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Terry Schuler
37 articles

Hasegawa 1/48 scale Nakijima Ki-43 II

February 14, 2018 · in Aviation · · 18 · 3.6K

I found a diagram of this aircraft years ago and always thought it to be an attractive scheme. I stashed it away in my reference box. A box of ideas for someday / maybe. Not too long ago I found myself with a scale kit in my hands needing a home. Remembering my private stash of reference's I knew I would soon have that old diagram displayed on my shelf.

This particular scheme represent a II used for the home defense of Japan in 1944-45.

This kit is simply a joy to build. The only thing that could be a little better would be the exhaust stacks. The kit gives you both styles used and both have the exhaust ports solid. I carefully dug out the end of each exhaust port. I then used a small round wooded stir stick, by rounding the end and stuffing a small piece of 2000 grit sand paper into the exhaust port and twisting the stick in a circular motion and "yes", this took a long time. I managed to round out the hole to come up with a very attractive exhaust stack.

The model was painted with Alclad and Model Master metalizer.

Reader reactions:
17  Awesome

7 additional images. Click to enlarge.


18 responses

  1. Stunning NMF Oscar. Your build is simply outstanding in my opinion, accurate, well painted and superbly finished with the right amount of wear and tear to look realistic in the scale. Well done sir!

  2. Now that's just a beautiful build of a clean, graceful subject! Excellent work!
    Bo

  3. Love the paint job, so good.

  4. Very nice work,Terry.

  5. Nice one Terry.

  6. Beautifully built & finished, Terry. The Alclad & Metalizer finish is top-notch. "Oscar" is a handsome plane & you did great with it. I have to say that the Japanese planes in Natural Metal are often VERY attractive ... as this one is.

    Well done, Amigo!

  7. A great looking build, looks great in natural metal.

  8. Excellent work Terry. The Ki-43 is a good looking plane. Yours turned out fantastic and I really like it. I also like how you have subtle color differences between the panels. The weathering looks spot on too.

    That must have been a chore sanding the inside of the exhaust stacks, especially since it is a 1/48 size. I remember doing that same thing with my 1/32 "Big Brother Oscar" (also by Hasegawa, but an much older tooling), and it seemed like it took forever.

    What color did you use for the cockpit if you don't mind my asking ? I have done some research and some state that some of the earlier built Ki-43's were finished in a color close to "Gunship Gray", while others used a Nakajima Green.

    • Louis, Thanks for the nice comments, I can't remember the exact color (green) I used for the cockpit, I think it was Tamiya J.N Green acrylic. I like it better than grey, as it gives it a better contrast for seeing into this little cockpit.

  9. Gorgeous work, Terry...very clean. Congratulations on another spectacular model.

  10. Beautifully finished, terry...nice work!

  11. Very nice! Excellent NMF finish, and just the right amount of sheen and weathering. That's a beautiful build!

  12. Your chosen scheme, and the masterful NMF set off the lines of this elegant aircraft beautifully, a real pleasure to look at.

  13. Beautiful! I have a soft spot for bare metal Japanese aircraft. Your description of how you opened the ends of the exhausts sounded like you were breaking out of Shawshank Prison.

    I have the Ki-43 I in my queue and will start it soon. I got a set of resin exhausts that look far better than the kit pieces. The only minor annoyance for me with this kit is the way they put that mold seam right through the aileron.

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