This
early war version of the most famous of all Japanese fighters was, without
doubt, the best fighter in the Pacific when the United States entered the war,
in 1941. Although U.S. intelligence had been receiving reports about the
capability of the Zero for 18 months prior to Pearl Harbor, these were either
ignored or dismissed outright as incredible. Hence when the war with Japan
began, U.S. air forces were caught completely by surprise. Nothing in the U.S.
aircraft arsenal could match it, although the P-40 was more maneuverable in a
run-for-your-life dive. It would take the arrival of faster, more heavily armed
American fighters, along with a change of tactics away from the classic turning
dogfight, before the Zero's weaknesses would be revealed and exploited.
The
Zero, next to the P-51 and Bf-109, is probably the most modeled WWII fighter.
The Tamiya kit of the early war Zeke was considered state-of-the-art when it was
released over 25 years ago. By today’s standards it’s just OK. Cockpit
detail is passable and there are a mix of very fine raised and engraved panel
lines. The wheel wells are molded in and detailed plus you get a choice of
either open or closed canopy clear parts. The engine is just a half molding so
displaying it with the cowl removed or open requires some aftermarket resin.
Flaps are molded in place so don’t expect Hasegawa finery here. Despite their
age these molds have really stood up to the test of time. There is no flash. The
only problem I could see was the lower wing (which is one piece) was a bit
warped. The decals are typical Tamiya and seem thick but after application that
thickness appears to go away.
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Cockpit assembly is
straight forward. I gave everything a coat of Japanese interior green first.
Then applied a black enamel wash and painted the various side consoles and
details black. There is no molded-in instrument panel detail. It’s blank and
flat. There is a decal to use which is passable. Some may prefer to replace the
cockpit with an Aires or True Detail resin set but I was building this strictly
OOB and trying to keep the price down (hey, I got the kit for $11 at the LHS).
The fuselage seams require a bit of careful sanding and filling to preserve the
raised panel line detail. However the wing to fuse joint is perfect. The seam
between the front windshield and the fuse is a bit ‘off’ so I used some
thinned putty here. The kit does go together very quickly and I admit I spent
more time sanding the mentioned seams then anything.
Once
I was satisfied with everything then I masked off the windscreen and cockpit and
gave the plane a light tie coat of primer. Since these were naval birds the
paint scheme was relatively easy. I sprayed Tamiya IJN grey acrylic over the
airframe and PollyScale black acrylic for the cowl. Once those colors were dry I
masked off the gear bays and inside gear doors for Gunze aotake green. The prop
and spinner were sprayed Floquil old silver. Clear gloss followed in preparation
for decaling. One thing is for sure, Tamiya gives you plenty of options on the
decal sheet. There are markings for 5 different Zeros. I chose the markings for
Japanese ace Saburo Sakai around the early 1942 timeframe. The decals went on
with no trouble but I did need to bring out the big guns for getting them to
snuggle down; I used Walther’s SolvaSet. Once the decals were dry I applied a
panel line wash with thinned, black enamel. I didn’t weather the bird that
much. Early war Zeros always look very clean and well kept compared to the late
war variants. A clear, satin coat of PollyScale was applied and it was time to
install the landing gear, wheels, antenna and antenna wire. I opted for the open
canopy since I had installed a set of pose able CE seatbelts and wanted to show
them off.
So
there you have it; a nice rendition of an early war Zero at an affordable price.
There are other, more detailed and expensive Zekes out there but the Tamiya kit
represents a good value for the modeling dollar and builds into a fine aircraft.
Jeff
http://www.geocities.com/jbrundt
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