The overall fit of the kit is good considering that this is pretty old mould. Some filler is required here and there. I was very surprised with good fit of wing/fuselage parts.
The worst part of the kit is engine/engine cowling/armament area. Details are very bad and some surgery is required to match the references I could find. Engine is easy available - just take a look what Quickboost has to offer, but cowling and armament bulges has to be modified. I added some wires to the engine. Looks good enough for me.
I decided to cover most of the cockpit area with pilot figure so I’ve used Eduard zoom set which is great because it contains some crucial exterior parts.
Clear parts are tricky to install. They have to be glued with “non fogging” glue. I had Eduard masks, but they are incorrect for these parts.
Markings are the main reason why I’ve decided to build this model. I was always fascinated with the story about Phil Rasmussen and attack on Pearl Harbour. When I saw this boxart, I knew this would be my next build. Decals in this box are from Cartograf, and that means that they are great.
Colors used are ALCLAD II
Figures are from the various Hasegawa sets - heavily modified. I tried to make a scene when Phil is enetering this plane in his pajama, and ground crew is looking for cover after they prepared his plane for the flight.
