Tamiya 78025 - 1:350 Yamato

Plastic model kit of the Japanese battleship Yamato in 1:350 scale

Yamato still fires the imagination of modellers – the largest battleship ever to put to sea, armed with nine 460 mm guns. Tamiya 78025 recreates her in 1:350 scale using a completely new mould released in 2011, developed with more recent historical research in mind, visible for example in the rendition of the main turret barbettes. According to the manufacturer, the kit comprises over 1,500 parts.

The model represents Yamato in April 1945, in the configuration she carried on her final sortie to Okinawa during Operation Ten-Go, with a greatly expanded anti-aircraft battery. The kit can be completed in two display versions: as a waterline model showing only the above-water section, or as a full hull model with the underwater section and the characteristic bulbous bow.

Fine deck details are supplemented by parts from two photo-etched frets, so that ladders, cranes and other thin-walled structures keep a scale thickness impossible to achieve in injection-moulded plastic. The finished model measures approx. 752 mm and makes a striking display piece.

What's in the box:

• Plastic sprues with hull, superstructure, armament and deck equipment
• Parts allowing the model to be built as a waterline or full hull display
• Two photo-etched frets (including ladders and cranes)
• Waterslide decal sheet for markings
• Illustrated assembly instructions

Model specifications:

• Scale: 1:350
• Catalogue number: 78025
• Manufacturer: Tamiya
• Model length: approx. 752 mm
• Part count: over 1,500 (manufacturer's figure)
• Skill level: beginner/intermediate (large, complex kit with photo-etched parts)

Please note: glue, paints and modelling tools are not included. This model is intended for self-assembly.

Building the model:

Despite the high part count, the build progresses calmly and predictably – the parts fit typical of Tamiya makes this kit approachable even for modellers tackling a large warship for the first time. It is worth deciding at the outset whether the model will be built as a waterline or a full hull display, since this determines how the hull is prepared. The photo-etched parts call for patience and precision tweezers, and are usually attached with cyanoacrylate glue.

For painting we suggest colours typical of late-war Japanese warships: grey for the hull and superstructure (e.g. Tamiya XF-75 IJN Grey), dark linoleum brown for the decks (e.g. XF-79 Linoleum Deck Brown) and, on a full hull build, red for the underwater section (e.g. XF-9 Hull Red). Paint codes for the whole ship are given in the manufacturer's instructions. Decals are best applied over a gloss coat, which limits decal silvering, with a matt varnish as the final finish. For those who wish to raise the level of detail, Tamiya offers separately sold accessories for this model – not included in the box – such as crew figures, a wooden deck, metal 46 cm gun barrels and photo-etched railings.

Tools you will need:

• Modelling side cutters for removing parts from the sprues
• Hobby knife or scalpel
• Files and sanding paper to clean up sprue gate marks
• Plastic cement (e.g. Tamiya Extra Thin Cement)
• Cyanoacrylate glue for the photo-etched parts
• Precision modelling tweezers
• Brushes in various sizes
• Modelling paints (acrylic or enamel)
• Modelling wash to bring out the detail

About the ship – Yamato:

Yamato was the largest battleship in history and the flagship of the Japanese Combined Fleet. Her full load displacement reached approx. 70,000 tons, and her hull – 256 m long at the waterline and 38.9 m wide – carried armour with a total weight of some 21,000 tons. The bow was designed with a bulbous form, improving the hydrodynamics of such an enormous vessel.

Her main armament consisted of nine 460 mm guns in three triple turrets – the largest ever mounted on a warship, with a range of approx. 41 km. They were supported by medium-calibre guns and, as the air threat grew, by an ever increasing number of anti-aircraft guns. By 1945 the ship's complement numbered around 3,300 men.

On 7 April 1945, steaming towards Okinawa without air cover as part of Operation Ten-Go, Yamato was attacked by US carrier aircraft. After a series of torpedo and bomb hits the ship went down, taking around 3,000 sailors with her. Her loss became a symbolic end to the age of the battleship and proof of the dominance of air power over naval gunnery.

Original specifications (Yamato, 1945):

• Full load displacement: approx. 70,000 t
• Waterline length: 256 m
• Beam: 38.9 m
• Main armament: 9 x 460 mm guns in three triple turrets (range approx. 41 km)
• Secondary armament: medium-calibre guns and numerous anti-aircraft guns
• Armour: total weight approx. 21,000 t
• Distinctive design feature: bulbous bow
• Crew: approx. 3,300 (1945)
• Fate: sunk on 7 April 1945 by US aircraft; around 3,000 sailors lost

About the manufacturer – Tamiya:

Tamiya Corporation is a Japanese model company founded in 1946 by Yoshio Tamiya in Shizuoka, a city regarded as the heart of the Japanese model industry. The business started out in the timber trade and released its first plastic model kit in 1960. The brand is known for extremely precise injection moulds, well thought-out kit engineering and excellent parts fit, which is why its models are chosen by beginners and experienced modellers alike. In the field of ship modelling Tamiya earned its reputation with the 1:700 Water Line series, and since the turn of the 1970s and 1980s it has also developed large 1:350 warship kits – richly equipped and often supplemented with photo-etched parts and metal components. Tamiya instructions are clear and illustrated step by step, which makes even complex kits much easier to build. Beyond the models themselves the company supplies a complete modelling range: paints, glues, tools and brushes. Today Tamiya is present in dozens of countries and remains one of the most recognisable brands in the hobby.