A6M1 Zero 1/72 FineMolds
The most iconic fighter planes of World War II undoubtedly include the P-51 Mustang, Bf-109, S. Spitfire, H. Hurricane, and Mitsubishi A6M Zero. Like everyone else, I was captivated by its sleek lines and, above all, the many incredible stories associated with this aircraft and the pilots who flew it.
If you want to build a 1/72 scale Zero, there is an endless selection of kits from various manufacturers to choose from. The best A6M kit currently available is almost twenty years old and made by FineMolds. This is despite the fact that Tamyia has released its ultimate Zero in the same scale and the model does not have a riveted surface in line with current trends.
The first A6M2b mod. 21 kit was released by FineMolds in 2007 as a appendix to ModelGraphic magazine. It was followed by other versions: A6M3 mod.32, A6M5 mod. 52, and A6M3 mod. 22, again as appendix to modeling magazines. In 2019, FineMolds released a double kit under its own brand, which completes the type series and includes the A6M1 and A6M2a versions. And this year, they announced that they are also planning early versions of the A6M5 type. After the release of the first kit in 2007, I immediately purchased two copies of ModelGraphic magazine with the A6M2b kit and gradually added more. When the Zero type series was complete in my kit bash, it was time to start building. As in Mitsubishi, I started with a prototype of the famous fighter. The A6M1 differed from production aircraft in the placement of its horizontal tail surfaces, the shape of its rudder, the keel under the fuselage, its Mitsubishi Zuisei engine, its two-bladed propeller, and other minor details.
The kit is perfect, with a well-thought-out design, beautiful surface, lots of fine details, and crystal-clear parts. I started the build in the usual way with the cockpit. It has everything, the only thing I improved was drilling relief holes in the seat and adding seat belts for the pilot. Assembling the fuselage and wings was no problem. Not a drop of putty was needed anywhere. The kit has extended landing flaps. If you want to build the Zero in its classic configuration when standing on the ground, i.e., without the flaps extended, you can remove the flap mounting pin. The flaps will snap into place as if they were molded directly with the wing. The Zuisei engine is simplified and made as one piece. That doesn’t matter at all. You can’t see much of it in the engine cowling anyway. The build was extremely quick and without any problems. This was followed by riveting the surface of the model. I based my work on the drawings in the publication Aero Detail 7, Mitsubishi A6M Zero Fighter. The kit was now ready for painting.
The single-color Zeros and their camouflage are a constant source of speculation, and everyone has their own guaranteed correct shade. The color of the prototypes differed slightly from the color later used on production aircraft. I mixed the “one and only correct shade” from Gunze C128 and C336 paints. The Hinomaru roundels and markings on the rudder were sprayed using masks from Dead Design. After gluing on the landing gear and other small parts, the Zero prototype was complete.
