Windock Worldwide's bi-monthly feast of WW1 aviation modelling is something I really look forward to., not only for the specialist content that is outside the scope of more general interest magazines, but because many of the modelling techniques shown can serve as an inspiration for aircraft models of other eras too.

The July/August issue is a case in point; there's the usual excellent blend of News and Reviews, a historical Feature, an expert-level techniques guide that we can all learn something from, plus an intriguing glimpse of what could be the beginning of a fresh colour reference system being adopted by modellers.

Kitbox contains some spectacular treats for WW1 modellers this issue, with a look at Contact Models' impressive 1:32 resin Sopwith Camel and a full build "Special" of Eduard's great new quarterscale Albatros D.III OEF. Also reviewed in 1:48 are Special Hobby's Morane Saulnier Type A1 and Techmod's Friedrichshafen FF.33, while MAC Distribution and Airfix provide a selection of 1:72 kits, including the former's revised Phönix DIII and the latter's venerable Albatros D.Va. As usual there's a generous round up of decals and other accessories.

Lance Krieg's Modelling Masterclass continues to impress and inspire with Part 3 of his examination of cockpit superdetailing. Obviously, the primary focus is vintage cockpits, but a good many of the techniques will be applicable on through WW2 and beyond. Lance illustrates his article with another fine selection of cockpits in different scales by master modellers - and the detail in some of them really is quite astounding! Sadly, this is the last of Lance's articles about model cockpits, but the next issue will begin a fresh series on airframes, so we have plenty to look forward to.

Rolands in Russia by Marat Khairulin takes a fascinating look at LFG Roland D.IIa fighters forced down and captured on the Eastern Front and their subsequent fate in the Soviet Union. One aircraft in particular (s/n 539/17) is covered in detail with a wide selection of photos accompanied by excellent colour profiles by Aleksandr Kazakov.

Finally, Move Over Methuen? takes a very interesting look at what may well prove to be a viable paint reference system for modellers worldwide - Resene's colour charts for their multi-finish range of commercial paints. These are produced in New Zealand and Australia to the BS5252 system and also include an RGB code. While many references still quote Methuen colour matches, to a lot of present-day modellers these are semi-useless because the Methuen Handbook Of Colour itself is virtually unobtainable (and hideously expensive if you do track down a copy). And while I'm very attached to my trusty FS 595B fan of paint chips, I'm the first to admit that it does have serious limitations, not least that there simply is no near FS equivalent for many vintage or non-US colours. The Resene charts do look like they have a lot going for them, with 1266 colour chips (as against only 600 in the FS fan, many of which are duplicates of the same colour in gloss, silk or matte finish). Some idea of just how highly regarded Resene's paints themselves are can be judged by the fact that the Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre uses them.

The article includes a table of 23 x WW1 colours matched to Resene's range. Albatros Productions stress that this is a preliminary chart and by no means exhaustive, but the matches are made to reliable source material.

Conclusion

This is another fine issue of the premier WW1 aviation modelling magazine. Highly recommended.

Now, to try to track down a set of those paint swatches...

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