Aichi M6A1 Seiran, 1/72 Tamiya by Andriy Kudelin

On the anniversary of Putin's war against Ukraine, we are happy to present an Aichi M6A1 "Seiran" model by our Ukrainian friend Andriy Kudelin. He explains:

The 1/72 model from Tamiya depicts a floatplane of the 631 Kokutai, circa June 1945.

The Eduard 72250 photoetched set was used. All identification markings, except for the fuselage data plate, were made with hand-cut masks, as they have incorrect dimensions in the decal.

Like other kits from Tamiya, this one assembles quite well, only a few weights were needed for putty, and the bottom of the center section of the fuselage did not fit perfectly. During the building proces,s I had to modify a number of details:

a) added missing parts in the cockpit,

b) machine gun converted to type 2,

c) very thick trailing edges of the wing, stabilizer and fuselage brought to scale thickness,

d) added missing trim tab on left aileron,

e) added rudder and elevator trim rods,

f) made a rectangular hole in the rudder and missing holes in the canopy,

g) an air outlet channel from the oil cooler was made and the radiator shutters were replaced,

h) added mooring rings on the floats and under the stabilizer,

i) the radio antenna mount was moved to the port side,

j) the bomb was redone and hung correctly, not as suggested in the kit (as it turned out, the Edward photo-etched fins from Eduard are a bit wrong),

k) the transport trolley has been slightly altered - a towing bracket has been added and the side deck boards have been sawn in two.

Painted overall with Gunze water-based acrylics. Bomb, propeller and markings with Arcus enamels, Tamiya X22 gloss varnish, art oil wash, Humbrol matt varnish.

- Andriy Kudelin -