Steel Beach 1/48 Aftermarket Detail Sets
By Matt Bittner
Steel Beach provided us with three 1/48 aftermarket sets. The ones in resin are decently cast. I will deal with each in turn.
1/48 E-2B Hawkeye Conversion
This set backdates the Kinetic 1/48 Grumman E-2C into the E-2B. There are 12 pieces of resin in this set: a replacement nose; a cooling vent for the top of the wing; a cooling vent for the side of the fuselage; and eight flat-tipped propeller blades. Overall the resin is nicely cast, but on this example a couple of the propeller blades have a few pin holes. Nothing any modeler couldn't fix.
Be aware, though, there are more changes needed than adding/replacing resin pieces. The instructions contain multiple steps on what it takes to backdate the E-2C. My only gripe is the small pictures on the instruction sheet. They've been (what appear to be) photocopied so much you can barely make out any detail.
1/48 F4D-1 Intake Plugs
This set provides intake plugs and Angle of Attack (AOA) probe cover for the Tamiya 1/48 F4D-1 Skyray. Pay attention to the instructions as the plugs are handed. This should be an easy set of aftermarket to add to your Tamiya Skyray.
1/48 F-14 Tomcat "Slime Lights"
Steel Beach provides a set of formation form-up lights (also known as "slime lights" because of their color) as vinyl "tape" to be applied directly to your model. An easy way – without having to paint – to add these lights to your built-up Tomcat.
1/48 S-2 Searchlight
To be honest, I'm not exactly sure what this is for. Oh, sure, I know it's a searchlight for the Kinetic 1/48 S-2, but is it a replacement? An addition? I'm not sure, as I don't have the kit, but it's nicely cast and if you're looking for a searchlight for your 1/48 S-2, then Steel Beach has one.
1/48 S-2 Seats
Now these are obvious. These are much better detailed replacement cockpit seats for the Kinetic S-2. While the belts are molded in-situ, they're nicely done and with the proper washes and dry brushes, both of these seats will really "pop". An excellent addition to your Stoof.
Huge thanks to Steel Beach for letting us review these sets. My apologies to them for taking so long writing up the review.