Hi ;
I am writing this in response to an E-Mail I recieved last night . The Hikawa-Maru is Not an easy kit in the sense that she'll just pop together . I remember being surprised about the deckhouse area as having a forward piece that covered all the decks forward like a wall .It was somewhat difficult to get it to stay correctly where it belonged .
This was somewhat perplexing .Now , to refresh memories , the Icebreaker kit does the same .Even if you buy the upgraded kit with the sled-Dogs and Musher . Never mind those . The ship has a forward Bulkhead about four decks tall. But, in this case it is molded in clear plastic .Have you ever tried to do 1/350 decks and Windows in 1/350 and tape them off for painting ?
It is NOT for the faint of heart . I recommend taking mask medium and covering every window on the esternal side .In the backside leave it uncovered . Then paint it with a brush sfterwards an just before mounting . NOTE;
Say to self " What did I do this for ? " and proceed, remembering the intrinsic Delicacy of the parts . Let a pair of toothed tweezers and Pik-Its be your friend during this build along with a very sharp set of Sprue -Nippers .
I believe on the Hikawa the forward deck area is a placement night-mare for some items . Dry fit as you go and the ship will come out alright . Being as how this model has come out as a passenger ship and a Hospital ship she is not recommended for model builders who haven't done a ship in this scale before .
It's the nature of this beast .She's got a lot of fiddley parts .Use them all carefully Painting everything before mounting .Even if what you are doing is the same color overall .Paint everything, as the plastic is quite translucent. I hope this helps everyone including the person who E-Mailed me .My bad , I hit delete Before sequestering your question .It's a bad habit I have acquired since I get so many " Buy Me " E-mails ! T.B.