1/48 Hasegawa Hayate by Shimon Halperin

Another fine Hasegawa Ki-84 Hayate 'Frank' in 1/48 scale, this time completed and kindly shared by Shimon Halperin. The model represents an aircraft of 185 Shimbu-tai and Shimon describes the build as straightforward and pleasant.  His main concern was for the colours of the original.

Shimon decided to build this prototype when he saw the Montex masks set, but all his effort to find the source picture brought nothing. The single picture he found on the web was of the tail part only of a different machine (probably the flight leader) of 185 Shimbu-Tai, so there were no clues to colour or weathering. Therefore he decided to build it as a late (but not final) production aircraft with the following features:-

• A bare metal cockpit.
• An anti-glare panel ( he mixed black with some light blue).
•  The olive drab color of late war Ki-84 using Gunze Mr Color C304 (Olive Drab FS 34087), with the upper surfaces a lighter shade mixed with yellow.
• Light grey under surfaces using Gunze Mr Color C128 (Gray Green).
• A grey-green propeller using Gunze Mr Color C319 (Light Green).
• Yellow-green drop tank using Gunze Mr Color C27 (Interior Green).
• A black 250-kg bomb sourced from another kit

 

Shimon applied moderate weathering guided by photos of Hayate and painted on most of the stenciling using masks. 

During the project he discovered that the Montex masks for the upper and lower wing hinomaru were under-sized by about 1.5-2mm and would spoil the appearance of the model. So he made his own masks for them and was happy with the result.

With special thanks to Shimon for sharing these images of his Hayate model.  

Image credits: All photos © 2017 Shimon Halperin