Tim

I think this will be the color scheme:

Good afternoon and great to see and hear from you.  It appears you've got good documentation for your modeling project.  That's neat.  Going to "decorate" the interior?   You certainly have picked out a beautiful project and one that's not modeled too often, if ever.  

Congratulations.  I'll just pull up a seat and watch the show.  You've got me interested in this one.

Skye

I'm not sure how much internal work I'm going to do.  I think it will come down to how long it takes me to do the exterior.  Of course, I'll put in a pilot, seat, stick and instrument panel.  After that, not sure yet.  The canopy and cowling are going to be a challenge as I'll have to mold and make them myself.  Never done that before.

I'm ordering the short kit this week and then will have to start a build thread, I do believe.  

Tim

Good afternoon and didn't expect to hear from you so soon.  Great!  I would think most short kits would also feature canopies and cowls.  Usually, that's a big item for most modelers and, aside from the laser-cut woods, one of the big reasons for ordering from them in the first place.  Have you tried contacting the company that produces the short kit and see if they offer the canopy and cowl as an option?  If not, then you may wish to consider another company thatalso  produces short kits but will include the canopy and cowl, or if this company is the only one producing this rare Japanese aircraft, then I'd really like for you to consider several companies that will custom make cowls and canopies.  They're usually known as  "aftermarket" companies.  Fiberglass Specialties is one of them.  They've got a range of readily made cowls to fit almost any model and will gladly custom-make a cowl, for a price.  If you'd like, I would also recommend contacting Abu and see if he knows any such company/ies.  Reason I mentioned him is he's still in Japan and has a wealth of available links to almost any company that makes almost anything.

Finally, there's a company called Sunset Models owned and operated by one individual named "Buzz."  It's a one-man company, but he will make just about anything from fiber glass and canopies.  He also will produce a short kit, should you decide on that route.  I've used him several times and he's a very considerate person.  He's not perfect and has made a few mistakes here and there, but overall, I've had a good experience with him.  Most importantly, he's honest.   

Personally, I find it unusual that a company that will produce a short kit on-demand will not also include a canopy and cowl as an added option. 

If you have any difficulties, I'll be happy to check out what I can find.  If you can have a readily available canopy or cowl, why not save yourself a ton of work?  If fabricating the items is something you wish to do, then I sincerely wish you good luck as I'm weak in that area of molding and canopy-fabrication.    Sorry, that's one of my weaknesses.  

Thank you,

Sincerely,

Gary (Skye)