The 18 Kagero class destroyers were completed between late 1939 and mid 1941. Similar to preceeding classes of destroyers, the Kageros were well thought of in the Imperial Japanese fleet. The class saw a anti-aircraft upgrade in 1943-44, with the removal of the "X" turret in favor of additional 25mm guns. 17 of this class were wartime losses.

LionRoar's Update/Conversion set for the Tamiya Kagero consists of 9 frets of photoetch, 4 brass gun barrels, 15 brass depth charges and 1 piece of styrene rod.

The 9 frets of photoetch in this set are all cleanly relief-etched, with no damage due to over or under etching evident. Each fret is packaged with piece of cardstock and placed in a plastic bag. In addition, each fret is covered in a coating of plastic film. 7 of the frets are brass, while 2 are in stainless steel.

Fret A is structural platforms and supports for additonal light AA guns and directors. The platforms pieces all have the distinctive raised pattern evident on many Japanese warships.

B has a new deck part for the stern as a primary part, with many smaller parts filling out the fret. Additionally, there are screens for the stacks, ladders, boats davits with etched line and pulleys, and depth charge racks.

C is a stainless steel fret of hand and foot rails for the main turrets, torpedo tube enclosures, and stacks, and some details for the searclights

This fret is all 25mm AA guns, in both single and triple configurations. (There are no twins included). They are very detailed- extreme care will be needed not to damage the very delicate sights when removing from the fret and bending them into proper shape.

E is primarily concerned with the external degaussing coil for application to the hull. There are also some oars for the boats thrown in, anchors and a torpedo transfer cradle.

This fret has both styles of 25mm ready ammunition boxes, hose reels, and watertight doors and hatches with coamings. Many of the doors are two sided, allowing full detail when positioned open.

This is the other stainless steel fret, and it is mainly concerned with the railings.

This fret is made of structured to replace the kit's on deck torpedo reload storage boxes.

This fret has 250 deadlights to position over the portholes in the hull. This fret is noticably thicker brass, and has an additional layer of plastic adhered to the back; the deadlights are not connected to the fret at all, having been etched perfectly round and are attached to the plastic backing sheet.

This set includes 4 brass barrels, machined with a taper and drilled out muzzles. It also includes 15 turned brass depth charges, a nice additional detail.

LionRoar has their normal two color, two sheet set of instructions, printed on extra long paper (about 23" long). I don't care for these sheets; they are unwieldy, and make it difficult to follow the flow of the steps. Each step clearly shows what parts need to be added, but the steps don't always indicate the Tamiya parts that are being upgraded or replaced. These instructions are not friendly for a beginner, and will require some study and planning before execution.

A great upgrade set for your 1/350 Tamiya Kagero. While I found the instructions to be a disappointment, they are still much better then what was standard a few years ago, and is still seen occasionally in the market. I recommended this set for intermediate and greater modelers looking to add some striking detail to their Tamiya kit.

This is set #LS350011 WWII IJN Destroyer Kagero (For Tamiya) with a list price of $78.00. LionRoar products are available from many online and traditional retailers. Modelwarships.com thanks LionRoar for providing this review sample.