Zoukei-Mura J2M3 Raiden

Build is underway, really enjoying these kits!

Based on my experience with their Bf109, it was better to use their opaque dash and insert a decal for each gauge as opposed to the sheet of gauges adhered behind a clear plastic (painted of course) dashboard. So without really looking close enough I started down that path with this one. Turns out there's only one decal for gauges and they are all combined. I did consider cutting each one out, but only briefly. I chose to use the clear version.


That panel on the right side will be moved over after painting.


The engine was really complex, and is incomplete in this shot. The cockpit base is complete but just a base coat of color before adding detail paint and a clear.

I thought my vehicle engines were detailed, but these radials are insane!
Great start!

Just plugging away, ZM kits kinda force you to slow down, I appreciate the help with that.





Having a bit of trouble with the IP, which is why this is dry-fitted and testing only for now.

Very nice. Love the detail paint on the engine and cockpit.

Agree... where did you get the mini-clamps (at first I thought they were plastic clothespins)? They look really useful!

One thing I'm noticing now is the interior green paint. Are you sure this is correct? (If it isn't, of course, it's a bit late to do anything about it ) The reason I ask is because AFAIK, Japanese planes were painted on the inside with a kind of translucent varnish that came in various tints depending on the manufacturer, rather than opaque paint like their opponents.

BarleyBop said:

Agree... where did you get the mini-clamps (at first I thought they were plastic clothespins)? They look really useful!

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I bought these from Satan himself.

They are not ideal, meaning they do not work well for everything. This wing is just an example of where they do work, but I have larger ones, stronger ones and still use tape and rubber bands in some cases.

Jakko said:

One thing I'm noticing now is the interior green paint. Are you sure this is correct? (If it isn't, of course, it's a bit late to do anything about it )

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It is TOTALLY wrong for early war and IJN. But late-war years and homeland defense aircraft they used a green that was similar. I do think I missed the mark a little, mine is a bit too bright. The correct color would be a darker color and I hope a clear coat or two might darken it a tad.

Examples of other people's work/interpretation are easy to find, but you'll find pretty quickly that it varies, A LOT.





Also, game developers lean towards a dark Lime or light olive color.




If you look at the first two pictures posted in this thread you can see the color appears different depending on the lighting. The IP is in both and looks totally different.

Edbert said:

I bought these from Satan himself.

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Hmm, thanks for the link, and the review!
I've been using these, but the jaws are parallel, and I'd love to find something smaller that adapts to non-parallel surfaces...
They do have a quick release, and pretty fine ratcheting mechanism though. I also use them for woodworking.

OH NO! Mr. Bill!

Edbert said:

late-war years and homeland defense aircraft they used a green that was similar.

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Aha, I didn't know that part. Learned something new

It is an odd thing, to put the engine/cockpit into one half of the fuselage (that is normal) and then attach wings. Wait, what about the second half of the fuselage? Instructions are clear.


The reason is clear, all the spars and beams and control linkages underneath the cockpit have to be connected.


I did not paint much of that even if it is connected.


It connects all the way back too, like the Bf109 I was working on.


No glue for the 2nd half yet, just testing.


That white bit there is an EverGreen replacement for something the tweezers sent to oblivion. Additional note, I did not fix that seam on the main beam behind pilot-armor, I thought it would be covered by the fixed part of the canopy. However, that is externally exposed (just figured it out) so I will have to deal with that.

It looks like pulling one of those levers would actually do something! Loving it...

just zoomed in on instructions:

"...please see shape of belly which is organically swelling"

...reminds me of instant noodle directions:
"Add contents and shake yourself vigorously "

Jakko said:

One thing I'm noticing now is the interior green paint. Are you sure this is correct? (If it isn't, of course, it's a bit late to do anything about it ) The reason I ask is because AFAIK, Japanese planes were painted on the inside with a kind of translucent varnish that came in various tints depending on the manufacturer, rather than opaque paint like their opponents.

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Good evening everyone.
By this late in the war, they should consider themselves lucky to have paint to use at all.
If you delve into the subject on the old
J-Aircraft site you may come to similar conclusions. https://j-aircraft.com/
Plenty there to keep you busy.
Robert C. Mikesh, stated in his 2000 Monogram Publications book, he believed that there was only about 6-8, different interior colors used on all the manufacturers interiors, over the course of the conflict. I don't recall if the 6-8 were included in some of the aircraft from the Sino-Japanese conflict. Where dark grey, for the Ki-27 Nate was reported and chronicled and dark blue was used in the Ki-10 Perry.
One of the 'mistakes' I'll call it, was earlier kit manufacturers, calling out a metallic blue, or transparent blue-green coating as an interior color. I don't think this is correct, 50 years later.
Nothing my friend is absolute, and I'll climb out on a limb. This may have been used in prototype and early production runs, but I don't believe any evidence has come to surface yet. These colors were usually used for components not seen by the pilot from the inside the cockpit.
Without hi-jacking a thread here, the amount of paint produced, the amounts used and where and how they were applied, nothing is absolute.
My two favorite colors. Anything close, is good
enough.

Peppylepugh said:

Anything close, is good enough.

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Thanks for that!

This is made even more difficult because there's only one Raiden still alive, and it has been restored. I do think my green is too bright,

You are welcome.
I had to look up where the only surviving one was. I'm sure PoF did a great job restoring it.
The following below are two of mine, 1/48.
One Tamiya, painted with Tamiya paints, mixed to a recipe found on the J-Aircraft site.
I'll have to see if I can find it later.
I believe this matches the color from the box art.
The bottom pic is the Arii/Otaki kit and the color there is based on a 'description' of the color.
Like what is the color of box car red. LOL
'Like 34151 interior green, but slightly darker and greyer'.
So what does smarty pants do. He starts out with a darker green, based on the FS system
34096 and greys that out and you get this.
By the way, the FS Standard system does not work this way.
First number is its sheen.
1-gloss, 2–semi gloss, 3–flat.
The next number puts it into it category. I.e.
4-green, 5-blue, 0-brown, 6-grey. I can't remember the others off hand.
Now, I've heard to understand, the last three is supposed to include a decimal point and is the percentage of reflectance to black.
The Japanese economy, was not based on a wartime footing. It was more Mom and Pop, than a truly industrial age economy like Great Britain, the US, at the time.
Let me explain. In Japan at the time, Mom and Pop, might have made bicycles. The War Ministry comes in and says you now make bicycle parts and armored seats and ammunition canisters. Next store, they make the rest of the bicycle, instrument panels and the handles for the canisters.
M&P get paint from Mitsubishi for the seats and M&P next store get green paint from Nakajima for the instrument panels and neither holds up production, because they only have the wrong color.
Once, the relentless bombing campaign started, the whole of chaos sets in and you can see how it went catty wombus, pretty quick.

Fabulous work on this Edbert, really well put together already. Ruck On!

Pulled this one out of storage and made more progress. I'm nervous about fitting the cowling, based on what Rob saw on his ZM Fw-190 and my Bf-109, the hyper-complexity ZM makes tend to cause issues late in the build.

Once concern is the fit of course, but also, how to paint it without getting overspray inside the covered areas. I mean, if you are sealing it up with glue, no worries, but I'd like to have removeable panels.

Anyway, some current pics...




A small example of what I mean can be seen at the 10:00 position. The outer cowl cover does not mate perfectly with the cowl-flaps. I built the cowl-flaps "open" to try and show all the magnificent detail inside. But the silver exterior should be mated up against the dark green flaps. I can press it in with force, but that is the thing, it does not fit without significant pressure.

Meh, 1st world problems, right?

Edbert said:

it does not fit without significant pressure.

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Dunno about the green flaps, but can empathize with the situation... why why why!? Don't want to break it, but...

Looking amazing BTW!

Edbert said:

Pulled this one out of storage and made more progress. I'm nervous about fitting the cowling, based on what Rob saw on his ZM Fw-190 and my Bf-109, the hyper-complexity ZM makes tend to cause issues late in the build.

Once concern is the fit of course, but also, how to paint it without getting overspray inside the covered areas. I mean, if you are sealing it up with glue, no worries, but I'd like to have removeable panels.

Anyway, some current pics...
View attachment 136201

View attachment 136202

A small example of what I mean can be seen at the 10:00 position. The outer cowl cover does not mate perfectly with the cowl-flaps. I built the cowl-flaps "open" to try and show all the magnificent detail inside. But the silver exterior should be mated up against the dark green flaps. I can press it in with force, but that is the thing, it does not fit without significant pressure.

Meh, 1st world problems, right?

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I have to get me one of these.
How about this that popped up in my evil bay feed? Seller knocked off $3000 because I was interested. I told them I was researching Japanese wartime aircraft and couldn't afford it.
This is usually the color seen on Mitsubishi A6M radios. The top shade. Very different from the interior color or the faded front for that matter.
I imagine you could get away with this color for just about any Japanese radio.

Amazing where this hobby takes you!
I was researching communications in the desert and spent a week just looking at old British radio sets ... n°9 and n°11 among them. Try to find one with the cables plugged in, antenna lead, headset/mic.
If its anything like the British ones, there would be a second smaller box supply unit.