by Marty Shay
1/700 IJN Yubari Light Cruiser (Tamiya)
IJN Yubari, 1/700th scale Tamiya Waterline kit: List price $19, I paid $9.25. Crisp and sharp. This kit just about builds itself! Start to finish it took less than four hours to build. One minor complaint, in order to set the tripod correctly I had to overdrill the holes in the top deck, an easy enough workaround. All in all a very nice quick kit.
Yubari was a one-off design, a small light Cruiser, the general layout is more a
large Destroyer than a Cruiser type. Completed July 1923. November 1941 Flagship
of Desron 6. December 1941 Participates in both invasions of Wake Island. January
to March 1942 participates in the invasion of Rabaul. Damaged by US carrier aircraft.
April 1942 refit. May 1942 participates in The Battle of the Coral Sea. July 1942
reassigned to Desdiv 29, takes part in Guadalcanal landings. August 1942 takes part in
The Battle of Savo Island. August 1942-March 1943 in refit. July 2, 1943 engages US
PT Boats off Rendova. July 5, 1943 strikes a mine. Repairs complete November 1943.
Minor damage in two air attacks. December 1943 designated Flagship Desron 3.
December 1943 to March 1944 drydocked. April 27, 1944 torpedoed by
US submarine SS-242, the USS Bluegill. April 28, 1944 Yubari sinks off Saipan. 19 crewmembers are lost.
