Subject: Re: Tamiya Raiden Article submission. Hi Steve, I have had to send this in two parts. Can you let me know if you get both parts okay? Thanks, Jamie.
From: "Submissions for ARC" <[email-masked]>
To: "Jamie Cheslo" <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 3 Apr 2008 19:10:48 -0700

Hi,
I just wanted to let you know your article went on ARC today.  Thanks again for sending it in.

Steve Bamford
Aircraft Resource Center
http://www.aircraftresourcecenter.com

Live like there is no tomorrow;
Love like you've never been hurt.
Work like you don't need the money.
Dance like nobody's watching.
Sing like nobody's listening.
Live like it's Heaven on Earth.

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Jamie Cheslo 
  To: [email-masked] 
  Sent: Tuesday, March 11, 2008 1:58 PM
  Subject: Tamiya Raiden Article submission. Hi Steve, I have had to send this in two parts. Can you let me know if you get both parts okay? Thanks, Jamie.

  "1/48 Tamiya Raiden" 

  by "Jamie Cheslo"
  --------------------

        Steve Bamford will insert full sized version of photo 01.jpg here  

  Hi folks. This is my last completed build. It is the very old Tamiya 1/48 Raiden or "Jack", with a combination of raised and recessed panel lines that was typical of the older Tamiya kits. I did not bother to rescribe the raised lines as I think they looked fine. People who want to build this kit with recessed lines can do so with the newer Hasegawa Raiden. 

  A little history: the Japanese used this plane as a high altitude interceptor near the end of the war in a (mostly futile) attempt to deal with the ever-increasing bombing raids on the Home Islands by the American B-29s. I attempted to give the model a very war-weary look as it may have appeared near the end of the conflict in July, 1945. In this attempt, I used the "salt chipping" method to show the worn paintjob, which turned out to my liking. I also used Tamiya Weathermaster weathering powders to heavily stain the paint with oil and gunsmoke. Further weathering was added with a rub of chalk pastels to fade the paint and the Japanese Hinomarus.  Construction was very straight forward and I encountered no build issues save for a mysteriously lost canopy (I think my dog may have got at it!) which began quite an odyssey of destroyed vac-form replacement canopies until I finally managed to snag another kit canopy from a friend. The build was basically out of box, with the exception of scratch built brake lines, and fishing wire for the radio antenna wires. Paints used were a combination of Tamiya AS-12 out of the rattle can for the NMF base coat, and airbrushed Tamiya Acrylics IJN Dark Green and IJN Light Grey.  All in all a fun, relaxing build, and I think the old kit stands up to the test of time!

  Click on images below to see larger images

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 03.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 03.jpg 
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  Pictures 2 and 3 show the results of the Tamiya AS-12 basecoat. Shiny! Picture 4 shows the result once the saltwater mixture had hardened on the surface of the NMF. In picture 5 you can see what the surface looks like with the IJN dark green sprayed on top of the salted basecoat. I also faded the paint here by adding white to lighten up the dark green, in mostly random places or where I thought the sun would fade the paint. Then the best part of the build began, and that was the salt-flicking stage. You can see the results of the removed salt in picture 6. I had no idea, really, how it would turn out, but I was pleasantly surprised by look. You can also see the black anti-glare panel and yellow leading edge ID stripes which I had painted and masked over the NMF before I applied the saltwater mixture. Pictures 7 and 8 give you a close up of the paint chipping effect. I will definitely use this technique again in the future.

        Steve Bamford will insert full sized version of photo 02.jpg here  

  There seems to be some controversy over whether or not the landing gear doors and wheel wells were painted with the anti-corrosion Aotake paint. I have no idea what the accurate truth is, but I decided I liked the look of the Aotake, so that is what I went with. The final picture, I think, is a good shot revealing the full extent of the weathering I inflicted upon this poor plane. Well, I hope you enjoy the pics. Thanks for looking!

  Click on images below to see larger images

        Steve Bamford will insert a click-able smaller version of photo 07.jpg here.  Clicking on that photo will bring up the full sized version of photo 07.jpg 
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