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| The HIJMS (IJN) Haruna, the only one of these kits for which I have the old style box art |
With the arrival of the Mabuchi 130 type motor, the door was open to more motorized model ships, the bulk of which would come from Japan.
The Japanese plastic model kit industry started off slightly behind the American one. By the late 1950's, companies like Sanwa would begin manufacturing model ships of ever increasing quality. By the late 1960's, the Japanese companies were already catching up with the rest of the world in plastic kits.
One company in particular produced a very nice range of 30 centimeter kits, that being Nichimo.
Before I go any further, however, I think the time has come to clear up a misconception.
30 centimeters is not 12 inches.
It is commonplace for those using the old Imperial system of measurements to round things to the nearest tenth. For us, that means that 1" generally equals 25mm. But that's not correct. 1" equals 25.4mm, and this gets compound. So, we tend to think of 12" as 300mm, or 30cm, when in fact it is 304.8mm, or 30.48cm.
30cm actually equals 11.81".
In small scale model ships, that difference makes a difference.
Back to Nichimo.
The company began production in 1951, and by the 1960's was turning out dozens of kits. Their most famous kit is the huge 1/200 Yamato. Sadly, Nichimo appears to have folded in 2013. As for the disposition of their dies, it is anyones guess, though hopefully they will end up being re-issued.
Starting in the early 1970's, Nichimo began a series of 30cm sized motorized model ships. This was in the face of a model building world that was turning ever increasingly to solid scales. In Japan, 1/700 scale was emerging as a force, and soon would become the choice for many ship hobbyist. Nichimo followed a trend that had started earlier with companies like Sanwa, where the lower hull below the waterline was molded separately in red, meaning that if the builder chose not to motorize the model they could, in fact, build them as static waterline models.
Nichimo persisted with their 30cm range, tooling the last dies in the early 1980's.
The list that follows is far from complete, being my personal collection. My interest is in the classes, with one ship of each being represented, unless there were some differences vast enough to warrant another vessel. Missing from my collection at the moment are the Shokaku, Shinano, Enterprise, and Nimitz. It is my hope that I will be able to obtain these.
Another item of note. These last Nichimo 30cm kits were issued in what can only be termed as generic boxes, with the same box art. Also, the Mabuchi FA-130 motors (the current production available in their home market of Japan) are not included, though the motor mount and fittings are, meaning that all one had to do was simply drop a motor in.
Before we begin the list, though, I would just like to say that these models were nicely engineered, though not always accurate. The motor mount was ingeniously designed so as to save the builder the trouble (might I add heartache) of having to deal with wiring. The models themselves are nicely detailed considering that they are really not much more than "toys". Where they fail is in accuracy and proportion, which should not be a detriment for enjoying these quirky kits.
The scales are based upon each kit being assumed to be accurately 30cm in length. Year is for when the first kit was released. Additional data courtesy of Scalemates.com.
Yamato - 1/853.33, 1974
The Japanese plastic model kit industry started off slightly behind the American one. By the late 1950's, companies like Sanwa would begin manufacturing model ships of ever increasing quality. By the late 1960's, the Japanese companies were already catching up with the rest of the world in plastic kits.
One company in particular produced a very nice range of 30 centimeter kits, that being Nichimo.
Before I go any further, however, I think the time has come to clear up a misconception.
30 centimeters is not 12 inches.
It is commonplace for those using the old Imperial system of measurements to round things to the nearest tenth. For us, that means that 1" generally equals 25mm. But that's not correct. 1" equals 25.4mm, and this gets compound. So, we tend to think of 12" as 300mm, or 30cm, when in fact it is 304.8mm, or 30.48cm.
30cm actually equals 11.81".
In small scale model ships, that difference makes a difference.
Back to Nichimo.
The company began production in 1951, and by the 1960's was turning out dozens of kits. Their most famous kit is the huge 1/200 Yamato. Sadly, Nichimo appears to have folded in 2013. As for the disposition of their dies, it is anyones guess, though hopefully they will end up being re-issued.
Starting in the early 1970's, Nichimo began a series of 30cm sized motorized model ships. This was in the face of a model building world that was turning ever increasingly to solid scales. In Japan, 1/700 scale was emerging as a force, and soon would become the choice for many ship hobbyist. Nichimo followed a trend that had started earlier with companies like Sanwa, where the lower hull below the waterline was molded separately in red, meaning that if the builder chose not to motorize the model they could, in fact, build them as static waterline models.
Nichimo persisted with their 30cm range, tooling the last dies in the early 1980's.
The list that follows is far from complete, being my personal collection. My interest is in the classes, with one ship of each being represented, unless there were some differences vast enough to warrant another vessel. Missing from my collection at the moment are the Shokaku, Shinano, Enterprise, and Nimitz. It is my hope that I will be able to obtain these.
Another item of note. These last Nichimo 30cm kits were issued in what can only be termed as generic boxes, with the same box art. Also, the Mabuchi FA-130 motors (the current production available in their home market of Japan) are not included, though the motor mount and fittings are, meaning that all one had to do was simply drop a motor in.
Before we begin the list, though, I would just like to say that these models were nicely engineered, though not always accurate. The motor mount was ingeniously designed so as to save the builder the trouble (might I add heartache) of having to deal with wiring. The models themselves are nicely detailed considering that they are really not much more than "toys". Where they fail is in accuracy and proportion, which should not be a detriment for enjoying these quirky kits.
The scales are based upon each kit being assumed to be accurately 30cm in length. Year is for when the first kit was released. Additional data courtesy of Scalemates.com.
Yamato - 1/853.33, 1974
This model looks the part, though there are obviously some proportion problems. Appears to be the ship mid to late war build. This kit shows the engine mount (right) and stand (left), which are basically the same for the series.
Nagato - 1/749.8, 1974
This model appears slightly better proportioned than their Yamato class.
Ise - 1/720, 1975
The flight deck appears to be strictly for the Ise (my example is the Hyuga). Also the only one in a slightly more common scale, 1/720. Of note is the deck on the aforementioned flight deck.
Kongo - 1/732, 1980
Kongo - 1/732, 1980
My example is the Haruna, but it is hard to say exactly which vessel the kit represents, as there were differences between each, mainly in the tripods and "pagoda".
Bismarck - 1/836.67, 1974
Bismarck - 1/836.67, 1974
Another member from the initial group that Nichimo produced. As my example is only the lead ship of the class, I am unaware if Nichimo made an attempt to make their Tirpitz different. Be that as it may, this kit looks the role rather well.
King George V - 1/757, 1977
King George V - 1/757, 1977
Sold also as the Prince of Wales, though not the others in the class. Appears to be based upon an early war build. Also looks the part, though a secondary turret had to be removed to make room for the power switch.
Iowa - 1/900, 1976
When this kit was initially produced, it was sold as the Missouri. My example is the New Jersey, and appears to show the ship during her Vietnam War appearance, lacking the catapults. However, of all the kits, this one has the worse problems with proportion. It is simply too beamy, to the point where it might make a good starting point for conversion to a South Dakota in a larger scale. The secondary weapons also appear out of scale, while the superstructure appears too thick. Also sold as the proposed "Phase II" (labeled by Nichimo "Faces II") variant for both the Iowa and New Jersey, with the flight deck aft.
In the next part, we'll examine some clones.
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