**** DONE: GB-41 1:48 Nakajima Ki-44-II Ko - PTO from 1937

[fubar57]

Username: fubar57
First name: George
Category: Advanced
Manufacturer: Hasegawa
Model: Nakajima Ki.44-II kō
Scale: 1:48

This aircraft is from the Akeno Training Flight Division, Akeno Airfield, 1944.

Rod's WarBirds​

 

[fubar57]

I'll get started on this once I get to the end of my other build. I bought this used and it has been partially started and painted. I'll remove or paint over the cockpit colours as they could or could not be correct according to this...Nakajima Ki-44 "Tojo" Threads
On to the innards...

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Note the pre-painted parts. The seat will become aluminum, not sure about the floor

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Some more paint to be changed

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As the wings were already loose I decided to do a test fit as several of the builds I checked in on mentioned that the upper wing parts were misaligned and had to be filled. Sure enough...

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....however, a check of some line drawings in "Famous Airplanes of the World #16- Army Type 2 Fighter "Shoki" shows this...

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Not sure why Hasegawa chose to do it this way rather the keeping the edges the same and running a panel line but it works for me

 

[Crimea_River]

Good eye Geo and looking forward to see what you do with this kit.

 

[Wurger]

...
As the wings were already lose I decided to do a test fit as several of the builds I checked in on mentioned that the upper wing parts were misaligned and had to be filled. Sure enough...

View attachment 531824
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....however, a check of some line drawings in "Famous Airplanes of the World #16- Army Type 2 Fighter "Shoki" shows this...

View attachment 531825
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Not sure why Hasegawa chose to do it this way rather the keeping the edges the same and running a panel line but it works for me

All is correct there Geo. No need to apply the putty. The fighting flaps protruded beyond the wing trailing edge what can be noticed at the tops. However if you would have a look at the undersides the protruding isn't noticed. It is because of the aerofoil of the flaps and the bays for them. Here the examples.

the pic source: Rod's WarBirds

 

[fubar57]

Good stuff. I swapped out my Post #1 photo and source info with your 2nd to last photo. The one I had was all I could find and had the number "20" on the gear cover...good find my friend

 

[Wurger]

My pleasure.

Here you can see the shape of teh bays for the flaps. Please notice that the shape of the bays is a little bit different at the trailing edge than the full shape of the flaps. Therefore the falp trailing edge protruded a little bit at the wing root.

the pic source: the Internet.

And here with opened...

the pic source: Modelarstwo z pasją • Zobacz wątek - Ki-44 Hasegawa 1/72

 

[fubar57]

I resprayed the areas that I missed on the George so I did a bit here. I removed most of the fuselage colour from the areas that will receive small glued parts and washed the nail polish remover remnants away. I also drilled out the lightning holes in the seat and started to thin down the sides of the seat. This is the start, I need to tidy up the holes and finish thinning.

 

[Wurger]

 

[fubar57]

Found this image and comment at Hyperscale

Typically dark blue-grey (#3) for early to mid production versions then a strong yellowish olive green (# 29 - NOT like RAF interior grey-green!). Some very late production may have had the olive drab (# 7 khaki green) but not confirmed. No out of bottle matches for the two earlier colours AFAIK.​

 

[Wurger]

 

[Wayne Little]

good one George.

 

[Crimea_River]

Seat should be easier to pick up now.

 

[Airframes]

Yep, it'll be a lot lighter now !
good start Geo.

 

[fubar57]

Thank guys. While waiting for my kerfuffle (see other GB) to die down i painted the engines; Dark Iron, Flat Aluminum and Chrome.

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I gave the one on the left a wash using Citadel Colour Black Ink. I like this on motors as it gives on oily appearance, more than the photo shows. It's acrylic so easy clean-up

 

[destrozas]

geo you seen this page? Nakajima KI44

 

[Wurger]

 

[fubar57]

Thanks Sergio, that is a great site. Engine done.

 

[fubar57]

Sprayed the innards, wheel wells and inside the cowling with Model Master Acryl some kinda dark blue as per a discussion on one of the Japanese aircraft sites, this being the color of the early Ki.44s. The blue is darker than the required dark blue grey but I'm using it as a base for my Polly Scale blue grey which I will later mist on. I was leery about using the MM Acryl as I have read nothing good about spraying with it. A few got some good results using the dedicated Testor's Acrylic Thinner but when you don't have it, whaddayagonnado? I decided to bite the bullet and go with distilled water, 3:1, and it sprayed fantastic. Clean-up was a supreme pain in the keester though. Based on first-hand knowledge from a half hour earlier, lacquer thinner turns Acryl into goo and I had to scrub the beejaysus out of my paint cup with Windex to get to paint off. In the end I blew three cups of water through, took the tip off, scrubbed the shooty end of the with a lacquer thinner soaked tooth brush, ran a lacquer thinner soaked Q-tip(both ends) inside the airbrush and then ran two cups of water through. I hope this helps anyone who has some Acryl still in their stock. After the Canucks disappoint me I'll spray on the Polly Scale with its odd paint/thinner ratio....9 paint to 1 distilled water

 

[Wurger]

 

[fubar57]

Repainted the innards. A little lighter than the innards in Post #9 but we'll call it scale color. Managed to leave a little "shadow". I cut the Polly Scale 2:1 instead of 9:1 and sprayed at about 15psi.