I’ll quote Tamiya’s website:
The
Komatsu G40 was produced for the Japanese Navy during WWII and had the
distinction of being
Japan's
first ever domestically-produced bulldozer. It was developed as a means to
speed up airfield construction, which had up to that point been done by
hand. Komatsu based its design on their existing farm tractor and it was
equipped with a 50hp gasoline engine as well as a hydraulic dozer blade.
About 150 were built from 1943 to the end of the war and they were sent to
engineering units in the northern and southern fronts. It also influenced
the design of postwar Japanese construction machinery.
According
to Tamiya’s website, there is only one example of the G40 still in
existence, on display at Komatsu’s
Techno
Center
in
Japan.
The
kit is molded in the same gray color that they used for many of their German
armor subjects.
It is a small model— it is only about 3 inches
(75mm) long. The moldings all look very good, no flash or troublesome
ejector pin marks.
Tamiya claims the suspension has
been engineered for easy assembly, and that sure looks to be the case.
The tracks are molded as one piece units, with the
drive wheels and suspension wheels included.
The upper track sections have a nice sag molded in.
The moldings look great on the sprue, and should look even better on the
finished model, once it is properly painted, with some dirt and other
weathering.
The
kit also includes a driver figure— a man in shorts and soft cap.
Like many of the Tamiya 1/48 figures, the detail on
the face and hands is the weak point.
(He looks OK from the back, though!)
There
is only one finishing option for the G40--
IJN
Kure
Arsenal Navy Gray, which is XF-75 in Tamiya’s line of acrylic paints.
Interestingly, the pictures on Tamiya’s website of
the assembled model look like it was painted in this color,
while the picture of the real one shows a more
greenish- gray color.
There is a very tiny decal sheet, and a separate
“metal transfer” for the IJN emblem on the bulldozer’s radiator front.
The instructions are like those
included in all of the new 1/48 scale armor kits, printed in English and
Japanese.
Colors are called out with Tamiya colors, as you’d expect.
This is not a very complicated vehicle, so it should
be pretty easy to assemble.
Highly
recommended to anyone wanting something a little different,
something that will look at home next to 1/48 scale
aircraft.
This should be a simple, fast build.
Tamiya is continuing to release various softskin and
other support vehicles in 1/48, and this bulldozer is the first construction
vehicle.
Hopefully, more will follow!
Review
kit courtesy of my wallet. Note that while the retail price is $21,
you can find it for less.
I only paid $16 plus tax
at my local shop.
I only
had one-- The Tamiya website:
http://www.tamiya.com/english/products/32565komatsu_g40/
Bill Michaels
