Type 97 Medium Tank Chi Ha

[Paul A H]

Type 97 Medium Tank Chi Ha

1:76 Airfix

The Type 97 Chi-Ha medium tank drew on the design of the Type 95 Ha-Go light tank, but featured a larger, two-man turret and a 57mm main gun. Considered a medium tank only by Japanese standards, the Chi-Ha was no match for the M4 Sherman which weighed twice as much and featured a more powerful 75mm gun. The Chi-Ha had a crew of 4 and was powered by an air-cooled diesel engine which developed 170hp. Attempts were made to improve the Chi-Ha fairly early on in the war, and in 1942 a version with a new turret and high-velocity 47mm gun was introduced.

Airfix’s Chi-Ha isn’t a new kit by any means – it first appeared back in 1974 – but it hasn’t featured in their catalogue for a few years, and this is the first time it has appeared in the new style red packaging. The kit arrives packed into the small end-opening box that typifies Airfix’s series 1 kits. Inside are two sprues of grey plastic, upper and lower hull halves and a pair of flexible vinyl tracks. In total there are 68 parts. The mouldings look to be in good shape. There is no flash and overall the level of moulded detail looks reasonably good.

Construction is very straightforward and occupies just 6 steps in the instruction manual. The assembly of the suspension, wheels, idlers and drive sprockets is the first, and most complex, stage of the build. Each wheel is nicely moulded and the drive sprockets and idlers are moulded in two halves. Care will need to be taken to make sure that all of the wheels are in contact with the ground at the same time, and the I don’t imagine that the rather narrow tracks will be particularly easy to fix in place either.

Once the wheels are on, the rest of the construction process looks very straightforward. The sides of the hull join to the upper and lower halves, and the engine covers have to be fixed in place as well. The turret is made up of just 8 parts. Although the turret hatch is fixed in the closed position, the overall effect is quite pleasing as the amount of moulded detail is pretty good. Once the turret is complete, all that remains to do is fix the engine exhausts in place. Decals for just one colour scheme are provided, although a very helpful full-colour five-view painting diagram is provided on the back of the box.

Conclusion

Airfix’s Chi-Ha isn’t the only small scale Type 97 on the market – Dragon also produce a version in 1:72 scale – but it is a straightforward little kit that should be fin to build. The series 1 price tag is a bonus too.

Review sample courtesy of