Model Builder International Pilot Issue Model Builder International Pilot Issue | Page 38

Ki-61 Hien
JEFF HERNE

In a few short weeks, I have an IPMS Regional
Convention practically in my backyard, less than
45 minutes away. So naturally, I started looking at
what I could enter.
As I started looking over the collection, I realized
that everything I had was either ‘shown out’ or
simply not competition quality. The theme of this
year’s show is “War in the Pacific”, so I decided to
build something totally new.
I settled on Hasegawa’s 1/32nd scale Ki-61
Hien. It’s the short-nosed version of the Ki-61, so
surprisingly, I found myself limited by the number
of paint schemes I could choose. I finally developed
what I thought was a foolproof plan (fool being the
key word here!). I decided to try my hand at Alclad.
My first experience with Alclad years ago was
terrible. It ruined the model and probably set my
model-building karma back 5 years. So I developed
my own system of Floquil lacquers, Testor’s
Metallizers, and SnJ buffing powder. It worked out
well enough, but it still wasn’t the Alclad finishes I
was seeing on the tables.
Anyway, back to my foolproof plan. I decided on
a natural metal bird, and, if I messed up the Alclad,
I’d simply apply green over it and weather and chip
the paint.
But I’ll get back to that later. I scored a Big Ed set
for the model, along with some Alclad, from Sprue
Brothers. Thank Heaven for birthday money! I also
38

scored a set of weighted resin wheels and resin
exhaust stacks, and picked up a set of decals from
Life Like in Japan. They do a set of 244th Sentai
markings, and since I wasn’t sure which aircraft
I was going to model, I decided to pick them up
‘just in case’.
I started, naturally, with the cockpit area. I
sprayed everything that needed spraying with
Gunze Sangyo RLM 79, a brown-tan color.
Hasegawa calls specifically for this color. In the
past, I’ve always mixed Gunze with Mr. Color
Thinner, but after reading several threads on mixing
Gunze with lacquer thinner, I experimented and
found that Dupont Centari acrylic enamel reducer
(mid-temp) worked exceptionally well. So well, in
fact, that in my 30+ years of model building, I’ve
never had paint look so good.
I started with the Eduard Big Ed set…an
extensive collection of photo-etched parts
covering internal, external, and flap details. They
also provide a set of paint masks for the canopy.
I built the instrument panel, replaced whatever
parts were upgraded with the detail set, and added
additional wiring with fine silver solder. I scratchbuilt an oxygen regulator as well, since one wasn’t
included in the kit.
I assembled the rest of the fuselage by the book,
as there was little else to do once the cockpit area
was complete. I decided to lower the flaps, so I