Japanese Type 90 is the third generation MBT entering service in 1990. 120mm smoothbore gun, YAG laser range finder, passive infrared. Like soviet tanks this MBT has an autoloader for the cannon and so has a crew of 3 instead of the usual 4. The tank also has a 7.62mm coaxial MG and a 12.7 mm MG on the turret roof.

The long turret is due to that area being used for ammo stowage and the autp load mechinism. The MBT is powered with a V-10 by Mitsubushi producing 1,500 hp and giving the 50 t tank a speed of 70 km/h.

Kit is reviewed on Armorama - but a few pics of the box contents

Vinyl tracks but still very nicely detailed



Hull is very nicely textured with anti-slip



some of this area will be improved with the PE parts





drive sprocket details



Main parts



One piece hull



extra pieces for the ammo loading which includes interior detail of the tank turret



Eduard PE detail set




some pics of the usual start of the build



Dry fit of upper hull



details very well done by Tamiya



Starting to fit PE details

...work on the hull



Note the pioneer tools on this shot - I was about to super detail them - but they are actually covered by a hatch.



some of the super detailed parts using the Eduard set





work on the turret





the etch parts for the sighting optics cover is a nice addition as are the covers to the WP launchers

that open section is the auto loading compartment for the gun rounds. That will be quite fun to paint




Basic construction complete and dry fits







This stuff is very handy for masking the optics

This after the final PE went on, I pre-shaded the running gear with NATO black to spray into all the shadow areas.

Then a case of painting the 2 tone camo using Tamiyas custom paints - JGSDF Green and Brown. Both paints were sprayed straight onto the plastic primer is not required. I then sprayed the same colours lightened with Tamiya Sky to create tones and shading in the panels. Finally post shade with highly thinned NATO black. A coat of acrylic sealer, decals and seal the decals.

So this is the result of the initial paint steps :-












Markings are Hokkaido 7th Div. 73rd Tank Rgt. 1st Co.





I spent more time painting the ammunition than the camo of the tank if i include the amount of time masking -

some very rough extra detailing added to the auto-loader, a lot of which cant be seen.



Ammo details - a lot of prep work required polishing the plastic, base coat with gloss black for a mirror like finish when using the ALCLAD II High Shines. The bases of the shells are in Gunmetal.








Optics still covered with mask fluid



grills shaded with NATO black





Thanks Mark

Very nice job, thanks for sharing!


cheers

This was an amazingly clean build. Do you plan on doing anything else with this?

What a beauty! It's going to get a little bit dirty/dusty isn't it? I hope so because not even my '71 Ford Mustang Mach1 comes out of the garage out that clean when i take it for a ride at the weekend.

This is fantastic- very clean and brilliantly painted. I'm actually planning on doing the same build and I'm waiting on the eduard PE. Is there anything I should watch out for in the build or with the PE?

Stunning and incredible clean build.

Congrats

Mark,

Nice 90' and pics, please post more of your work.

The dark edges of the camo is very well done, and looks great.

Ryan

Very nice job Mark. Good tip for the color edges. The PE is a great addition too.
I remember this kit as a perfect shake and bake one like Mr Tamiya can produce when he is decided to do so.

Thanks for sharing.

Big thanks guys for the support and interest in this build.

Karl - the Eduard PE is simple and easy to use - the extremely small clasps - you can see them on the armoured skirts on the close up pictures, just test your will to live LOL ! So I only used them on the skirts and decided I could live with the moulded ones on the turret - they are microscopic in any case. The PE set is not really essential - you could just as easily cut off the blobs Tamiya uses as grab handles and replace with wire. BUT I really recommend the PE parts for the stowage basket - they really help and replace the nylon mesh supplied in the kit.

Yes Guys - sorry forgot to mention this blog was just up to painting - weathering to follow using again the old skool techniques !

cheers
Mark

Thanks for that Mark- I know what you mean about micro-scopic pieces of PE. I reckon you'd need surgeons tools for some- they can get so small!!
Looking forward to seeing the weathering.

I started weathering in the usual format. First the application of pin wash using the MiG product dark wash - it flows into the panel lines as can be seen in photos below-







Then the next part is scratching and chipping of the paint. Not so necessary on Modern armour it has to admitted. However, these tanks have been in service with the Japanese Armed Forces for 20 years now. So I want to depict something with a long service life. It was difficult to find ref photos. But looking at a lot of MBT photos you will see that they do scratched and scraped a lot especially on the armoured skirts. I also wanted to depict wear around crew access areas.



A couple of techniques used. First a light green colour dabbed in areas using a sponge. Then also scraped quickly across the skirts to depict scratching.



I also used a very dark grey/black paint to depict a more chipped look on theareas of the turret where paint can be worn off by the crew. This time applied with both a sponge and a fine brush.





At the same time I painted and added weathering to the Auto loader mechanism.



more soon... cheers Mark

Some nice restrained but realistic weathering there Mark.

Excellent work Mark,
very clean build and after your weathering sequence it looks much more interesting.
Great job.

cheers
Walter

Hi Mark,
nice work on the scratches. The Japanese really keep their tanks well maintained so few scratches can be seen on real vehicles.
Here are some pics.







You can notice the rubber trackpads on the last picture.

Olivier

Does anybody know what that mesh structure und hull and turrent front is supposed to be? I've not seen it on pictures of real Type90s yet.

Olivier - thank you very much for posting those pictures! they are the best I have seen of the type 90. Very interesting about the track rubber blocks - which isnot depicted in the tamiya kit. Very true most armies maintain there kit in very good order. I based the weathering on pictures of american Abrams tanks on exercise in Germany. But the chips would as you say be covered up during maintainence.

Bernd - also raises another question - I also have not seen this mesh on the real photos of type 90 - I cant think what is?. I believe the Tamiya kit is based more on the prototype rather than in-service MBT.

Well I'm not an expert at Japanese armor but I guess my pictures give a hint for the right answer.
If you look at the second picture I posted, you'll notice metal strips with bolts and on top of the armor you'll see the edge of a torn pice of fabric.

Now if you look at the following picture, you can see there is pieces of fabric where Tamiya depicted the mesh you are talking about.



But honestly, I can't tell what their use may be. My assumption is they serve as removable background for the unit markings.

Olivier

Maybe, but i think that it has something to do with the front armour. The prototype didn't have that structure on the hull and turret front also. Tamiya has done the tank in service very good and accurate.


A picture of a prototype (at least i think it is):



Note the somke dischargers and the turret roof (blowout panels) for example and compare it with the model. the turret front is also covered with tarpaulins.

Big thanks Guys - it takes a few weeks for oil paints to dry.
Sorry a long delay ! I use oil paints and pigments for weathering. You will notice it is a lot more faded and matt in appearance now.













note that camnet needs Paint, fading and blending. It is glued in place with white glue to give a good sit.

still some more work required on road wheels and some washes, but I wont get it more worn out than what you see here.

Work on the crew -






I have used decals for the camo Jgsdf summer patter from Meister Chronicle Decals



they are glossy and will need some shading and of course a matt finish.

cheers
Mark

Nice job on getting the decal wraps to conform to the uniforms on the figures!

Nice Job !!! Please, can you help me with decal fitting? How do you do this great jog with figures?
thanks

The tank is looking great now, and a nice job on getting the decals to sit right on the figures- it can't have been easy.

Thanks guys - the decals were not so bad surprisingly.

I base coated the figures nato black, let it dry. Then coated with Kleer so a nice glossy surface for decals.

I cut rough shapes out and the real trick was to use plenty of Decal softener - Mr Mark Softer or Microset/sol or similar. Some of the decals are overlaid and some of them are made of many many pieces like a patchwork quilt ! It took a really really long time - i mean 3 or 4 hours - painting would be much quicker !

cheers
Mark