Arii 1/72nd Mitsubishi G3M3 Nell Medium Bomber PTO WWII
Some really outstanding builds lately. Very inspirational. Today we have Arii's Nell which I believe is a rebox of the LS kit in 72nd scale. Something we don't see to often other than the Betty is the Nell medium bomber. Though quite a bit larger than the B-25 and B-26 in wingspan and length. But as usual very light, unarmored and fast. Very basic kit which appears toy like in it's packaging. Still engraved panel lines and overdone riveting throughout, it still builds to a decent looking Nell. Couldn't find any aftermarket bits for this. So fully OOB on this including the decals. The decals were not issue despite the age. I chose to build a camo torpedo version. A scheme of IJN aircraft grey lower using Aeromaster acrylic, with Gunze Earth and Aeromaster IJN Dk Green on top. MM Flat Black for the engine cowlings and Alclad Aluminum for the props. This build was first started around 2005 but finally completed it this year. It was one of those put on the shelf sat in storage before moving into my new home type project. One of the issues was the RH side fuselage was short shot right at the tail. Just filled it all in with milliput and just kept building until it was even with the LH side. The clear pieces are quite thick, and that what took me so long really was masking all those clear panels. I would mask a section here and there. After about 20 minutes I have to stop and do something else. Thats the only part of building some WWII multi engine aircraft, masking those canopies. Some fighters too can be complicated. Hasegawa has one out now in this scale. It would be interesting to get one in 48th scale. Thanks for viewing.
Chuck
Fly Navy
Chuck,
You did a wonderful job on this model. I have seen this kit and what you did with it is amazing.
I would really like to build a Nell but not in 1/72. I agree with you it should be done in 1/48. The Nell and the Betty were such significant Japanese bombers. Do you hear us, Tamiya?
Thanks Frank, with so many new kits becoming available, updated as well from older generation, though not always accurate compared to the older kits. We hope that someone has a Nell or Peggy on the board for consideration. The last couple of years some surprises have appeared.
Nice work. I'd buy it in 1/48 as well
Thanks Bryan hopefully someday soon.
Boy, that's a nice job on a not-so-nice kit. Interesting to see something besides the more commonly-seen camo schemes.
Thanks James, still trying to remember how I came about getting this kit, either from Ebay, which is unlikely more like maybe on a whim at a hobby shop when I was living in Fairfield, CT, in the 90's. Wanted to build something I have never built before and figured this was one to go at, very basic simple cockpit, so it didnt take long to assemble, it took longer to mask all that glazing, and 3 years of not building, so it sat quite awhile.
that's a very interesting model to look at chuck...and one rarely seen...i love the fact that you don't only build the latest and the greatest...keep em coming bro
Thanks Bob, I would say that all models are created equal, but we all know that isnt true. It is part of the challenge of this hobby.