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IJN Type 96 25mm AA Guns & Ventilators (653021 & 653018) 1:350 Eduard Brassin One of the areas of many maritime kits that is lacking in detail is generally the deck fixtures and fittings, which are limited in finesse by the capabilities of injection-moulding technology. Traditionally, Photo-Etch (PE) was used to create more detailed fittings for such kits, but these usually involve complex folding, and as they are made from flat sheet, there are always compromises. The advances in 3D Stereo-Lithographic Resin (SLR) Printing in the last several years have given increasing levels of detail, and decreasing layer thicknesses that are bordering on the invisible with the latest generations. This permits the creation of infinitesimal details that would otherwise be impossible to make by hand without super-powers and a microscope, and the method used to form these parts allows overhangs and extreme detail to be incorporated into a single part that can be put to use almost immediately. This pair of sets is intended for 1:350 Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) kits, replacing the chunky, and sometimes blob-like deck details with parts that are almost unbelievably detailed. Although the sets arrive in a flat package, the directly 3D printed parts are safe inside a clear plastic clamshell box within the package, which also has a sticky pad inside to prevent the parts from rattling around. The parts are printed resin, attached to the base via thin tendril-like fingers that are easy to cut off and sand the little upstands away, leaving them ready for action. IJN Ventilators (653018) This set includes four print-bases totalling seventy parts depicting fourteen different ventilators, five of each type, that vary from small vertical pipes with a pair of tapering cones at the top, to an enormous cylindrical part with a mesh panel on the side, all of which are drop-in replacements for the parts they supplant. The instructions show drawings of each type, and confirms that all of them should be painted the same camouflage colour(s) as the rest of the ship. IJN Type 96 25mm AA Gun (Triple) Printed on six rectangular bases, some of which are linked together, this set provides eighteen gun platforms in grey resin, split into two blocks of nine, with and without large ring sights on both sides of the triple barrels. A small PE fret is included to depict the splinter-shields on each side of the gun, which are folded into an L-shape and glued to the front of the battery to keep the gunners a little safer during battle. Conclusion If you have IJN ships in your stash or in your future, these new sets from Eduard are going to be just what you need, and they’ll be easy to get hold of thanks to their market penetration. The detail must be seen to be believed. Review sample courtesy of

After 1 year of absence, i finally return. This time i want to recreate the Preparing phase before the launch in the Aircraft carrier Kaga. it took me quite a while to gather material and also research, in the end i think i did a decent job recreating the scene. Thanks for watching and cheers from Vietnam

Hi, I'm taking the plunge and attempting my first build log, please bear with me as I've not done this before. For this build, I'm working on a group of three smaller IJN ships. Why three? Well to make best use of the storage space I have (namely a rather well known IKEA bookcase - other cabinets are available), I use a standard size base for my ships that way I can fit two 1/350 builds on a shelf (or one per half shelf as is the case). This works great for battleships and other larger ships (excepts the ships in the stash that are going to be too wide for said bookcase - USS Missouri, I'm looking at you) but would be somewhat wasteful for some of the smaller stuff - the solution, build a tier on my standard base and fit more than one ship on the same shelf. Here's the last effort of me doing the same, with a group of 4 other Japanese ships: So for the next continuation of my Japanese WW2 fleet, I'm going to repeat this process but with three ships on the next base, since I have the Isuzu light cruiser which is too long to fit on with another ship length-wise, but too small to waste a full width base on. I expect this project will take a little while, firstly because I have Trumpeter's 1/32 A-10 on my bench right now, and more importantly a new baby in the house, but I'll try and keep posting when I have things to report. For now, here are the kits being used... Aoshima's 1/350 Isuzu AA cruiser, with the Flyhawk photo-etch set. I've got to say, I love how minimal looking this ship is, flat deck, small tower, funnels and AA guns - no extraneous anything whatsoever, quite the contrast to the normal go as high as possible without it falling over that is more normal for the WW2 Japanese ships. Fujimi's 1/350 destroyer Shimakaze, with the Infini detail kit (which looks insanely complicated - fun to be had there) Tamiya's 1/350 aircraft carrying submarine I-400, again with the Infini detail set (I'm a glutton for punishment obviously) So, the well versed among you might have noted from the picture at the start that I'm not exactly a "realist" when it comes to painting in general, I'm happy to use artistic license where I fancy and I like to use the same lower hull colour on all my ships (I used the correct one for a couple of early builds and didn't like the way they looked together - no accounting for taste I know), so now they are all decked out in Humbrol 100 for the below the waterline section. As this is an enamel paint, I can't (well, maybe don't want to is the better term) use it anywhere in the house with a baby around, so I've done this already as the weather was pretty good here the other day and I could take it outside and spray it in the open (minimal construction needed to get the hulls together and prop-shafts etc attached). So, I'll leave you there for a while, next post whenever I take a break from parenting and the A-10

I've only recently joined you fine folks here at Britmodeller, but I have quite a few completed models I'd love to share with you, since my wife has no interest in "enjoying" the fruits of my labour. So when I have some time I'll start with some of the more recently completed items. Here be the Aoshima 1/350 Takao, for which I used the Flyhawk photo-etch set to improve the finer details. I finished building this one back in April this year after a few months effort. It all went together fairly well, although the etch set instructions were terrible, so there are a few questionably described items that I had to deal with/makeup. The resin turrets were probably the best part of the whole set, almost worth the shonky instructions - they are so much better than the plastic originals. Overall I'm happy with the final product, a nice addition to my Japanese WW2 fleet - hope you enjoy

While Danton is in the final stages, another GB started on the other forum, this is my entry. My plan is to make her at full speed like here: But with the full name on her side, this photo was taken during trials, she was still named 30 then I'm going to use this: and I've drawn a decal with Nagatsuki's name for both sides and stern, but don't have it yet That's how much I've managed in last few days, between painting sessions on Danton: Cheers Mick

Hello, Here's my just finished 1/72 Hasegawa G4M2 Betty. I've had this kit in the stash for many years, but the typical poor Hasegawa decals kept me from building it. Just about any aftermarket sheet is for the G4M1 version, which is quite different. Luckily I found some aftermarket decals, with bonus PE, by Rising Decals for this model earlier this year, so I had to build it. Apart from the decals and the PE radar antennas on the fuselage, it's OOB. I used Mr. Color paints. This "Hamaki" was based at Omura Airfield at Kyushu, Japan in June 1945. Thanks for looking, I hope you like it.

Hi all, Currently building Fujimi's 1/350 IJA Transport Submarine Maru Yu as Maru Yu 1. The kit features a transparent side piece to allow for an interior but gives little to detail ot with. I'm attempting to scratch build as much as I can but there is scarce information outside of one or two images on the internet. Wondering if anyone knows what points 2 and 3 are in the blueprints I've found. 2 looks like crew quarters but I couldn't be sure. Any information or links at all regarding this submarine would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Seatbelts IJN Fighters STEEL (FE857) 1:48 Eduard In case you don't already know, new Eduard seatbelt sets are now all made from Photo-Etch (PE) steel, and because of their strength they can be etched from thinner material, which improves realism and flexibility in one sitting. Coupled with the new painting method that adds perceived extra depth to the buckles and other furniture by shading, they are more realistic looking and will drape better than regular brass PE. This set contains eight sets of belts, four for Mitsubishi aircraft, which had only lap belts until near the end of the war when a single shoulder harness was added; two for Nakajima aircraft, which had lap belts only throughout the war, and two more for Kawanishi aircraft, which had lap and shoulder belts throughout the war. As usual, the diagrams show the attachment points on the (generic) seats to assist you with fitting them to your model. Review sample courtesy of

Ready for inspection is my 1:72 Mitsubishi A6M2b 'Zero' by Airfix. This has to be one of the easiest and straightforward kits I have built, no flash on the sprues, fits nicely, and just enough detail. Paint was a slight issue, Humbrol being famously terrible to airbrush, but I overcame this by mixing my own off white/green for the top coat of the aircraft. All in all a nice little kit, I hope it does the aircraft which was declared the best carrier fighter aircraft in the world when it first flew justice. Thanks for looking.

Hello gentlemen, This is my entry for the Flying Boats and Float Planes GB. Tamiya 1/48th scale. Aichi M6A1 Seiran. Kit Number 61054. This kit was first released in June 1997 (20 years old at the time of writing). There are 65 parts to the aircraft. This includes 2 crew members, 2 different windscreens and 2 different gunsights depending on which one you select. There is also another 18 parts for the trolley. The decals are by Invisa-clear. Tamiya went through a stage of putting these high quality decals with their kits around this time. I've used them before, and found them to be very good. The only draw back was, when I used a set which were about ten years old, they stuck like glue to the backing paper, and could not be used. I'm hoping this was just a one off as this set I intend to use could be 20 years old. I intend to use Tamiya Acrylics for the majority of the painting. With a Flory wash for the weathering, and a brown gauche on the trolley to represent the grain on the wooden components. As you can see on the box lid, I bought my example from EDDY'S in Helston in Cornwall for £15.99. Unfortunately, EDDY'S are no longer in business. This is the art work for the original release. The kit was released again in 2007 with a different box art. The kit is typically Tamiya, very well engineered with recessed panel lines. I've chosen this subject because I wanted a simple build, and hopefully I should finish it within the time span as I don't want fail to finish in yet another group build! Below is a link to Wikipedia should you wish to know more about the Aichi Seiran. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aichi_M6A The aircraft was designed to operate from submarines of the Imperial Japanese Navy. The link below will explain more about the submarine aircraft carrier. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/I-400-class_submarine Thank you, Joe.

Hello Gentlemen, this is my next build on Britmodeller. FineMolds 1/48th scale Mitsubishi A5M4 "CLAUDE" Imperial Japanese Navy. The Mitsubishi A5M Japanese Navy Type 96 Carrier-based Fighter was the worlds first monoplane shipboard fighter to enter service and the direct ancestor of the Zero fighter. It was designed by Jiro Horikoshi who is the subject of the The Wind Rises which is an animated historical drama film. The model comes on three main sprues. Spure A contains the wing sections, B contains the engine & cockpit details with sprue D the fuselage halves. F is the transparency and P contains 2 poly caps , only one of which is required. The decal sheet has 3 colour schemes. No 1, 14th Naval Air Group, China, 1940, No 2, Aircraft carrier Kaga Naval Air Group, Japan, 1939, & No 3 Naval Third Carrier Division, 1942. There are 68 parts in total (2 of which are not used) 1 transparency & 2 poly caps. The box art. Construction stages 1 to 9 Construction stages 10 to 15 & paint chart. The three colour scheme options. Sprue A. The wing & undercarriage parts. If you look at the surface of the upper wing, you will notice the different shades of plastic. You can see it more with the naked eye. It shows the different panels very well. It will be interesting to see how they look on the finished model after the paint has been applied. Sprue B, The fuselage, engine & cockpit detail with the decal sheet. The transparency is in the decal bag along with the poly caps. I hope to start the kit in the next week or so. I will first remove all the major parts from the sprues and tape them together to get some idea of the fit. Thanks for looking, Joe.

Mitsubishi A5M4 Claude, Imperial Japanese Navy, I N J Kaga, Finemolds 1/48th scale Click on WIP to see the build thread. The kit contained 67 parts, and apart from the seat harness, was built straight out of the box including decals. It was painted with Aclad II, Aeromaster & Tamiya Acrylics. Thanks for looking, Joe.

Hi Guys, while I wait for bits of my 747 build to dry, I thought I'd put these out for you to peruse. Many years ago I went to Tokyo and took some rather bad photos of at that time the only surviving Yokosuka D4Y dive bomber. Today there is a second at Chino. Like I said, the pics aren't brilliant, but the aeroplane was a good 'un. Take a look here for a walkaround: http://warbirdswalkaround.wixsite.com/warbirds/what-s-new