Author Topic: Ki-98  (Read 22888 times)

Offline Frank3k

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #25 on: May 21, 2013, 12:19:34 AM »
I'm trying to keep this as period accurate as possible, so i went with standard French all green camo over gray. I started discoloring it, to give it the appearance of an aircraft that has been exposed to some tropical heat and humidity:



The darker color is the original; I splotched on some lighter versions of the green.

I also got an Aries 1/72 Rolls Royce Nene engine from Sprue Bros. on Saturday. It's mostly finished, except for some PE and painting. The intake grills are PE.
It's as if this plane had been designed for this engine; it would fit perfectly:





I still have to work on the weathering and even out the color, but I'm making the decals right now. As a front line aircraft, it probably wouldn't have the yellow surround around the roundels, but I'm making some with them. I'm also making stencils. I assume "étape pas" would be the equivalent of "NO STEP"? Or would they spell it out "ne pas étape" or "ne pas marcher"?


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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #26 on: May 21, 2013, 02:48:20 AM »
Coming along nicely
All hail the God of Frustration!!!

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But you can make the Bastard work for it.

Offline apophenia

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #27 on: May 22, 2013, 06:42:16 AM »
The Nene does look like an amazingly good fit!  :)
Froglord: "... amphibious doom descends ... approach the alter and swear your allegiance to the swamp."

Offline Brian da Basher

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #28 on: May 22, 2013, 07:00:53 AM »
It's scary how the Nene looks like it was made for this bird.

The paintwork is really outstanding, Frank! You've totally captured that well worn look.

Brian da Basher

Offline Frank3k

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #29 on: May 28, 2013, 06:22:06 AM »
Mostly finished, except for the dangly bits.



Surprisingly, my French roundel blue is fairly close to the color used in the early 50s. I printed (but didn't use) roundels with a yellow surround. Other than the preshading and panel lightening, there's very little paint chipping or other wear marks.



The shark's mouth decal is a bit bigger than I intended. I thought I'd measured it, but it's about 25% larger than I intended. I had an odd silvering on some of the smaller decals (I use Future under the decal as a setting agent). I tried using some Solvaset after they were down and it reacted with the paint underneath. I pushed most of them down, so the silvering is not as obvious.


 I had an issue with the canopy masking (I always have an issue masking canopies, even when I use a pre-cut mask) and I had to redo it three times until I got a good enough frame. That's why the colors don't quite match; it's not the kit's fault - it's mine. What saved me is that I used pressure sensitive adhesive to hold down the canopy. It was easy to pop it off without damaging the paint under and around it. The color difference isn't as obvious indoors (vs. out in direct sunlight).
I took one more picture after this, with the plane perched on the balcony railing. A gust of wind knocked it off the clipboard, but luckily it landed on the balcony and not on the pavement 5 floors below. Just the nose gear was knocked off and there was other minor damage. Pretty lucky, I think.
« Last Edit: May 28, 2013, 11:49:25 PM by Frank3k »

Offline Dr. YoKai

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #30 on: May 28, 2013, 07:45:50 AM »
 It really looks right in the French markings. Beautiful job, Frank.

Offline ysi_maniac

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #31 on: May 28, 2013, 11:29:05 AM »
^^^^^
Agreed!!

Offline finsrin

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #32 on: May 28, 2013, 03:02:32 PM »
^^^^^
Agreed!!

Agreed x 2
Is right in all ways - build, finish, markings  8)

Offline Old Wombat

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #33 on: May 28, 2013, 09:53:26 PM »
I fourth the Evil Doctor's sentiments!

Well done, Frank!

:)

Guy
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Offline Frank3k

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #34 on: May 28, 2013, 11:46:32 PM »
Thanks guys - this (like all Meng kits I've seen so far) is a trouble free and very enjoyable model. The engineering and fit are top notch and the few problems I had with it were all self-inflicted. Highly recommended!

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #35 on: May 29, 2013, 02:11:08 AM »
Damn fine work! :)
All hail the God of Frustration!!!

You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it.

Offline Brian da Basher

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #36 on: May 31, 2013, 08:21:57 AM »
Yowsa that finished up a treat, Frank! That perfectly-rendered French scheme is truly inspired and you've really pulled it off nicely. You have serious painting skills.

Outstanding!!!

Brian da Basher

Offline apophenia

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #37 on: June 01, 2013, 04:05:10 AM »
Agreed. A brilliant build and the French markings truly inspired  :)
Froglord: "... amphibious doom descends ... approach the alter and swear your allegiance to the swamp."

Offline father ennis

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #38 on: June 01, 2013, 01:15:12 PM »
WoW ... !!!!!!   Great build ... !!!!!!   I don't know how but somehow ......  I missed the pictures of the finished model until now !!!!!!   But I have been reading the comments.   

         I saw you had some decal trouble. Here is how I deal with it.  After the silvered decals is dry ,take your X-acto with a new blade and tap the point over the whole thing. Following this.   With a heavy coating of Micro-sol and using a fine sponge press down on it. You need to.be careful doing these,keep a vertical position perpendicular to the surface. I use Micro-set when I apply my decals followed by the Micro-Sol if I've got detail to cover.  I've only used Solvaset a few times. The stuff disolved the brush in the bottle ... !!!!!!!!!!!!   FYI, for those who don't know,silvering is caused by air being trapped under the decals.  That is the reason you put the tiny holes in it and then use the Micro-set to snuggle it down. I use the sponge from an old figure package with both solutions. I've recently seen people using the wedge shaped sponges from the make up dept. I've got some in my make up kit but have never thought of using them,before. I do plan on using them in my next decaling scession ,though.  You may need to repeat the process on a bad spot ,but it "should" fix it.
         Your other trouble with canapoy masking can be fixed by painting it by hand. I use the tip of a toothpick for this. If I make a mistake, I use the clean end to correct it. As long as you use a material softer than the plastic you won't leave a mark. That's why I use a toothpick. Works best once the paint has "skinned over". 
           You've done a tremendous job on this build and it looks great ...    :-*     One question, did you use the engine shown in the pictures inside it ? 
I may be old but I'm not dead ... yet anyway ... !!!    And NO I did not know Richard III !!!!!!

Offline Frank3k

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #39 on: June 03, 2013, 05:56:46 AM »
Father Ennis - the silvering in the decals wasn't the usual type. The decals had a coat of Future under them and were OK... until the Solvaset hit them. I pushed them down and let them dry and after a few days, the silvering was gone or greatly reduced. I have a problem with canopy framing, regardless of the method used.

Here's the ki-98 with the drop tanks:



With the Nene engine on a workstand, and "Henri" the photographer:







The workstand is a heavily modified stand from the MAC 1/72 JB-2 Loon. The Nene engine is a neat little resin kit from Aries and the PE bits are very soft and easy to work with.



Thanks for all the comments!

Backstory:

In 1945, The  Mansyū (Manchurian Aeroplane Manufacturing Company Ltd.) was ready for the test-flight of their advanced fighter, the Ki-98. The imminent defeat of Japan and the threat of both the Soviet Army and reprisals from the various Chinese factions caused the Japanese and their Manchukuo allies to order the destruction of the prototype and its tooling and plans. This order never made it to the plant and the lead designer, who had received his education in France, decided to use the Ki-98 as a "resume", with the hopes of continuing his career under the auspices of one of the victors (but not the Soviets or Chinese).
He and several trusted junior engineers crated the prototype (minus the engine) , tooling and plans into a train packed with injured civilians - the crates were marked as humanitarian supplies.
The train was originally destined for Seoul, Korea but the cars with the Ki-98 and its engineers ended up rerouted through China and into Laos.

Immediately after the war, the plane was offered to the returning French forces, who quickly confiscated it and placed it in storage. The French were facing a mounting anti-colonial resistance in Vietnam and had no time for new aircraft construction.

The war of independence was short-lived; the US and the UK (who were by now quite fed up with De Gaulle) refused to support the French and actively blocked any French attempts to resupply its forces. The French were forced from Vietnam into their remaining colonies in Laos and Cambodia.

Still needing an ally against the Communists, the French, US and UK entered an agreement; in exchange for their losses in Vietnam, the French would receive tanks and fuel from the US and license to build the Rolls Royce Nene engine. This would allow them to defend their colonies.

The new agreement was soon put to the test, as the Communist Chinese forces, after their quick defeat of  Kuomintang in 1947, expanded and "liberated" parts of Laos from the French and were threatening both Thailand, Vietnam and the last major French colony, Cambodia. A war weary US and Great Britain were not willing to go to war against the Chinese, but they were willing to support the French defense of their colonies.

The old Spitfires and repurposed Japanese planes in the French colonial air force were just able to slow the Chinese advances. The French decided that it would be quicker to assemble new aircraft in Cambodia than have them shipped to the area from France. In 1947, they opened a factory in Phnom Penh and the nearly complete Ki-98 was test-flown with a piston engine. Performance was hampered by the old engine used in the Ki-98. The plans were handed over to Arsenal de l'Aéronautique, who - with little modifications to the airframe - were able to install a license built Nene engine into the now renamed Arsenal VG-98.

The original landing gear was designed for a large prop; there were plans to shorten the gear but initial flights of the prototype showed that the tall gear was an asset when taking off from front-line airstrips, since it all but eliminated FOD to the engine. 

Even though less than 20 planes were built, the VG-98's 37mm cannon and four 20mm canons were highly effective against the Soviet supplied T-34 tanks used by the Chinese, as well as trains and other troop transports. 




« Last Edit: June 03, 2013, 07:09:39 AM by Frank3k »

Offline Tophe

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #40 on: June 08, 2013, 09:37:06 PM »
Belated congratulations! :-* :-*

Offline ysi_maniac

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #41 on: June 15, 2013, 12:44:57 AM »
Highest quality! :) ;)

Offline billb

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Re: Ki-98
« Reply #42 on: June 15, 2013, 06:24:04 AM »
Really nice work.  That nene sets the while thing off perfectly!