Zoukei-Mura 1/32 Ta 152H-0

By John Kim

Here is my completed 1/32 Zoukei-Mura Ta152H-0.

Although Z-M has offered an H-0 in the past, that kit was not available and so I had to backdate the Ta152H-1 kit into a H-0. To make matters more complicated, the only Z-M Ta152H kit available was the Special Edition H-1 based on The Cockpit anime and molded in black plastic. I added the following items to the build:

Henri Daehne Ta 152H-1 Resin Prop and Spinner
RB Productions Ta 152H Photoetch Cockpit set
Synthetic Ordnance Works Ta 152H Landing Gear

In addition to the extensive re-scribing I had to do on the wings, the kit fought me once I started gluing the major components together. Lots of fit issues, especially on the wings and around the fuselage/wing joints. But I stuck with it and, finally, it came out fine.

For paints, I've been using the Mr. Hobby Aqueous' version of RLM 82. Prior to that, I was mixing my own from Tamiya paints. I've picked up AK Real Colors version of RLM 82 but have reservations about using it. In the bottle, there are always streaks of blue pigment swirling about that never seem to get mixed in. I'll be sticking to Mr Hobby Aqueous for now.

I based the overpainted code letters on Thomas H. Hitchcock's book, "The Focke-Wulf Ta 152", which describes White 7 toward the ends of the book with a color profile that shows the overpainted code letters. The notes under the profile state, "overpainted factory codes CW + CG". If White 7 is Werk Number 150007, it makes sense that it was the seventh pre-production H-0 and assigned CW + CG prior to being delivered to service. The well-known Green 4 was the tenth pre-production machine and is documented to have the codes CW + CJ. The CW + CG codes are also represented on Eagle Editions decal sheet 32-133, which lists the Hitchcock book as a reference. Like you, I cannot visually discern the codes in the existing photos of White 7 that I am aware of, but I went with the written documentation.

The complete build log can be found in my thread in the Work in Progress forum.

You can also pick up the KLP e-book on how to build this beast.

Zoukei-Mura 1/32 Ta 152H-0

By John Kim

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