Complete - Airfix's A6M2b Zero (A01005)

Completed Review - Airfix's A6M2b Zero (A01005) - Part 2

Scale: 1:72, RRP - £5.99

It's been more than a month since I last wrote about Airfix's A6M2b Zero and as it's approaching completion I thought it's about time I wrote a bit more about it.

Apart from the issue mentioned previously with fitting the machine guns and cowl the kit pretty much fell together, I didn't actually feel the need to do any filling, which is always a bonus. The clear parts fitted well and aren't too thick, meaning some of the details inside can still been seen.

To paint the model I used Tamiya acrylics. I'm becoming more confident using an airbrush and so this time I attempted to pre-shade the panel lines with Tamiya's XF-1, Flat Black, although this worked better on the base of the aircraft.

The base was then sprayed with XF-12, JN Grey, while the rest of the aircraft was sprayed with JN Green (XF-70). Finally in order to highlight the model the green was highlighted with lighter mixes of JN Green and Interior Green (XF-71, the colour I'd used for the interior).

Spraying went well and it's really good for the confidence to have a successful spell with the airbrush. There was a slight issue with a dog hair getting stuck in the freshly sprayed paint but I was fortunately able to rescue it...

Next, I moved onto the decals.

I have to say I found them a little thick and a bit more work than they should have been, especially as Airfix claim this is a level 1 difficultly kit.

The yellow bands along the front of the wing took some bending before they settled and the red outlines to the rear of the wings seem poorly thought out. The decal was a thin rectangle with a hollow centre (rather than being a solid rectangle decal) and as you can imagine was somewhat awkward to slide into place. With hindsight I should have cut it into more manageable pieces, but I got it settled eventually.

So for now that's it. I'm intending to display this model in flight, weather it a bit and attach the spinner. I've not attached the landing gear yet until I've found a suitable base to for it (otherwise the gear will be down).

Looking back to when I wrote my in-box review of this kit I scored it 4 out of 5. So the question is, now that I've built it, do I stand by that original score? There were a few issues in the build, but once it's built it's a really good looking kit. For the money you pay it's absolutely worth it, so I wouldn't hesitate to recommend that you have a go at building one.

Overall Build Score: 4 out of 5, as I wrote before, Airfix can be really proud of this release. Easily the best budget Zero kit out there and one that can also hold it's own with the high end kits.

Zero Plus Zero - In Box Review (Airfix & Tamiya)

When it comes to Second World War aircraft I have to confess the aircraft of Japan are ones that I've tended to overlook. With that in mind I decided to make up for it by taking a look at a couple of Japanese Navy aircraft kits of the legendary Zero.

The Zero is a popular choice with Asian model companies, Hasegawa, Fine Molds and Tamiya have released numerous kits over many years. However they seem to be less popular with western companies, I can only dream of an Eduard Profipack version! It was a newer 1:72 scale release from Airfix that first prompted me to take a look at the Zero and soon after I followed that purchase with another, the Tamiya 1:72 version. Before purchasing I also inspected those of Academy and Hasegawa but decided what I had was the best in their respective price ranges.

The Airfix kit that I'm going to take a look at is the A6M2b version, the Tamiya kit is the later A6M5 variant. While Tamiya have also released an A6M2b (the next kit they released after the A6M5) I elected not to purchase this one as I wanted to build different versions. I did however inspect both Tamiya kits before purchase and found them to exactly the same in terms of quality.

These kits are at opposite ends of the price scale, so how do they compare?


Airfix Mitsubishi A6M2b Zero (A01005)

This Airfix 1:72 scale kit is one of their more recent new toolings. It's available in two versions, this standard kit and a starter kit with paints. The two kits offer different colour schemes, this one a Mitsubishi Green scheme from later in the war, the starter kit a white colour scheme from the time of the Pearl Harbour raid.

As is case with Airfix's series one kits you only get the one colour scheme, not too much of an issue as you can only make the one aircraft anyway. Decals in these new kits are by Cartograf and if they're like any of the other newer Airfix kits they should be just fine.

Upon opening the box I there ares three sprues of grey plastic and one clear canopy. The parts look well moulded and fairly detailed. The panel lines are a bit heavy but despite this it's a vast improvement on Airfix's older kits. There's even detail on the cockpit walls, although I'm not sure how much will be visible once you attach the single piece (closed) canopy. As with most Airfix kits you also get a pilot should you wish use him, personally I think it's always nice to be given the choice!

Manufacturer's finished product shot

I have to say I'm quite impressed at this kit, opening it and inspecting the parts really gave me a feeling of "I want to build this kit." While there are more detailed kits available it doesn't automatically mean this kit isn't worth your time. Far from it, this is decent little kit, even more so when you consider it's more detailed rivals are more than twice the price. Compare it to it's nearest rival at a similar price bracket, Academy's kit and the Airfix kit is streets ahead.

Tamiya Mitsubishi A6M5 Zero - Zeke (60779)

I think Tamiya can probably be considered the "King" of Zero kits, so it's probably not dificult to guess the direction this review is going to go. Tamiya have been releasing Zeros in 1:48 scale since my childhood (and before) and in 2008 they started refreshing the range. A new 1:32 scale release followed before we finally got a 1:72 scale version.

So what do you get? Two sprues of very nicely detailed grey plastic, a couple of polycaps for the spinner, clear parts for either an open or closed canopy and a nice little fact sheet about the Zero as well as the instruction booklet. Just looking the sprues I was blown away by the detail, I even had to remind myself this was a 1:72 scale kit! No pilot though I'm afraid, but Tamiya never have offered them at this scale which I've always felt is a shame.

The kit offers schemes for three aircraft, all in Mitsubishi Green. Decals appear to be as good as those in the Airfix kit but of course I'll only be able to confirm that after applying them.

Manufacturer's finished product shot

This is clearly a more detailed and more polished kit than Airfix's offering. However it should be, at three times the price you expect that. A more reasonable comparison would be with a more expensive Hasegawa kit and here the Tamiya offering still comes out on top.

So which to buy?

If you had to choose one I think it would come down to price alone. The Airfix kit is exceptional value and in the sub-£10 price bracket you need not look elsewhere. The Tamiya kit retails at around the £20 mark and is simply the best kit there is in this scale, if you want to pay that much.

If money's no object, (and you're not buying them to review), then I recommend you buy them both!

Airfix A6M2b Zero - Overall In Box Score: Promising. Excellent value, Airfix can be really proud of this release.

Tamiya A6M5 Zero - Overall In Box Score: Outstanding. I have no words left to say how good this kit looks!

In the coming months I'd certainly like to try build these kits and see if I still stand by these scores. When I do I'll update this post with a link to a build post(s).