Tamiya 12643 - 1:350 Metal 46cm Barrel & Shell for Yamato

Turned metal 46 cm barrels and shells for the Tamiya 1:350 Yamato battleship

Yamato's main armament — nine 46 cm guns — is the most recognisable feature of the ship's silhouette, and also the place where a plastic moulding limits the effect most. Tamiya 12643 lets you replace the plastic barrels with nine turned metal ones, three for each of the three main turrets.

Every barrel has a hollowed muzzle, so there is no need to drill it out yourself. The set is completed by 20 aluminium shells representing the Type 91 armour-piercing rounds fired by Yamato's guns. It is intended for Tamiya's 1:350 Yamato battleship models, product codes 78025 and 78030; the base kit is sold separately and is not included in this set.

What's in the box:

• 9 turned metal 46 cm barrels with hollowed muzzles (three for each of the three turrets)
• 20 aluminium shells representing Type 91 armour-piercing rounds

Set specifications:

• Scale: 1:350
• Product code: 12643
• Manufacturer: Tamiya
• Type: turned metal main gun barrels and shells
• Material: turned metal (barrels), aluminium (shells)
• Dedicated kit: Tamiya Yamato battleship (78025, 78030)
• Barrels fitted in place of the kit's plastic parts
• Ship model sold separately — not included in this set

Turned metal barrels – a perfectly round cross-section and a hollowed muzzle

A plastic barrel is moulded in a two-part mould, so there is always a mould seam line running along it that has to be removed — and it is easy to distort the round cross-section in the process. A lathe-turned barrel has no such problem: its cross-section is perfectly round along its whole length and the surface is smooth and free of mould marks. The hollowed muzzle gives an effect that on a moulded part would require careful drilling.

The metal barrels are fitted in place of the corresponding plastic parts from the base kit. Before painting, a metal primer is recommended — model paints adhere far better to a properly prepared metal surface than to bare metal. The same applies to the aluminium shells if you plan to paint them; some modellers prefer to display them in a natural metal finish beside the model or on the base, but that is entirely a matter of your own vision for the finished piece.

About the ship – Yamato:

Yamato was the largest battleship ever built — a ship intended to offset America's numerical advantage at sea with sheer qualitative superiority. Her main armament consisted of nine 46 cm guns in three triple turrets: the heaviest naval artillery ever to enter service, with a range of around 41 km.

Despite that enormous firepower, Yamato never played the role she was built for — the Pacific war was decided in the air, and carriers replaced battleships as the fleet's main striking force. The ship was sunk on 7 April 1945 during her final mission, the sortie towards Okinawa, after an attack by American carrier aircraft. Her story — power and helplessness at once — still makes her one of the most frequently modelled warships in the world.

Original specifications (Yamato):

• Type: battleship
• Main armament: nine 46 cm guns in three triple turrets
• Main battery range: approx. 41 km
• Armour-piercing ammunition: Type 91 shells
• The largest battleship ever built
• Sunk: 7 April 1945, during the Okinawa operation

About the manufacturer – Tamiya:

Tamiya is a Japanese company from Shizuoka, in business since 1946 — originally as a timber works, and from the 1960s as one of the most recognisable plastic model manufacturers in the world. The brand built its position on precise tooling, clear instructions and predictable parts fit. Alongside its kits, Tamiya develops a range of detail-up accessories for its own models: turned metal parts, photo-etched parts, wooden decks, figures, and modelling chemicals and tools. The 1:350 ship accessories are designed as a complement to the company's line of ship models.