Kyushu J7W3 Shinden

[Gary Brantley]

Hello everyone!  I came across this forum during a search on my few what-if models and saw references to this older model of mine.  I thought some folks here might like a look at it again as a separate thread.  It was built a long time ago now, probably around 2003 or '04 I'd guess.   It's the old 1/48 Hasegawa Shinden.  I've always thought the Shinden was the most "futuristic" aircraft that came off the drawing boards during World War Two.  I think it wouldn't look out of place in a new Star Wars movie, even in its original state.

The model started out to be of one of the flying prototype Shinden and had progressed along nicely.  I had it primed for final paint and set it under a desk lamp to speed up drying time.   Then i attended to other chores and when I returned, I fund the lamp had gradually lowered down and melted the top of the fuselage.   It was pretty traumatic at the time.  .   Then, I resolved to salvage the build by doing a jet version. 

I used body shop spot filler putty to build up the damaged area, deleted some features, added a few more and jumped whole hog into this conversion process. I used the canopy from some long lost P-47, cutting it in half and using the rear-most section for the windscreen. A drop tank from an unknown source was pressed into service too.     Since it didn't have that big prop anymore, it wouldn't need all that ground-clearance.  So I lowered all the landing gear legs and then saw that the wheel wells wouldn't work then.  Than necessitated relocating the landing gear mounting points.    I think the lowered stance looks better.

I reshaped/shortened the rather tall vertical stabilizers and made new, broader rudders with some details added there.  I envisioned these aircraft being delivered in bare metal or perpaps painted silver with Hinomarus intact and then having field-epedient camouflage applied later in theatre.    This plane bears five kill marking, two Soviet and three American, so perhaps we can say the pilot is a Japanese Jet Ace.

I believe the original J7W1 would've evolved into an early jet-powered J7W2.  This aircraft represents the next model, with bubble canopy and modified stabilizers and lowered stance.   These pics were taken many years ago with our first digital camera, an ancient Sony with maybe 3 pixels.   The model reveals a lt of flaws with close inspection and also my lack of modeling skills at the time.  I like to think I could improve on this effort now; barring that, at the least it deserves a round of better photography.  These outdoor photos were taken at the Cameron (TX) Municipal Airport.   Thanks for stopping by and thanks for any comments!

[NARSES2]

Firstly wellcome and secondly that's come out really well

[Gary Brantley]

Thanks on both counts!   

[Old Wombat]

I agree with Brother NARSES2. Welcome & well done!

I see no faults, just opportunities for extra back-story details.

... Such as;

"The poor quality of metals available to the Japanese at this late stage of the war meant that the J7W3 was prone to cracks forming in the skin near the transition from the rear fuselage to the jet exhaust. These cracks were usually welded several times before being cut out & replaced with new (often inferior) alloy sheets."

[Gary Brantley]

I agree with Brother NARSES2. Welcome & well done!

I see no faults, just opportunities for extra back-story details.

... Such as;

"The poor quality of metals available to the Japanese at this late stage of the war meant that the J7W3 was prone to cracks forming in the skin near the transition from the rear fuselage to the jet exhaust. These cracks were usually welded several times before being cut out & replaced with new (often inferior) alloy sheets."

Thanks a lot!   And I love your added information; thanks so much for that too!  I wish I'd thought of that bit. 

[Old Wombat]

No worries!

[frank2056]

Welcome aboard! That's a great model and photography!

Where did you get the tarmac?

[Gary Brantley]

Welcome aboard! That's a great model and photography!

Where did you get the tarmac?

Thank you Frank!  Much appreciated sir.   The tarmac is a piece of 3/8" Masonite that I had laying around and it's sprayed with some car trunk restoration paint I found in the bargain bin at a local auto parts house.   The "tar strips" are drafting tape and I masked and sprayed the yellow lines.  Thinned enamels provided the oil stains and drips.  It's glued to a double-thickness of 3/4" plywood.  It had developed something of a curve over the years and it helped to secure it to a base.   Once at the airport, I place it on a folding-leg card-table and mount my camera on a tripod, using the self-timer mode usually.  I think photographing the models in their "natural element" of an airport really enhances them.  And you just can't beat the natural sunlight...and I really do struggle with indoor photos!   

Cameron's little airport offers several good backgrounds to use and I've also employed the airport at a neighboring small-town that has a really cool old hangar of WWII vintage I'm told.   Although not a "what-if", here's an example of that hangar and the runway there:

[sandiego89]

Gary you will fit in here perfectly, nice job, but warning if you are normal we will mess you up! 

Dave

[Scotaidh]

Beautiful work! 

[Gary Brantley]

Gary you will fit in here perfectly, nice job, but warning if you are normal we will mess you up! 

Dave

Thanks Dave!   I appreciate that welcome and warning but it's too late.    I broke up with normal long ago! 

Beautiful work! 

Thank you very much! 

[nighthunter]

I thought we had to fail the Normalcy test to get into the forum, 😂

[frank2056]

Gary - great pictures, but the P-39 picture looks like it was taken at a Russian airfield in WWII.

[kerick]

Welcome aboard!!!
Nice work on the jet Shinden.
If that F-5 is 1/72nd scale I have that decal sheet and I need to do that Philippines version.

[Dizzyfugu]

Nice! Reminds me that I want to build a jet-powered Shinden (with the help of a resin conversion set from Russia, which consists probably of copied Hasegawa parts...  ), too. I actually had pictures of your build saved for this project as a reminder.