# 1:48 Kyushu Shinden Floatplane



## ProfKSergeev (Aug 29, 2003)

This is one of the more unusual variants of an already unusual aircraft, the late-war Kyushu Shinden. Not exactly sci-fi, but I saw it in a Japanese monster movie (a "kaiju eiga") starring a rather unconvincing giant crab. The Shinden's pilot is a samurai-esque caricature whose mission is to transport a German physicist to Japan so he can continue his work on an Axis atom bomb. (An embayed American aircraft carrier thwarts his efforts.) The movie's plot is ludicrous, but I remember being quite taken with all of the fanciful machinery, especially the I-400-based Shinden seaplane. (In a goosebump-inducing sequence, the submarine rises from the inky depths, the hangar hatch swings open, and the Shinden emerges like a deadly butterfly. As the wings unfold, the camera zooms in on the cockpit, where the pilot is in silent prayer, palms together. The huge, six-bladed prop then revs up, and the plane is catapulted off the sub.)

I'm going by memory on this build, so it won't be entirely accurate to the version in the movie. I'm combining the Hasegawa J7W1 Shinden with the floats from Tamiya's Kyofu and a pair of drop tanks.

For now, I have simply taped together the seaplane's configuration. There are a number of improvements and additions I plan to make to the Hasegawa kit:

- scribed panel lines
- stressed skin
- improved cockpit
- aftermarket nose guns
- metal pitot tube
- spinning prop (bringing over the motor from the Tamiya Kyofu)
- and folding wings (the mechanism in the movie was similar to the Grumman Avenger's, save the wings folded forward)


----------



## ProfKSergeev (Aug 29, 2003)

The first step I decided to take was making the wingfold:

Transferring plans to plastic.

The separation line is simply copied from the Grumman Wildcat. Perhaps the Japanese back-engineered the Sto-Wing.

Scoring.

I finished the wing-ectomy with an X-Acto and a Trytool photoetch saw.

The surgery was a complete success.

Later I'll remove the "bandages," thin the skin, build bulkheads, &c. Can anyone suggest a source for miniature hinges?


----------



## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Interesting project!


----------



## Jafo (Apr 22, 2005)

very cool, cant wait to see it done


----------



## hedorah59 (Nov 24, 2008)

Great start! Do you recall the name of the movie this is from? It doesn't ring any bells with me.

I've seen other projects with small hinges, but I have no idea where to look for them.


----------



## ProfKSergeev (Aug 29, 2003)

hedorah59 said:


> Great start! Do you recall the name of the movie this is from? It doesn't ring any bells with me.


Kind of. I saw it on TV in Japan, and I don't speak Japanese. I understood about half of what was said because half the cast was American and not dubbed, just subtitled. The boisterous TV announcer would say the movie's title after every commercial break, but all I remember is it started with something like "dye neejee" and was rather long.



> I've seen other projects with small hinges, but I have no idea where to look for them.


I've found a website for dollhouse hinges that might do the trick. If not, I could always try making my own.


----------



## crazy mike (Aug 26, 1999)

Think it was the old Monogram Hellcat or Wildcat that had a wing folding hinge based on a tee looking piece of plastic.The long leg rotated in the wing root and the outer panel flopped up and down on the crosspiece ends. Would be fairly easy to reproduce with brass tubing and a few plastruct flanges.
My 2 cents worth:freak:


----------



## machine shop to (Dec 10, 2005)

crazy mike said:


> Think it was the old Monogram Hellcat or Wildcat that had a wing folding hinge based on a tee looking piece of plastic.The long leg rotated in the wing root and the outer panel flopped up and down on the crosspiece ends. Would be fairly easy to reproduce with brass tubing and a few plastruct flanges.
> My 2 cents worth:freak:


I had that model with the folding wings. It was the Hellcat, I don't remember if it was 1/32 or 1/48. That was in 1968 or 1969. The folding wings actually functioned quite well.

tom


----------



## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

It was one of Monogram's splendid ol' 1/48 kits. Probably retailed for $1.50 back then.


----------



## machine shop to (Dec 10, 2005)

John P said:


> It was one of Monogram's splendid ol' 1/48 kits. Probably retailed for $1.50 back then.


I saw one (NIB) on-line a while ago for 55 bucks.

I used to buy the Monogram 1/48 planes for less than 3 bucks at our old Kresge store.

ton


----------



## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

HiWay Hobby in NJ had a standing 70% discount in the 70s. Monogram's $1 WWII fighter kits like the Me-109 were only 70 freakin cents!


----------



## roadrner (Jul 21, 1999)

Keep posting pix as you go along. :thumbsup: rr


----------

