Introduction

While I mostly build warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy of WWII, I decided to give this Zero a try. I got it from a local toy shop for just $8 which was very well priced for this simple kit.

Zeros were the bread and butter of the Japanese navy. Despite their inferiority to Allied aircraft, over ten-thousand were made and served throughout the war. The Type 52 was put into production in 1943. It had upgraded guns, speed and maneuverability over the previous Zero design, but the armor protection was still inadequate to protect it from even minor damage.

The Model

The kit is in a good sized colorful box with a picture of the finished model on it. Hobby Boss’ ship kits are packaged really well and this airplane is too. There were no loose or damaged pieces in the box.

The fuselage and wing span have both sides molded as one piece. I could see a good level of panel lines and rivets over the parts. Two frets are included and have a reasonable amount of detail on them. The only downside was the cockpit seat and controls piece, it was very simple and did not have much detail on it. The clear canopy looked very much as expected with the molded framework on it.

I test fit the fuselage into the wingspan piece. It fit very tightly and there was only a small gap that would need filler between the upper wing and fuselage piece. The bottom fuselage and upper fuselage had no visible gaps.

Instruction Sheet

Instructions come in a full color booklet folded on a standard 8.5x11 inch sheet. It is very easy to understand and has English captions. It includes an Aqueous and Mr. Color painting guide for two different Zero versions.

Decals

I thought the decal sheet was a real gem. It includes a US Target Shot Down “Brag” decal and flap panel lines, as well as a few other very small decals.

Conclusion

All in all, this will make a great weekend project and a good choice for someone just starting to build planes.

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