Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 - Plastic scale model Inbox Review

Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) 

Tamiya 1/72 - Plastic scale model Inbox Review





How is it going guys, I am Metodi and in this article we will take a look at Tamiya’s 1/72nd scale Mitsubishi A6M2b Zero. The kit number of this particular kit is: 60780
At the end of the article I will perform a "tape together" test to see how well the kit comes together held only with tape.

Inside the box you will find the typical Tamiya instructions, a background information booklet
2.1 grey plastic sprues, One transparent sprue,
2 poly caps
And decals for 3 aircrafts, none of which is represented on the box art.
On the sidewalls of the box you will find colour profiles of two of the decal options

Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review

Below you can see links for the kit and some awesome books



  The quality of the molding is magnificent, the panel lines are subtle and crisp, the surface lacks rivet details but have fasteners on the inspection panels.
The representation of the ribs on the control surfaces is not spectacular but it is not bad either.
Wings are divided in such fashion that leaves the trailing edges nice and thin.
There are also raised strengthening and armoured plates represented both on wings and fuselage.
  The fuselage is every bit as impressive as the wings in terms of surface details.
It is broken down longitudinal to two fuselage halves with the gun deck as a separate part. In front of that assembly comes a plate with the engine cowling flaps, followed by the cowling itself. 
  The cowling is on its own sprue being the .1 sprue mentioned earlier. It is molded in a way that it has no seams whatsoever.
The guns will greatly benefit from some drilling, the exhausts are molded hollow and blocked from inside which should give nice results after careful painting.

Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review      Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review      Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review

The detail provided for the wheel wells is very good for the scale. 
There are a few ejector marks on the inside of the gear bay doors but that is easy to remedy.
Overall the landing gear details are superb with my only discontent being that the tires are not weighted.

Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review      Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review


Moving to the interior I am getting absolutely impressed. Keep in mind that this is tiny ww2 fighter in 1/72nd scale.
The sidewall structural details are very well represented and the plastic in the area is thinner than the rest of the fuselage.
The instrument panel is even more impressive and if you succeed in properly placing the provided decals you are going to enjoy an awesome dashboard.
The cockpit floor is also riddled with details and is should fit nicely with the bulkheads thanks to rather large location pins.
Overall there are more than 20 parts going into the cockpit, if you ask me for the size of the thing this is insane… in a nice way.
The seat can also benefit from some drilling. The seatbelts are provided as decals which is not my favourite media for the task but it’s still something.
To conclude the cockpit part… it is AWESOME.

Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review

The engine is sufficiently detailed for the scale. Just add some wires for the spark leads and you are done. The way that the pushrods are molded together with the cylinders is not to my liking but I guess that once inside the cowling the engine will not be that visible.

Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review

Here are the paints that Tamiya recommends using with this kit: 


Moving on to the transparencies. Here we have one front windshield detail and two options for the rest of the canopy. Option one is for closed position and everything is molded together while option two is for open position and is represented as two separate pieces. Along with the canopies here we can find the reflector gunsight.
The quality of the parts is very good, with very little distortion and almost excellent clarity. 
The frames are subtle, crisp and most importantly have true to scale appearance.

Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review

The decals have opaque finish and it seems like that they are a bit thick. Generally the carrier film is trimmed closely to the print but on the tail markings there is quite a lot of it. This means that alignment will not be an issue but you should prepare the surface very well to prevent silvering.
The quality of the print seems to be very good with everything in register and vibrant colors.
The instrument panel decals are very nicely detailed.

Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review      Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review    Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review   Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review

Off to the tape together test, here you can see the parts involved.

Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review


The kit have nice location pins and as you can see I used very little tape.

Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review Mitsubishi A6M2 b Zero Fighter (Zeke) - Tamiya 1/72 60780  - Plastic scale model Inbox Review

I have no doubt that this kit will be a breeze to put together and it is one of those few kit that I can put the “highly recommended” tag on. 

Best regards and happy modelling.
M.

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