Dan K wrote:I'm aware of it, but I've no clue how good it is. For the moment, I only have their new 1/700 NEXT Yugumo/Kazagumo enroute to me. I was planning to report on that in terms of the very things you seek. I would think them comparable.
If anyone get this new kit, we'd love to hear your impressions of it.
Hi Dan, I happened to have a copy of the 1/700 NEXT Yugumo/Kazagumo at hand. And as it turned out, one of the hulls in the Yugumo kit is a kagero early class hull. And the parts for the early version of kagero (early mast, paravane studd) is also included in the yugumo kit except the bridge. So the two kit shares a lot of common part. In general I think the NEXT kit is better than their regular kits both in terms of detail and molding. More details are included in the NEXT kit that were omitted in the regular kit, for example the underwater sonar ports and the kingston valves on the bottom of the hull. The molding is also much sharper and crisp than the regular kit. The anchor deck is simply the best deck I have seen for a destroyer in this scale so far.
In terms of accuracy, Kagero wise it is good and minimal modifications are needed to build an accurate Kagero in either early or late configuration.
Yugumo wise, it is not so optimistic. Since the hulls are directly from the Kagero kit, it lacks the characteristic slope at the stern for a yugumo. The bridge is also a late war bridge with the enlarged aft region eventhough the kit is advertised as an early/mid war configuration. So it can be built in a late war yugumo without problem but would need some surgery to reduce the width of the bridg aft to do an early/mid war Yugumo. But again, despite the minor accuracy issue the molding and detailing is top notch. So with some minor modification it can still be built into an outstanding Yugumo. I would recommend this kit.
In general I personal feel the NEXT kit is a higher and better starting point for a detailing project than the regular kit.
It's interesting that you say these kits are more detailed than the regular despite being clearly designed for snap fit and coloured part breakdown. Would you say they're worth the price tag?
Forget the "snap fit and coloured part breakdown" subtitle. These are proper kits of there own. "snap fit", yes, it is simply a tighter fit between the locator pins and holes than the regular kit. "coloured part breakdown", it is simply naked/original colour of the plastic itself, no paint was applied any where. So it is nothing different from the regular kits. I have both the regular and the NEXT versions of the Yamato, Kagero (Late), and Hiei. The difference is phenomenal. NEXT is much better formed and crisply molded and contains more detail. Of course the flag poles and the RDF loop are a bit thick for the snap fit purpose, but I replace them anyway regardless of the NEXT or regular. So it doesn't bother me. Besidesit is not like the regular flag poles and the RDF loop are any better. ah yes, also the NEXT 25mm triple mounts are a leap from the one included in the regular kit.
Personally, they are worth the price tag compared to a regular one.
. And as it turned out, one of the hulls in the Yugumo kit is a kagero early class hull. And the parts for the early version of kagero (early mast, paravane studd) is also included in the yugumo kit except the bridge.
I have to say that seems a bit odd, like a mistaken inclusion. If true for all the boxings, then it's not so good for the Yugumo kits, though very encouraging for the Kageros. I guess I will see when my package shows up.
OTOH, I am very happy to hear that the NEXT versions are superior in terms of molding and detail. I'll have to be patient.
Well my NEXT Yugumo kits showed up and I am in complete agreement with Caledonia.
Fujimi has used their new Kagero/Yukikaze NEXT hulls for this kit, with Yugumo style bridges. So, it is completely WRONG for a Yugumo, which I will take up in a future review. There is no question about this. A clear misrepresentation of the contents of those kits and pretty shady on Fujimi's part, really. A real bait and switch. Unacceptable, actually.
However, if the hulls are any indication, then these (or actually the NEXT Kagero/Yukikaze) are great Kagero kits. My package came with one each early and late war hull. Beautifully molded, flat, great detail. Many components are equally nice, though many of the small things are oversize - masts, staffs, etc., which I would replace with better accessory parts. Also AA , boats, davits and the like. Had these been available for my current Kagero class project (which I have yet to post a W-I-P), I might very well have started with these hulls and decks.
I'm headed out of town for a bit, so no time to post any other pics, but the deck pieces are nice, so is the aft deck house, turrets (Type D only) and TT mounts.
The early war hull has open portholes; it's really nice. Both hulls have the Yukikaze degaussing cable pattern. Also nicely done. Also the proper amount of freeboad. But, no waterline plate. So, if you want to display them as waterline, you have to accept a little less freeboard, or possibly scrounge the waterline plate from the earlier Fujimi kit, Pit-Road, or more likely, the Aoshima kit. That's why I showed the pic from the bottom. Like I said, the hull is a great starting point for a kitbash.
OTOH, lots of flash on both kits, and I hate the funnels (earlier Fujimi kit is the best) and the RDF/auxiliary steering station. Can't judge the bridge because it's a Yugumo bridge.
Thanks for the update on the new Fujimi Yugumo destroyer, gentlemen. I'm surprised (and saddened) that Fujimi would make such an obvious error with the hull form, and one not easily corrected. It is good to know, however, that the corresponding Kagero release looks so promising.
Well, Berend, for starters, Hasegawa doesn't make a Kagero class kit in 1/700. Only Yugumos and Asashios.
Further, while the configuration on Akigumo's stern is very interesting, I am unaware of any documentation on this particular fit. I have seen a very fine 1/700 build of Usugumo, 1942 with this same configuration from the new Yamashita Hobby Type I Fubuki kit in a Navy Yard magazine, but again, I don't know where the builder's information comes from.
The only documentation I've seen on carrying a daihatsu on a DD comes from a Gakken volume regarding a similar arrangement on the Asashio class DD Oshio. There, the daihatsu was moved by large davits.
I know the drawing you've shown and like you I have not found something that confirms the use of a barge in this way. The painting of the funnel is also interesting. Would be nice if Hasegawa released a Kagero class destroyer in 1/700.
Unfortunately, with all the other 1/700 Kagero kits already out there, I think it very unlikely that Hasegawa is going to produce one.
There may be other questions regarding the actual fit of Akigumo at Kiska beyond the question of the arrangement of the mounted daihatsu. I know that she had a refit at Yokosuka just before the Kiska evacuation operation (late May - early June), and I wondered if perhaps she'd had her foremast partially altered in anticipation of mounting a Type 22 radar at some point. I think, at the very least, she had the E-27 passive radar detectors (Gyaku-tan) fitted to her bridge faces.
A translation of her Japanese Wikipedia article seems to corroborate this: "From May 31st to June 5th, maintenance was carried out at the Yokosuka Navy Arsenal , and construction of new radio weapons was carried out [63]."
I forgot from where I received this photo. Perhaps you? This location is unknown, but this does illustrate that it seems more likely that the destroyers just towed the daihatsus at some point. I suppose that some of the equipment on the deck "might" be part of a ramp arrangement. Hard to say.
Yes I sent you this picture. This is 23 January 1943. Troop evacuation run. Fast in fast out. In case there is a ramp there may not have been enough time for taking the barge on board again. Towing it fom start to finsih seems indeed more likely though.
The date is intriguing. There are a number of troop reinforcement runs to Rekata and Kolombangara around that date. The most likely seems to be the one to Rekata by Kurushio, Maikaze, Isokaze, & Tokitsukaze that arrived there on the 24th.
The daihatsu is riding high in the water, and the ship seems to be traveling at a high rate of speed, which makes me wonder if this photo was taken on the return trip when the craft was empty.
Interesting development:
Hasaegawa is going to release a Yugumo/Kazagumo/Asagumo during occupation of Kiska carrying a barge at the stern in 1/700. There will be 3 kits in the box.
Hi guys, I'm working on my first ship, a Tamiya 1/350 Kagero and while researching for the linoleum deck paint color I found a variety of tones for it, as expected. I have the Mr. Color Linoleum deck color (SC06), it is kinda similar to Tamiya's (a bit more darker) but it is different to the painting guide that came with the ship and even the guide from my Hasegawa Nagato (which even suggest the Mr. Color one). In the guides, the color appears to have more orange or yellow. Would the Mr. color one still be accurate enough? And in that note, was the linoleum deck color the same 'tone' across ship types?
Thanks,
Chris
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Mr Color linoleum deck color
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Paint guides should always be treated with a grain of salt regardless of manufacturer. Printing issues can cause variation, and some manufactures don't do a lot of research to determine the actual, accurate colors. That said, I'm not an expert in Japanese linoleum manufacture, so I'm not sure how much variation there was from the factories and how it would tend to weather.
Agreed. Between weathering, production variances (maybe even different suppliers), etc., it's a certainty that no single shade is absolutely correct. I think it's fine.
