Andrew's 1/48 Tamiya J2M3 Raiden - ready for inspection

[adt70hk]

Good afternoon all

So as promised, below are the final pictures of this completed.

You'll have to forgive me but I have not had the time to do the usual background historical research but I have found two pictures of the plane in service, albeit in a more worn state than my homage!

The original build blog can be found here: modelerssocialclub.proboards.com/thread/14570/andrews-1-48-tamiya-raiden

So without further ado.....


The kit, aftermarket parts, paints and finish:

• Tamiya 61018 1/48 Mitsubishi J2M3 Raiden (Jack) .
• Master AM-48-021 - Type 99 20mm Mark 2 metal gun barrels
• Techmod  decals 48038 Japanese Hinomaru
• Dead Design VM48 012 Canopy mask
• Paints: Exterior - Vallejo Model Air. Interior and pilot – mostly Vallejo Model Air/Colour.
• Weathering: Flory Wash Dark Dirt

This kit dates back to 1973 and so is almost as old as me.

As you will have seen the wing root step caused some 'mild' issues and I had a go at scratching a radio to replace the kit blob behind the pilot's head.

However, for a kit that is as old as that and that cost less than £14, I have to give it some allowances.

As you know, I decided to represent the aircraft before it had seen much action and so kept the weathering muted.  I also deliberately painted the drop tank as though it was brand new to bring a bit of variation.

So what do I think of the process and finished article, accepting it perhaps not the correct shade of green?

As always and with the exception of the wing root step, all of the serious problems were of my own making.

All of that said, I have to say that I really enjoyed the process and whist I can obviously look back and find fault here and there, I have to say I have enjoyed the build and am really pleased with how it turned out.....just remember this is the first ever 1/48 plane kit I have built!

Oh and one other thing.....damn it's big....certainly compared to my usual 1/72 wingy efforts!

Oh and you can also see a lot of detail in the cockpit than in 1/72!!

Thanks again to everyone for their support on the journey and sorry for the number of pictures below.

ATB.


Andrew



-----------------------------------------

The real plane




Source: Mitsubishi J2M Raiden (Jack) (Yellow Series 6110) Robert Peczkowski



My homage....





















Comparison with a 1/72 109

[Medicman71]

Very nice!!

[keavdog]

Well done. I really like that hotrod of an airplane.

[stikpusher]

Beautiful finish Andrew! Your paint work is gorgeous! And I like your restrained approach to the weathering. Too many folks nowadays go for way too much chipping and wear on Japanese aircraft. All of your efforts sure paid off! I will say, after looking at this quite a bit in your planform photos, I can see the family resemblance to the Zero in the tail and wings. A totally different fuselage, but the wings and tail use the same basic design as used on the older lighter brother.

[Joe Rix]

You have done an extraordinary job on that vintage kit Andrew. The time and effort you put into it paid off in spades.

[kyledehart5]

Beautiful result! I also enjoy the more subdued weathering you’ve employed. Really shows off the plane nicely. And it’s a great looking bird. Well done.

[Tojo72]

Looks good Andrew

[TJ]

Gorgeous finish. Man its a pudgy one.

[handiabled]

Great paint work on this! The weathering looks perfect

[ogrejohn]

That is some fine work Andrew!

[brandonk]

Nicely done and a cool aircraft to boot. Excellent!

[406 Silverado]

Very good build up on this one Andrew and I really enjoyed following along on it. As you mentioned, it being such an old kit, it's totally understandable the allowances that had to be made. Despite the issues mentioned, it turned out to be one heckuva build bud. Great finish up!!

[buddho]

What a beauty...I love the colour scheme!

[adt70hk]

Oct 3, 2023 17:51:06 GMT -5 buddho said:

What a beauty...I love the colour scheme!

Oct 1, 2023 13:01:52 GMT -5 Medicman71 said:

Very nice!!

Oct 1, 2023 14:02:22 GMT -5 keavdog said:

Well done. I really like that hotrod of an airplane.

Oct 1, 2023 14:53:42 GMT -5 stikpusher said:

Beautiful finish Andrew! Your paint work is gorgeous! And I like your restrained approach to the weathering. Too many folks nowadays go for way too much chipping and wear on Japanese aircraft. All of your efforts sure paid off! I will say, after looking at this quite a bit in your planform photos, I can see the family resemblance to the Zero in the tail and wings. A totally different fuselage, but the wings and tail use the same basic design as used on the older lighter brother.

Oct 1, 2023 17:05:27 GMT -5 Joe Rix said:

You have done an extraordinary job on that vintage kit Andrew. The time and effort you put into it paid off in spades.

Oct 1, 2023 17:51:01 GMT -5 kyledehart5 said:

Beautiful result! I also enjoy the more subdued weathering you’ve employed. Really shows off the plane nicely. And it’s a great looking bird. Well done.

Oct 1, 2023 18:17:09 GMT -5 Tojo72 said:

Looks good Andrew

Oct 2, 2023 5:57:20 GMT -5 TJ said:

Gorgeous finish. Man its a pudgy one.

Oct 2, 2023 8:20:12 GMT -5 handiabled said:

Great paint work on this! The weathering looks perfect

Oct 2, 2023 9:50:32 GMT -5 ogrejohn said:

That is some fine work Andrew!

Oct 2, 2023 10:09:08 GMT -5 brandonk said:

Nicely done and a cool aircraft to boot. Excellent!

Oct 2, 2023 13:04:55 GMT -5 406 Silverado said:

Very good build up on this one Andrew and I really enjoyed following along on it. As you mentioned, it being such an old kit, it's totally understandable the allowances that had to be made. Despite the issues mentioned, it turned out to be one heckuva build bud. Great finish up!!

Good evening all

Firstly apologies for a very late response!

Secondly WOW!!!!  I though it turned out reasonably well but to receive such praise from such talented bunch is a real surprise.


Carlos - Have to agree with you about the shape.  Had not realised that until I had a look at the Zero overhead following your post!

Thanks again chaps....there is as you see one final post, to follow shortly!

[adt70hk]

So having done the above comparison shot with the 1/72 109, I was curious as to how it compared to the 109 in reality.  Obviously it's a much fatter aircraft but that could be misleading.

So it turns out there is actually not that much difference.....the 109 was only 74.5cm shorter than the Raiden and the wingspan was only 87.5cm less....less than 10% in each direction.

The surface area though was 20% smaller.....16.05 msq on the 109 vs 20.05 msq on the Raiden.

By good fortune the Raiden book I got has 1/72 plans of the J2M3 in it and as you can see the Raiden really was a fat aircraft....I couldn't quite get the angle right but you get the idea!

Thanks again for the support and the feedback!

ATB

Andrew

[kyledehart5]

That’s very cool. And very interesting.

[jeaton01]

Well done, Andrew.

[adt70hk]

Oct 6, 2023 21:16:17 GMT -5 jeaton01 said:

Well done, Andrew.

Oct 6, 2023 19:15:42 GMT -5 kyledehart5 said:

That’s very cool. And very interesting.

Thanks gents for the support.....as I keep saying, I am really pleased with it!

ATB

Andrew

[reserve]

Fine work sir this is one of those builds that "Looks right" if you get my drift

[adt70hk]

Oct 8, 2023 20:42:48 GMT -5 reserve said:

Fine work sir this is one of those builds that "Looks right" if you get my drift

Mark

Sorry for the late reply and thank you very much and i do get your drift - even if I may be slightly biased!

[Whiterook]

WOW! Beautiful work!!! Your panel washes are awesome…nicely done.

[adt70hk]

Oct 14, 2023 10:05:06 GMT -5 Whiterook said:

WOW! Beautiful work!!! Your panel washes are awesome…nicely done.

Thanks very much and glad you like it....although I can't claim much credit for the panel washes....I just buy them, slap the wash on and then wipe it off...and they're left looking like that!!

Thanks again!

[Green KreationZ]

I saw this kit at my local hobby store and was tempted to pick it up. I’m glad to see how beautiful it can be. Really good job!

[adt70hk]

Nov 20, 2023 20:52:55 GMT -5 Green KreationZ said:

I saw this kit at my local hobby store and was tempted to pick it up. I’m glad to see how beautiful it can be. Really good job!

Thanks Keith.  I'm really pleased with how it turned out considering is it almost as old as me....and it was also my first 1/48 wingy thing!! 

And let's be honest the entire kit cost the same as some PE sets do, so I was not expecting much (£13 in the UK).  I actually enjoyed it so much that I recently bought a second one to see if I could do a better job.

Having seen the quality of your finished builds I really appreciate the support!!

Thanks again.

Andrew

[adt70hk]

Hi all

So whilst the plane was finished sometime ago, someone somewhere asked if I was planning to paint the second figure that came with plane.

Well it was always the plan, it just took a while to do.  I ended up doing it at the same time as my FW 190 pilots.

And so here he is.  Maybe, just maybe, I might do a little vignette one day. 

ATB

Andrew


PS apologies but I struggled with the light and so the 'scale comparison' shot is much closer to real life colouration.

[41chevy]

Excellent built from start to finish! I remember reading some place the Raiden was compatible to the early models of P47

[adt70hk]

Apr 29, 2024 15:34:54 GMT -5 41chevy said:

Excellent built from start to finish! I remember reading some place the Raiden was compatible to the early models of P47

Paul

Sincerest apologies.  Had very little forum time recently so completely missed this.

All in all, considering it was my first 1/48 wingy thing I was very pleased with it.

ATB.

Andrew

[Steve Zuleski]

I like the colors, excellent work, Andrew!

[adt70hk]

May 25, 2024 14:44:20 GMT -5 Steve Zuleski said:

I like the colors, excellent work, Andrew!

Coming from someone of your skill Ski, I'll take that as a compliment.  I just wish I had been able to get some better light!

Thanks!

Andrew