Introduction…

After the loss of four fleet carriers at Midway the Japanese needed replacement carriers and they needed them fast. One way to do this was to convert the two ISE battleships to full deck carriers. However the Japanese did not have the resources to do the full deck conversion. So, it was decided to remove the aft two turrets and replaced those with a short flight deck. Japan never did have the aircraft to supply ISE or her sister ship with her air arm and she never went into combat in her new intended role.

She was sunk in Kure by American aircraft near the end of the war.

The Set…

The detail set comes in three separate sections of brass and a single sheet of instructions. The focus is to upgrade the rear flight deck added to both the ISE and Hyuga.

Fret A:The main upper section of the deck is present as are the various smaller detail pieces. The non skid decking is very nicely done on the outside edges of the deck. The rails used for moving the aircraft are very fine and have a much better appearance than does the plastic kit parts. The assembly of the deck will give you raised rails with a slight recessed area on either side. Also provided are the turn tables for each individual aircraft. These have a non-skip pattern present on them similar to the of the deck edges.

Fret B: Part 1:This piece of brass is much thicker than normal PE sheets. The two pieces are used to give your new deck proper thickness, but allow you to use the set to reproduce fine detail. When assembled you end with a sandwich of the two thicker parts and the thinner part between them. Part 2 is the overall base of the entire kit. This is another thick piece of brass.

Impressions…

Comparing this set to the plastic parts of the original kit is very helpful. Adding this set to your build of the ISE or her sister Hyuga will surely be a nice upgrade. There are two AA gun emplacements that are missing from the flight deck. After checking photos and other sources, they are needed. So, you will have to add them to your build.