Shelf Oddity
1/700 IJN Ceremonial Barges
15m Motor Boat
17m Steam Pinnaces


 

Reviewed by Martin J Quinn
January 2022
Shelf Oddity of Poland has sent us some upgrade sets for review, including a few sets of motor boats and steam pinnaces for the Imperial Japanese Navy
  • SO700151 IJN 15m Motor Boats/Ceremonial Barges
  • SO700155 IJN 17m Steam Pinnaces/Ceremonial Barges

Each set contains two (2) barges, photo-etch and 3D printed parts.   These boat were found on many Imperial Japanese Navy ships.   According to the Shelf Oddity website, the 15m barge was "widely used on all IJN heavy vessels during WWII era. This was a favorite boat of Adm. Yamamoto", while the 17m barge was "used on all IJN battleships during WWII era as a ceremonial barge".  These two sets are among a series of IJN boats that Shelf Oddity offers. 

Each package contains two (2) resin boats, photo-etch and 3D printed parts. 

SO700151 IJN 15m Motor Boats/Ceremonial Barges
The 15m resin boats appear to be spot on in scale, and have nice planking cast into the decks.  There is some very light flash that needs to be removed.   The photo-etch parts include a very clever PE mask for the deck (the instructions tell you to paint that first, then use the mask before painting the hulls).   There is a plethora of tiny PE parts that look great, but may be a challenge to get off the fret and onto the model.  The 3D printed parts include the cabins/deckhouse for the boats, along with some vents, and are very well done. 
SO700155 IJN 17m Steam Pinnaces/Ceremonial Barges
The 17m resin boats appear slightly long in scale, but it would be pretty hard for anyone to notice.   These too have nice planking cast into the decks, again with some very light flash that needs to be removed.  The photo-etch parts are similar to the set found in the 15m boats. The 3D printed parts include the cabins/deckhouse for the boats, along with some vents and funnels, and are  also very well done.  
Below is a comparison of the 17m SO boats versus the parts found in a Aoshima 1927 Nagato (left) and a Kajika Kirishima (right).   The SO parts are much better than the Aoshima boats, and an improvement over the Kajika parts. 

INSTRUCTIONS
There are no instructions in the box, but you'll find them on the Shelf Oddity website.   There, on a data page for the particular item, you will find a PDF on how paint and assemble the boats.  Below is a snapshot of a page from each set of instructions.  The instructions are pretty extensive for a 700 accessory.  They are frankly better than the instructions some resin manufacturers have supplied for an entire kit. 

CONCLUSIONS
Overall, I think these ships boat sets are very nice.  I'm impressed with how well the hulls are cast and how the other parts are printed.  They will certainly dress up any battleships and/or other heavy units in your 1/700 scale IJN fleet.   Highly recommended! 

These two Shelf Oddity sets are available directly from Shelf Oddity's website.

  • SO700151 IJN 15m Motor Boats/Ceremonial Barges - approximately $15.00 USD
  • SO700155 IJN 17m Steam Pinnaces/Ceremonial Barges - approximately $14.00 USD.

I'd like to thank Shelf Oddity for these review samples.  



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