The Kinetic IA-58 Pucará in 1/48th scale has been a pleasant surprise for modellers, a kit of great quality, the only thing we now need is more reference. AMMO steps up to the plate with this new book on the aircraft that Gary Wickham has read the book. See what he thinks in his review...
Read n' reviewed: IA-58 PUCARÁ - Visual Modelers Guide
Wing Series Vol 2
From AMMO by MIG JimenezProduct No #AMIG6025
Softcover, 64 pages with high-quality, full-colour photos and Color Profiles.
Author/s: Vinicius Pompeo
Publisher: AMMO by Mig Jiménez
Languages: Multilingual. English and Spanish
ISBN: 978-84-17846-46-6
Price: 13,75 €
The IA-58 Pucará was an Argentinean ground-attack and COIN aircraft that gained international fame for its participation in the Falklands War of 1982.
This Visual Modellers Guide references the most important and lesser-known details of this unique aircraft in full detail. The book features 62 pages, with over 150 high quality photographs including rarely seen details and 2 fully detailed colour profiles with camouflage and markings. All text is provided in both English and Spanish.
Described as "A compilation of detailed photographs showing the most important and undocumented details of this fascinating subject. This title includes a photo reference guide for both internal and external details including interior details, engine compartment, and the often-overlooked external details features. Enjoy this fun and easily referenced resource book to analyze the interior and exterior details of the aircraft through in-depth photographs and detailed explanations. Also included for modellers are illustrations of the camouflage schemes with full colour and detailed profiles".
This title is volume 2 of the "Wing Series" by AMMO, of which previous titles include the F-104G. It is no surprise that the release of the book was designed to coincide with the new Kinetic 1:48 IA-58 Pucara kit. In fact, the author of this book, Vinicius Renato Hundertmarck Pompeo, hails from Brazil and assisted in the development of the new Kinetic Models kit.
The book is broken into several sections to make it easier for the reader to access related information quickly.
History / The Pucara Project / Operational Service / Operations in the Falklands / Versions - 5 pages
General Views - 10 pages
Nose - 6 pages
Machine Guns and Cannons - 3 pages
Central Fuselage - 6 pages
Wings (including engines) - 10 pages
Tail - 3 pages
Cockpit - 7 pages
Landing Gear - 7 pages
Operators and Paint Schemes - 6 pages
As the name implies, this is first and foremost a Visual Guide and so the focus is very much on photos rather than text. Where appropriate small text annotations have been added to each page to highlight or explain a particular feature. As a modeller, this is the sort of book I gravitate towards as I'm less interested in a thick "coffee table" book that has reams of text and small photos.
All the photos are clear focus and well exposed. For most areas of the Pucara, airframe shots are provided from a variety of angles which again helps the modeller who is building a 3D representation of the subject.Not all modellers are interested in open panels (in fact some absolutely hate them) but I find that having this detail is welcome even if I don't plan to add it to my model. Most of us are also aviation nuts and find looking in all the nooks and crannies of aircraft enjoyable :) The book is filled with plenty of close-up photos of details (such as the flaps) which would not normally be visible on general photos of the aircraft. These types of details are not only useful for assembly but when it comes to the painting and weathering stages of your build. If you are up to it, details of the engine interiors are provided across three pages. For those of us who like the look but are not up to the challenge of scratchbuilding all that detail, BlackDog has already done all the hard work for us in their A48135 IA 58 Pucará Engine set.
The cockpit is always a major focus for modellers and so it's expected that considerable space will be devoted to walkaround books such as this. A generous seven (7) pages are included each containing excellent images that show most angles of the cockpit, including the often neglected canopy. There is more than enough photographic detail to allow you to accurately finish the Kinetic kit cockpit. If however you'd like some shortcuts then both Eduard and Quinta Studio have you covered in terms of PhotoEtch and 3D Decals which will make short work of all that detailing for you. The centrepiece of most modern cockpits are of course the ejection seats. The IA-58 is fitted with two Martin Baker MK6AP6A seats designed for zero-zero conditions. The included book images should be more than adequate to allow you to dress up the Kinetic plastic seats. Landing gear, especially the wheels, are another highly visible part of any scale model. Achieving the right sit of the model is vital for realism and knowing which parts are painted and which are natural metal is also an important element. Hydraulic and electrical cables normally festoon the main struts and details within the title will allow you to accurately reproduce these on your model. During their service life with the FAA, several paint and camouflage schemes were applied to the Argentine Pucara's. An example of each is provided in the book with a short explanation of when and why each was used. I think it's fair to say that, had it not been for the Falklands conflict, most of us outside of South America would never have heard of the Pucara. Specific battle colours were applied to those aircraft used in combat and it was not a standard scheme. Several colour profile drawings are included that show the design used and how the colours varied. The closing page of the book gives us some interesting background on the author. Clearly, a knowledgeable and qualified person to compile such a book (and help Kinetic develop their excellent 1:48 kit) CONCLUSION - IA-58 Pucara - Visual Modelers Guide (AMMO by MIG)
My recommendation for this book is pretty straightforward, if you are interested at all in the IA-58 Pucara from a modelling perspective, then buy it. To me, this style of the book is exactly what most modellers are after. At an RRP cost of 13,75 EUR (roughly US$15), this is a bargain and should be a no-brainer if you intend to build the Kinetic kit.
Many thanks to AMMO for the review sample, it will be put to good use when I start my Kinetic Pucara build(s).
Gary Wickham
