What you get in the first 4 sets of parts

Make-up of the model: Aluminium airframe with rivet marked panels & panel lines, retractable undercarriage with damping & rubber tyres, cast metal parts, fully detailed Nakajima Sakae engine, operable ailerons, flaps, rudder & elevator, movable propeller with variable-pitch blades, interior detail, 7.7mm & 20mm guns, tail wheel & arresting hook, fully detailed cockpit, folding wing tips, lighting (battery located within the external tank), a small selection of tools and all assembly fixings, and includes a pedestal display base.

1-30 Builds the propeller, engine and port wing frame.

31-60 Builds the starboard wing frame cockpit and canopy

61-90 Builds the fuselage, tail & rudder framework and adds the lighting loom.

91-100 Add's the airframe panels & external tank, finishing & decals, and finally placement of the model upon the pedestal display base.

It can be built as a carrier or land based version and can be built in one of a number of chosen end results: fully skin clad & painted, full skin clad & unpainted, airframe skeleton, or possibly half skeleton and half clad painted or unpainted, the choice is yours to make.

Enjoy!

Thanks for that James, nice to have some insight into what it's going to be like and thanks for the build tips.

I wasn't going to do this model but just can't ignore it anymore so subscription it has to be I'm afraid !! Will look forward to seeing some more of your photos ??

Re the tiny screws, I know they supply a screwdriver but I have my own so can you tell me what size screwdriver do they take, I suspect it is a size '00' or is it even smaller ??

Kev

Interesting stuff Tom.

I have been doing some reading up on the Zero myself the last few days and it really was a remarkable plane and very advanced for it's time. Found out that it was very light due to the use of a radical new Special Alloy called 'Extra Super-Duralumin' (ESD) in the wing main spar. Gave such a weight saving that they ended up with a superb power-to-weight ratio that made it take off very quickly, could climb really fast and was much more manouvreable, which is why nothing could turn with it in the early stages of the war.

The allies thought that because it was so light, the airframe would be very weak and fragile, but in fact it was actually very strong. They only got shot down so easily because of the things that you pointed out Tom, such as the lack of armour plating and no self sealing tanks, so they often just burst into flames as soon as a hot tracer hit the tanks !! Fascinating when you start digging on a subject methinks ??

Re your point about the flotation bags, if they had made them self sealing they could have then filled them with fuel and had self sealing tanks anyway !!

P.S. - Have you been getting all that blurb from the DeAg Zero mags perhaps ??

Kev

Thanks for the good information people

way to go, you'll love it

Info for both versions of the model is in the official diary build