Why not Louis? If the inside of that area has detail it’s a pretty straightforward modification that will step up the overall detail of the model, and you certainly have the skills to do that easily.

Those seatbelts do look very good. I have one set from HGW (can’t remember what scale and for what subject tbh, perhaps 1/32 for some wingnut kit in the stash...) and they use fabric, but I was not impressed by the look and the fiddle detail, those look better I’d say from here. Also used a couple of 1/48 “super fabric” from eduard, very easy to use, glue them with white glue- no fuss- but the sense of depth is absent. I actually like to work with PE belts and although its a demanding material it can be shaped to realistic poses with care and a good CA gel glue.

Hello my friends,
@airbum
@holzhamer
@fiveten
I have decided to open both of the fuselage side entry doors, and I will also drop the elevators. Since I went through the extra trouble to install a nice seat harness, and have the canopy posed open, it just makes sense to allow a little more room to see what's inside.

These planes are often seen on the ground with the elevators dropped into the down position. However once in a while you will see them raised like these are. This is most likely when the seat harness was used to hold the stick back. These next two pictures also have the rudder offset to the left a little.

I am not sure yet if I will do anything to the rudder, but most likely I will leave it centered.
As always, comments are encouraged.

@lgardner, since you leave the "door open" and I presume the pedals are centered it makes perfect sense to leave the ruddr centered. Looking forward to the next chapter here.

Hi Louis @lgardner!
Your cowling looks absolutely stunning!
It will definitely look better once it gets the green blotches.
As for the Ki-45, I think I cannot resist building it...
Waiting eagerly for your "open door" progress!

That cowling is looking most impressive, Louis. As you suggested, it will look like the real deal with camo applied. You should be able to get some pretty fine airbrushed squiggles in 1/32nd, so the camo will no doubt look very sharp. Hearty congratulations on your progress so far.

Hi Louis @lgasrdner1
Of course I'm in for the Ki-45 mini group! Got the Nichimo kit, ready to go.
What a great idea! I will be more than happy to participate and see these great builds materialize.
Waiting for your green flag to start!
Your Shoki progress looks amazing, looking forward to this next installment, too!

Thanks for the compliments gentlemen ! I sincerely appreciate them.

Spiros, @fiveten
I will definitely get the Ki-45 kits down out of the stash. If you want to start the mini group build up that would be great. Otherwise I can do it. Who ever gets the chance to take care of it first will work. Thanks for accepting the invitation. I’ll see if I can get a few more people to join in on this little venture who have expressed interest in the past.

Erik, @airbum
Using the old wooden sticks as an improvised parts holder is a great excuse to get ice cream. It has several other benefits too, such as the occasional midnight snack. From what I have read it can also be used as a currency, when it comes to QC inspectors.

The bottom line is that ice cream is good for you, unless you’re trying to lose weight or you’re a diabetic... but then there’s sugar free options.

Looks great, Louis (@lgardner). I am looking forward to the final work on the cowling and rest of the build. I just finished my 1/48 Ki-44 and the SBS resin cockpit I used had resin pieces for the cockpit entry panels. I think opening up the panels looks great, especially since it is difficult to find any photos of a plane with the panels open.