I built Hasegawa's
very nice Nakajima B5N "Kate" torpedo bomber using Eduard's
photoetched detail set, and mounted it on Eduard's Japanese carrier deck. This
represents an aircraft used on the Pearl Harbor Raid, flying from the carrier
Kaga. Although the deck is for a Zuikaku class carrier, I don't think it
diminishes the effect of the display. I used the kit decals.
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The markings diagram
suggests unpainted lower surfaces, I could find no photos to support this.
Research showed that some Kates had their upper surfaces repainted before the
attack. Finding no evidence of Kates wearing an overall Nakajima Navy Gray, I
chose to use Nakajima Amber Gray (Ame-iro). The topside was painted with
Nakajima Navy Green, the cowl is Blue-Black, and the "China Brown"
tail is a lightened Primer Red Brown. Nakajima Interior Gray Green was used for
the cockpit. All of these colors came from the WEM (White Ensign Models)
Colourcoats line of paints.
The metallics
are various shades of Alcad II lacquers. Eduard's set includes many items for
the engine, rear machine gun, and landing gear, as well as the cockpit. Spares
are provided for some of the smaller items. Also included on the PE fret is a
trolley for the tailwheel, a nice touch. It's inclusion is what prompted me to
purchase the flight deck.
Painting the deck
was a small project in itself. As it is molded in black plastic, I first sprayed
several coats of gray primer. Model Master Wood, Aircraft Gray, and White were
used to paint it. Applying the washes and removing the excess was very
time-consuming.
The kit torpedo does
not have the wooden fins, so I cut some from sheet styrene. The figure came from
Fine Mold's D4Y "Judy" kit. It is molded so crisply that it almost
rivals resin.
Overall, I am very
pleased with this kit. It was a lot of fun to build, and I highly recommend it.
Bill
Visit my website to
see other models of mine, I also build models on commission. http://www.pix.prettyneatinc.com/
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