Offered by Over The Blue Horizon is an exceptionally difficult-to-obtain, slip-cased hardcover volume: “THE ZERO FIGHTER”, edited by Katsuhiro Hara.
This superb reference work is basically a technical manual for the Imperial Japanese Navy Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter drawn from original Mitsubishi records and manuals. Text is in Japanese but as is often said, ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’ and in this case, if you’re looking for technical specificity, it won’t get much better! The book has some color profiles, color photographs, and black and white wartime photographs, but the main features of this book are the technical drawings – absolutely incredible.
The book also includes two English-language
documents – a Technical Air Intelligence Center (TAIC) November 1944
publication on “COMBAT EVALUATION OF ZEKE 52 WITH F4U-1D, F6F-5, AND FM-2” and
a TAIC “PERFORMANCE AND CHARACTERISTICS DATA” document from October 1943.
This book has been out-of-print since 2001, it has actually been used as
a reference work used to help restore an A6M3 in Camarillo, California, and
according to one of the restorers: “As an air museum volunteer on one of only
three flying Zeros in the world, I find this book valuable … The book has
detailed drawings, step by step operating procedures, from starting the engine
to landing gears sequence to seat height adjustments. It is a must have for any
serious Zero student or experts alike. We have made repairs, fabricated missing
parts, tuned up, adjusted control cables ... using this reference.” We
must stress again that this book is in Japanese and we are fairly confident
this museum in Camarillo had someone that could read Japanese assisting in this
restoration, and we have also confirmed this book is used by Japanese experts
restoring ZEROs in Japan.
Note that this publication is not for the
faint-hearted -- it is a TECHNICAL volume intended for the hardcore. You
won't get lots of pretty pictures and color schemes -- instead you'll get
blueprints and technical drawings. If you are interested in what the ZERO
is like under its skin, this is the book for you!
This 494-page, 7.5 x 10.5 inch hardcover with
slipcase was published in 2001. Condition of the slipcover is GOOD with
overall moderate shelf wear. The book's front cover is 'bumped' on its
upper right front corner (which carries over to the first few inside
pages. Otherwise,the book is VERY GOOD/LIKE NEW. See the accompanying
scans for a 'visual' on these condition issues. Again, this offer is for
the HARD CORE only! Note that Over The Blue Horizon ships from the USA
but regardless of where you are in the world, buy with absolute confidence from
a well-established eBay merchant with a sterling reputation.
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