Finemolds Type 97 ‘Chi-Ha’ with Additional Armour

Military Modelcraft International Volume 14 Number 8

The Type 97 was the Japanesearmy's standard medium tankduring World War II. Like its

predecessors, the Type 97 was intendedprimarily for an infantry support role. In1939 skirmishes with Soviet forcesalong the Manchurian border provedthat the Chi-Ha's short-barreled 57mmcannon was not effective against enemyarmour. To remedy the situation a newversion of the Type 97 was orderedwhich was equipped with a newturret mounting a morepowerful high-velocity47mm gun with goodpenetrating power.However, theimproved Type97 did not enterservice until1942 due, inpart, tocomplacency inthe army afterearly victories inChina andManchuria, aswell as latervictories in Malaya,Burma, and theDutch East Indies. Asthe Pacific Warprogressed the Type 97soon found itself outclassed

by the better-armedAllied tanks, such as the

M4 Sherman. Thisresulted in an increaseduse of the Type 97deployed as bunkers andpillbox fortifications.

Rumble in theJungle

Out of the BoxThis is my first experience with buildinga Finemolds kit, and I must say that Ireally enjoyed the experience. Perhapsnot quite as many fancy features areincluded in the box as with somemarquee brand kits, nevertheless this

kit certainly lends itself to a very finerendition of this importantJapanese tank. The overall fit of

the parts is good, with a nice levelof detail and crispness. Included

within the box are vinyl tracks,clear parts for

Rick Lawlerpresents theFinemolds Type97 ‘Chi-Ha’.

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the headlamp and vision blocks, andsuper nice photo etch for the mufflerguards. This kit represents the Type 97‘Chi-Ha’ with additional front and turretarmour, as well as the 57mm cannon asfound on the earlier productionmodels.

Work begins, as usual, withcleaning the road wheels. They havenice detailing on the face of the wheels,although lack any interior detailing whichcan become noticeable if viewed fromcertain angles. The suspension springson the lower hull are well represented by

multi-part assemblies.A set of

aftermarkettracks would beone alternative,but I decided tomake this a trueOut of the Boxbuild - includingusing the vinyl

tracks.The

detail

level on the tracks isdecent, butthey

certainlylack the

necessary appearanceof weight, or track sag so often seen onperiod photographs. Not to worry,however, the solution is rather easy. Yousee, back in the ‘good ol’ days’ we didn’thave all of these wonderful Aftermarketaccessories that are so readily availablethese days. So, using my pin vice Idrilled small holes into the side of thehull between the return rollers andinserted a few short sections of brass tohold down the top run of the tracks.Viola! I had track sag. Once the tracksare painted and weathered the brasspins will be unnoticeable (hopefully)(photo 1).

My only fit issue with the kit camewhen trying to mate the upper and lowerhalves of the hull. Try as I might to getthese parts to come together, itappears (at least in my case) thatthe top is a couple ofmillimetres too shortin length. Throughnumerous test fits Iwas able to get aperfect match eitherat the front or theback, but not togetherat the same time.The solution wasa very simple,however, onlyrequiring my

adding a small strip ofEvergreen to the front

hull to bridge thegap (photo 2). Theremainder of thebuild proceeded

quickly and withoutincident. One highlight of

this kit is the superb photoetchedmuffler covers. These pieces are

some of the finest detailed, perforated

piecesI haveencountered. Beadvised, however, to be careful with thepaintwork so as not to clog the smallholes (photo 3). The turret containssome basic features including the gunbreach and machine gun. Thecommander’s cupola is detailed withclear plastic vision blocks and a nicerepresentation of the multiple hatch

configurations(photo 4).

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Thecompletedmodel prior topaint – completely outof the box.

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Finemolds Type 97 ‘Chi-Ha’ with Additional Armour

Military Modelcraft International Volume 14 Number 8

A Splash of ColourJapanese armour can be a very colourfulaffair. Tanks were generally painted inhard-edged camouflage patches ofMahogany Brown and Dark or OliveGreen over a dull brown base colour.One of the unique features of Japanesearmour was the frequent use of a brightyellow disruptive stripe which made across pattern over the vehicle. This wasgoing to be fun. I decided to apply mybase colours using a mix of Vallejopaints: Stone Grey mixed with Beige,adding just a small drop of ChocolateBrown. The paints were thinned usingtap water and thenapplied with

my airbrush. Once dry, I masked areasfor the camouflage colours, the greencolour first using a mix of Tamiya Sky(XF-21) and J.A.Green (XF-13), followedby the brown areas using Tamiya RedBrown (XF-64). The yellow disruptivestripe was also masked and paintedusing Vallejo Yellow mixed with YellowOchre.

I wanted to portray this vehicle asone that had been exposed to the harshclimate of the Pacific islands; the effectsof sand, rocks, sun and salt air wouldcertainly be evident. I began weatheringby lightening my camouflagecolour mixes slightly and thencarefully sprayed these lighter

tones to the center ofgreen and brown

areas to add alittle ‘fading’ to

the finish (photo6). Some small

chips and scratcheswere then applied

using a soft sponge,taping along the areas

of highest wear (photo 7).Feeling that the overallappearance was still too bright Iairbrushed a couple of light

applications of MIG Productions Filtercolours P242 and P401 which gave thevehicle a very nice faded, or washed-outappearance. The small surface detailswere brought forward by pin-washesusing MIG Productions’ Neutral Wash(photo 8).

In my opinion the model still lookedstark and a bit toy-like at this stage; thefinish lacked depth. The remedy, I havefound, is the application of artist’s oils. Iconcentrated first by adding richness tothe base colours (camouflage included)by working in varying colours of greens,

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Base colourapplied withVallejoacrylics

Green appliedusing the Tamiya paints

followed by . . .

The Red Brownusing the sameprocedure.

Masking tape appliedfollowing the pattern on thekit instructions.

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Complex Camouflage: Step-by-Step

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yellows and browns from MIGProductions’ range of Abteilung 502artist’s oils. This step takes a little time,both in the application and for thedrying, but the results are worth theefforts. The results will be subtle tonalshifts and shading in the base colours,and any scratches you have applied willsettle into the finish (rather that layingon top) (photo 9).

Once the preceding step hadthoroughly dried I continued withadditional applications of oils. During thissecond round, however, I concentratedon laying the foundation for the finalweathering and use of pigments. Mycolours now included Abteilung 502colours of Buff, Light Mud, Dark Mud,Basic Earth, and Shadow Brown. Thesecolours were worked into the areas ofgreatest dirt accumulation on the lowerhull and running gear, around surfacedetails, and into the nooks and cornersof the vehicle. On the larger, horizontalsurfaces, such as fenders and the rearengine deck, I like to thin the oil coloursusing turpentine and apply large puddlesof these thick washes to the surface.Once dried, this method nicely recreatesthe appearance of light dusty/dirtyareas. As with all weathering, butparticularly the artist’s oils, repeatedapplications are usually necessary

(photo 10).Once I felt that I’d done all that I

could with the artist’s oils I moved ontousing MIG Productions’ pigments. Thesepigments are avery versatile tooland can be appliedusing a number ofdifferent methods.For me, I prefer toat least initially laymy pigmentfoundation usingwet pigments,having firstdissolved them inthinners. Thismethod allows meto literally ‘paint’the pigmentsexactly where Iwant them (photo11). Once dry, thepigments return to their original colours.Beginning with the areas where I laid‘dirty’ foundation colours with the artist’soils I applied light coats of pigmentsover the top. I generally begin in thecorners and slowly work my wayoutward to the center of the panels. Theprocess was repeated numerous timeswith each application having a slightlydifferent pigment colour and/or

consistency. Varying the mix is importantto adding visual interest to the finishedmodel. As a final step I applied MIGProductions’ Pigment Fixer topermanently set the pigments in place.To apply the fixer I simply loaded a softbrush with the solution and lightly touchthe surface of the model allowing theliquid to flow over the surfaces (photo12).

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Finemolds Type 97 ‘Chi-Ha’ with Additional Armour

Military Modelcraft International Volume 14 Number 8

Tackling the Paper JungleI’m not sure if this is true with othermodellers, but for me when I begin aproject I am also thinking of how Imight be able to place the kit into ascene or setting. For some time I hadbeen looking for an opportunity to trythe laser cut paper foliage fromJapanese firm, Kamizukuri, and nowwith the Chi-Ha I had the perfectexcuse. The base itself could not havebeen simpler being made from a cutpiece of foam with styrene sides toppedwith Magic Sculpt two-part putty. Forthe groundwork I looked no further thanmy own backyard and picked up ahandful of material from under the treesand glued this over the top of the MagicSculpt shell. This tangle of basiccompost was perfect for simulating thedense tangle of brush near the ground.

I used three sets of the Kamizukuriproducts for this base: Banyan,Jungle–A, and Jungle-B. They could notbe easier to use. To prepare them Isimply airbrushed varying shades of

Vallejo greens and yellows onto thepaper sheets and left them to dry. Onsome of the leaves I took a little time toadd some variegation and veins foradded interest. In the meantime I cutsmall section of brass wire and placedthem into pre-drilled holed in the base,and then painted these ‘stems’ similarshades of green as I was using for theleaves. An additional layer of growthwas added using Silfor Products tufts of

grass. Next, I carefully cut the paperfoliage form the carrier and attachedthem to the stems using super glue. Thesmall tree was made from a small twigfrom the backyard and then adornedwith the Banyan leaves. As a final touchto the foliage I lightly brushed MIGProductions’ Wet and Damp Earth Effectsto the leaves to give them a nice sheen.

The Verdict

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Tackling the Paper Jungle: Step-by-Step

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The Kamizukuri paperplants were simplysprayed with variousgreens.

A tangle of vegetation from the garden provided the jungle floor.

Tufts of grass from Silfor Products were added on top.

And the Kamizukuri jungle foliage attached with white glue.

FineMolds1/35 Type 97‘Chi-Ha’(ref. FM27)is

distributed inthe UK by ModelwholesaleUK(www.modelsforsale.com). Retail: £32.95

A. Tomczyk and W.Markowski,Japanese Armor1931-45 (Tank Power8), available fromthe Aviation BookCentre at £25.99(www.aviationbookcentre.com) .

Availability and References

Kamizukuri Paper Plant Kits A-20, A-22-A, A-22-B, A-22-C. Kamizukuri areavailable from www.tasca-modellismo and other online retailers.

FineMolds had done a nice job producingthis, and other important vehicles of theJapanese Imperial Army. In trying tosummarize this project I keep comingback to the word ‘fun’. Throughout thisproject I kept being reminded ofthe laid backmodelling days ofmy younger

years. The detail is good, theinstructions are clear and the

enjoyability quotient is high. Thiskit could easily fit the bill as arelaxed two-day weekend

project, although unfortunatelyit took me considerablylonger (my apologies to theeditor!). I’m certain thatthis is only the first of

many FineMoldsprojects in my model

case.

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Rumble in the Jungle: In Detail

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If this article inspires you topurchase the productsfeatured, then please

mention MMI when doing so