JackG Posted February 19, 2018 Share Posted February 19, 2018 This was released late last year from AVI models in 1/72 scale. For a modern kit, the quality of casting is a bit disappointing, or at least my sample looked to have the molds slip. The instrument panel had no detail (nor was a decal provided). The pitot tube and exhaust were also scratch built as these details were not provided. The markings on this particular Claude are of IJN ace Tetsuzo Iwamoto during operations over China. regards, Jack 23 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graeme H Posted February 19, 2018 Share Posted February 19, 2018 Despite your problems, that has come up a treat, the first period shot is very realistic 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andwil Posted February 19, 2018 Share Posted February 19, 2018 That looks really good. I have one of these in the stash, I note your comments on the moulding and must check mine, how did it go together? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Dapple Posted February 19, 2018 Share Posted February 19, 2018 You made a superb job of that Jack, nice work Cheers, Stew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackG Posted February 19, 2018 Author Share Posted February 19, 2018 (edited) Thank you Graeme H, Andwil, and Stew. About the construction, yes it will put the build skills to the test. Just a lot of little things that can make the difference, most of which could have been avoided with some quality control. Here are some things to look out for: - tail planes and landing gear spats: these have a tab that is suppose to fit into a location hole. My sample, the holes were almost solid, so I just trimmed off the tabs and flush mounted, adding brass pins for extra strength. There is a hiccup with the tail planes as they look to sit staggered, so maybe the fuselage halves aren't perfect either? - tail wheel (as well as much of the small detail pieces): completely rebuilt as it is an oblong shape, can't be saved by sanding it circular since the details of one side don't match the other - engine cowl: the two pieces when joined do not form a perfect circle (or is that is how it is suppose to be?). It also just floats around the engine with no attachment points. So I added small lumps of putty on the cylinder heads, cleaning it up after the cowl is attached. - wing detail: trailing edges are thick, so best sand those down before joining halves. Navigation lights on wings were carved out and replaced with shaped clear sprue. - auxiliary fuel tank : open on top, so fill with putty - general fit of large parts is good, but there are gaps to fill. Surface detail is nicely engraved, so to avoid losing that from sanding, I added plastic sheet to fill in areas before cementing the pieces - decals: extremely thin and prone to curl on itself, and shatter if 'played' with too long. I masked and sprayed all the Hinomaru as well as the fuselage stripes. Here are some construction pics: regards, Jack Edited February 19, 2018 by JackG 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevej60 Posted February 19, 2018 Share Posted February 19, 2018 Excellent work Jack,nice to see a rarer aircraft posted too. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted February 20, 2018 Share Posted February 20, 2018 Sorry for some reason I failed to comment yesterday when I first saw this. This is grest work really like the build details. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackG Posted February 20, 2018 Author Share Posted February 20, 2018 Thanks very much, Steve and Corsair. regards, Jack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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