1/72 Kugisho D3Y2-K/D5Y1 Myojo Kai

As the Pacific War advanced, the shortage of strategic materials became more and more of a problem for Japan. To deal with this, the military came up with the idea of building wooden versions of successful designs and dispersing production to outlying areas where woodworkers and other industry workers were located. The Myojo was a wooden development of the Aichi D3A2 Val, with simplified wing planform and lengthened fuselage. It was supposed to be a dive-bomber trainer; however, the intial prototype proved to be excessively overweight and required substantial redesign. Once that was overcome, production was given to the small Matsushita company, which was only able to build three examples before the war ended.

Valom's kit includes a resin engine, cowl, and 800KG bomb, as well as photo-etched parts for the instrument panel, belts, engine pushrods, and dive flap arms. Two vacuformed canopies are included. Panel lines are recessed and fine. This kit will require some modeling skills, but nothing beyond the abilities of those with a couple of kits under their belt. It will give you the chance to put something "different" on the shelf, and fill a gap in any collection of IJN planes.