes in a bottle ("Super Scenes") including kits of dinosaurs, NASA spacecraft, JAWS, a WW1 dogfight, etc., as well as reissues of old Aurora airplanes. In addition, they produced a few nautical subjects as "Ship in a Bottle" kits. These were re-releases of Gowland Shipyard waterline ships from the early 1950s which included a sea base and two-piece plastic bottle for display. A further series of planned reissues of Aurora sailing ships was cancelled when Addar shut down in 1977.

(TR) 29 December 2008


Admiralty Model Works:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Admiralty Model Works was founded in 2007, starting with their kit of the German destroyer Hamburg. The company is run by Pavel Vacata, a former contributor to this list.

Their mailing address is:

Admiralty Model Works
12792 West Colonial Drive
Suite 180
Winter Garden, Florida
34787-5937
USA

Their website is http://www.admiraltymodelworks.com/. (DRW)


Advent:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Advent wasn't an independent company at all, but rather a special trade mark used by Revell to market some of their older kits to discount and department stores in 1979-80. It is not clear why Revell chose to toss away over a quarter century of hard earned name recognition for this promotion, but the line was substantial and included cars, aircraft, and ships. In addition to the old Revell products, the ship models also included the ex-Renwal 1/500 scale North Carolina and Ticonderoga kits which Revell had purchased when Renwal folded in 1978. Advent existed for only about a year. (TR) February 2010.

AER Moldova:
GENERAL COMMENTS: This company is the oldest and largest producer of model kits in the former Soviet republic of Moldova. They produce mainly Soviet armored subjects, but their line also includes some aircraft and a few ships. Although AER kits are produced primarily in injection molded plastic, a subdivision of the company known as AER Model Studio produces armor and ship kits in resin and wood as well. The company address is:


AER Colectie Srl.,
41 Bolgarskaya street,
office 11 PO391,
Chisinau, Moldova.

(TR)

April 2010.


Aeroplast:
GENERAL COMMENTS:

I don't know much about this Polish manufacturer, but they do seem to re-issue Airfix ship kits. (DRW)

Cossack (Tribal) Tartar (Tribal)

AFV Club:
Website: http://www.afv-model.com/. GENERAL COMMENTS: A small Taiwan-based manufacturer. They seem to concentrate on tanks and AFVs, but they have issued a few ship kits, including a Knox class frigate and a Type XXI U-boat. (DRW)


AHM:
GENERAL COMMENTS: AHM was less a model company than a model kit distributor. Apparently in the 1960s, in an attempt to drive importers out of the Hobby Industry Association and retain dominance in the domestic model market, a group of American hobby industry manufacturers passed a ruling that anybody that exhibited in a trade show would have to pay $300 for each brand line they showed. To circumvent this, businessman Bernie Paul established Associated Hobby Manufacturers (AHM) in Philadelphia as an umbrella distribution firm to sell imported models, mostly trains. These models included products from Umex, Roco, Anguplas, Rivarossi, EKO, Ingap, Kader, Crown, ESCI, Revell, and others. They also marketed armor, airplane, and ship model kits, among them some of Revell's classic ships. AHM filed for bankruptcy in 1982. (TR)


Airfix:
GENERAL COMMENTS:

Editor's Note: Special thanks to Leif Snellman for allowing us to reuse his huge list of mini-reviews of Airfix ships. His contribution is greatly appreciated.

Airfix was founded in 1939 as a toy company. Their first model ship was apparently the Golden Hind, first produced in the early 1950s. Airfix was purchased by Humbrol (parent company of Heller) in 1986. Humbrol was purchased in 1995 by Alan McGuire & Partners of Dublin, Ireland, who seemed to want to put some money into the company, but they never invested in new ship molds. They mostly concentrated their efforts on 1/48 aircraft. They did, however re-issue some of their older ships kits. By August 2006, the company fell into grave financial problems again. In November 2006, Airfix was sold to model train manufacturer Hornby, who announced their intention to move production to China.

Airfix ships are characterized by their consistent 1/600 scale, their two piece hulls, and pretty-good overall quality. Prices are usually reasonable.

A few of their early battleship models, (Iron Duke and Warspite) have an odd problem with their main guns. They have flared tips, like the flash suppressors on some AA guns. These flares should not be there, and they should be sanded down so that the barrels taper normally.

A long time ago, (early 1960s?) Airfix had a US office in Philadelphia.

Check out their web site at http://www.airfix.com/ (DRW)

All warships are made in light gray plastic. All passenger ships are made in white plastic except QE 2 which is made in a very light grey plastic. (LS)

Series 1 Historical Ships (not to scale) (white plastic).

These kits are from the 1950's. These are some of the oldest and most primitive Airfix kits. The first five (Golden Hind, Santa Maria, Shannon, Victory, Cutty Sark) of them seems to have existed in two variants, an early waterline model with a "modelled sea" base and a later full-hull model with cradle, the last three were all full models with cradle. (LS)

Classic Historical Ships (brown or black plastic)

Several of these have been re-released lately as "Special Editions". In these kits the preformed shrouds/ratlines have been replaced by a Heller style ratline machine. (LS)

Ajax Amazon (Type 21) Ark Royal Ark Royal 1/1200 Belfast Bismarck Bismarck 1/1200
Bounty Campbelltown Canberra Cossack (Tribal) Cutty Sark Daring Daring 1/1200
Devonshire Discovery E-Boat Endeavour Falklands Warships Fearless Forrestal
SS France Free Enterprise Graf Spee Golden Hind Great Eastern Great Western Hood
Hood 1/1200 Hotspur Illustrious Iron Duke King George V 1/400 Kriegsmarine Set Leander
Manxman Mauretania Mayflower Moscow Narvik Naval Destroyers of World War II Nelson
Prince Prinz Eugen Prinz Eugen 1/1200 Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth 2 Queen Mary 2 RAF Launch
Repulse Revenge Rommel Royal Sovereign Santa Maria Scharnhorst Shannon
Southern Cross Suffolk Suffolk 1/1200 St. Louis Tiger Tirpitz Trafalgar
Tribal DD 1/1200 Type 45 DD 1/350 Vosper MTB Victorious Victory Warspite Wasa
LCM 3 w/ tank

Alanger:
GENERAL COMMENTS: As of 2005, this Russian manufacturer is a newcomer. Apparently, the company was started in 1994. They seem to have some relationship to ICM. They make 1/350 scale injection molded polystyrene kits of Soviet/Russian submarines.

Their web site is http://www.alanger.us (DRW)


Albatross:
GENERAL COMMENTS: A small, California-based manufacturer of injection molded kits. They were relatively active in the late 1980s, but we haven't heard anything from them recently. Perhaps they're out of business. Their last known address was:

Albatross Ltd.
16622 Jib Circle, No. 2
Huntington Beach, CA 92649

They have no web site that we know of. (DRW)


Almark:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Almark was based in the UK. They released the former Casadio 1/1200 "Miniships" in the 1960s (DRW)


AMT:
GENERAL COMMENTS: AMT was once a major manufacturer of metal and plastic car model kits. The company was founded in the late 1940s by a fellow named West Gallogly. The originally made aluminum "promo" models for the US auto industry, (their name originally stood for "Aluminum Metal Toys") but they quickly switched to polystyrene. Around 1958 or so, they started converting their plastic "promos" into hobby kits. AMT is probably best remembered for their 1/25 plastic car kits in the 1960s and 1970s. They were once based in Michigan, however after they were bought out by Ertl in 1982, they moved to Dyersville, Iowa.

From about 1977 to 1982, AMT was owned by Matchbox, and issued a few Matchbox kits under their own label.

Racing Champions (later RC2) bought AMT in 1999, and shut it down in 2006. After a confusing period of lease arrangements, Round 2 Corp. of South Bend, Indiana, bought AMT in late 2011.

Their old address in Michigan was:

AMT Corporation
1225 E. Maple
Troy, Michigan

Their later address (ERTL era) in Iowa was:

AMT/Ertl
Highways 136 & 20
Dyersville, Iowa 52040-0500

AMT plastic car models still show up in hobby shops, but they are manufactured in China. The current AMT Website: http://round2corp.com/product-category/amt/

(DRW)


Anmark Adult Hobbies:
GENERAL COMMENTS: I know virtually nothing about this manufacturer of injection molded kits.


Aoshima:
Aoshima's English site. GENERAL COMMENTS: I don't know that much about Aoshima, except that they were founded in 1961.(DRW)

The Axxx serial numbers look like they are out of a catalogue, and do not represent the letter codes on the model boxes. The numerals are of course correct.

I don't understand why, on destroyers, the kit instructions mostly do not agree with the colour instructions...

Aoshima must have the lowest standard of quality control of any Japanese model firm. US importers should take this into account when pricing the kits! (GH)

I cannot agree more with the GH's comment above. The price-to-value ratio is just too high for most Aoshima kits. It seems only worth it, if the kit is the only one for a particular subject you are looking for. (RND)

IJN Aircraft USSR Naval Aircraft RN Aircraft Akizuki Amatsukaze Amagi Ariake Ark Royal
Atago Bismarck Chikuma Chitose Chiyoda Chokai Chuyo Fuso
Hatsuharu Hatsushimo Hiryu I-1 & I-6 I-400 Illustrious Kagero Kashii
Kashima Katori Katsuragi Kiev Kinu Kuma Maya Minsk
Mizuho Mutsu Nagato Nenohi North Carolina Onami Shiranui Soryu
Taiyo Takanami Takao 1/350 Takao 1/700 Terzuki Tirpitz Tone Unryu
Unyo Victorious Washington Yamashiro Yukikaze

Arii:
GENERAL COMMENTS: For some unknown reason, ARII battleships are in 1/600, their carriers are in 1/800, and everything else is in 1/700. Go figure. Many of their 1/600 and 1/800 scale ships seem to be re-issues of Otaki kits. Apparently, some ARII kits were released in England under the brand name "Hypa". (DRW)

Note that the ferry SUNFLOWER is a further exception, since it is in 1/500. (Brooks), comment dated 20 February 2006.

Albatross America Boston Bunker Hill Eisenhower Enterprise 1/600 Enterprise 1/800 Fletcher
Forrestal Haruna 1/1600 Independence Iowa Kitty Hawk Lenin Abraham Lincoln Merrill
Midway Missouri Mobile Bay Musashi 1/600 Musashi 1/1600 Mutsu 1/1600 Nagato 1/1600 New Jersey
New York Nimitz Oldendorf Princess Ranger Red Star John Rodgers Theodore Roosevelt
Saratoga Spruance Sunflower Stalin Ticonderoga Trefalgar Turbulent Vella Gulf
Carl Vinson Wisconsin Yamaha Sport Cruiser Yamato Yorktown Yushio


Armageddon

l'Arsenal
GENERAL COMMENTS:French resin manufacturer. Make their own kits, plus updates and accessories for the Heller 1/400 line.

They can be found at: l'Arsenalm (JP)


Artitec:
Website: Artitec GENERAL COMMENTS: Artitec is a Dutch resin company specializing in model railroad accessories. In addition to a number of N and HO kits of barges, tugs and European river craft, the company produces a small selection of highly detailed naval kits on mostly Dutch subjects.

Atlantis Models:

GENERAL COMMENTS: Atlantis Models is a relatively new manufacturer of model kits. It was founded in 2009 by Peter Vetri and Rick DelFavero, who previously ran megahobby.com. In 2018, they purchased several classic Revell, and Renwal ship molds in the bankruptcy of Hobbico.

Their address is:

Atlantis Toy and Hobby
435 Brook Avenue Unit 16
Deer Park, NY 11729
United States of America

Website: Atlantis Models

Forrest Sherman Gato Iowa Nautilus North Carolina Pittsburgh Ticonderoga

Aurora:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Aurora, was in business from 1952 to 1977. They started in Brooklyn, New York, but the moved to West Hempstead, (Long Island), New York fairly early. They were once among the leading manufacturers in the business, but they went out of the plastic model business in 1975. They made some decent surface ships in 1/600 scale, (sadly, they were not always accurate below the waterline) and a whole bunch of really interesting "box scale" submarines. Among the best were the Skipjack, (one of the best sub kits of its day) and the I-19 (still one of the all-time greats).

Aurora had some foreign partners. They had a Canadian division in Rexdale, Ontario. Aurora was also associated with Playcraft Toys Ltd. in London, England. Apparently, Playcraft did their own manufacturing in England, using Aurora molds.

After Aurora went out of business, Monogram bought most of the molds, and they re-issue some of them from time to time, but some may have been lost/damaged in the infamous "train wreck".

Note: The "train wreck" is a semi-mythical event. Supposedly, in 1977, when the Aurora molds were being moved from New York to Illinois after Aurora's departure from the business, there was a train wreck, which supposedly damaged or destroyed some of the molds. Some say it's true. Some say it's not. Steven Iverson has a good explanation on his Aurora FAQ. (DRW)

The son or grandson of the owner owns many of the old molds, and is planning to rerelease them, cleaned up, and possibly upgraded. They will be released under the name Lost Aurora Plastics, last I heard. (JP)

Editor's Note: LAPCO seems to have vanished, as of early 2003. On the other hand, Playing Mantis seems to have bought the rights to the Aurora brand name, and they have been issuing some kits, including a Seaview. (DRW)

Armed Command Junk Atlantis Bainbridge Bennion Bireme Bismarck Black Falcon Bluenose
Bon Homme Richard the Buccaneer Constitution Chinese Junk Cutty Sark Enterprise CV-6 Enterprise CVN-65 Flounder
Forrestal Graf Spee Golf Guadalcanal Halford Hartford I-19 Independence
Iowa King George V Missouri Moscow Nautilus New Jersey Privateer Corsair Saratoga
Seaview Sea Witch Seawolf Skipjack Sovereign of the Seas St. Paul Tucumcari U-156
U-505 US Navy Task Force Viking ship Wheeler Cruiser Wanderer Whaler Yamato Enterprise and Yamato

Bandai:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Bandai is Japan's largest toy company, famous for its Tamogotchi, Gundam/Super Sentai models, Digimon, and Ben 10 toys. Bandai is probably best remembered by modelers for their 1/48 scale armor model kits of the 1970s, but they also released numerous ship kits. These included Imperial Japanese Navy ships in 1/550 and 1/600 scales as well as a number of sailing vessels. The largest of their ship lines was the very small scale World War Two "1/2000 Navy Collection". Issued in the 1970s, these kits saw only limited distribution outside of Japan and are now fairly hard to find. Although still a powerhouse in the toy industry, Bandai ceased ship model kit production in 1985.

(TR) updated 18 January 2009

Agano/Akizuki Akagi (1/550) Akagi (1/2000) Atago Chikuma Chokai Cutty Sark Enterprise
Essex Haruna Hood Illustrious Ise (1/600) Ise (1/2000) Kaga Kongo (1/600)
Kongo (1/2000) Lexington Missouri Musashi Mutsu Myoko/Fubuki Nagato New Jersey
Oyodo/Kagero Prince Prince of Wales Sagres Shokaku South Dakota/Type IX Takao/I-1 Tirpitz
Tone (1/550} Tone/Fubuki (1/2000) Victory Washington Yamashiro Yamato

Banner:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Banner is another Chinese newcomer to the plastic model business. (2001) They only have one kit that I know of, and that is their 1/350 Arizona. Banner may be related to Trumpeter somehow, but I don't know for sure. (DRW)


Battlefleet Models:

GENERAL COMMENTS: I don't know that much about Battlefleet Models, but they seem to be out of business at this writing. (2021) They seem to have been active during the 2010s. They seemed to specialize in 1/350 and 1/700 resin kits of naval auxiliaries. (DRW)

Alchiba Algonquin Barge Set II Capella Cherokee Hog Islander Kriegsmarine Supply/Repair Barge Tamaroa

Blue Ridge Models:
GENERAL COMMENTS:

Editor's Notes: Blue Ridge Models was founded in 2012 by Russ & Brandon Lowe. Most of their kits are resin, but a few seem to be made of injection molded polystyrene. In addition to their original kits, they have continued production of many kits earlier produced by Classic Warships, Midship Models, Yankee Modelworks, Blue Water Navy, and Gulfstream. Their address is:

Blue Ridge Models
4167 E First St
Blue Ridge, GA 30513

Tel: +1 706 946 1120

Fax: +1 706 946 1121

Check out their web site (DRW)

Alaska Albacore Arizona BB-72 Bainbridge California Cleveland Dresden
Emden Fort Drum Georgia Growler Guam Gudgeon Halibut
Idaho Indiana Königsberg Louisiana Maine 20" 1/700 Maine 20" 1/350 Massachusetts
Miami Mississippi Montana 1/350 Montana 1/700 Nautilus Nürnberg Nevada
New Hampshire New Mexico New York Ohio 18" 1/700 Ohio 18" 1/350 Oklahoma Oregon
St. Louis Tennessee Texas United States Ward West Virginia

Blue Water Navy:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Blue Water Navy was MB Models' line of ships. They are resin kits in 1/350 scale. Resin kits are necessarily more expensive than injection molded plastic, but they allow a small manufacturer to make kits that could never be economically produced otherwise.

I'm not sure when Blue Water Navy began operations, but they were certainly in business during most of the 1990s. They closed in December 2003. Most of their assets were purchased by Yankee Modelworks.

At last word, Blue Ridge Models had their molds.

Special thanks to Tom Dougherty, for reviewing so many of BWN's submarines. (DRW)

MB Models was owned by Mike Bishop. mbishop446@aol.com. Their address was:

MB Models / Blue Water Navy
622 Old Trolley Road Unit 112
Summerville, South Carolina 29485
(843) 821-3558

Aaron Ward Akula Alfa Atlanta Bainbridge Balao Balch
Bass Burke Dallas Daniel Webster Enterprise Farenholt Fletcher
Gambier Bay Gato Gearing George Washington Gwin Hornet Houston
John McCain Johnston Juneau Kagero Kidd Lexington Louisville
Kilo Northampton Oakland Ohio Pauk Polk Porter
Samuel B. Roberts S-boat Seawolf Sierra Simon Bolivar Skipjack Stevens
Sturgeon Thresher Tillman Type XXI U-35 Victor III West Virginia


Bronco:
Their website:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Another newish Chinese manufacturer. I know almost nothing about them. They may be related to Dragon somehow. (DRW)


Casadio:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Casadio was based in Italy. They were apparently the source of the 1/1200 scale kits that were re-issued by Almark, ESCI, MPC, Sablon, Revell-Germany, and maybe others. (DRW)


Classic Warships:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Classic Warships is another small manufacturer of resin kits. The owner is Steve Wiper. Apparently, they've been around a while, but I don't know much about them. (DRW)

Apparently, they sold the resin model business some time back, (i.e. before 2015) and at last word, Blue Ridge Models had their molds.

Steve has shifted to publishing a series of reference books on ships and ship classes.

Their address was:

CLASSIC WARSHIPS
P.O. Box 57591
Tucson, AZ 85732

Phone/FAX: (520) 748-2992

Check out their web site.

Achilles Agincourt Alaska APD Arizona Bagley Benham Benson
Brooklyn California Detroit Dunlap Farragut Ft. Drum Goeben Gridley
Helena 1/350 Helena 1/700 Idaho Indianapolis 1/350 Iowa Bridge Kagero 1/350 Kirishima 1/350 Lion
Mahan Mississippi Mogami 1/350 Moltke Nashville Nevada New Mexico New Orleans
Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Pensacola Portland Quincy Quincy 1/350 Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City 1/350 San Francisco 1/192 Santee Seydlitz Seydlitz 1/350 Sims Sims350 Sims 1/192
Tennessee Texas Vincennes Von der Tann Ward West Virginia Yukikaze 1/350 Z-1 to 4


CN:


Combrig:
GENERAL COMMENTS: Russian resin manufacturer. (JP)

This company started in the early 1990s. At first, they made 1/35 scale resin tanks. Their first ship kit, Peter Velikiy, was released around 1995. The have since expanded their line considerably, with a large number of Soviet/Cold War era ships, and numerous Russian and British ships from the Steel Navy and World War I eras.
Combrig website For more information, please contact Combrig email.

Agincourt Albemarle Albion Algerie Almaz General-Admiral Apraksin Askold Askold 350
Aurora Australia Azov Bayan Bditelni Benbow Boevoi Bogatyr
Borodino Boyarin Brandenberg Bravy destroyer Britannia Lieutenant Burakov Caesar Cerberus
Chapaev Vasilij Chapaev Conqueror Danton (1/350) Danton (1/700) Diana Dreadnought Vitse-Admiral Drozd
Duncan Dzerzhinskiy Erin Admiral Fokin Friedrich Der Grosse Kurfuerst Friedrich Wilhelm Frunze Gangut (1894)
Gangut (1914) Admiral Golovko Gromoboi Grosser Kurfürst Grozny Hannibal Helgoland Henri IV
Hood Illmarinen Imperator Aleksandr III (Borodino-class) Imperator Aleksandr III (Imp. Maria-class) Imperator Nikolai I Imperator Pavel I Imperatritza Ekaterina Velikaya Imperatritza Maria
Indomitable Inflexible Invincible Iron Duke Kaiser-class Kaiserin Kerch King Edward VII
Kirov König König Albert Koreets Kronstadt Kronprinz Admiral Lazarev Leningrad (Pr. 1123 CGH)
Lion Maine Majestic Marlborough Markgraf Admiral Makarov Minneapolis Molotov
Vladimir Monomahk Montagu Monarch Moskva (Pr. 1123 CGH) Moskva (Pr. 1164 CG) Admiral Nakhimov (Armored Cruiser) Admiral Nakhimov (Pr. 1144 BCGN) Navarin
Neustrashimy Nikolayev Novik Novik Ocean Ochakov Ochakov CG Oktyabrskaya Revolutsia
Oleg Orel Orion Oslyabya Ostfriesland Pallada Parizhskaya Kommuna Peresviet
Andrei Pervozvanny Petr Veliki Petr Veliki (BCGN) Petropavlovsk (Gangut-class BB) Petropavlovsk (Poltava-class BB) Petropavlovsk CG Plamenny destroyer Pobieda
Poltava Prince of Wales Princess Royal Prinzregent Luitpold Profintern Queen Queen Mary Renown
Retvisan 1/700 Retvisan 1/350 Rossiya Royal Sovereign Rurik Rurik Russell Admiral Senyavin
Sevastopol Sevastopol Sibirskiy Strelok Sisoy Veliki Slava Sokol Sovietsky Soyuz Soobrazitelny
Soznatelny Stalingrad (Pr. 82) Suvorov Sverdlov Svietlana Swiftsure Tango Tashkent
Thunderer Tiger Tral minesweeper et al. Triumph Tsesarevich Type S Admiral Ushakov Admiral Ushakov/Kirov
Marshal Ustinov Vainamoinen Variag (Kynda-class CG) Variag (Slava-class CG) Variag (Imp. Russian cruiser) Vengeance Vergniaud Vladivostok
Vnimatelni Voltaire Von der Tann Marshall Voroshilov Vyborg Weissenburg Zdhanov Admiral Zozulya


Corsair Armada:

Check out their inventory.
GENERAL COMMENTS: Corsair Armada is a one-man manufacturer of resin kits. Mike Czibovic is the proprietor. He started business in October 1994. Mike has a regular job, and runs Corsair Armada in his spare time. He is based in California.

Contact Mike Czibovic for more information. (DRW)

Chicago Detroit Floating Drydock Garcia Class Houston Knox Class Louisville
Northampton Phoenix/Honolulu Ranger US Navy 5"/38 Guns US Navy 5"/25 Guns Vestal


Cyber Hobby:
GENERAL COMMENTS: I know very little about Cyber Hobby. From what little I can tell, they appear to be a subsidiary of Dragon.

(DRW) dated April 2010.

Daring Maryland & Chicago Newcastle & Triumph US Navy World War II Carrier Wing Set A
US Navy World War II Carrier Wing Set B US Navy 1950 Carrier Wing Jet Era Set A US Navy 1950 Carrier Wing Jet Era Set B Virginia


Del:


Delphis:
GENERAL COMMENTS: An Italian resin kit manufacturer.

Delphis: Web site In English.
Aquila Animoso Ascari Barletta Bolzano Bretagne Castore
Conte di Cavour Dante Alighieri Da Vinci/Marconi submersible Driade Eugenio di Savoia Foca & Marcello Garibaldi
Gorizia Guilio Cesare Napoli Pola Italian Seaplanes Seaplane Base Maestrale
Roma San Giorgio Scire & Tembien Tobruk Diorama Set Trento Zara


Dragon Models Ltd. (DML):
GENERAL COMMENTS: Dragon Models is based in Hong Kong. They were established in 1987. Their exact status after the handover of Hong Kong is somewhat of a mystery to me, but it seems that many of their ship molds are now being issued under the "Shanghai-Dragon" label. The rumor mill says that the owners of DML still control the company, but Shanghai-Dragon is a joint venture with the mainland authorities. I cannot say authoritatively. The rumor mill is notoriously inaccurate. DML's ships & subs are pretty good overall. Their Skywave re-issues are particularly nice, as they have included lower hulls for them.

Check out their web site (DRW)

  • C. F. Adams Modern USN Aircraft USSR Air Cushion Vehicles Alfa-class Alfa vs. Ohio Antietam Arizona Ark Royal
    Assault Craft Benson Bismarck Buchanan Bunker Hill Arleigh Burke Chandler (Kidd-class, 1/700) Cochrane
    Conolly Dallas vs. Typhoon Dallas vs. Alfa Delta Essex Exeter Flint Franklin vs. Sierra
    Frunze/Lazarev Gearing Hampton Hewitt Illustrious Ingersoll Independence class CVL Invincible class CVH
    Kalinin/Nakhimov Kidd 1/350 Kirov/Ushakov Laffey Lexington LSSC Manchester Mobile Bay 1/350
    Mobile Bay 1/700 Mustin Nanuchka Normandy O. H. Perry class Oakland Ohio class 1/700 Ohio class 1/350
    Oscar vs. Trafalgar class Peleliu Pennsylvania Princeton Pyotr Veliky (ex-Yuri Andropov) Arthur W. Radford 1/350 Arthur W. Radford 1/700 Randolph
    Revenge vs Victor III Roosevelt San Diego San Juan Saipan Scharnhorst Sheffield Sidney
    Sovremenny Spruance (1/350) Spruance (1/700) Tarantul and Osa Tarawa Trafalgar Ticonderoga 1/700 Ticonderoga 1/350
    Tirpitz Type XXI Typhoon 1/700 Typhoon 1/350 US Marine Amphibious Force Victor III York Yushio vs. Delta
    Z-39

    Doyusha:

    http://www.doyusha-model.com/index.html Their web site

    Eastern Express :
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Eastern Express seems to be sort of a successor to Novo.
    Borodino Royal Sovereign South Goodwin (lightship) Suvorov Tiger

    Eaglewall Plastics Ltd:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: I know relatively little about this old time kit maker. Between 1958 and 1963, Eaglewall made a series of 1/1200 scale plastic kits. The kits apparently featured two-piece hulls, split at the waterline. Eagle was apparently a British comic book publisher, and Eaglewall had permission to use the Eagle brand name from 1958-1962. Some of the molds were later used by Pyro for their Table Top Navy series.

    I've seen two addresses for Eagle, one in Surrey, and one in Brighton. Perhaps the company moved at some point.

    Eagle has been out of business for decades. I do not know the fate of their molds.

    Thanks to John Phillip Downing for his help in tracking down the information on Eagle. Thanks also to Donald Hood, for assistance and several corrections. (DRW)

    Acheron & Saar Achilles Ajax Allington Castle Altmark Balfour Barham Bismarck
    Cossack Dorsetshire Duke of York Exeter Formidable Gneisenau Admiral Graf Spee H-Class
    Hardy Admiral Hipper Kimberley King George V Lützow (ex Deutschland) Leberecht Maass Nordmark (ex Westerwald) Norfolk
    Oil Tanker, British Orion Peacock and Lilac Prince of Wales Prinz Eugen Admiral Scheer Tirpitz U 27
    U 38 U 59 U 1231 U 2529 Valiant Victorious Diether von Roeder Warspite


    Eica:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Also sometimes listed as "Eka", this Chinese manufacturer reissues some of the battleships and aircraft carriers of the old Bandai 1/2000 ship kits of the 1970s. They may be related to Bandai's Chinese partner corporation Fuman, which also reissues them from time to time.

    (TR) Review dated 22 March 2007.

    Enterprise Essex Hood Illustrious
    Lexington Missouri New Jersey Tirpitz

    Encore:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Encore Models is a trade logo used by Squadron Mail Order of Carrollton, Texas to market various older, often obscure, kits from mainstream model manufacturers including Heller, Frog, Pyro, Novo, Roden and others. Established in 1993, the line has included mostly aircraft but there have also been other releases such as cannon, a gatling gun and at least one nautical subject (reviewed below). These limited production kits are molded in Argentina, Latvia, Russia and elsewhere but packaged in the United States. They come with new Scale Master decals and sometimes with resin and photoetch upgrade parts as well.

    (TR) April 2010.


    Entex:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Entex was a company reboxing a variety of other manufacturer's kits. There is little internal evidence of the origins of the kits Entex produced. (Brooks), comment dated 20 February 2006.


    ESCI:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: ESCI was based in Italy. They may have been related to Heller/Humbrol. They released the former Casadio 1/1200 "Miniships" around 1983. (DRW)


    Fine Molds:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Known for their outstanding quality, Fine Molds of Japan produces a wide range of plastic model kits including military aircraft, armored vehicles, comic figures, plus a number of Star Wars and other fantasy subjects. They also produce various detail upgrade sets including an extensive line of photoetch and injection molded parts for 1/700 scale ships. In addition, Fine Molds produces some excellent World War II Japanese minisubs in 1/72 scale. (TR) January 2010.
    Their web site


    FROG:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: FROG, (AKA International Model Aircraft Ltd) a London based company, went out of business many years ago. They had a nice little range of British warships in 1/500 scale, and a few others in other scales. Most of them are quite good for their day. FROG also apparently re-issued some Renwal kits.

    After FROG's demise, their molds went to the Soviet Union, where they were manufactured under the Novo label. Sadly, the molds were not well maintained. Their current status is unknown. Some of the Soviet made kits had lots of flash, plus other problems. Revell-Germany obtained the Revenge mold, and they have re-issued it as the Royal Sovereign. Revell seems to have cleaned up the mold somewhat. I don't know if Revell will re-issue any of the other FROG ships. FROG kits have also been re-issued under the Eastern Express label.

    FROG is an acronym for "Flies Right Off the Ground". FROG ships are characterized by their 1/500 scale, two piece hulls, and distinctive four piece stands. (DRW)

    Most of these FROG ships were sold in the US in the 1960s by UPC. I also remember from the 1960s having built a small multi-masted sailing ship, probably a Japanese kit, imported by UPC.

    Ashanti Battle-class Exeter Hero North Carolina
    North Sea Lifeboat Prince of Wales Repulse Revenge Shell Welder
    SouthGoodwin Springfield Tiger Torquay Trafalgar
    Undine Vanguard


    Fujimi:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Another major Japanese manufacturer of injection molded polystyrene kits. Check out their web page. NOTE: It's in Japanese. (DRW)
    IJN Aircraft RN Aircraft US Naval Aircraft Akizuki Amagi Argentina Maru Ark Royal Brazil Maru
    Chikuma Constellation Cowpens Cushing Deutchland Eagle Fife Fuso 1/350
    Graf Spee Paul Hamilton Haruna 1/350 Haruna 1/450 Haruna 1/700 Hiei 1/450 Hiei 1/700 Hosho
    I-15 & I-46 Iowa Ise Isuzu Itsukushima Maru Kirishima 1/450 Kirishima 1/700 Kitty Hawk
    Kongo 1/350 Kongo 1/450 Kongo 1/700 Lexington Matsu John S. McCain Missouri Musashi 1/550
    Musashi 1/700 (early) Musashi 1/700 (late) Myoko Nagara Nagato 1/500 Nagato 1/700 Natori New Jersey
    O'Brien Oyodo Russell Ryujo Sakura Saratoga Scheer Shimozuki
    Shokaku 1/350 Shokaku 1/700 Thatch Tone Tsugaru Underwood Vandegrift Curtis Wilbur
    Yamashiro Yamato 1/500 Yamato 1/550 Yamato 1/700 (early) Yamato 1/700 (late) Phantom of the Yamato YU-1 YU-1001
    Zuikaku 1/350 Zuikaku 1/700

    Glencoe:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Glencoe is a tiny company which recovers and restores old molds, then puts them back into production. The company is owned by Nick Argento. Many of their kits originally came from ITC, Ideal Toy Company. (DRW)
    Their web site

    Their address is:

    Glencoe Models
    Box 846
    Northboro, MA 01532
    Chinese Junk Constitution/Thebaud Corsair II Eagle-class Patrol Boat France Norway
    Oregon Savannah Southern Belle US Coast Guard Rescue Boat United States Viking Ship

    Gowland:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Gowland and Gowland, also known as Gowland Creations, Gowland Shipyard, or simply Gowland, was an early producer of plastic model kits based in Santa Barbara, California. Established by Jack and Kevin Gowland in the early 1950s, the company is best remembered for their "Highway Pioneers" line of cars. They also sold a selection of small sailing ships known as the "Shipyard" series from 1952-1954. Created by chief sculptor Derek Brand, these were marketed both as Shipyard "Ships in Bottles" and "Ships in Miniature" (the same models without the bottles). Kit production and distribution was handled by Lew Glaser's Precision Specialties (later known as Revell, Inc.), but with all save Flying Cloud and Charles W. Morgan under the Gowland label. After 1956 Gowland transferred leftover stocks to Craftco, Inc. of Canada which sold them off under the "Mantle Models" trademark. Revell eventually bought out Gowland , but least one ship, the Santa Maria, was also issued by Airfix, and all except Golden Hind were reissued by Addar as "Super Scenes" ships in bottles in 1973.

    (TR) March 2009


    Gulfstream Fine Scale Models:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Gulfstream was originally owned by John Ficklin, and later owned by BWN, then Commander Series Models, and then by Classic Warships.

    At last word, Blue Ridge Models had their molds.

  • Atlanta (USN CLAA-51) [1/350] (WW2) FH
  • Bainbridge (USN DD-1) [1/350] {GS-8004} (Steel) FH
  • EXCELLENT. An accurate and complete kit of a historically important ship, both beginners and more advanced builders will like this kit. Highly recommended. (RM) Editor's Note: Apparently, this is the same as the BWN kit. (DRW)

  • Birmingham (USN CL) [1/350] (WW2) FH
  • California (USN BB-44) (WW2) [1/350] WL
  • Editor's Note: This kit has apparently been re-issued by numerous manufacturers:

  • Houston (USN CA) [1/350] (WW2) FH
  • ex-BWN kit.

  • Miami (USN CL-89) [1/350] (WW2) FH
  • Portrays the ship in 1944

  • O.H. Perry (USN FFG-7) [1/350] (Cold) FH
  • ex-BWN kit.

  • Quincy (USN CA) [1/350] (WW2) FH
  • w/ USS San Fran. parts

  • San Francisco (USN CA-38) [1/350] (WW2) FH
  • Portrays the ship in 1944

  • Type VIIc(DKM U-boat) {8-001} [1/350] (WW2) FH
  • GOOD. This kit depicts a late Type VIIc boat as it might have appeared in 1944-45 with two-tier Wintergarten conning tower and main deck-mounted Schnorkel. The model is cast with the hull and conning tower as a single piece in tan resin with a separate resin Schnorkel. Rudders, dive planes, rails, and weapons are included in photoetch brass, and a length of wire is provided for the propeller shafts and periscopes. The single-piece resin hull/conning tower part is beautifully done with accurate shapes and lots of delicate, attractive detail. I especially liked the depiction of the intricate grating, rescue buoys and other details on the main decks. Flooding vent slots on the hull sides are correctly shaped and consistent, although the configurations (4-3-16 X 2-0 starboard, 4-3-15 X 2-1 to port) suggest that the kit is not intended to depict any individual boat… in fact, no Type VIIc actually carried that particular configuration. There are numerous other inaccuracies, but fortunately most of them are fairly minor:

    This seemingly long list notwthstanding, Gulfstream's little U-Boat is actually a very nice model with a high level of detail and straightforward assembly. Designed by John Ficklin, this was without doubt the best Type VIIc available when it first appeared in the mid-1990s. The modeI is still quite good, and it would be a great first resin build. However, time has to some degree passed this one by; 2009 releases by Revell Germany (Type VIIc) and AFV Club (types VIIb, VIIc and VIId) in injected plastic offer similar (or, in the case of AFV Club, superior) detailing at much lower prices. This kit remains a good alternative if you prefer the minimal assembly required by resin kits, though. Gulfstream is no more, but I believe this same kit is now marketed by Yankee Modelworks (kit YKM-35027).

    (TR) review dated 18 November 2009.

  • Ward (USN "4-piper" DD-139) [1/350] (WW1/WW2) FH
  • w/IJN Midget sub

    GOOD+ Needless to say I liked this kit. It provides good value for the asking price ($142 in the last Gulfstream sale flyer) and builds up into a very attractive and eye-catching display piece. Highly recommended. (RM)

    VERY GOOD.

    Note: this kit now appears in the Yankee Modelworks catalog as the Wickes Class Destroyer/USS Ward YMW# 35005. The YMW web site indicates new tooling for the PE and the addition or substitution of cast metal parts. The kits both include the Japanese midget submarine sunk at Pearl Harbor.

    Kit Parts: this is a resin model with a fret of photo etch detail parts included. The model is a full hull with no option for waterlining other than sawing off the bottom. The hull is cast with most of the superstructure including the funnels and was done extremely well. There are no bubbles, pinholes, miscasts or malformations on any of the parts in this kit. There is some very minor flash, but that is about all. The only difficulty I see with the parts the way they are cast is freeing the main battery guns from their casting plug. That will require a delicate hand. The detail on the small resin parts is excellent. The ship comes with cast resin masts but I would suggest using them as templates for brass rods or tubes to give strength for rigging which in this scale is a must. The photo etch is very well done and complete.

    Directions:: heavily text oriented (in English) with reference to drawings of the completed ship, in segments corresponding to the text. That may not be enough for a beginning modeler.

    Packaging: nicely decorated box with a photo of the finished model on the top but a bit thin, like one of the Italeri boxes that open from the sides. Well packed in foam peanuts though.

    (WJS), review dated 19 March 2008.


    Gunze-Sangyo:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Gunze-Sangyo is best known as a paint manufacturer, but they also sell some injection molded kits.


    Hap Dong:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: A South Korean company. Apparently, this is the same company as the model aircraft manufacturer Ace. (DRW)


    Hasegawa:
    GENERAL COMMENTS:

    Another major Japanese manufacturer of injection molded kits. In addition to the usual 1/700 Waterline kits, Hasegawa also still occasionally re-issues some of its old 1/450 full hull models.

    Hasegawa has also apparently been acquired by Hobbico.

    Check out their web page.
    The primary site is in Japanese; there is a Global Site in English.

    Agano 1/350 Akagi 1/350 Akagi 1/450 Akagi 1/700 Akishimo Alabama Aoba Arashio
    Asashio Ashigara (DDG) Atago (DDG) Bismarck Chokai Essex Fuso Gambier Bay
    Haruna Hancock Hayanami Hiei Hikawa Maru (Liner) Hikawa Maru (Hospital) Hyuga Hyuga (new)
    Hyuga-Class (DDH) I-361 & I-171 I-370 & I-68 IJN Planes Ise Ise (new) Kaga Kirishima (WW2)
    Kirishima (Modern) Kongo-Class (WW2) Kongo-Class (Modern) Mikasa Mikazuki Minegumo Musashi Musashi
    Mutsu Mutsuki Myoko (WW2) Myoko (New Mold) Myoko (New Mold HG) Myoko (Modern) Nagato 1941 Nagato 1944
    New Jersey Tatsuta Tenryu Ticonderoga Tirpitz Type VII-C & IX-C U-boats Shinano Shoho
    South Dakota Soya Vanguard Yahagi Yamato Yorktown (CV-10) Yugumo Yukikaze

    Hawk:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Chicago based Hawk used to be a significant US injection molded polystyrene model kit maufacturer, but were bought out by Testors in the early 1970s. In addition to their kits of cars and aircraft, they made at least some ships. These were re-issued by Testors in 2003. (DRW)

    As of this writing, (2016) Hawk is owned by Round 2 Corp. of South Bend, Indiana. Indiana. Their website is here: http://round2corp.com/product-category/hawk/

    Coast Guard Cutter Destroyer LST PT Boat Sport Cruiser

    Heller:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Heller was traditionally a French manufacturer, and as such tended to concentrate on French ships. Their production facilities are still in France. Airfix and Heller have been owned by Humbrol for some time now. Humbrol was purchased in 1995 by Alan McGuire & Partners of Dublin, Ireland, who seem to want to put some money into the company, but there has been no indication that any of this money will go to new ship molds. On the other hand, they have been re-issuing some of their older ships lately, so there's hope.

    Heller ships are usually of good quality. They are almost always in 1/400 scale. The exceptions, such as the ex-Airfix Forrestal, are usually molds from Airfix or other manufacturers. (DRW)
    Check out their web page. The primary site is in French; there is also a site in English.
    Heller also makes a line of sailing ships in varied scales. (JP)

    l'Alsacien Arromanches (1/400) Arromanches (1/1600) Aurora Avenir le Basque Belle Etoile Bismarck
    Bodasteinur le Brestois Clemenceau 1/400 Clemenceau 1/1750 Colbert 1/400 Colbert 1/1200 la Combattante Commandant Rivière
    le Corse la Couronne Cutty Sark Daphne DeGaulle DeGrasse le Drakkar 1/180 Drakkar Oseberg 1/60
    Duguay-Trouin Dunkerque Dupetit Thouars Duquesne Eagle English Brigantine Epervier Foch 1/400
    Foch 1/1750 Forbin Forrestal Galion Gneisenau Gorch Fock Graf Spee Guillaume le Conqueant
    Admiral Hipper Hood Illustrious Jean Bart Jeanne d'Arc Kersaint King George V Lafayette
    Lenin LCT/LSU Lützow M-24 Maille-Breze Maine Mayflower Marceau
    Mercure Nina le Normand Occident le Pamir le Phenix Potemkine le Pourquoi-Pas 1/100
    le Pourquoi-Pas 1/400 Preussen Prinz Eugen la Reale la Reale de France Le Redoubtable Richelieu Royal Louis
    S-103 & S-211 Santa Maria Scharnhorst Admiral Scheer Victor Schoelcher la Seine la Sirene SMIT Rotterdam
    Strasbourg Suffren la Superbe Surcouf (DD) Surcouf (submarine-cruiser) le Suroit Tirpitz T-23
    la Tartane Tourville Type VII-C U-boat Amerigo Vespucci Victory Z-31


    Hi Mold :

    Hi Mold is another resin department of SkyWave.

    They also have another line of resin ship kits, called Waveline.

    Akagi Akagi FH Arizona Blue Ridge California Chitose Chiyoda Devonshire
    Dorsetshire Fuso Fuso 1938 Haruna Hatakaze Hiei Kaga Kikuzuki
    Kitakami Maryland Mikasa Mt. Whitney Nagato Nissin Prinz Eugen Richelieu
    Shimakaze Soryu Sussex Takatsuki Tennessee West Virginia Yamashiro


    Hobby Boss:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: Hobby Boss (listed as both Wai Mou of Macau and Huihuang Electric Appliance Co., Ltd. of Mainland China) produces excellent aircraft, armor as well as nautical model kits. They are owned by the same parent company that owns Trumpeter models, and the quality of their kits is similar. They may have some connection with Pit-Road/Takara of Japan as well. Hobby Boss ship kits released so far have mostly been submarines in 1/700 and modern DDs/CGs in 1/1250. They also market many of these through Model Rectifier Corporation (MRC) as "Easy Model" pre-built and painted collector models. (TR)

    Their web page.

    Arizona Balao Jimmy Carter Gato 1941 Gato 1944 Greeneville Harry W. Hill I-400
    Kidd Kilo class Kursk LCM 3 Los Angeles Oyashio class Seawolf Type VIIB
    Type VIIC Type IXB Type IXC Type 33 Type 39A Princeton Arthur W. Radford San Francisco
    Spruance Ticonderoga Typhoon class Vincennes

    HP-Models:
    GENERAL COMMENTS: A German model company, they can be very hard to get outside Germany. They have a very extensive range of naval vessels and liners.

    They are all in 1/700.

    Initial list provided by Uwe Besken (besken@gmx.de) (JP)
    Check out their web page.

    A-68 - A-71 Abercrombie Air Battle over Germany 1944 Akitsushima Arethusa Arkansas Armed Tanker
    Aserbaidshan Atholl Atlantis Baden Baltyk Bayern Beresina
    Berry Head Birkenhead Bluebell Blyskawica Bremen Bremse British Tanker
    Brummer Budapest Burza Butterecup CAM-Ship California California.+Floating Drydock
    Chester Colorado Conrad Conte di Cavour Crokus Delhi De Ruyter
    Deck 6.400 To. Derfflinger Deutschland DKM Tug Set 1 Dock Systems 1 Dock Systems 2 Dock Systems 3
    Dock Systems 4 Dragon Dreadnought Dunkerque Emden Empire Empire Moon
    Espiritu Santo Europa Evertsen Falke France Freighter Friesenland
    Fuel Depot with Refuelling Pier Furious Galathea Garland Georges Leygues Giulio Cesare Gneisenau
    Göben Graf Zeppelin Grecale Greif Grom 1 Grosser Kurfürst Gryf
    Guepard HSF Tug Set Hai und Hecht Hannover Hans Lody Helgoland (Austrian CL) Helgoland (German HSF BB)
    Hermes Hessen Hindenburg Hunt Type 2 Hunt Type 3 Idaho Iltis
    Indomitable Inflexible Invincible Isaac Sweers Italia Jaguar Java
    Jean Bart Jonquil K-12 K-3 K-4 K-6 K21
    K3 Karlsruhe Kitakami Kitakami (Kaiten) Köln König Königsberg
    Kortenaer Krakowiak Kronprinz Kujawiak L3 Laforey Lance
    Le Redoutable Leberecht Maass Legie Legion Leipzig Lighthouse Lothringen
    Lützow M-1 M-12 M201 M35 M6 MFP Set 1
    MFP Set 2 Maestrale Mariya Uljanewa Markgraf Martin Mary Rose Mikojan
    Milan Mississippi Möwe Mogador Moltke Mosel Murray
    Nürnberg Narwik Nevada New Mexico New York Novara Oi
    Oldenburg Orion Orkan Ostfriesland P1 P3 Penelope
    Pensacola Pier Type 1 Pier Type 2 Pier Type 3 Pier Type 4 Piet Hien Pinguin
    Polyanthus Pommern Prinz Eugen Provence Renown Repulse Richelieu
    Roberts Roma Ropucha-I-Class Ropucha-II-Class Royal Oak S7-S10 SS-Bunker
    Saar Saida Salt Lake City San Francisco Saucy Scharnhorst Schlesien
    Schleswig-Holstein Schwergut-Freighter- Seeadler Seydlitz Slazak Snowberry Sobieski
    Soviet Bugsier & Salvage Tug Soviet Floating Crane Soya Strasbuorg Suffolk Sumatra Surcouf
    T19 T2 T20 T4 Tanker Tarrd Thüringen
    Titanic Tobruk Togo Tromp Troop transport Tsingtau Type 108 Minesweepers
    Type 17 Minesweepers Type 218 Minesweepers Type 218 Minesweepers Type 89 Minesweepers Type D Type S45- Type I & II Subs
    Type XXI Type XXIII Type XXIII USN Tug-Set UZ 32-35 UZ 32-35A -High-Tech- Adm. Usakov
    Van Gent Vauban Victory Vittorio Veneto von der Tann Volta Warspite
    Wettin Wicher Wilhelm Bauer Wolf Wyoming Z-1 Z-28
    Z-29 Z-30 Wolfgang Zenker