Type 97 Chi-Ha (Tamiya 1/35)

Armor/AFV
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Hello everyone!

I’d like to share a kit I built for a group build for our local IPMS chapter - Tamiya’s classic Type 97 Chi-Ha (1/35). Built OOB except for some nice 3D Printed Tracks made by a local modeler. Markings are for a vehicle of the 1st Tank Regiment that fought in the Japanese

The kit still looks great despite its age. The biggest weaknessness are the vinyl track that can’t capture the sag of the real thing and the solid molded mesh covering the mufflers. Other than that, it honestly looks good in comparison with the younger Finemolds kit.

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Looks real sharp! You made the old girl up about as nice as can be done using just what comes in the box. Very well done! :+1:t2:

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Thanks Carlos! I really appreciate it :slight_smile:

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Hi James,
You have done a great job on that kit…Excellent camo!
I am working on the same kit and I agree that its downfall are the tracks but replacing
them was a wise choice leading to a very good finished model. And yes, the molded
grills are an eye sore but I am debating as to whether or not I will attempt to replace them with brass mess.
I also filled the empty sponsons as they would be visible when adding track sag.
Hoping mine will be as nice as your.
Again great job on your CHI HA!
Cheers,

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Thanks Joe! I am ashamed to admit - I’m not very good with scratch building, and I suffer with even filling up the open sponsons in these older Tamiya kits hehe. The grills are an eyesore but if you replace them with brass - you would have to scratch build a new muffler as Tamiya molded the mesh protection and muffler as one piece. At that point - I think you’d be better off with getting the Finemolds kit. Still, the Tamiya one was pretty fun to build and I really appreciated that we’re at the point where 3D printed tracks are a thing.

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Excellent result!
Having one in my stash, I’d be interested in where to obtain either tracks or the file to print them.

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Looks fantastic Nigel. I too love the camo finish. Nice to see these old kits being given the light of day.

One itty bitty thing I noticed - one errant track link:
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As to scratch building, well like everything else, you don’t get better unless you give it a try. I am sure your skills are really up to it.

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Super nice build. Quite honestly you have done amazing work and could have passed it off for the fine molds.

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Thanks Ron! The local modeler who sold them to me designed them based off drawings and measurements available online - he also designs for a living. I think there are some other modelers out there who give access to STL files of their tracks if you’re a sub on patreon.

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Thanks Chris! I’m a huge fan of old Tamiya kits but the tracks really let a lot of them down. I’m glad replacement tracks and even upgraded parts are easier to get nowadays.

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Thanks as always Peter! That is my one struggle with the tracks - they need to be properly massaged so that the sag stays in the right spots and they’re perfectly straight on the table. (I also noticed a crooked track on the other side). I could glue them to make sure they stay flat but I prefer to keep them removable if I need to do touchup or repairs.

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Very nice job! I have this kit in my stash haunting me. You’ve given a great reference piece for when I start

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Don’t know how I missed this but glad I caught it now - amazing work Nigel! Fantasic paint scheme and excellent tracks on this oldie but goodie.

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Thanks Brock, good luck with your build :slight_smile:

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Thanks a bunch Matthew :slight_smile: My one regret with this kit is that the exhausts at the rear came in one solid plastic block - it would have worked much better in PE mesh or even the nylon mesh ones that tamiya often includes in their kits.

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Thanks! One question, what was your method for the treads?

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A lot of the early war Japanese tanks had quite a bit of sag on their tracks - this can be tricky to replicate with vinyl tracks unfortunately. If the tracks are long enough, you can try sticking metal pins on the side of the hull to hold the tracks down.

As for this kit - I opted to use 3D printed tracks :slight_smile: There are a lot of hobbyists who offer tracks nowadays, and many free stls of tracks - you can try checking them out, they tend to be relatively inexpensive too.

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That’s what I did with my build of this kit. I used .010” steel music wire that worked well.

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Hm I didn’t think about looking for STLs, I don’t have a printer but have friends who do. I’ll have to check that out

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Another question for ya, did you fully assemble and then paint, or build sections, paint, and glue? I’ve seen people saying both but have never tried the latter

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