Posts: 12
Joined: 9/21/2005 From: , CA, USA Status: offline
The retract mods are complete and they do help the ground handling. I used Ernst .60 size engine Thrust Plates for the wedges and longer #4 pan head screws to mount the retracts. With 6 degrees of wedge, it moves the wheel center just under 5/8" forward. With the gear retracted, the gear doors are noticeably open aft. No one should be close enough to see this when the plane is in the air Even with the forward movement of the axles, it still needs you on the sticks anytime the plane is moving. Adding weight to the tail would make ground handling better, but would detract from the nice flight characteristics. Aside from the wrinkles that "I" can't seem to get rid of, I'm very happy with this plane. Now, if all goes well, pictures will be attached.
Posts: 474
Joined: 2/27/2002 From: Newark, CA, USA Status: offline
I was there with VF169OPSO Suday when he flew his Tony with the revised gear settings. Watching the landing's was a thing of beauty. He would roll in on final, go to full flaps and she came in on a rail and greased the most beautiful wheel landing you'll ever see. And he kept repeating it. Very impressive!
Posts: 462
Joined: 10/14/2002 From: Cedar Rapids,
IA, USA Status: offline
I now have a Kyosho Ki-61 and am happy with what I see so far. Despite what some have said about the look, I would say it is plenty scale enough for a .40 size warbird. The canopy is actually very accurate, and the decals look right other than the meatball on the fuse is too large (and pre-stuck). I can easily add some of the internal frame details in the canopy that will make it look more scale. The nose is not quite right, but that is very typical for a Ki-61 model since it is hard to accurately duplicate the drooping nose look. The spinner is also a bit off in profile, but I should be able to find something a bit more accurate in aluminum since the spinner on the real Tony had a profile much like the P-40. The clamshell door mechanism is not good enough, so they have been pulled out and will not be used. I know from experience that without plenty of spring pressure the prop wash will push the left one shut and prevent the retract from shutting. I will be mounting my Irvine .53 in the nose, inverted with the muffler out the side.
I have very much documentation on the Ki-61, and I even have a few photos and profiles of the plane with this paint scheme. If anyone is interested I could share some history.
Posts: 462
Joined: 10/14/2002 From: Cedar Rapids,
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I'll have to get them from home and will post some. The latest info I have believes this aircraft was painted with Kobayashi's kills, but since he was injured in a crash and was not flying at that time it is unlikely he flew the aircraft. When he came back from his injuries he switched to the type 5 (Ki-100) aircraft. Here is a computer generated picture of the aircraft to get us started. I'll show some actual photos and profiles soon.
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Joined: 10/14/2002 From: Cedar Rapids,
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A little more history of aircraft #5262 depicted in the Kyoshopaint scheme.
The serial number data indicates this aricraft was manufactured late in 1944. The photo below was taken in April of 1945 making it quite new at the time of the photo. Prior to the photo, the plane was reported to have the red tail and a white stripe down the side. The white stripe is painted over, likely for the photo. The paper and bamboo drop tanks are painted with victory slogans and the name of the ground crew. The pilot is 2nd Lt. Itakura.
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Joined: 10/14/2002 From: Cedar Rapids,
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Below are photos of #5262 taken in mid April, 1945. With the two white stripes and a total of 11 kill markings, it matches the score set by CO Kobayashi as of April 12, so it's tempting to identify this as his plane. However, Kobayashi had to abil out on the 12th and was injured, and was therefore not on flight duty at this time. What's more, the change to the Type 5 (Ki-100) took place about the same time he resumed flight duty, so it's likely this is not actually his plane. As a side note, Kobayashi's actual kill total was determined to be three B-29's and 2 Hellcats, but he would mark even aircraft damaged as "kill" markings making it appear that he had more downed aircraft. I don't know who the young women are in the photo.
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Joined: 10/14/2002 From: Cedar Rapids,
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The profiles below are likely made from the photos I posted earlier. It is clear that the hinomaru on the fuse of the Kyosho plane is quite a bit larger than actual. The squadron marking on the tail appears to be accurate, as does the stripe thickness and wheel pant numbers. The actual color of the green is hard to say, but it appears to be close enough to be acceptable. The late manufacture date and photos indicate the aircraft is the long nose version Ki-61-I-Tei. If you want line drawings and some more great information go to http://www.markkaiser.com/japaneseaviation/hien.html
I find that a bit of knowledge about the history of a plane allows me to appreciate it even more as it does a close-in low fly by. I'll post some pics of my completed Kyosho in a couple of weeks when I get it ready to fly.
Posts: 462
Joined: 10/14/2002 From: Cedar Rapids,
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Check out this link showing a vintage WWII video of the roll-out of the Ki-61. I wish the quality was a bit better, but even so it is a enough to get you excited about your maiden flight.
Posts: 462
Joined: 10/14/2002 From: Cedar Rapids,
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My Ki-61 is done and ready to maiden. I hope to get it into the air tonight and see how she flys. It went together without any complications. I only made a couple of modifications such as: Took off the clamshell doors, since they were weak and would likely cause problems. Installed a bit stronger tailwheel bracket and tailwheel. Didn't use the stock clevis connectors since they seemed kind of fragile, but I did use the stock push rods. Shimed up the back of the retracts to get the wheels a bit more forward to prevent nose overs. Ended up mounting the battery under the servo tray to get the CG to come in at 90mm.
As for scale details: I added the framework and backrest behind the pilot. Painted and installed a Hanger 9 1:9 scale Japanese WW2 pilot. Mounted the canopy back as much as possible since the standard position appears to be a bit far forward. Painted the black anti-glare in front of the canopy. I left off the scale exhaust since it was a bit large and would be close to the muffler on one side and interfere with the fuel dot on the other. I'm not too happy with the look of the stock spinner, but I'll give it a try and likely find an aluminum replacement.
Posts: 462
Joined: 10/14/2002 From: Cedar Rapids,
IA, USA Status: offline
Forgot to mention, the engine I used is an Irvine .53 mounted inverted with a M/A 11X7 prop. I'm thinking it should pull it around without much problem.
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RE: Kyosho Ki-61 Hein - 
