1:48 A6M5 Zero Mitsubishi Prod. - 3D-Printed & Coloured Interior on Decal Paper (for Fine Molds Kits)

The cockpit of the Model 52 from the Nagoya factory

The A6M5 became the most numerously built form of the Japanese carrier fighter. It appeared in 1943 with shortened and rounded wingtips, strengthened skinning and, above all, individual exhaust stacks in place of a collector pipe, whose thrust added a few kilometers per hour. The addition Mitsubishi Prod. in the designation specifies that the set is aimed at machines from the parent plant; the pieces assembled under license at Nakajima differed in the detail of the pilot's space.

What you get is a layered color print laid on a decal carrier paper. The instrument panel, the side consoles, the seat, the gunsight frame and the belts all come off the print finished, with legible dials and with raised edges that cast a shadow, unlike a flat decal. The modeler therefore has no tiny needles to paint and no dry transfer to handle.

How to work with it

The procedure is close to that of an ordinary decal: the part is painted in the shade matching the Japanese interior color and sealed with a gloss varnish, then a piece of the print is separated, dipped in lukewarm water and moved into place. Do not use a decal softener or a setting solution, as the chemicals would damage the printed resin and ruin the part. Once dry, fixing it with a flat varnish is recommended.

The set is cut for the plastic of the Japanese maker Fine Molds and allows for their cockpit dimensions. It is an accessory for greater realism, and the aircraft itself has to be obtained separately.

It is worth mentioning that the Japanese fighter had neither armored glass nor self-sealing tanks, and its cockpit looked almost ascetic next to American machines. That makes a precisely rendered instrument panel stand out all the more, and it is the first place a viewer looks through an open canopy.