The
Kit: 09384 Hasegawa Mitsubishi A6M5b Zero Type 52 Otsu
Additions: Eduard
Japanese Navy seat belts
Construction
This Zero is
built straight OOB except for the seat belts from Eduard, Hasegawa has
supplied a great kit with little fuss in construction. Like with most kits
from Hasegawa there are a few extra parts for making up two types of Zero.
The kit was very straight forward to build with little putty required in
the build, probably one of the very few kits that every thing seems to
fit.
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images below to see larger images
I opted to leave
the cowling and engine off until I had finished painting the Zero picture
3 shows the kit prior to airbrushing. Picture 4 shows the first colour I
added to the Zero Aluminium.
Painting
After painting
the entire kit in Aluminium, I then went over the Zero in gloss clear,
followed up with the green and grey for the fuselage, and the black for
the cowling. Once the paint was nearly dry I went to work on the kit with
the masking tape ripping the paint off, for that chipped effect.
An
other coat of gloss clear was airbrushed over the entire kit for the
decals.
Finishing Touches
After applying the decals I
went over the kit yet again with the gloss clear to seal in the decals and
ready for the pastel chalk. Picture 6 shows the mess of the pastel chalk before
its wiped off. I have found that with the last couple of kits that the
longer I leave the pastel chalk on the more it sets into the panel lines. I have
been leaving the pastel chalk on for a couple of days before wiping it off.
Once I'm happy with the outcome of the pastel chalk and the highlighted panel
lines I then go over the entire kit with matt gloss to seal in the pastel chalk.
With the matt gloss now dry, the kit is ready to be finished cockpit window,
cowling, propeller, landing gears etc Zero finished. This kit is made
up to represent Tsukuba Naval Air Group Oct. 1944.
Thanks
-
To Craig at Areowoks
for getting me in the Eduard seat belts. Craig can be contacted via E-mail at aeroworks@iprimus.com.au for
a product listing.
-
To Steve Bamford for
placing yet another article on ARC.
Alan
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