Ki-45 Kai Hei “Nick”
Subject
Intended as a long-range escort fighter, the Ki-45 has a troubled development and was not ready for operations until the upgraded Ki-45 Kai (improved).
The initial version, retrospectively named the Ki-45 Kai Ko, was armed with two Ho-103 12.7 mm machine-canon (the Japanese considered anything 12.7 mm or greater to be a canon) in the nose and a Ho-3 20 mm canon in the lower starboard fuselage.
The second version was a small run of Ki-45 Kai Otsu. These aircraft were field modified to install a manually operated 37 mm anti-tank canon in place of the Ho-3.
The third version was another conversion, the Ki-45 Kai Hei, with the Ho-3 retained and the nose guns replaced by a Ho-203 37 mm automatic canon. On these aircraft, the nose was still the short, rounded shape and the barrel of the Ho-203 extended beyond the nose as can be seen on this model.
Production Ki-45 Kai Hei retained the same armament, but the Ho-203 was fully contained in a more pointed and streamlined nose.
The final version was the Ki-45 Kai Tei that replaced the Ho-3 with a pair of upward firing Ho-5 20 mm canon.
This model represents an early Ki-45 Kai Hei of the 4th Sentai flying in defence of the Japanese homeland from the Ozuki Air Base, Yamagughi in 1944. The kit instructions state that it was flown by W.O. Sadamitsu Kimura who is credited with 8 B-29 kills. There is a photo of a Ki-45 Kai Hei with 8 B-29 silhouettes on the port side of the nose that is said to be his aircraft, and Hasegawa previously has a Limited Edition version with decals for them, but not in this boxing.
The Ki-45 was given the Allied code name “Nick”.
Construction
This was one of three parallel Ki-45 builds and was built out of the box except for seat belts and antenna wire.
The only real issue with the kit is the upper section between the cockpit and gunner station. Hasegawa moulds this as a clear part and it is very slightly narrower than the assembled fuselage. While the join is on a panel line, this results in a step. I tried to eliminate this by sanding the fuselage part surfaces to reduce the width and that worked somewhat, but there is still a step on the starboard side.
Painting and Markings
I decided to use masks for as many of the markings as possible and made the national insignia/white band masks using a Cricut cutter, but hand masked the leading edge yellow and fin leading edge and fuselage stripe.
The unit insignia on the tail, small aircraft number and some stencils were kit decals.
These early Ki-45 Kai Hei would have been painted and/or touched up at the time of conversion and available photos all show similar random squiggle camouflage schemes. These look to be random, short squiggles on the nose, shorter bits on the engine cowling and longer, serpentine squiggles along the fuselage. Photos of the upper wing are difficult to find, of poor resolution and not necessarily the same aircraft type but generally look to be fairly densely camouflaged. I tried to replicate these different styles.
This was an enjoyable build, and the next two Nicks will have different camouflage styles when completed.
Great model. Great build. Great finish.
Thanks for the kind comments Bob (@bails)
Great model, looks like you nailed it! Good job on the history as well. One thing which helped me conceptualize squiggle camos was a friend who told me to imagine a scale guy with a sprayer. He would hit what he could reach, then shift position and work on another area. You can see this effect emerge in photos of the real aircraft, and sometimes even tell when two different painters were working on the same job. Once you see it you can't unsee it!
That's also an excellent mental technique to use when painting Luftwaffe "wave mirror" camo, and Italian smoke rings.
Thanks Jeff (@inchhigh) and Tom (@tcinla),
That is exactly how I imagined it.
The nose would have been awkward to reach, so smaller streaks there, the cowlings were probably taken off and painted quickly, the fuselage done in small patches an arm span across and the wings by someone standing and spraying downward, so tighter and messier.
Absolutely wonderful, Michael @michaelt
The interior and exterior do look perfect. Also that very complex camouflage scheme turned out wonderful.
Thanks, mate (@johnb)
Really nice. Love this kit. Built the night-fighter version a few years ago
Thanks George (@blackadder57).
I agree that it is a great kit - and I have two more to paint.
Wonderful result, Michael! Excellent article as well!
Thans, mate (@fiveten)
😮 wowzers!
Nice work on your Dragonslayer Michael!
Thanks George (@georgeswork).
It seems that it didn’t gain the Toryu (Dragon Slayer) name until late in the defence of homeland period.
Appropriate, given the fire breathing canon in the nose.
Very sharp work Michael. Outstanding paint scheme!
Thanks for your kind comments, Dale (@dtravis).
Absolutely gorgeous, Michael! Your masking and painting are amazing and blend perfectly with the decals. The camouflage is most convincing while being outstandingly original. The cockpit looks ready for flight. Congratulations on completing this masterpiece!
G’day Christopher (@brummbaer),
I’m having fun exploring making and using masks on my kits. In retrospect I should have tried to mask the unit insignia, too.
Another really nice build, Michael (@michaelt). Camo and markings look great. You deserve a big pat on the back for being brave enough to paint the squiggles. Well done.
G’day George (@gblair),
Thanks. I enjoy painting complex schemes, particularly if I have a photo of the subject to copy.
Great build and great paintwork!
H’day Chas (@chasbunch),
Thanks for the kind comments.
More excellent Michael Turner work. A great result, of which I particularly like the camouflage. Very realistic.
Thanks Tom (@tcinla)
A lovely 'Toryu', Michael. I really like the paint scheme, and also the fin leading edge stripe and other colourful markings. Everything came together very nicely. Well done...:-).
Thanks Paul (@paulh).
I was worried that it might look a little cliched, but I really like the way it turned out.
Beautiful work on the camo pattern - just a great-looking model! Well done.
Thanks for your kind comments, @gkittinger.
Excellent paintwork and camo pattern as others have noted. Outstanding work, Michael @michaelt.
Thanks, mate (@eb801)