The Imperial Japanese Navy Cruiser Submarine I-16 was constructed at Mitsubishi Shipbuilding in Kobe, and was then towed to Kure Navy Yard for completion, as well as commissioning in 1940. She was the lead boat for a class of five submarines that included the I-18, I-20, I-22, and I-24, which were Type C1 boats. The design of this class was based on the Junsen-type, and they were developed from the type KD6. These boats were designed to carry either the Ko-hoteki midget submarine or Kaiten suicide torpedo.

Quickboost has added an aftermarket detail set that seems to me to be a questionable choice on their part. It is a set of resin exhaust ports for the Accurate Miniatures 1/48 SB2U Vindicator kits. As can be seen in the photos below, the Quickboost parts (pictured between the kit parts on the sprue) are virtual duplicates of the kit parts with only a small improvement in the sidewall thickness…Something that most model builders of average skills should be able to duplicate by using a number 11 Xacto blade or a pin vice with a suitable drill bit to increase the opening in the kit parts. The Quickboost parts are nicely cast and can be separated easily from the casting block and attached with super glue if the modeler chooses.

The Product

Packaged in what has become the standard aftermarket small parts blister pack and sporting a colorful shield very similar to the USAF SAC shield, we find four small white metal parts making for one pair of gear legs. The parts look very nice and should clean up nicely. The castings themselves are identical to the kit parts and should swap out with no foreseeable problems. The white metal in my sample seemed a bit soft and bent easily without intended manipulation. White metal parts and plastic model kits have a long history and can work well together.