Eduard Brassin 1/48 Ki-61-Id Enhancements
By Jacob Russell
Last year Tamiya released the definitive 1/48th scale Kawasaki Ki-61 kit, a Ki-61-Id. The kit is accurate and it is quite well detailed. But there are very real limitations to injection molding technology, so Eduard has released a number of Brassin resin detail parts for it, 3 of which we will review here.
Item number 648 316 is a pair of shrouded exhaust stacks. The ends of each stack are opened up and their detail is impressive. I would prime and attach the exhaust stacks first, and then paint the entire air frame. Then I would brush paint the stacks, because the exhaust shrouds were often painted the air frame color.
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648 317 is a pair of main wheels and a tail wheel, plus a set of masks. Once again, the casting quality is excellent.
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Finally, 648 321 is a pair of gun barrels with perforated cooling jackets, which look very realistic indeed.
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I have long been a fan of Kawasaki's elegant inline engined fighter. It gave a good account of itself against considerable Allied opposition. Eduard's Brassin parts add an additional level of refinement to Tamiya's great kit. I recommend these sets and I would like to thank Eduard for the review samples.
