A revised approach to the IJN’s decisive battle doctrine emerged as a result of these new limitations. Coupled with an emerging recognition of the significantly greater industrial capacity of the United States, this revision placed new emphasis on the qualitative superiority of individual ships, superior weaponry that could engage at longer ranges than the enemy, the greater inclusion of lesser but still highly capable ship types arrayed in a layered offense to engage the enemy prior to major battle between capital ships, and a greater emphasis on the training of its sailors in appropriate tactics, particularly at night.  All these factors were felt to work to Japan’s advantage in that an approaching enemy force could be whittled down through repeated forms of attack as it approached Japanese possessions and territories.  This doctrine drove Japanese naval expansion throughout the rest of the 1920s, 1930s, and through the start of the war, until rapid technological advances in US and Allied weaponry, equipment, detection, production and logistics overwhelmed the Japanese and rendered their doctrine obsolete.

One of the cornerstones of the revised doctrine was massed torpedo attack, particularly at night, by squadrons of heavily armed, high speed destroyers with torpedoes of greater range, speed and warhead size than those of other countries.  Accordingly, much attention was given over to new destroyer design.

Beginning with the Fubuki class destroyers, each succeeding class through to the Yugumo class incorporated incremental improvements in performance, range, and the size of their respective torpedo batteries utilizing 24” diameter torpedoes, particularly the oxygen powered Type 93 (i.e. the Long Lance), the most powerful torpedo in the world at that time. Further attention was paid to torpedo reloads and rapid reload machinery. 

Further naval expansion plans on the part of the United States in 1939-40 included new, larger, more heavily armed, and higher speed battleships. The Japanese realized that their destroyer squadrons would require still faster and more powerfully armed ships to cope with this new threat, and began designing a destroyer class, Type “C”, to meet this new need. Shimakaze (??) (Island Wind ) was the result.

These boilers had been previously installed in the Kagero class destroyer Amatsukaze, so they weren’t strictly experimental. They had performed satisfactorily; when coupled to the turbines typically carried by that class, they generated the class typical 52,000shp and a maximum speed of 35 knots. However, for the Type “C” class, a new, more powerful set of turbines capable of 75,000shp were installed for the first time in a Japanese destroyer. Together with the new boilers, a design speed of 39 knots was expected.

On sea trials in May, 1943, Shimakaze generated 75,850shp for a speed of 40.37 knots on a trials displacement of 2,921 tons. As part of the trials, she was tested at an engine overboost of 105%, generating 79,240shp and a speed of 40.9 knots, the fastest speed ever attained by a Japanese destroyer, and among the fastest of all the world’s destroyers at that time. 

To perform her primary role, Shimakaze carried a unique arrangement of fifteen 61cm/24” diameter oxygen powered “Long Lance” torpedoes, arrayed in three quintuple tube mounts covered with light metal shielding, almost turret-like. The Type 93 Long Lance torpedo was enormous: 9m/29.5ft. long, with a half ton warhead and weighing almost 3 tons apiece. The top weight generated by the enormous number of torpedoes and their mounts meant that reloads could not be carried without greatly affecting stability, so no reloads or rapid reload equipment was embarked. 

Japanese torpedo doctrine of the time posited that a broadside of nine torpedoes (as seen first in the Fubuki class and later revised to eight) should yield between one to three hits, depending on range to the target and speed of the torpedo. With the Shimakaze design, it was felt that a broadside nearly double in number would not only increase the likelihood of hits, but also the percentage of hits. Accordingly, reloads could be dispensed with as virtually the entire torpedo load of a typical Japanese destroyer was being delivered in one salvo instead of two.

When launched, Shimakaze carried armament typical of Japanese first class, or Type “A”, destroyers:  six 12.7cm 50cal guns in three new model Type D turrets, two triple 25mm guns mounted on a raised platform to either side of #2 funnel and a twin 13mm light AA mounted on a small raised platform in front of the bridge. Roll off racks and a “Y’ gun for depth charges were also installed.  Upgrades to her AA suite came later on in the war.

Shimakaze carried herself on a displacement about 20% larger than prior destroyers, with an extra 35’ of length and a slightly higher wider beam and greater draft, mostly to accommodate the larger torpedo armament. She was also one of the first Japanese destroyers to carry their newly developed versions of radar, a Type 22 set for sea and air search, mounted high on her large, tripod foremast. 

The onset of war in late 1941 strained Japan’s already lean industrial base while limiting the supply and availability of war material.  Work on new and experimental designs was curtailed in favor of current or simplified designs. The new high pressure boilers and enhanced turbines of the Shimakaze design required more material and man-hours of fabrication than could be afforded, so the follow-on ships were first delayed, and then ultimately canceled. Shimakaze remained the only member of her class ever built. 

A more detailed history can be found in her TROM (Tabulated Record of Movements) at: http://www.combinedfleet.com/shimak_t.htm  , and a good accounting of her specifications can be found in her Wikipedia article at:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_destroyer_Shimakaze_%281942%29
The kit

I still find it a bit hard to believe that not one, but two, 1/350 kits of Shimakaze have recently been released within a few months of each other by different manufacturers. Just as improbable to me is that both kits have been designed for the more casual builder, with colored parts for the lower hull and linoleum decking. Taken even further, the subject of this particular review, the kit by Hasegawa, was initially released in October, 2015 to support a line of anime-based plastic figure models that are popular in Japan, known as Plamax. The Plamax philosophy embraces easily assembled models with color separated parts. This version included an oversized, anime-style 12.7cm turret, along with an anime figure. Thankfully, a second release, geared toward the more typical military modeler without the anime related items, occurred four months later.

The anime market notwithstanding, Hasegawa appears intent on satisfying its traditional model ship market with the same kit.  While it is molded in various colors as would denote the corresponding sections of hull, deck, and props, this kit has not skimped on detail or scale. This kit is very sharply molded with a clean finish and no soft edges or details. There were no sinkholes or flash in my example. 
 

The upper hull itself separates again into two pieces at the very stern, as well as having a separate part for the bullnose at the bow. I confess that I am somewhat at a loss as to why Hasegawa did not, or could not, mold the upper hull as one, complete piece. The additional stern piece is less than 15mm long and 20mm wide.  I’m guessing it was some sort of limit to the fidelity of the injected hull, but I’m far from certain of that. It certainly has nothing to do with changes to fit, as this area did not change over time; only the decking did, and that portion is molded separately. 

Despite being split into an upper and lower hull, the hull is not formally engineered for a waterline version.  No waterline plate or internal stiffeners are included. The hull could be adapted to a waterline stance with the addition of styrene sheet and some stiffeners. If the review kit is any example, the upper hull may not lie completely flat, otherwise.

The hull pieces are sharply molded and detailed. The both upper and lower hulls both have fine, raised horizontal lines to depict hull plating lines. Only two such lines per side have been molded on the upper hull to represent three horizontal strakes. It’s unlikely that the upper hull had that few strakes, but this is a pretty minor quibble. 

Also depicted are the open trestles that supported the aft end of the forecastle deck, a degaussing cable with brackets, properly shaped anchor recesses, and recessed portholes with subtle eyebrows. None of the portholes have sealed covers, which is incorrect for a late war version.  At the very least, the lower bank of portholes would have been sealed off by sometime in 1944. Obviously, Hasegawa is using the same hull for both early and late versions, so a compromise was needed. Thankfully, the need for porthole covers on a late war fit can be easily corrected with some styrene or photo etch versions. 

The linoleum covered portion of both the forecastle and the main deck aft of number three torpedo mount have been molded separately to allow for separate painting of the linoleum. These pieces are inserted into recesses molded into the upper hull. All the other no-linoleum decking (forecastle and main), save the very aft end of the stern, are molded as part of the one piece upper hull. Again, the detailing is excellent, with plenty of metal treading, linoleum tie-down strips, mooring bollards, spurnwaters, deck hatches, vents, and torpedo trolley rails.  There’s also a pair of access ladders leading from the main deck, under the open overhang of the forecastle deck, to the forecastle deck through openings to either side of the bridge, just inboard of the 7m cutters that were placed on each side.

The hull scales out exceptionally well. Shimakaze’s particulars versus the scale and kit:

Overall Length:		129.5m/424’10”		1/350 scale OA length:		370mm		Kit OA length:		370mm
Waterline Length:		126.4m/413’4”		1/700 scale WL length:		365.1mm		Kit WL length:		366mm
Beam:		11.2m/36’9”		1/700 scale beam:		32mm		Kit beam:		32mm

The lower hull has a raised but recessed rim that fits within the edges of the upper hull. It has locating slots for the bilge keels as well as locating points for the prop shafts, prop struts, and rudder.  Internally, several locater towers and tab holes along its centerline to aid and secure the placement of the upper hull against it. The lower hull also has locator holes that can aid in attaching the hull to a kit supplied plastic base.

The detailing is sharp, the number of details rendered impressive. I happened to compare these masts to those of the new 1/350 Tamiya Kagero kit.  Strictly speaking, I’d have to give the edge in detailing to Tamiya as they chose to include details down to the pipe couplings used to connect the mast struts to the mast leg. Still, I don’t think a modeler would be the least bit disappointed by this kit’s depiction of the masts. Obviously, if one replaces the plastic with brass rod, it’s a moot point. What is not included, in plastic, is the cross-bracing that was prominent on Shimakaze’s mast. So, these pieces have to be scratch-built from styrene rod, or purchased separately as part of the specific photo etch sheet for the kit from Hasegawa. 

The detailing is nice. Some aftermarket alternatives for the 25mm AA and the searchlights might be preferable.  The same would go for PE versions of the RDF antennae and the depth charge racks, which are always a bit blocky when rendered in plastic. (Photo etch alternatives are also available on Hasegawa’s own PE fret for Shimakaze, sold separately.)   Still, with two sprues, there are several extras of all types for the spares box.  Good stuff! 

Ditto my Sprue G comments about nice detailing and spares. 

As stated earlier, the hull of this kit scales out almost perfectly. Given the scale errors of Hasegawa’s original 1/350 Yukikaze destroyer kit, I was curious to see if the new kit carried the proper scaling through to the turrets. I can happily report that is the case.

I compared these turrets to the turrets of the new 1/350 Tamiya Kagero kit. They are the same size, and of a similar level of sharp detail.  Interestingly, the Hasegawa turret is molded in one piece (aside from the base), whereas the Tamiya turret is a three piece unit with separate side walls, plus base. The Hasegawa unit therefore has no seams to fill, holding the advantage in this regard. 

The outer shield is finely detailed with grab rails, access hatches, ventilation port covers, and sighting ports. Based on past experience, I would advise repeated test fitting of the torpedo body unit into the hollowed underside of the torpedo tubes before gluing, particularly after painting. When viewed in silhouette, the torpedo should appear as if it is both level, and within the launch tube. It should not drop below the lower rim of the tubes. Some additional hollowing of the undersides of the tubes may be required.

Normally, a detail driven modeler would likely chose to paint the window frames carefully, or replace them with photo etch versions (or ladders) as this piece is too obviously transparent by its very nature. Hasegawa has provided for a third option, that of a specifically printed window frames decal, which is part of the decal sheet. I know that it will take careful placement to make it appear “right”, along with some decent setting solution. I don’t know that this would be any harder than painting the frames. It certainly seems worth a try. 

The funnel grills look better when viewed from the top than the sides. As I have pointed out in other reviews, the limitations of injection technology make this a challenging detail to execute in a fully convincing way. Photo etch versions will certainly produce a more realistic result, but many will be happy with the kit piece just the same.

Much smaller versions of her name using Katakana characters are included for use on the bows of the ship’s boats. Also included are hull draft markings in black, the aforementioned window frame decal, and several Japanese Naval Ensigns depicted in varying sizes and shapes. Unexpectedly, there are also decal versions of the life rings, 21 of them. If these prove effective, that will allow for plenty of spares.

Also welcome are a full range of white identification bands for the funnels that were typically used to identify the destroyer division that a ship belonged to.  Even more impressive is the inclusion of separate funnel markings that were used to denote individual vessels within the typical, IJN four ship destroyer division (i.e. #1 vessel,#2 vessel, #3 vessel, or #4 vessel). There is a corresponding page within the instructions that explains and illustrates their possible configurations, in English.

 An instruction page for Shimakaze’s specific markings at the time of her loss is also included. I find these decal markings a very welcome surprise, as I admit I was under the impression that Shimakaze was not wearing any such marking when she was sunk.  Subsequently, a close examination of photos taken at the time of her loss seems to indicate such markings, so major kudos to Hasegawa for including them.
 

Unexpected additions that raise the level of these instructions include the aforementioned markings page, and two pages devoted to detailing the ship’s rigging.  I think most modelers, even those already familiar with the IJN, will find this last item most welcome, as IJN rigging details are often left quite vague. 

And now, there are several new kits in 1/700 and 1/350 to help serve those imaginations. This particular kit offers just about all the features and fine detail one could hope for in a 1/350 kit. While the kit’s fit remains to be seen, it would appear to present a beautifully molded and nicely detailed model right out of the box, which will satisfy modelers of all stripes. The inclusion of separate decking covered with linoleum will greatly ease painting. Attention to the proper scaling of its parts is noteworthy. 

I don’t have the sense that the kit has suffered for any simplification.  In fact, outside of the coloring of the plastic to ease painting concerns for the casual builder, I don’t really see that much more detailing or parts breakdown would have offered any improvements. My only true gripe is with the decision to break the upper hull into two sections. It seems like such a needless complication, particularly for any attempt at a seamless integration of the two pieces. Otherwise, IJN and destroyer fans will likely be very happy with this kit. How it compares to the other new 1/350 Shimakaze kit from Fujimi is a question left for another day.

It is listed as kit HAS 1/350 Ship Series No. Z29, SKU# 40029. Thanks to Hobbico Model Distributors for the review sample. They are your US distributors for Hasegawa.Suggested MSRP in the US appears to be $69.99.