Tamiya 1/32 Mitsubishi A6M5 Zero

First Look Open Box Review:

Kit Number 60309

By Ed Kucharski

This puppy comes in a sturdy, stapled box that weighed in at 1 lb 11 oz. The parts come in 15 seperate bags or clear plastic enclosures consisting of 12 sprues of plastic, 2 photoetch frets, a rubber sprue for tires and brake lines, various metal springs, bolts, nuts, hinges and rods, a canopy paint mask sheet and a decal sheet totalling over 265 parts!

The instruction book (book, not sheet) is 32 pages, in 4 languages that covers aircraft history, paint work, tools required, assembly diagrams, 5 "tech tips" (a waste), 35 museum aircraft photos, 12 paint diagrams, and a replacement parts order form (should be FREE). Looking at the parts, the majority come in light gray with raised panel/rivet lines. Engine parts are dark gray. Tires are real black rubber. Clear parts are very clear. Decals sheet has options for an aircraft from 3 different Fighter Groups.

My first impression is that this kit is the SECOND most sophisticated 1/32 scale aircraft I'ver run across. (Scratchbuilder's 1/32 Grumman TBF-1C resin/metal kit is tops.) That being said, the fidelity of detail in this kit is excellent. The assembly instruction diagrams are very clear and seem easy to follow. And with almost every part used in the prototype duplicated here, you have got to be impressed.

Now if only Tamiya would take a break from catering to the home folks, I could use a good 1/32 injected P-39 Airacobra or TBD Devestator. But I'll settle for a Kawasaki Ki-100, a Nakajima B5N or an Aichi D3Al!