Tamiya 31342 1/700 Waterline Japanese Mikuma

The second of four Mogami Class Cruisers to be equipped with five 15.5cm triple guns was the Mikuma. Completed in August 1935, its main guns were later replaced with 20.3cm dual guns turning this ship into a heavy cruiser. Though of the same class, the Mikuma's bridge and other structures are slightly different from those of its elder sister, the Mogami. The Mikuma was part of the 7th Heavy Cruiser Squadron of the 2nd fleet and took part in the Malay landing operation and the Battle of Sunda Strait at the beginning of the Pacific War. But, during the battle of Midway, when all ships of the 7th Squadron made simultaneous evasive maneuvers to escape an enemy submarine, the tail of the Mogami moved forward and slammed into the Mikuma. Afterwards, the Mikuma sustained heavy attacks from over a hundred US bombers and sank to the ocean floor on the seas Northwest of Midway.

Features

• Japanese Heavy Cruiser Mikuma plastic assembly kit.
• 1/700 scale, Overall length: 286.5mm, Overall width: 36.5mm.
• The graceful form of the Mogami class cruiser has been accurately replicated.
• The hull has been divided in two halves in order to reproduce the finest details.
• Mikuma's characteristic structures such as rear mast and main structure that distinguished it from the Mogami have been reproduced.
• The main turrets can rotate after completion via polycap.
• Equipment such as armament including 12.7cm gun turrets or triple tube torpedo launchers, main mast, aircraft crane and catapults are sharply reproduced
• The graceful form of the Mogami class cruiser has been accurately replicated. The hull has been divided in two halves in order to reproduce the finest details.
• Mikuma's characteristic structures such as rear mast that distinguished it from the Mogami have been reproduced. The main turrets can rotate after completion via polycap.
• The realistically molded rear flight deck. Catapults and 12.7cm anti-aircraft guns have also been accurately reproduced.
• Built as light cruisers, the Mikuma and Mogami were transformed into heavy cruisers after the end of the London Treaty on Armament Limitation. You can now enjoy displaying the Mikuma along with the Mogami, as they appear after their transformation.
• Many new parts have been molded to reproduce Mikuma's characteristic structures, such as different rear mast and bridge that distinguished it from the Mogami. These parts of the kit have been precisely molded to obtain a striking feel of realism.