Splendid model of a fascinating and famous Japanese battleship
The Nagato was completed in 1920 and was the first warship to mount the big new 16-in. naval gun. Extensively modernized between the wars, the Nagato was the flagship of Admiral Yamamoto when he planned the attack on Pearl Harbor. Aside from its actions during the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the ship saw little action during World War II but was the only large Japanese warship to survive past Japan's surrender, still afloat in Yokosuka despite being heavily bombed by US Navy aircraft and stripped of nearly all its smaller caliber guns. With considerable difficulty, the US Navy got it marginally seaworthy and managed to sail (and tow) it to Bikini Atoll in mid-1946, where it sank following both atomic bomb tests; it rests today, upside down, at that Pacific island. Hasegawa's 1/350 scale plastic model is sturdy, well-detailed and fascinating to build, but I would recommend purchasing any of several aftermarket products (wood deck, brass photoetch set, brass or aluminum gun barrels) to really create a museum-quality model suitable for proud display.