1/48 Tamiya N1K1 "Kyofu" (Rex)

by Tony Feredo

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Here is one of my quick builds,  a 1/48 Tamiya N1K1 "Kyofu" (Allied Codename: "Rex" ) floatplane.  Built it straight out of the box and used the kit's decals except for the IFF yellow orange on the wing leading edge and propeller warning stripes which were painted.  Generally there were no fit problems and the parts went together well.  I encountered a few tiny gaps on the wings, but they were quickly remedied by applying a few drops of  Mr. Surfacer 500.

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I painted the model with my own color mix of Kawanishi Dk Green and IJN Grey using Tamiya and Gunze acrylics for the fuselage and Gunze Metalizers for the propeller.   The camo pattern was airbrushed using combination of free hand and soft masking.  I applied a wash to give the model some depth and applied very minimal weathering.

As a fan of Japanese WWII aircraft I had fun building this kit. This floatplane is a good break from land based aircraft subjects that I usually build.  I've got a few more floatplanes and flying boats on the shelf and I might just build another one soon. 

Cheers and Happy Modeling!

Tony

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Photos and text © by Tony Feredo