1/500 Bandai Space Battleship Yamato
So, I dove into the 1/500 “Space Battleship Yamato” kit with high hopes and a plan to paint it my own way, because following instructions is overrated, right? Well, that decision made things interesting from the start. The upper hull went together after a good coat of grey primer, but getting those rear side panels and the top to fit exactly right took some fiddling. Not a huge deal, but a patience-tester.
The main gun armament was next. Filling in where the turret range finders used to be a bit of a chore, and sanding the barrels to get rid of seam lines felt endless. At least the barrels fit nicely once they were done, but gluing the lower turret parts in place without accidentally locking them up was a delicate operation. The smaller turrets were just as fiddly with tiny parts equals big headaches.
Moving on to the superstructure, I had to deal with more seam lines and fill around the bridge after fitting the green plastic windows. Bluetak helped mask the windows for spraying, but I had to be extra careful to avoid paint sneaking under the edges. The bow section needed filling and sanding too, and a quick blast of primer revealed a few spots that needed more work.
One of the biggest issues was managing all those small, fragile guns. I left the actual guns off until the last minute to avoid breaking them, and tweezers became my best friend. Ultra-thin glue helped keep things neat, but there were a few close calls with overspill.
Painting was another adventure. Multiple coats, careful masking, and, just my luck, a phone issue wiped out all my progress photos. So, no visual proof of the struggle!
The tiny fighters for the stand were a whole new challenge. Painting those little guys required a steady hand and nerves of steel. An eye issue slowed me down for a while, but I got back to it with some fine brushwork and panel lining.
Panel lining the hull was actually fun, but cleaning up the excess enamel took a few passes and some advice from an old model maker. In the end, blending the lines made the colours pop, and I managed to fit all the small parts and the main rear engine without breaking anything—miracle!
If you’re tackling this kit, be ready for some tricky part fits, fragile parts, and a few unexpected setbacks. But hey, that’s half the fun
Here are the links to the blog posts in making the 1/500 scale Yamato…