【Tank】The most commonly seen type among "Chi-Ha" tanks and a popular body is made into 3D! Imperial Japanese Army spec Type 97 Medium Tank [Chi-Ha] reproducing cargo loaded on the rear of the vehicle body with new mold parts release decided!

While gazing at a tank model, have you ever thought, “What kind of role did this vehicle play back then?” “Imperial Japanese Army Type 97 Medium Tank (Chi-Ha)” is a kit that makes you want to assemble it while knowing even the background of such an actual vehicle. Production of Type 97 Medium Tank “Chi-Ha” began in Showa 13 (1938), and it was operated as a core existence in Japanese tank units until the end of the war. Typical features of Japanese tanks of those days are condensed in the unique vehicle body and turret figures, and by creating while investigating its origin rather than just appreciating the figure after completion, ways to enjoy models expand further.

What I want to pay attention to as a feature of the Type 97 Medium Tank is the 57mm tank gun assuming infantry support and the like. In this kit, a type widely seen among “Chi-Ha”, equipped with a 57mm tank gun on a chassis called early model or standard model, is reproduced. Speaking of tanks, eyes tend to turn only to values of firepower and armor, but roles required at that time are reflected in its shapes and equipment. If assembling each part while thinking “Why was this gun mounted?” or “What kind of mission was assumed?”, different meanings will be seen even in each single part.

An air-cooled diesel engine easy to operate even in cold regions was adopted for the actual vehicle. Performance as a weapon is not determined by guns and armor alone. Being able to operate in different environments and moving together with troops are also important elements. Thinking so, you can see that in the background of the Type 97 Medium Tank supporting Japanese tank units over a long period, there were also features of such engine parts. Even if the operation of the engine cannot be seen from the model itself, if you gaze at the completed product after knowing the structure and design concept of the actual vehicle, that impression might change.

One of the impressive histories when talking about the Type 97 Medium Tank is its operation on the Malay Peninsula. At the start of the war against the US and UK, the Imperial Japanese Army landed in the northern part of the Malay Peninsula more than one hour before the Attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Afterward, while engaging in combat with British forces defending various places, it advanced about 1,100 km in 55 days, approaching strategic Singapore. One of the vehicles standing at the front in this advance was “Chi-Ha”. Currently it is a model fitting on top of a desk, but the actual vehicle that became its model has such history. Checking materials and photographs of those days while creating is also a deep way of enjoying unique to scale models.

Speaking of parts greatly influencing atmospheres in tank models, it would after all be tracks. In this kit, plastic assembly-type tracks are adopted, enabling shapes to be reproduced with a relatively small number of parts. While undercarriages are important places expressing heavy weight feelings typical of tanks, they are also parts where production processes easily become complex. Therefore, the structure considering assembly burdens while enjoying details is a point that cannot be missed for modelers who want to thoroughly aim for completion.

What is further interesting is cargo loaded on the rear of the vehicle body. In photographs of Type 97 Medium Tanks taken during wartime, figures loading various cargo on the rear can be confirmed. In this product, such realistic scenes are reproduced with new mold parts. Because elements reminiscent of vehicles actually used in units are incorporated, not only the tank main unit, it heightens the amount of information upon completion. If combined with painting and weathering, fun of finishing into a work as if cropping a single scene during operation from a mere “tank model” will also be born.

Representative “Chi-Ha” figure equipped with a 57mm tank gun, tracks considering ease of production, and rear vehicle body loads prepared with new molds. “Imperial Japanese Army Type 97 Medium Tank (Chi-Ha)” is a kit that not only reproduces vehicle features, but lets you imagine up to the era when actual vehicles were used. Not to mention “completing and displaying”, being able to expand interest to structures and operation history of the Type 97 Medium Tank using production as an opportunity can also be said to be a charm unique to scale models using historical vehicles as motifs.