Hello again fellow modelers! Well, another project completed. This time it is the ill fated Doyusha Kit of the IJN Shinano in 1/250 scale, the infamous "Bathtub Toy".This is the name givin to the kit by many on the internet. Many times I have read postings on this kit and they are all very negative. I thought ,"it can't be that bad!". Wanting to do a larger scale carrier of the IJN, I thought in spite of all the bad reviews I would give it shot as I am always up for a challenge. It makes the hobby that much more interesting. Well, I did get the kit and the rumors were true!! Not real good. But on the other hand it could be built into a good model with some work.
 
 First off, all the gun tubs are inaccurate and would have to be rebuilt. Also, the island assy is wrong and would also need rebuilding.Also the funnel area is not right . Upon opening the box I knew I was in a mess!! I needed plans. I contacted Bill Gruner at Pacific Front Hobbies and he got me some great plans from MYCO of Japan.3 pages worth.I set to work on trying to salvage the old kit. As you can see I think it turned out rather well. I scratchbuilt about half of the kit with new parts namely, all gun tubs, the island assy., the funnel area as well as misc.platforms.The hull is rather poor but close enough. The Arii kit of the Yamato would have been a better hull for the build. I also scratchbuilt all superstructure above Yamato's original deck.There are a few parts in the kit which can be used. The flight deck, with some minor mods, The larger AA guns, the aircraft and a few other small items.With respect to the A/C, they are not bad however there are only 12 supplied with the kit. A dissapointment.I was able to get another kit at a cheap price and then found a source for more. I ended up with 30 planes on deck. The x-tra parts from the second kit helped too.
 
 I have attempted to show here what can be done with an old inaccurate kit. It was time consuming and I found that I could have used other routes.However my goal was to show what could be done here as to dispell the Bathtub Toy nickname.Shinano is pretty good size when completed , 41" long and about 7" abeam. I used a GMM Photo Etch kit for the Yamato, some fittings from HR Products, some leftover parts from the Nichimo kit of Yamato and alot of improvisational engineering!! Construction time was about 5 months.
 
 I hope you all will enjoy the photos.See what you think. I am always eager for comments,good or bad.Contact me on the board or at bjsww@earthlink.net. Next project is underway. The IJN Soryu in 1/144,scratchbuild. Stay tuned and Happy Modeling!!