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Albatros Production |
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Wind-Sock Special 20th Anniversary Edition! (1985-2005) |
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Reviewed By Mark McGovern, #34707 |
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I’m a VERY occasional World War I aviation modeler, so maybe I’m too easily impressed by a well-wrought publication on the subject.
Still, it would be hard to see how even the most jaded WWI aircraft buff could fail to find something of interest in Wind-Sock
Special 20th Anniversary Edition! (1985-2005). This Albatros Publications soft-cover book is essentially a reprint of the
first four editions of Wind-Sock magazine. I use the word “essentially” because founder and Editor Ray Rimell has added
several updates to the text. Some of the new material helps put the content in historical context, as when Mr. Rimell notes that a book under review in 1985 is no longer available now. He also provides new information that has come to light about historical subjects that were first discussed in 1985. And, where pertinent, he includes references to the Albatros Publications’ Datafiles that have been published over the last twenty years. To quote Mr. Rimell, I’ll “cast a few bricks” for his not using a different typeface or italics or something to distinguish the new material from the original text, as it’s not always clear which is which. That’s the only nit I can find to pick. Even after two decades, there’s plenty to see in Wind-Sock. Static and flying models are discussed, along with the tools, materials, and techniques used to build them. There are book and kit reviews, of course. But what really sets the magazine apart is its historical content. There are plenty of photos and drawings of the machines being examined in each issue. The photos show the front and back covers, which feature Mr. Rimell’s own color profiles of DeHavilland DH-4s that illustrate the aircraft mentioned in an article within the book. There are also contemporary historical items that could only be published by someone with a genuine love of the subject about which he’s writing; pages 51 to 56 are a facsimile of a Royal Air Force report on a captured Rumpler C.IV. Eighteen of the book’s eighty pages are printed in color, as are the inside covers. I think that Wind-Sock Special 20th Anniversary Edition! (1985-2005) certainly deserves the exclamation mark in its title. It and other Albatros Publications titles are available in North America through Wise Owl Worldwide Publications, 5150 Candlewood Street, Suite 11, Lakewood, CA 90712-1900. Their telephone number is (562) 461-7574, fax is (562) 461-7212, e-mail address is info@wiseowlmagazines.com, and web address is www.WiseOwlMagazines.com. My thanks to them for making this book available for review, and to John Noack for sending it to me. Also, congratulations are in order to Ray Rimell for publishing a great WWI aircraft resource over these last twenty years. |
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