hey johnsan where is hereabouts? i think i got my silly putty at target. usually need 2-3 eggs for an entire modern armor. just have to be careful pulling it off so you don't grab a pe part or handle but i tend to "adjust" my camo pattern around some of them. also don;t put the paint and silly putty in a drying box. i think the heat reacts and will leave a residue when you pull it off. i airbrush acrylics so after 30 minutes i start pulling it off.

i didn't mention it. the PE is in the kit, screens, rear bussle mesh and some around the headlights. i usually don't buy AM PE for armor.

Looking really nice, Wayne!

Waynec, sorry I thought I'd mentioned that before. I live about 30 minutes by train outside of Yokohama. This means things like silly putty aren't available, but products like Gaianotes' EX07 and Metallic Master Thinner are.

stikpusher

That thing has a very strong resemblance to the Gepard. I wonder how much influence the Gepard had in its' design.

That's an interesting question, I wonder if it is- at least hopefully they didn't base it off the Sergent York...

And I'd guess a lot of the anime hardware might be inspired by the real thing, at least I think I'd take a real tank or plane and spin-off something more futuristic from it.

I still need to finish my stuff from last build but I did pull out a Hasegawa Shiden and start on it. How can I help myself- it's my favorite Axis fighter.  I'm going to borrow your salt chipping technique PJ and I might get crazy and try to spray the markings on like you did Doug!

Is that the 48th or their recent 32nd kit?

Jgeratic...Thanks, glad you like it.

Gamera.. "I'm going to borrow your salt chipping technique PJ and I might get crazy and try to spray the markings on like you did Doug!"

go man and salt chip away all you want. I'm sure it's going to look awesome.

Hey Johnsan, sorry it's the 1/48th kit, I've had it awhile. When I saw the ads for the new 1/32nd Shiden- my mouth is watering. I'm just waiting a little while till I can get a good sale price!

PJ: I hope so! Of course as I always tell myself if I don't like it I can always just paint over it!

Gamera - the 32nd kit is really sweet. I'm mostly a 72nd guy, but occasionally will dabble in 32nd. Most of Hasegawa's 32nd IJN and IJAAF stuff is pretty good, but the George really stands out. Incidentally, if you are able to get GSI lacquers, be on the lookout for GSI's new Kawanishi set. It was released to coincide with the George release and has Kawanishi's green and interior color. Good stuff.

I've started the Ka-14. Nice kit.

Paints are GSI Mr Color.

Johnsan: I've got Hasegawa's 1/32nd P-47 and it's a masterpiece of a kit. I'm a little leery of the scale since I feel like I need to add a bunch of extra detail since it's so visible at that scale. I was able to find some paint that pretty closely matches what Robert Mikesh shows in 'Japanese Aircraft Interiors' in my drawer so I'm going with them. If I pick up the 1/32 kit I'll give the GSI paint a look!

The Ka-14 looks good. She must be tiny in 1/72nd scale.

Johnsan: Looking good!

Cliff: I have my 2nd Hase Jug on it's way to me now and they are indeed great kits. I hear ya about adding extra details. I have no 1/32 kit (except Tamiya nad Zoukei-Mura ones) without a huge range of AM parts to add to it...

Lol - good to know I'm not the only one to avoid 1/32nd for that reason!

BTW: The Mikesh book is fantastic, if anyone has any questions about interiors I can look it up there. Not sure I'll find it but I can try.

Nah, I'm not avoiding it! Not at all. I just need some time to get all the AM stuff in order to start the build... I know I'm insane, you don't have to tell me

I actually started buying a lot more 1/32 kits recently.  Why? 'Cause I recently discovered HobbyLink Japan. They sell Hasegawa kits at ridiculously low prices:

Just a few examples. The normal retail price for one(!) Hase kit here in Austria is 70-80€ that would be 80-100$ AFAIK. Now look at this list (all 1/32 Hasegawa):

• P-47: 31€
• P-40: 26€
• Ki-84: 25€
• Fw 190 D-9: 24€
• Fw 190 A-8: 24€
• Bf 109 G-6: 25€

Most of these kits are not available in Austria either...

Another good example is Tamiya's awesome P-51D. It is available here, bit at a pretty hefty price of 135€. The reatil price on HLJ is 55€...

That P-47 kit I was talking about is not the only model in the box which should be on it's way to me in the near future (the order is placed, but I have to wait for the kits to be back in stock again). The box includes a P-47, a P-40, a Bf 109 G-6 and the Fw 190 D-9. Shipping is 35€ to Austria and it should end up being tax-free so I have a total of 145€ compared to 150€ for 2 kits If i buy them here...

SSchattten - those ridiculous low prices for Hasegawa are the normal prices for Hasegawa in Japan. Most shops discount kits 10% from MSRP. Some shops reward frequent customers with additional discounting. Glad you found HLJ. They're a good bunch. You might want to check out their videos on YouTube.

Thanks for the input on HLJ! Looks like Hasegawa is in Japan what Revell is in Germany and Austria (with better kits though IMO)?

Most of the kits I ordered are listed as "backordered" or "out of stock" the estimated shipping time is the same on both (4-6 weeks), so I'm very interested in what's the difference. Could you shed some light on that mystery?

The cockpit is slowly coming together. Eduard PE seat and aft frame support (with the big holes). I am using MM RLM 79 for the interior.

SchattenSpartan - like Revell in that Hasegawa does cater to their home market. Revell, I think, cares about foreign markets as well. I'm not so sure this is the case with Hasegawa. I'm not certain whether Hasegawa knows enough about foreign markets or has made the decision the return from these markets is sufficient to justify any extensive work on their part. Maybe its combination of both or maybe something entirely different. Whatever the reason Hasegawa is affordable in Japan and not so much elsewhere. Interestingly, Hasegawa is the importer for Revell in Japan. Revell kits here are costly like Hasegawa is elsewhere. I don't buy Revell kits here because of the high prices.

All this is conjecture. The Japanese modelers I know don't really know (and they really don't care about prices elsewhere).

In any case case, Hasegawa reps don't wander into stores and slash prices on specific Hasegawa kits like the Revell reps used to do when I lived in Germany. I sure miss those days.

PanzerPilot - looking good. What markings do you intend using?

I have been told about half the price of a Japanese kit in the US is import taxes and tariffs, I'd assume Austria would probably be the same? Here the HLJ prices are a little cheaper than many US dealers but not a big difference. That's like a crazy difference there Clemons, glad you found HLJ!

As I understand 'backordered' and 'out-of-stock' both mean they don't have the item in the warehouse. Backordered means they've already ordered more, out-of-stock means they're ordering one to fulfill your order.

Btw: You might try Luckymodel too, good prices but it takes a while to get your order. Still if you're not in a hurry you  can get some good prices with them.

Panzerpilot: She looks good, looking forward to seeing the cockpit together and all painted up.

Thanks, Guys. Fun build so far.

@Johnsan. This is the kit. From 1944, on Guadalcanal. I'm using stock markings. My plan is to Alcad it, but not shiny. To make it look fairly worn, given the conditions it would have faced.

Gamera - I'm pretty sure the US doesn't have tariffs or duties on toys, which is what model kits are classed. Else you'd be seeing similar high prices for Airfix and Revell kits.

Can't speak for the US, but here in Canada model kits can get hit with the tariff.  It all depends on the value and if it's worth the Post Office's time to do the paperwork.  From my experience, anything declared over $20 is valid to be hit with the duty stick, though they usually go after parcels worth $100 or more - yep, the ole bigger fish to fry.

regards,

Jack

Hmmm, not sure - thought I'd read that somewhere though.

I just ordered some stuff at HLJ. In this case no IJN "thingies" but cars.

An Aston Martin DBS and a Mercedes SLR from Tamiya will cost me about €60,- each when I buy it here in Holland. At HLJ it is €25,- Ok, P&P comes to it, but even if they add taxes at customs is added I will be a lot cheaper as when buying in the Dutch stores.

FineMolds' has provided a nice engine assembly. Paints are Gaia Color EX-07 thinned wtth Gaia's Metallic Master thinner. Good stuff, but pretty stinky. The blue is GSI's Cowling Color. 

Johnsan: Looks good! Gaia must be a brand they don't export here, I've never heard of it but the results speak for themselves.

That's I suppose my big reason for ordering from HLJ is besides the prices they can get stuff no one else can get from Japan.

Thanks, Gamera. I like HLJ also. Now imagine going to a brick and mortar shop with the stuff HLJ carries and you'll come close to some of the shops I frequent.

Gaianotes is a Japanese brand of lacquers. Their silvers are fantastic over a primer coat of Mr Surfacer 1500 Black. Gaianotes isn't as widely sold as GSI, but is starting to become more common. So like the GSI lacquers, it sprays well, dries fast, and dries hard. It's a good base for Alclad, but to be honest I generally have more problems with Alclad than not.  

The prop hub is Alclad light aluminium and the prop was treated with a Future/ink wash to pop the detail. The advantage of this wash over the more common oil or enamel washes is that this dries fast, it dries gloss, and the ink pigments are much more finely ground making for a more subtle wash. Incidentally, the darkness you see in the prop blades is reflection. The blades are bright silver. The prop is almost finished. It just needs decal warning stripes.

If you're interested in trying Gaia, try Lucky Model out of HK. They have some GN paints listed and have discovered some means to ship these paints overseas.

The engine is almost complete. I need to add the exhausts. Later today, I think.

Johnsan: Looks really good! I really like your results, I might just have to try Lucky Model for some GN paints. I'm more an acrylic guy myself but what you've posted looks so good.

The cockpit is done. Eduard zoom set. PE seat, straps, throttle quadrant, and more. Thanks for having a look!

Hey wow, you've managed to squeeze some serious detail in there!

Looks good PanzerPilot. How did you manage to fold the pe belts without chipping the paint?