Tamiya 1/48 Nakajima Ki-84 Hayate (Frank)

TAMIYA 1:48 NAKAJIMA KI-84 HAYATE (FRANK)

Reviewer: James Garnett (rec.models.scale)
Kit Review submitted: 26 November 2001

Aircraft:
The Hayate has been called the best Japanese fighter of the Pacific war. Great speed and manoeuvrability made this the Japanese Army fighter of choice. It was equal in most, if not all respects to its Allied opponents, incorporating a good armament and good armour protection. Unfortunately for the Japanese, it came in too few numbers, and maybe too late (April 1944, production models) to make much difference.

The Kit:
This Tamiya kit is starting to show its age now, dating back from the early 80's but features crisp detail and all the trims expected in a quality, if overpriced, Tamiya offering. Eduard offer an etched set that is used for the Hasegawa kit and can obviously double up and be used for this one and there are plenty of other options as far as decal sheets out there are concerned too. Light grey plastic with well defined panel lines and the clear parts for the canopy come up well. The instruction sheet is typical tamiya and provides clear assembly steps for constructing this project.

Construction:
There is not a great deal to report on the construction of this kit because overall the fit of the parts was very good. I used my Eduard set in the cockpit to spice it up because the kit offers only a basic rendition of a pilot's office and certainly benefits from the extra detail and effort. One interesting aspect of the cockpit was that the instrument panel is split into two halves for the inside of either fuselage half. You need to remove this or file the halves and remove any join lines if you are going to add on the Eduard acetate film and etched console cover.

The cockpit fits well, the fuselage halves then trap this quite well and affix together easily. The main wings are split into halves and are a bit bulky but again affix well to the fuselage. Gaps result around the roots and these require filling and sanding along with the tailplanes. The external detail was added last and I used ultra fine cotton for the antenna wire stretching back to the tailfin.

Everything else fits well on the model including the canopy which goes on nicely. This was one of the better earlier Tamiya kits I have had the pleasure to assemble for a while.

Versions & Decals:
Late war Imperial Japanese Army Air Force examples are all that are catered for in this kit and are all finished in the upper Dark Green as used by these aircraft but colourful unit markings separate the versions. The Tamiya decals are thick and glossy but conform well with the assistance of decal setting solution.

Painting and weathering:
The whole model was sprayed with polished aluminium as an undercoat, but primer was placed on the naked plastic first. Once this was dry I then painted the upper dark green and applied the under gloss coat in preparation for the decals. The deals were applied and a final matt coat was applied over the whole model before the weathering effect was undertaken. This was achieved by using a toothpick and the hobby knife to chip away at the green paint, exposing the silver underneath. So long as you don't overdo it, I find this the most effective way of weathering Japanese aircraft.

Accuracy:
I don't have any qualms with the accuracy of this kit which captures the Hayate in my feeling, almost perfectly. Only the scale police are likely to issue any infringement notices with the kit missing out by just a couple of millimetres.

Overall:
Recommended - may not be up to the great Hasegawa 48th offering which is much newer and I believe better, but this kit still holds its own if it can be picked up at a decent price, perhaps the biggest shortfall of this kit.

Related Reviews:-

Hasegawa 1/72 Ki-84 Hayate

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