Tamiya Shunsaku - RIP

IJAAF Type 89 twin flexible machine gun

The Type 89 twin, operated from the dorsal position of a Mitsubishi Ki-2 "Lousie" light bomber. (photo: ARAWASI)

Another Type 89 twin, this time installed on the dorsal position of a Kawasaki Ki-48 "Lily". Note the same mount with the previous photo. (photo: Kikuchi Collection)

Aerial gunnery training with the Type 89 twin. This particular heavy wooden mount was stationary. Note the rail line on the ground. These were used to mount a railway trolley with a machine gun on top for more realistic mobile training. (photo: ARAWASI)

A Type 89 twin with crates of ammunition found by US forces at the end of the war. Note the magazines on the ground (photo: NARA)

One of the few surviving Type 89 twins can be seen in the Museum Satria Mandala in Jakarta, Indonesia. (photo: ARAWASI)

IJAAF "Te-4" machine gun - Kawasaki Ki-48 "Lily" - video

A very short clip featuring the "Te-4" flexible machine gun installed on the ventral position of a Kawasaki Ki-48 "Lily" light bomber.

NEW! by "NoviART 3D" & Arawasi - IJAAF "Te-1" flexible machine gun 「テ１」試製単銃身旋回機関銃一型

The third and final set includes, again, TWO 3D printed IJAAF "Te-1" flexible machine guns in 1/48.
最後のセットは、1/48スケールの日本陸軍　試製単銃身旋回機関銃一型「テ１」です。

The "NoviART 3D" & Arawasi - IJAAF "Te-1" flexible machine gun set.

試製単銃身旋回機関銃一型「テ１」

３Dプリンター作成

スケール：１/４８

個数：1袋に2個入りです。

作成： Novi Art 3D / ARAWASI

The trees of the set.

The 3D rendering.

The "Te-1" flexible machine gun was developed to be installed exclusively in IJAAF heavy bombers and only limited numbers were produced. Only the Mitsubishi Ki-21 "Sally" and the Nakajima Ki-49 "Donryu" (Helen) bombers had these machine guns. Occasionally a combination of "Te-1" and "Te-4" machine gun in various defensive positions of the bombers.

The photo features a field modification of a "Te-1" installed behind the co-pilot of a 60 Sentai "Sally" bomber.

対象飛行機：

三菱 キ21 97式重爆撃機

中島 キ49 一〇〇式重爆撃機　「呑龍」

Price is 8$US (postage not included).

Send over an email if interested with your name and delivery address (to calculate postage): arawasiorder@gmail.com

価格：￥1000（日本国内のみ　送料込み）

ご興味のある方は、フェイスブックのプライベートメッセージまたは、 arawasiorder@gmail.com　までメールでご連絡ください。

NEW! by "NoviART 3D" & Arawasi - IJAAF Type 89 twin flexible machine gun 八九式旋回機関銃

The second set, again, includes TWO 3D printed IJAAF Type 89 flexible machine guns in 1/48.

二番目のセットは、1/48スケールの日本陸軍「八九式旋回機関銃」です。

The "NoviART 3D" & Arawasi - IJAAF Type 89 twin flexible machine gun.

八九式旋回機関銃

３Dプリンター作成

スケール：１/４８

個数：1袋に2個入りです。

作成： Novi Art 3D / ARAWASI

The trees of the set.

The 3D rendering.

The Type 89 flexible twin machine gun was operated by a number of IJAAF aircraft of the 1930s and well into the Pacific war.

Some examples: Mitsubishi Ki-21 "Sally", Mitsubishi Ki-30 "Ann", Kawasaki Ki-31 "Mary", Kawasaki Ki-48 "Lily", Nakajima Ki-4 and more.

対象飛行機：

三菱 キ21 97式重爆撃機

三菱 キ30 97式軽爆撃機

川崎 キ32 98式軽爆撃機

川崎 キ48 99式双発軽爆撃機

中島 キ4 94式偵察機

Price is 8$US (postage not included).

Send over an email if interested with your name and delivery address (to calculate postage): arawasiorder@gmail.com

価格：￥1000（日本国内のみ　送料込み）

ご興味のある方は、フェイスブックのプライベートメッセージまたは、 arawasiorder@gmail.com　までメールでご連絡ください。

NEW! by "NoviART 3D" & Arawasi - IJAAF "Te-4" machine gun 「テ４」試製単銃身旋回機関銃二型

We are excited to showcase this week three new releases from NoviART 3D in partnership with Arawasi, which we believe modellers will find particularly interesting. 

First up is ONE set that includes TWO 3D printed IJAAF "Te-4" machine guns in 1/48.

このたび、NoviART 3DとArawasiのコラボレーションにより、モデラーの皆様に特に興味深い3つの新製品を今週ご紹介いたします。
まず最初に、1/48スケールの日本陸軍「テ-4」機関銃2丁のセットです。

The "NoviART 3D" & Arawasi - IJAAF "Te-4" machine gun package.

３Dプリンター作成

スケール：１/４８

個数：1袋に2個入りです。

作成： Novi Art 3D / ARAWASI

The trees of the set.

The 3D rendering.

Each machine gun is 2.2cm long.

機関銃は2.2ｃｍです。

The "Te-4" was the standard flexible machine gun operated on all the IJAAF aircraft in the 1930s and even until the end of the war by some types and models. Some examples: Mitsubishi Ki-15 "Babs", Mitsubishi Ki-21 "Sally", Mitsubishi Ki-30 "Ann", Mitsubishi Ki-46II "Dinah", Mitsubishi Ki-51 "Sonia", Kawasaki Ki-31 "Mary", Kawasaki Ki-48 "Lily" and more.

対象飛行機：

三菱 キ15 九七式司令部偵察機

三菱 キ21 97式重爆撃機

三菱 キ46 一〇〇式司令部偵察機

川崎 キ48 99式双発軽爆撃機

三菱 キ51 99式襲撃機 / 99式軍偵察機

Price is 8$US (postage not included).
Send over an email if interested with your name and delivery address (to calculate postage): arawasiorder@gmail.com

価格：￥1000（日本国内のみ　送料込み）
ご興味のある方は、フェイスブックのプライベートメッセージまたは、 arawasiorder@gmail.com　までメールでご連絡ください。

"Nihongun Rokakuki" #9 - Republic P-47 Thunderbolt

According to one Japanese source, the Republic P-47D -28RE S/N 44-229068 was shot down on the outskirts of Fengyuan, Taiwan on February 27, 1945. The aircraft belonged to the 40th Fighter Squadron, 35th Fighter Group, 5th Air Force, and the pilot was identified as Lieutenant Ralph R. Hartley, who went missing that day.

While taking part on an air raid on Taiwan, the Thunderbolt was shot down in an aerial battle with a Nakajima Ki-84 "Hayate" (Frank) belonging to the Army's Combined Air Squadron.

Check here for more about the pilot.

Mitsubishi Ki-21 "Sally" in 1/48 by Dan Salamone

This is my completed 1/48 ICM Ki-21I kit. Products used include: Gunze acrylic black surfacer, Tamiya acrylics, including custom mixes for IJA interior blue grey and exterior dark green (ao midori iro), AK paint marker for lighter green undercolor above Tamiya XF-14 base camouflage. Dead Design canopy masks, Kelik 3D decal interior details, oils for weathering and some light use of AK weathering pencils. Kit decals were used, I also added landing lights from MV lenses, and brake lines from fine wire.

This is my third “larger” kit from ICM, and so far the best as far as engineering, fit, and in the box detail. The clear parts are of a very high quality. Be sure to dry fit everything, there are a few steps where parts numbers are transposed on the instructions, dry fitting will reveal these errors. The main thing to be very careful of on this model is when the landing gear need to be attached, which is before the lower cowl parts are attached. This means the long gear legs are exposed to lots of handling, and also being masked during the painting process.

ICM would also have you build the model with the bomb aiming device protruding from the lower nose. The vast majority of Ki-21 images sitting on the ground show this instrument as not being visible, I closed the molded open hole and stowed the device inside the fuselage.

The bomb bay doors are also a bit fiddly, and ICM would have you glue the door halves together, with the front and back actuator arms in between, then attach the assembly for each side once dry. I attached the “outside” doors to the fuselage, then added the actuator arms, and the following day attached the “inner” doors. I'm not fully satisfied with the final look, if the attachment points on the door parts were more pronounced, it would have been a much easier process.

Overall, this model was very enjoyable, and is yet another type that I had though we would never see in 1/48. Kudos to ICM for daring to produce models like this, even more so during a time of war in the Ukraine.

It took me awhile to decide on what camouflage scheme to go with. I had assumed I'd go with one of the later Hamamatsu bomber school schemes, but ultimately decided on the 25th Independent Air Brigade HQ Flight option. 

The few images I was working from showed 2 colors painted on the overall grey green, to replicate the lighter color I went with the AK paint marker for ao midori iro, which is lighter than their color in the bottle. I mixed my own version of this same color to be close to the bottle color, using Tamiya acrylics. Thinning about 40% using Tamiya acrylic thinner and Tamiya acrylic retarder, and using less than 10 psi, I freehanded the dark green color in two separate sessions, totaling about 5 or 6 hours. I've been using an Iwata HP-C for almost 25 years, and as usual it performed very well.

The final clear coat is a new (to me) product, Gunze “Mr. Super Smooth Clear Matt”, in a spray can. This clear coat dries quickly, is matt, yet has a very fine eggshell finish that is very pleasing to the eye. 

References used were Famous Aircraft of the World #153, and Arawasi Eagle Eye #3. For a full build review with many in progress images, please look for my personal model bulding page on Facebook, “The 48th Dimension”. 

- Dan Salamone -

"Nihongun Rokakuki" #8 - Grumman TBF/TBM Avenger

These photographs of a Grumman TBF/TBM Avenger torpedo bomber appeared in the September 1944 issue of "Koku Asahi" magazine. Shot down during a raid on Surabaya in what was then the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia), it has been placed on public display and, probably for the benefit of the camera, promptly surrounded by local residents.

Steve Alvin commented:

On May 17, 1944, aircraft from the Saratoga and Illustrious attacked the oil refineries at Surabaya as part of Operation Transom. During the attack, one TBM from Sara's VT-3 was lost. This is undoubtedly that plane.

Nippon Goh commented:

In Enemy Hands: a TBF Avenger captured by Japanese. I took this picture from a magazine in Indonesia.

Some said it was captured during Palembang Air raid however the markings might not seen like a British Avenger

(I think it's from a VT-12 Avenger Bomber that ditched near shore during the Surabaya raid, and the crew was seen jumping into a dinghy but was never seen again. I remember reading a book by a POW who said a group of "Palembang Raiders" aircrew was staying next to his cell in Changi Prison but was later executed. The marking is also similar to that of the VT-12 Avenger bombers.)

Najmi Faiz Rabbani sent over this scan, I suppose from a wartime Indonesian publication:

Scoobs added:

That's TBM-1C (BuNo 25429) of VT-12 was lost on 17 May 1944: crew was VT-12 CO LT William E. Rowbotham, AOC Duncan F. Hallock, and ARM1c James A. Holmes.

Also:

Of note, it is questionable if this crew were the "Palembang raiders" that met their fate at Changi - The Brewton Standard (AL) newspaper had an article in the 09 Jan 1947 edition entitled "Local Man Killed Trying to Seize Jap Aircraft: Navy Department Says Andrew Holmes Lost Life As Prisoner" that describes a remarkable incident in which Holmes and another flyer (presumably Hallock) attempted to hijack a transport flight from Java to Japan - the aircraft landed at Davao, Mindanao where the two wounded prisoners were taken to the hospital where they died several days later. The remains of both men were located by American forces after the war and both have known burial sites: Hallock at the ABMC Cemetery in Manila and Holmes in his hometown cemetery in Escambia County, Alabama. What happened to their pilot, LT William E. Rowbotham, is currently a mystery as he has no known resting place.