A6M Zero

[Jadera]

Me and a group of friends at school are building a large scale Zero, and we were wondering if anyone of you guys on here had any historical Zero documents, like part manifests any other historical stuff, but anything would be amazing.
Thanks guys!

 

[fubar57]

A6M3 Operations manual

A6M3 Operations manual and blue prints. All in Japanese. Copy's of the orginal drawings. Found at the Japanese Center for asian records. You will need to unzip this file from a RAR format because the website does not accept DjVu files. Then to view the file you will need to install a DjVu...

ww2aircraft.net

 

[MIflyer]

This is posted in its entirety elsewhere on this website.

 

[MIflyer]

And I can post all of this if anyone wants it as well.

 

[Jadera]

thank you thank you thank you so much guys yall are so cool

 

[cvairwerks]

If you are serious about building, then you need to be prepared to drop several hundred bucks on reference materials. Here are first three you should probably have for starters:

Amazon.co.jp: 零式艦上戦闘機図面集 : 海軍航空技術廠: Japanese Books

Amazon.co.jp: 零式艦上戦闘機図面集 : 海軍航空技術廠: Japanese Books

www.amazon.co.jp

Amazon.co.jp: 零戦秘録: 完全復刻資料・写真集 零式艦上戦闘機取扱説明書 : 原 勝洋: Japanese Books

Amazon.co.jp: 零戦秘録: 完全復刻資料・写真集 零式艦上戦闘機取扱説明書 : 原 勝洋: Japanese Books

www.amazon.co.jp

https://www.ebay.com/itm/227469173818?_trkparms=itmf%3D1%26aid%3D1110006%26rkt%3D10%26asc%3D342689%26pid%3D101506%26mech%3D1%26algv%3DSimOrganicCassiniWithToraRecalls%26pmt%3D1%26amclksrc%3DITM%26sd%3D407018456213%26sid%3DAQALAAAAEG8UAwS61Fn6YIWmINVO6t0%3D%26itm%3D227469173818%26noa%3D1%26plcampt%3D0%3A162090617015%26algo%3DHOMESPLICE.SIM%26ao%3D1%26rk%3D10%26mehot%3Dnone%26lsid%3D0%26meid%3D4a03722ce7d0478d8a8f1310e692f8dc%26pg%3D4481478&_trksid=p4481478.c101506.m1851

You'll need to also learn or figure out how to read Japanese or translate it to English. While these are pretty extensive references, they are not complete enough to simply go and start cutting metal and making parts. I have the first book I listed and even with more than 45 years in aircraft construction and restoration, I would have significant challenges in building a flyable replica off what documentation is available out there.

BTW, for giggles, my current main restoration project has over 13,000 drawings, and I don't think I have a complete set. There are factory standard parts drawings that I don't have and it will require me to derive dimensions from existing parts and from assembly drawings. It's going to take me til nearly March of next year to finish converting the drawings from microfilm to electronic format for shop use and I started that part of the process in May of this year. I still have to earn a paycheck or I'd get more time every week to work on it.

 

[cvairwerks]

Another data point to keep in mind, that you are going to need to spend between $150,000 and $200,000 for a P&W 1830 engine, prop and manufacturing the landing gear. Quality overhauld engines are running 6-10 months lead time and they don't take payments.... 2024T3 is running about $6 a square foot for .032" and .025" is about $5. Between everything that is formed from sheet, wasteage and screwed up parts, you would probably need somewhere around 1100 square feet of various thicknesses.

By the time you get everything designed and prints done, materials bought and a shop tooled up, you are probably going to be dropping better than a million $ on this project.

 

[Username93939]

Another data point to keep in mind, that you are going to need to spend between $150,000 and $200,000 for a P&W 1830 engine, prop and manufacturing the landing gear. Quality overhauld engines are running 6-10 months lead time and they don't take payments.... 2024T3 is running about $6 a square foot for .032" and .025" is about $5. Between everything that is formed from sheet, wasteage and screwed up parts, you would probably need somewhere around 1100 square feet of various thicknesses.

By the time you get everything designed and prints done, materials bought and a shop tooled up, you are probably going to be dropping better than a million $ on this project.

Hey i'm another member of the group working on this.
I can't tell if this is a joke or not, but just to clarify, we are making a large scale rc plane; not a real one. It will use like a hobby shop engine and be made of like balsa wood and we would like to build certain components of it from scratch. That is why we are looking for these resources-so that we can make CAD models of some of the parts with more complex geometry.

 

[SaparotRob]

I'll admit I thought you were talking about a piloted plane. We get our hopes up for warbirds.

 

[cvairwerks]

Hey i'm another member of the group working on this.
I can't tell if this is a joke or not, but just to clarify, we are making a large scale rc plane; not a real one. It will use like a hobby shop engine and be made of like balsa wood and we would like to build certain components of it from scratch. That is why we are looking for these resources-so that we can make CAD models of some of the parts with more complex geometry.

Is no problem grasshopper....(jeez, I'm dating myself.....) Specificity helps a bit, as Mitsubishi uses Model with a number to designate variations on the A6M. The IJN used the A6M-(x) designator.

I'd suggest you should probably part with the 60$ or so for the Ziroli plans and build from them. Unless you are going to cnc parts, you would be far ahead. There is a service that lasers parts for the Ziroli plans and the kits aren't too bad. If you are going to low budget it, a used .70 to .90 for those plans ca be had for under $150 on fleaby. A new one will set you back $250-800, depending on brand.

 

[Username93939]

Is no problem grasshopper....(jeez, I'm dating myself.....) Specificity helps a bit, as Mitsubishi uses Model with a number to designate variations on the A6M. The IJN used the A6M-(x) designator.

I'd suggest you should probably part with the 60$ or so for the Ziroli plans and build from them. Unless you are going to cnc parts, you would be far ahead. There is a service that lasers parts for the Ziroli plans and the kits aren't too bad. If you are going to low budget it, a used .70 to .90 for those plans ca be had for under $150 on fleaby. A new one will set you back $250-800, depending on brand.

we are actually using the ziroli plans as a starting point, however we're making some modifications to it and also intend to make the vast majority of the components ourselves since we have access to all of the tools and machines to do so (lasercutter, metal cnc, etc) as well as the materials to make it

 

[Jadera]

yeah sorry guys just to clarify, its a relatively small large model rc aircraft, neither of us are planning on getting in and piloting, although userna93939 is small enough to do so

 

[Jim MacDonald]

MIflyer,

If possible, I'd like to see the complete Kinsei article or a link to it. TIA, Mac.

 

[Simon Thomas]

MIflyer,

If possible, I'd like to see the complete Kinsei article or a link to it. TIA, Mac.

Aviation Week 1945-05-01 : Aviation Week : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

archive.org

 

[Jim MacDonald]

Thanks for taking the time to post that, Simon. I was also hoping to see the info for the Kinsei engine as well.

Thanks again,

Mac

 

[Jadera]

Aviation Week 1945-05-01 : Aviation Week : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

archive.org

Thanks Simon!

 

[Spits2]

Try Shinpachi sans thread on his 3D CAD project.

 

[Jim MacDonald]

Try Shinpachi sans thread on his 3D CAD project.

Will do, Spits. Thanks.

Mac