#126 Mitsubishi A6M2b

Building the classic Tamiya 1:72 A6M2b.

Notes

The Mitsubishi A6M Zero a long-range carrier-based fighter aircraft.

It was designated Mitsubishi Navy Type 0 carrier fighter 零式艦上戦闘機. The official Allied reporting name was “Zeke”, although the name “Zero” was used colloquially as well.

The A6M2b is the Type 0 Model 21 variant introduced folding wingtips to allow them to fit on aircraft carriers. The resulting Model 21 would become one of the most produced versions early in the war.

The Kit

I picked up the Tamiya Mitsubishi A6M2b 1:72 kit in a Limited Edition boxing No. 25165 while visiting the TAMIYA PLAMODEL FACTORY TOKYO. It includes an extended range of 8 schemes and the “Zero at War” photo-book.

References

The A6M Naval Carrier Fighter - Zero or Hero? - Drachinifel

The A6M Naval Carrier Fighter - Homegrown or Copy?

Kit Schemes

• A: 真珠湾攻擊時/ PearlHarborAttack】 《第一航空戰隊一番艦•赤城搭載機》第二次攻擊隊制空隊•進藤三郎大刷
  • Carrier Akagi, Lead ship of Carrier Dvi. 1, Lt. Saburo Shindo, Ari Superiority Force, 2nd Strike Unit
• B: 《第二航空戰隊一番艦• 蒼龍搭載機》 第二次攻擊隊制空隊• 飯田房太大尉
  • Carrier Soryu, Lead ship of Carrier Div. 2, Lt. Fusata lida, Air Superiority Force, 2nd Strike Unit
• C: 《第五航空戰隊二番艦• 瑞鶴搭載機》第二次攻擊隊制空隊• 佐藤正夫大尉
  • Carrier Zuikaku, Second ship of Carrier Div. 5, Lt. Masao Sato, Air Superiority Force, 2nd Strike Unit
• D: 《台南航空隊坂井三郎一飛曹搭栗機》昭和17年8月7日
  • Flight Petty Officer 1st Class Saburo Sakai, Tainan Air Group, August 7, 1942.
• E: 《第一航空 隊一番艦 翔鶴搭載飛行隊長 新鄉英城大尉搭乘機》昭和17年10月26日 南大平洋海
  • Lt. Hideki Shingo (Unit Commander), Carrier Shokaku, Lead ship of Carrier Div, 1,
  • Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, October 26, 1942
• F: 《第二航空 隊二番艦•隼鷹搭載》昭和17年10月～昭和18年1月
  • Carrier Junyo, 2nd ship of Carrier Div. 2, October 1942 - January 1943
• G: 《201航空隊所属機 》昭和18年初期中部太平洋
  • 201st Air Group, Central Pacific, early 1943
• H: 《第261航空隊所属機》昭和18年中期～昭和19年3月 鹿 島基地
  • 261st Air Group, Kagoshima Airbase, mid-1943 - March 1944

Paint Scheme

Chosen scheme: C

Build Log

Cockpit detail is superior, even without any PE.

The Eduard masks CX337 allowed the fine detail of the canopy to be painted with ease.

I chose a figure from the Red Box Kamikaze set to pose with the completed model.

Final Gallery

Bucket list build! Tamiya A6M, famously “the best 1:72 kit ever made”. True?

I’ve often heard the legend of the “best 1:72 kit ever made” - Tamiya A6M. Finally crossed it off my bucket list. And they’re not wrong, the engineering is exceptional. But it’s not perfect- decals are typically thick and don’t settle down well (if I wasn’t trying to do it out of the box, most would be better to paint on). And the undercarriage took a bit of work to get seated and aligned. But I look forward to doing another😁 .. this is the A6M2b; I also have the A6M5 in the stash (they are so cheap too)

Credits and References

• this project on scalemates
• Mitsubishi A6M2b Zero Fighter (Zeke) & “Zero at War” Photo-book Limited Edition Kit Tamiya No. 25165 1:72
• A6M2b for Tamiya Eduard No. CX337 1:72
• Japanese Kamikaze WWII Red Box No. RB72048 1:72
• “Zero at War” photo-book