1/32 Aichi D3A1 (type 99) Val. (Infinity Models) Final bits.

[Clunkmeister]

So here we are.  As far as I know, this is either THE first, or at least one of the very first Val’s to be built other than by Infinity and HPH product testers.

This kit looks extremely promising to me, and as a guy who not only has built and finished the Helldiver, but also has the Vampire kit, I can say that quite simply put, this kit FEELS much more substantial than either of the two previous kit releases. 
 The plastic feels and looks a lot like what is used on the 1/32 IBG P.11c, and the detail astounds.

I purchased all the extra cost add on kits, thinking that I’ll need them, but the kit parts here really surprised me.  In a good way.  I won’t be folding the wings, and I’m going to compare the other add on kits with the kit parts, then use what I think is the best.

I’d like to take this to the US Nationals in Texas, assuming it’s done in time. 

[Clunkmeister]

First blood:  just for kicks, I cut out and stacked the main extra cost engine components, friction fit, to get a look at how it appears. 
Tomorrow I’ll stack the kit engine and compare the two.  
The aftermarket engine looks positively amazing!

DETAIL! 

[Clunkmeister]

The fuselage interior sides have a TON of detail, and there are multiple ribs and a few stringers to add on the cockpit sidewalls. 
I’m happy to say that everything actually fits, and fits well, although I had to adjust the curvature of a couple ribs to ensure they lay flush against the sidewall.

[Clunkmeister]

I found one very prominent ejector tower in the cockpit area. I took basic care to remove it, and although there are some scratches in the plastic afterwards, I’ll fill it with dissolved putty.

The cockpit sidewalls were very cluttered on this aircraft, and it looks like Infinity won’t disappoint, there are all sorts of doohickeys, gigglers, tuckies, even the Machine that goes PING!  All attached to the sidewalls.

[Clunkmeister]

There are NO complete Vals in existence today, although there are a few projects being restored from multiple crashed aircraft bits. 
Sorta like 99% of the 2 gazillion T-6s fling today, but different. 🤣

[Clunkmeister]

This should be a very close match for the interior green used by Aichi. 

[GazzaS]

[Spitfire]

Looking good.

Cheers

Dennis

[Bomber_County]

Watching with interest….

[Peterpools]

Ernie

Looks really good but geez, for a company that is seriously thinking of pulling the plug on it's IM business, why offer all the AM stuff - just put the effort into upgrading the kit details. Surely would help those on the fence, decide to buy the kit, rather then keep thinking about all the upgrades.

 

[Clunkmeister]

Peter, the next few days should tell me all I need to know. The cockpit area is complicated. There’s a boatload of small parts here, and part of me can’t help but think that this interior would look amazing with PE ribs and longerons.   It’s nowhere meant as a knock of the kit, but some of HPH’s kits go insane on PE, and these guys aren’t shy of using it.

Either way, I’m back on it tonight and I’ll hopefully have it much farther along.  No paint on the interior though, at least until the structure is together.

Suffice it to say that it’s been awhile since I wanted to build a kit this badly.  OK, since they brought out the Helldiver.  🤣

 

[Martinnfb]

[Clunkmeister]

Well guys, so far, I’m quite impressed with what I’ve seen.  On my Helldiver, literally the ENTIRE model except for the basic exterior ended up being aftermarket 3D printed from Resin2Detail, Airscale, and parts meant for the resin HPH Helldiver. It didn’t start out that way, but it sure as hall veered off within the first 10 minutes on the bench.

I’ve promised myself to chill out and try to avoid extra add on parts wherever possible. So here we are, day two, and still not a lick of AM in sight.

The cockpit sides start bare, and ribs and longerons get added as we go. Various appliances are added as well, and before you know it, you’ll have a beautiful cockpit. 
 

It starts like this:

Notice the massive ejector schlong, right in the middle of the action.  Thankfully, it’s an easy castration job…

 

[Clunkmeister]

Everything gets added, and it starts looking like this:

 

[Spitfire]

Now that looks good, hopefully mine will soon be winging it's way to me.

Cheers

Dennis

[Clunkmeister]

12 hours ago, Spitfire said:

Now that looks good, hopefully mine will soon be winging it's way to me.

Cheers

Dennis

I’m in uncharted waters here so I’m taking my time. 
So far, I’ll I’ve found are a couple of the ribs mislabeled on the instructions. They referred to sprue “F” when it should have been sprue “D”. Other than that, smooth sailing so far.

We’ll run through a bit more tonight.  A word to the wise: there are a boatload of tiny parts used in the cockpit, so be sure to be very careful when handling them.  Otherwise, something could easily jump off the end of the tweezers. 

[Clunkmeister]

16 hours ago, Spitfire said:

Now that looks good, hopefully mine will soon be winging it's way to me.

Cheers

Dennis

I can’t wait to see you tackle it, Dennis.  After proving that the main parts fit well, I’m pleasantly surprised with the fit here as well.  I’m expecting the shoe to drop somewhere, but so far, there’s no issues. 

[belugawhaleman]

I must admit, ....I love the subject...I built a bunch of Japanese aircraft during

my breaks when I was in college..... Mostly Otaki, (remember those?), Tamiya..

and I did build a Val..not sure who made it....but I do love good fit and engineering. Because of this, frankly, I'm kind of scared off by this kit. I value

your opinion, and respect your building skills....Would you say this kit is worth it? I'm thinking of building a Japanese aircraft.....most likely A zero by Tamiya...

Those are pricey... But then so is your VAL.....which would you recommend?

[Clunkmeister]

Well, first of all, this kit is MILES and MILES beyond anything Infinity has yet put out.  It’s so far above the others that it’s not even in the same zip code. 
And the Vampire isn’t a horrible kit at all.

But this kit, so far, is amazing.  Everything fits so far, and fits nicely.  
I fought my Helldiver every moment of the way, to the point where the only parts I used from the original kit were the outer airframe, the landing gear legs, and the prop.  Everything else was 3D printed or resin. 

This kit is almost falling together so far.  Now bear in mind, I find Tamiya boring. I love Special Hobby, Silver Wings, Fisher, Lukgraph, and HPH kits. Just the challenge.

I will say with no hesitation that if you can comfortably build a Special Hobby kit, you can easily handle this.  I’ve found a couple little foibles, but nothing bad, and I’ll document the second foible in the next few posts. 
The kit doesn’t really need any AM, if you don’t want to.  If Quinta had a 3D instrument set, I’d use it, and I like the resin exhausts and maybe even the resin engine (not absolutely necessary).  
Here, this kit retails at $140.00, and I dare say it’ll come down.  They’re selling on eBay for close to $200.00.  Most places are actually selling out, I’ve had many comments on my review, and all were positive, so maybe people actually still read reviews?

My recommendation?  BUY IT, BUILD IT!   It’s a 1/32 Val, never done by anyone ever before.

[Clunkmeister]

Right now, I’m assembling anything that’ll be Kawanishi cockpit green.  Fit is positively outstanding so far. 

[Clunkmeister]

The detail so far is stunning. 

[Clunkmeister]

One little issue I ran into is a very slight thickness variation of the mating surfaces on the dorsal fin.  
Not a big deal, but this is why we always test fit, and test fit, and test fit. 
30 seconds attention with a flat sanding stick will iron that problem out. No issues on the outside, that is on the inner side. 
The rest of the fuselage fits to perfection.

[Clunkmeister]

As for the wing.  Infinity has followed HPH’s example when it comes to rigidity. We have a truly massive U-Channel main spar that will give the wings incredible strength.

There are no locator pins on this kit, but Infinity gave us two scribed lines to mark where the spar goes, as well as a handy-dandy arrow to point which way is forward. 
They also made alignment pretty much idiot proof, as there is a notch molded in the center of the spar, that corresponds to a dot on the center section.  Put the notch on the dot, and Bob’s your uncle. 

[Clunkmeister]

A quick coat of Nakajima green, followed by plenty of dry brushing. Tomorrow, some oil washes, a bit more staining, some chipping, and the start picking out the details. 

[Troy M.]

Looking good.