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\nThis is my 1\/48 Scale Hasegawa # JT80:2200, Ki43-I Hayabusa (Oscar). Here are some notes and hints for those who would decide to build this elegant WWII. plane.<\/p>\n
\nThis is my 1\/48 Scale Hasegawa # JT80:2200, Ki43-I Hayabusa (Oscar). Here are some notes and hints for those who would decide to build this elegant WWII. plane.<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/p>\n Position lights and the landing reflector Older Ki43-I.<\/span><\/strong> type was not equipped with the landing reflector. The kit\u2019s wing has a \u201cdent\u201d for landing light glass within the wing leading edge though. This indention had been filled up by the clear (kit) part Q1 and a little putty, then sanded very thoroughly – because of the natural metal finish would magnify every little inaccuracy.<\/p>\n Pitot Tube Interior Canopy 1\/ To replace the canopy with a brand new acetate (vac-u-form) one and to drill a new (and smaller) opening into the front windshield.<\/p>\n 2\/ To use the original canopy and modify it \u2013 to make the insection look smaller.<\/p>\n I went the second way. I had cemented the gun-sight onto the fuselage at first and glued the front canopy part (R2 kit part) onto the fuselage.\u00a0Then I cut out a thin aluminium-like foil stripe – as wide as was the canopy framing and with the span as was the windscreen base. The stripe covered the lower part of the oversized gap in the front canopy window and merges properly \u2013 you merely see it:<\/p>\n 2. Colors and Painting<\/span><\/p>\n Interior Color The Mr. Color Super Clear gloss coat was used after applying the interior colors – serving as a protecting sealant. The patina and \u201cdirt\u201d were made using a mix of brown (Burnt Sienna) and black oil color (in varying amounts) diluted in Mig\u2019s Thinner for washes.<\/p>\n The edges were dry brushed very gently using Light Grey and White. The Dk. brown wash is used for emphasizing the detail depth.<\/p>\n Surface finish I placed a Sticky Note paper on the panel edge line (masking neighboring panel) and oversprayed the panel \u2013 but only partly, with a thicker coat near the paper edge and nearly no coat on the opposite side. This is a very simple and quick method – saving time, masking work and as a bonus \u2013 you will save money for various paint shades.<\/p>\n It is suitable also for those modelers who prefer equal shade across every particular panel. The Sticky Note paper can be cut into smaller pieces and then stuck around the panel as a mask. The whole surface of the panel is then oversprayed with darker shade evenly. The different panels will get different amount of darkening coat this way.<\/p>\n Painting the \u201cmoving\u201d surfaces Hinomaru Red Color The original plane according to which I tried to build my was one of those flying in the famous\u00a0 Akeno flying school. \u201cMy\u201d plane had the Akeno emblem (most probably in red) on its rudder with two supposed pilot\u2019s Katakana symbols above it. Also the Aikoku number (most probably in black) was on the fuselage (just ahead of the tail planes). I had no such decals so they had to be made according to the historical (b\/w) photographs. I scanned a real plane photo, then traced the Akeno emblem using Adobe Illustrator on my PC. I wrote the Aikoku and Katakana letters using common Japanese typefaces. My modeler-friend printed the home made decal for me, using his laser printer and blank decal paper.<\/p>\n The kit acquired the Mr. Color Super Clear gloss coat despite the fact that ALCLAD colors do NOT need any sealant or varnish coat. The Super Clear was applied as the unifying base (for sure to tell you the true) for weathering mix of brown (Burnt Sienna) plus black oil color for \u201coil stains\u201d and \u201cdirt\u201d diluted in Mig\u2019s Thinner for washes.<\/p>\n The lower part of the main undercarriage and wheels, the undercarriage wells\u2019 rear surfaces, the lower tail plane surfaces, plus the fuselage lower rear end were oversprayed with very light coat of the matt Light Earth Brown (HUMBROL) \u2013 to imitate dust and\/or dry mud from the airfield.<\/p>\n The black antiglare panels<\/span> (just forward and behind the canopy) were paintbrushed onto the ALCLAD allu base. By the way, also my black is not truly black. There are several very faint whitening sprayings onto the gloss black coat. I used the Model Master # 1723 Gunship Gray color.<\/p>\n The color chipping<\/span> was then made as in real service \u2013 by scraping the upper color away. It had to be made very gently using a surgical blade or a thin needle tip. I appreciated a thick Super Clear coat in this stage \u2013 it helped me not to scribe through – into the ALCLAD allu base. Another place where I used the same method was the black walkway wing panel.<\/p>\n The aerial cord<\/span> is made of a thin monofilament<\/a>. I chose the black one (dark brown in real), so there was no need to paint it additionally, unlike when using a thin and colorless fishing line. The cord was glued by the Super Glue and tensioned by heating with a hair dryer afterwards.<\/p>\n Pros:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n Cons:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/modeltalking.hobbyart.sk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Ki-43-I-HAYABUSA-OSCAR-20110204_0052.jpg\" "\\"Ki-43-I")
<\/a><\/p>\n1. Improvements I have made<\/span><\/h2>\n
\nThe position lights are a CMK 010 set<\/a> \u2013 the Clear Cast. The wing tip lights are brush colored by TAMIYA Clear Green resp. Clear Red. The two lights on the rudder were left unpainted. All the lights were glued onto the kit using water-soluble PVA glue. This looked more practical than cyanoacrylate glue because of better possibility to better position the lights \u2013 the upper and lower lights on the wing tips are aligned with each other (looking both along the airplane longitudinal axis or perpendicularly). You would probably try several times to achieve this geometry so it is better to use nonaggressive and slowly drying glue.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n
\nI used two thin metal pipes (injection needles) inserted one into another. Using caynoacrylate glue, the tube was glued into the original opening within the leading edge of the wing.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n
\nI used the PART Photo etched set S48-112 for the cockpit interior. The set contains also useful exterior details, such as very thin undercarriage covers, engine cowling flaps or other engine enhancements. There is also the landing reflector framing \u2013 save it for another plane. <\/span><\/span><\/strong>I also added some lead wires inside the canopy according to reference photos. The cable attached to the control stick was made of a thin lead foil.<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t
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\nYou can find the insection made into the front canopy window within the kit. The tubular gun-sight goes through this (oversized) opening. To make this detail more realistic there are two main ways:<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n
\nI have used Mr. Color # 127 COCKPIT COLOR (NAKAJIMA) as the main interior color, \u201cleaving\u201d the rudder pedals, the pilot ‘s seat and the control stick in natural metal finish – ALCLAD II Aluminium. Main instrument panel and some more instruments have Dk. Grey color.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n
\nI decided not to make a camouflaged bird, but an overall natural metal finish instead \u2013 to enhance the elegance and shape smoothness of this Nakajima flying jewel. Different ALCLAD II colors were used to make the feeling of natural difference of particular covering plates. I decided to use only 2 basic shades of aluminium: Aluminium ALC 101<\/span> and Polished aluminium ALC 105<\/span>. All the additional shades were achieved very simply – by overspraying these basic shades with a thin Dark aluminium<\/span> coat.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n
\nAll \u201cmoving\u201d surfaces (fabric covered in reality) were airbrushes using Mr. Color #128 Gray Green. The color was not uniformly sprayed onto the whole surface, but in color gradients simulating real shadows in lower areas and lighter uppermost ribs. I tried to achieve this effect using the same \u201cshadowing\u201d method as I used with (upper mentioned) aluminium plates, but with one basic color and two additional shades. The darker shade was the original Mr. Color gray green paint. The lighter one was a mixture of the gray green color with white. The lightest color was the same mixture, but more drops of white were added. The shades were applied in the same direction on both wings (as the sun shines from one side of the real plane in a moment when we look at it). This effect is more pronounced on upper surfaces and rudder and less on the lower ones. I tried to use more white on upper surfaces too (to simulate the whitening effect caused by sunshine exposition).<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n
\nI always like to use paint rather than decals. So I threw the Hinomaru decal roundels away and used the same color as with my Ki-27. (You can read my Hinomaru color survey here<\/a>. The ALCLAD II Dark Aluminium was used as the base first, than oversprayed with Mr. Color 11136 red. Every Hinomaru roundel has this (same) base to achieve the same red.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n3. Decals<\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n4. Weathering and Patina<\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n5. The Aerial Cord<\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n6. Pros and Cons of the Kit (as I see it)<\/span><\/h2>\n
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<\/a><\/h2>\nMy special thanks to<\/span>:<\/span><\/h2>\n
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