CADS-N-1 "Kashtan" CIWS

[Mike999]

Takom Kit #2128:  CADS-N-1 "Kashtan" Close In Weapons System 1/35 scale 

For modern warships, the last line of defense is the Close In Weapons System (CIWS).  The CIWS only has one job:  throw a wall of flaming metal at any incoming threat.  Most people have seen the MK-15 Phalanx CIWS installed on American ships, with its M61 Vulcan 6-barreled 20-mm gun.

The Russian version of the Phalanx - on steroids - is the Kortik CIWS, NATO designation CADS-N-1 "Kashtan" (Chestnut). It was designed to take out any possible threat short of an alien spaceship, from aircraft to anti-ship missiles to Fast Patrol Boats.  

For airborne targets, the Kashtan carries eight 9M311-1 surface-to-air missiles, with 32 more missiles available for automatic reload.  If a target survives the missiles, it still has to face a pair of AO-18K six-barreled 30-mm rotary cannons.  

Those two weapon systems may sound familiar to armor fans.  They are the same missiles and guns used on the Russian "Tunguska" tracked anti-aircraft vehicle.

Multiple targets can be tracked and engaged simultaneously through the Kashtan's electronics, which include dual radars and electro-optronic controls.

Eight Kashtan systems are currently installed on Russia's only aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov.  Others have been installed on two Sovremennyy-class destroyers in the Chinese Navy.  

THE KIT

Takom has a habit of making oddball 1/35 scale kits, but even so this was a surprise.  The Kashtan is molded in 123 light gray plastic parts, with one clear part for the optic sensor. The only decals are 2 tiny red stars for the gun caps, which I didn't use.  

The base representing a ship's deck is well done, with 3 hatches and a seam detailed with nuts and bolts.

The kit goes together quickly and easily, with a good instruction booklet.  Don't sand off those seams on the big round ammo drums.  Those are weld marks and should be there. Don't ask how I know this.

Those capped guns bugged me and I wanted them uncapped. So off to the parts boxes, where I quickly found a fix:  the backs of the rocket launchers from an old Monogram 1/48 scale helicopter gunship.  I added a couple of details seen in photos of the guns, with small wires and photo-etched bolts.  Voila, they dropped right into place and fit perfectly!

Photos show the Kashtan has electrical cables and conduit running all over the place.  I swear, no 2 pictures of this thing showed the cables in the same place.  I didn't want to go overboard (PUN INTENDED!).  But I did add a few of the more visible cables, using thin solder.

The same confusion applies to painting.  Some photos show Kashtans painted all gray. Others show the missile canisters in black, with bare-metal ends. If you want to paint the racks and missiles different colors, ignore the instructions for assembling the missile racks. The instructions have the missiles and racks glued together early in assembly.  I painted the missiles and racks separately, and glued them together near the end of the whole assembly process.  No problem, as long as you keep the canisters oriented correctly with the racks.

PAINT & WEATHERING

The paint was airbrushed Tamiya acrylic Neutral Gray undercoating with Light Royal Gray overspray, for variation. The optical sensor was painted Tamiya Clear Blue.  The missile canisters were painted and shaded with various shades of black, like Dirty Black and Tire Black, with Tamiya Flat Aluminum end caps.  To indicate that missiles had been fired from the launchers, I used Testors Metalizer Exhaust on the ends of the launcher racks, applied with a small piece of sponge.

Those mean-looking guns were painted using various shades of Testors Metalizer,  like Burnt Metal and Gunmetal.  These were also applied with the sponge trick.

The weathering is mostly old-school washing and dry-brushing with dark and light oil paints.  Other small details were picked out by studying photos, like the brass-colored universal joints under the main radar. 

These systems are mounted on deck and constantly beaten up by salt water spray and rough weather. So I added chipping with Tamiya Dark Iron acrylic paint on pieces of sponge.  No Chief Petty Officer in any navy would tolerate rust on the system itself, but photos showed that the two thin metal "catwalks" on the sides were often rusted. So I did put a little rust there.

Just to break up all that gray, I added the modern Russian flag and double-headed eagle, from an armor decal sheet. I also added a couple of Russian data plates and stencils from aircraft decals.

The decks of Russian ships are covered with red anti-corrosion paint, but hatches etc. are left gray, so that's how I painted the base.  I roughed up the base to give it an anti-slip surface.

To sum up, I wanted a quick, fun and weird build. This kit "ticked all the boxes," as our British cousins like to say.  

But I keep wondering how this thing would look mounted on the back of a big  truck, Mad Max style.  Hmmm...

Takom makes another Russian shipboard weapon that is tempting me: Kit #2129, the 130mm dual Automatic Naval Gun Turret AK-130. I don't think it will fit on a truck.

Excuse the photos, I'm still learning my way around a new camera...

 

Edited May 12, 2020 by Mike999
omit3

[slusher]

Looks fantastic!

[stavanzer]

Wow!  What a Thing.

[cobraman]

Very cool !

[Edward Gore]

That thing looks like it's just pissed off... at anything. Well done.