FCM Decals | 32025: Nakajima Ki-84 Hayate

Reviewed by Rato Marczak

FCM Decals (http://www.fcm.eti.br/) just released a nice decal sheet in 1/32 scale covering the Nakajima Ki-84 Hayate of several sentais during the desperate final years of the war in the Pacific. All the versions provided refer to Ki-84 Ko, so you are well supplied with the Hasegawa offering in the big scale.

Following the sheet numbering, five aircraft are offered, all in the typical Nakajima’s dark green/light gray scheme:

Ki-84 Ko, Chui Mitsuo Tomiya, 2nd Chutai/104th Sentai, Anshan, Manshuria 1945.
Ki-84 Ko, 71st Sentai – Home island defense, Western defense sector, Japan 1945.
Ki-84 Ko, 1st Chutai/112th Sentai, Nitta airfield, Japan 1945.
Ki-84 Ko, Lt. Col. Yoshioka, 21st Hikoudan, Phillippines 1944.
Ki-84 Ko, 2nd Chutai/52nd Sentai, Shimodate, Japan 1945.

More ‘experienced’ modelers will remember the first version as the same of the 1960s box art of the Revell offering in 1/72 scale… Oh, memories…

FCM decals are manufactured by Microscale from USA, therefore printed in excellent register and saturation, and my sample was just perfect. The instructions are four well illustrated pages, with nice diagrams, including stencil placement plans. Federal Standard color calls are used as a reference.

I made my homework and checked all versions provided in the sheet. The only small glitch I found was in the aircraft of the 52nd Sentai. According to the photo I found in the Famous Airplanes of the World #19 – Army Type 4 Fighter, the yellow unit symbol painted on the vertical stabilizer as well as the 071t number on the rudder should be outlined in white. The sheet provides these markings in yellow, only. I don’t know if FCM used a photo from a different time frame, so check your references.

FCM Decals | 32025: Nakajima Ki-84 Hayate

Reviewed by Rato Marczak

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