modeller £6.50 - July’14 (issue 039)
Revell Bf 109 G-10 Erla • Wingnut Wings RE.8 • Shizuoka Hobby Show 2014 Report • Eduard Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6 • and more…
military illustrated
www.militaryillustratedmodeller.com
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
SHOW REPORT Shizuoka Hobby Show 2014
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aircraft edition
Two Hasegawa 1:48 F-104 Starfighters
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Contents
modeller military illustrated
ISSUE No.039 July 2014
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NEWS
What’s happening in modelling and aviation
PENULTIMATE INTERCEPTOR Part 2
Brett Green paints Revell’s 1:32 scale Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-10 Erla Production kit
14 PREVIEW
Tamiya 1:72 A6M3 Zero
16 HARRY TATE
Tony Bell builds Wingnut Wings’ 1:32 scale RE.8
24 THE EAGLE HAS LANDED Eduard’s brand new 1:48 Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6 analysed by Brett Green
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30 F-104 WALK AROUND Reference photos by Zack Sex
34 BEAUTY AND THE BEAST Two Hasegawa 1:48 Starfighters by Spencer Pollard
42 PREVIEW
Airfix 1:72 Tiger Moth
44 FLIGHT INTO THE UNKNOWN
Dragon’s 1:32 scale Messerschmitt Bf 110 D/E by James Hatch
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58 SHIZUOKA HOBBY SHOW 2014 Show report by Brett Green
65 NEXT ISSUES
What’s coming up in the next issues of Military Illustrated Modeller
66 TAILPIECE
Fisher 1:32 Ryan STM-2 / PT-20
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16 Aircraft Edition
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News REVELL’S NEW 1:32 SPITFIRE MK.II
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iedrich Wiegmann has sent some photos of the new 1:32 scale Revell Spitfire Mk.IIA, built from an early set of test shots. Diedrich reports that the model was easy to build. This model should be appearing in stores around the time you have this copy of MIM in your hands. We will have more news, including a detailed review, in a future issue. Thanks to Revell for the images. Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For details visit www.revell.de/en, @RevellGermany or facebook.com/Revell
Canadian Lancaster Joins Battle of Britain Memorial Flight at Headcorn Aerodrome Combined Ops Show on the 16th and 17th of August
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he Organisers of the Combined Ops, Military and Air Show have announced that the Avro Lancaster is flying to England this August and the first event it will be attending is the Combined Ops which takes place on the 16th and 17th August. The Avro Lancaster will join the only other airworthy Lancaster in the world, owned and operated by the Royal Air Force’s renowned Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF), so it will be one of the very few opportunities to see both flying together in the UK. The Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum’s prized Avro Lancaster will depart from Hamilton, Ontario on August 4th and plan to arrive in England on August 8th. The North Atlantic crossing will include en-route stops at Goose Bay, Labrador, Canada, Narsarsuaq, Greenland, and Keflavik, Iceland, prior to arriving at the BBMF, RAF Coningsby. Shortly after arriving, the Lancaster will undergo a scheduled maintenance inspection and then the Canadian crews will complete a short training program with the BBMF in preparation to participate in several air displays and fly pasts with the BBMF Lancaster and fighters. Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum President and CEO, Sqn Ldr (Ret.) David G. Rohrer C.D. who is a current Lancaster pilot, indicated that this year, “A rare window of opportunity was identified to bring the only two flying Lancasters in the world together as a special salute to all the veterans of Bomber Command, many of whom are in their late 80’s or older now. It is also an opportunity for the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum to fly together and showcase a flying display and tribute to all those who served in the time of need, in Canada, England and the entire Commonwealth that likely will never be seen again.” The Combined Ops Military and Air Show Weekend is a spectacular display of military vehicles and aircraft and is held Kent’s historic Headcorn Aerodrome, home of many real wartime dramas. This family event will also include living history re-enactment groups, arena events, military stalls and children’s mini tanks and food stalls to make it a perfect day out. Tickets for the event are now available online priced at £8 for Adult (£12 on the door), £6 for Children and Seniors (£9 on the door), while under 5s go free. Family tickets are available from £21 online or (£29 on the door) and can be pre-booked at www.headcornevents.co.uk or for more general information visit www.combinedops.co.uk.
LARGE SCALE WWI GERMAN AVIATORS FROM MODEL CELLAR
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scale: 120mm sculpted by: Mike Good box art by: Tim Farrell Resin cast retail price $87.50 USD
Kit Particulars: WWI German Aviators - Pilot & Observer
To purchase this new WWI Aviation set, please visit Model Cellar’s website www.ModelCellar.com
he Model Cellar has announced a new release. It is a WWI German Pilot & Observer in 120mm. Sculpted by Mike Good, the figures are clean, clear, crisp and precise - as usual. And they are packed with detail - right down to the observer’s camera.
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Military Illustrated Modeller - July 2014
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NEW in the ‘HOW TO BUILD...’ series ORDER NOW HOW TO BUILD THE AIRFIX 1:24 HAWKER TYPHOON MK.IB The latest addition to this popular series of modelling titles offers the enthusiast plenty of inspirational modelling hints, tips and techniques to enjoy. The complete guide to building the amazing Airfix 1:24 scale Hawker Typhoon, written by Brett Green of HyperScale and Model Military fame. This new book features an exhaustive step-by-step guide to construction with modelling contributions by Brett, Marcus Nicholls and Chris Wauchop. Detailed analysis of the 1:72 Airfix Typhoon and 1:48 scale kits on the market is also included. Hundreds of construction photos, reference images, a museum walk around, and how to get the very best from your big Typhoon kit – a must have before you build the model!
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Cover subject to change
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Revell 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-10 Erla Production • Kit No. 04888
PENULTIMATE INTERCEPTOR
Part Two – Painting and Weathering
The Editor adds a heavily overpainted camouflage scheme to Revell’s new 1:32 scale Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-10 Erla kit.
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he majority of camouflage schemes for the Messerschmitt Bf 109 G comprise RLM 74 Grey Green and RLM 75 Grey Violet over RLM 76 Light Blue lower surfaces. Fortunately, there is plenty of variety in the application of the colours. Grey certainly does not have to be dull. I found a photo of Black 4, an Erla built Bf 109 G-10, that displayed a number of very interesting features. The camouflage colours were quite faded to the point that demarcation was indistinct in places. The fuselage and wing crosses were noticeably smaller than the standard too. The wing crosses were also located further outboard than usual, but larger crosses in the original positions appeared to be painted out with a fresh coat of RLM 74 Grey Green. A large patch of fresh dark grey also appeared on the mid-rear fuselage spine
and side. The top of the elevators were painted in a very pale colour – most likely RLM 76 Light Blue. The canopy and windscreen framing was a very dark colour, probably RLM 66 Black Grey. The fin and rudder appeared to be finished with a mottled overspray of RLM 76 over a darker shade. And the cherry on this grey pie was the Blue-White-Blue fuselage band typical of late-war JG300 aircraft. This was a truly fascinating camouflage scheme. BarracudaCals has released two 1:32 scale decal sheets covering Erla built Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-10s; and Black 4 was amongst the schemes. Not only were the unique markings perfectly depicted, but the decal sheet also included the small-sized crosses. Now all I had to do was paint the model!
GETTING STARTED
The windscreen and rear canopy sections were masked with Tamiya tape. The Eduard masks had not been released at this early stage, but cutting the masks for the Erla hood is pretty fast and easy. I simply attached the tape to the clear parts and cut away the frame areas with a fresh scalpel blade. The canopy was sprayed Tamiya XF-63 German Grey – a pretty good match for RLM 66 Black Grey. Following painting, I glued the windscreen to the model and covered the cockpit opening with Tamiya masking tape. The windscreen was then masked off to retain the very dark framing. The rear fuselage, fin, wing tips, lower cowl and spinner were sprayed with Tamiya White Primer. When this was dry, the central white strip of the blue-white-blue RV fuselage band was also masked
The Erla canopy was masked with Tamiya tape, applied to the clear plastic and cut in place with a new hobby blade.
The windscreen and canopy was checked for fit before painting. No problems here!
The canopy was sprayed Tamiya XF-63 German Grey – a pretty good match for RLM 66 Black Grey.
I was originally planning to paint my model using the new Humbrol enamels, but my paints had solidified after I decanted them into glass jars!
An initial coat of Tamiya Grey Primer revealed a few blemishes that were sanded and polished prior to the next round of painting. Aircraft Edition
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Revell 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-10 Erla Production • Kit No. 04888
The lower wing was sprayed with Tamiya’s AS-12 Bare-Metal Silver, another spray can colour, before having a number of panels masked off. The rear fuselage was painted with Tamiya White Primer, also straight from the spray can, then the white centre strip of the RV band was masked with Tamiya tape.
The variation in metal shades was obtained using Tamiya TS-30 Silver Leaf.
My first attempt at the blue shade for the RV band. I didn’t like it…
…so I sanded it back and started all over again.
with Tamiya tape. I was not happy with my original shade of blue as I thought it was too dark. In fact, I resprayed this colour four times over the course of the paint job until I was reasonably satisfied (but still not completely happy) with the colour. I wish I could share the exact formula with you, but it was very much a case of mix and match by eye and on the run! Anyway, once the blue paint had dried, the whole band was masked off. Next, the lower wing was sprayed with Tamiya AS-12 Bare Metal Silver applied straight from the spray can. A number of panels were masked off before another spray can squirt, this time using Tamiya TS-30 Silver Leaf. This is a shinier shade that offers fast contrast to the duller bare-metal base coat. Once dry, the entire lower wing, minus the ailerons and the wing tips, were masked off. Although the different types of Tamiya spray
paint are designed for specific plastics, in my experience they all work well on polystyrene. The model was now treated to an overall coat of Tamiya AS-5 Light Blue. This lacquer spray was decanted into a glass jar and applied with my Iwata HP-TR airbrush.
A BREAK FROM GREY
I wanted to try something a little bit different for the fin and rudder. Many late-war Bf 109s featured rudders and fins finished in dark, hard-edged mottles of RLM 75, 81 and 83, often mismatched. As my subject had a tail with a pale mottled overspray, I thought it might be interesting to spray the underlying camouflage as one of these green/ brown/grey schemes. The upper fin and rudder were sprayed with Gunze H423 RLM 83 Dark Green. I next cut medium-sized mottle masks from Tamiya tape and stuck them to the tail. The rudder was oversprayed
Attempt No.2. Better, but I would wind up repainting this with another two shades before I was satisfied.
The windscreen and cockpit opening were masked off at this stage too.
The blue-white-blue band was now masked off in its entirety.
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The lower wing tips and ailerons were finished in RLM 76 Light Blue, so the rest of the lower wing was masked off with lots of wide Tamiya tape.
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The model was now sprayed with Tamiya AS-5 Luftwaffe Light Blue, representing RLM 76. The upper surfaces of the elevators were painted RLM 76 too, so these were masked off before painting continued.
The lower tailplanes and rear empennage were also masked off to ensure they retained their clean light blue finish.
The upper fin and rudder were sprayed with Gunze H423 RLM 83 Dark Green. I next cut medium-sized mottle masks from Tamiya tape and stuck them to the tail.
with RLM 75 Grey Violet in several thin coats to avoid seepage under the masks. The rudder was then masked off and the fin painted using Gunze H304 Olive Drab, which I quite like as a representation of slightly faded RLM 81 Brown Violet. The starkly-painted tail was now masked off with Tamiya paint.
Wing roots were masked to obtain a sharp division between the grey wing camouflage and the mottled fuselage sides.
The rudder was oversprayed with RLM 75 Grey Violet in several thin coats to avoid seepage under the masks. The rudder was then masked off and the fin painted using Gunze H304 Olive Drab, which I quite like as a representation of slightly faded RLM 81 Brown Violet.
The dark, hard-edged result is revealed once the masks are removed.
A pale 50:50 blend of Gunze-Sangyo acrylic H417 RLM 76 Light Blue and H69 RLM 75 Grey Violet was used as the base upper-surface camouflage colour. The darker shade is 100% H69 RLM 75.
FIFTY SHADES OF GREY…
Well perhaps not fifty, but at least five! I mixed a 50:50 blend of Gunze-Sangyo acrylic H417 RLM 76 Light Blue and H69 RLM 75 Grey Violet as the base upper-surface camouflage colour. The first job was to apply the basic wing camouflage. With this pale version of RLM 75 laid down on the wings and horizontal tailplanes, a soft-edged camouflage pattern was added using 100% RLM 75. This colour actually represents a heavily faded RLM 74 Grey Green. The areas of overspray – the old upper wing crosses and various patches seen in the reference photo – were done with a 50:50 mix of Gunze H68 RLM 74 Dark Grey and H69 RLM 75 Grey, followed by some highlighting in 100% H68 RLM 74 Dark Grey. The pale RLM 75 mix was then thinned heavily with isopropylene alcohol and sprayed in sparse spots and mottles along the fuselage sides. I always try to resist the temptation to build up the mottle too quickly. I worked on the mottling at this point, starting with the pale RLM 75 mix built up gradually on the fuselage sides, and constantly referring to the reference photo for the location of landmark mottles that would help define the pattern. 100% Gunze RLM 75 was then mottled over the top, and a
The location of the original full-sized upper wing crosses was masked off.
Aircraft Edition
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Revell 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-10 Erla Production • Kit No. 04888
The pale RLM 75 mix was built up gradually on the fuselage sides, constantly referring to the reference photo for the location of landmark mottles that would help define the pattern.
The areas of overspray were done with a 50:50 mix of Gunze H68 RLM 74 Dark Grey and H69 RLM 75 Grey, followed by some highlighting in 100% H68 RLM 74 Dark Grey.
100% Gunze RLM 75 was then mottled over the top, and a third colour, a 50:50 mix of Gunze H68 RLM 74 Dark Grey and H69 RLM 75 Grey, was sprayed very thinly and very sparingly is another layer of mottling.
A dense but indistinct mottle of Gunze H417 RLM Light Blue was sprayed onto the rudder and the fin.
The dark patches on the fuselage were sprayed using 100% Gunze H68 RLM 74 Dark Grey.
third colour, a 50:50 mix of Gunze H68 RLM 74 Dark Grey and H69 RLM 75 Grey, was sprayed very thinly and very sparingly is another layer of mottling. A dense but indistinct mottle of Gunze H417 RLM Light Blue was sprayed onto the rudder and the fin. A dark patch was left clear for the tail Hakenkreuz, and the leading edge of the fin was only partially covered, as seen in the reference photo. The bottom of the flaps were painted RLM 74 Dark Grey.
The bottom of the flaps were painted RLM 74 Dark Grey.
DECALS AND DETAILS
Decals were applied over a gloss coat of Future Floor Polish. Markings were sourced from BarracudaCals’ excellent decal sheet No. BC32145 - Erla Bf 109 G-10 Part 2. All the markings performed flawlessly. Weathering comprised fine highlighting of panel lines with a thin mix of Tamiya XF-1 Flat Back and XF-64 Red Brown, followed by a wash of XF-18
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I did not like the bright blue against the grey, so I experimented with all sorts of light blue mixes.
I eventually settled on a mix of Tamiya XF-2 Flat White and XF-8 Flat Blue – although it is mostly white!
Weathering comprised fine highlighting of panel lines with a thin mix of Tamiya XF-1 Flat Back and XF-64 Red Brown, followed by a wash of XF-18 mixed with water.
Doing it the hard way. The finished paint job and the white centre strip were masked off to spray the new blue.
The completed paint job awaiting decals.
I used an EagleCals spinner spiral decal as a template to cut a mask from Tamiya tape.
The spinner and base plate were sprayed with Tamiya’s Fine White Primer straight from the can. The mask was then carefully applied to the spinner cap.
Markings from BarracudaCals’ excellent Item No. BC32145 - Erla Bf 109 G-10 Part 2 were applied over several glossy coats of Future Floor Polish.
The spinner backplate appears to have been finished in the original factory “thirding” of one-third white and one-third RLM 70 Black Green.
Aircraft Edition
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Revell 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-10 Erla Production • Kit No. 04888
Oops… I had forgotten to paint the top of the supercharger intake. I masked off the surrounding area and gave it a squirt of RLM 75 Grey Violet.
Disaster struck when I smeared glued onto the inside of the canopy while fitting the Galland Panzer armour.
I decided to mask and spray the black Gruppe bar over the RV band.
Although the kit supplies a second canopy, I thought I would try to salvage this one by sanding and polishing the inside of the clear plastic. After ten minutes of polishing, followed by a coat of Future floor polish applied by Microbrush, the smear had disappeared.
The undercarriage parts fitted perfectly.
The antenna wire was stretched from a length of E-Z Line elastic thread.
The DF loop was bent from a thin staple, sourced from a Tamiya plastic bag.
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The glossy finish was tamed with two thin coats of Testor’s Model Master Flat Clear Lacquer Finish.
MODELSPEC Revell 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-10 Erla Production
Kit No. 04888
Accessories Used: Alley Cat Item No. AC32027C - Messerschmitt Bf 109 G Upgrade Eduard BRASSIN Item No. 632022 – Bf 109 G-6 Cockpit Eduard BRASSIN Item No. 632021 – Bf 109 G-6 Undercarriage Legs Eduard BRASSIN Item No. 632020 – Bf 109 G-6 Exhaust Stacks Eduard Item No. 32792 – Bf 109 G Seat Belts Fabric Eduard Item No. JX151 – Bf 109 G-6 Mask MDC Luftwaffe Instrument Dials Airscale Item No. AS32SCH - WWII Luftwaffe Cockpit Placard decal sheet Decals Used: Masking has been removed from the bottom of the wing, and final weathering applied.
mixed with water. The heavy exhaust staining along the fuselage sides, and grubby lower rear fuselage, were also sprayed with the mix of Tamiya XF-1 Flat Black and XF-64 Red Brown. The flat coat was Testor’s Model Master Flat Clear Lacquer Finish. The spinner and base plate were sprayed with Tamiya’s Fine White Primer straight from the can. I then used an EagleCals spinner spiral decal as a template to cut a mask from Tamiya tape. This was carefully applied to the spinner cap, and the masked part was then sprayed black. The result was very pleasing. The spinner backplate appears to have been finished in the original factory “thirding” of one-third white and one-third RLM 70 Black Green. The white third was masked off and the rest of the backplate was sprayed with Gunze RLM 70 Black Green. The propeller blades were sprayed with Tamiya XF-27 Black Green.
CONCLUSION
It can be argued that the Erla-built G-10 was the ultimate Messerschmitt Bf 109. It is great to finally
BarracudaCals Item No. BC32145 - Erla Bf 109 G-10 Part 2 Undercarriage parts painted, weathered and awaiting final assembly.
see this version available straight from the box and at such an affordable price. Detail is very good, surface textures are stateof-the-art and there is some really nice attention to detail. For example, I love that Revell has supplied three different styles of rudder, including the "flattened cone" version, and that there are so many bonus parts included too. This release bypasses some of the accuracy shortcomings of the earlier G-6, and it is also an easier to build thanks to the full-length fuselage halves. The other great news is that there is already a pile of aftermarket parts available for this kit. Between building my model and the publication of this instalment, in addition to the accessories already released, Alley Cat has produced a detail and improvement set specifically for this kit. Also available from Alley Cat is a set that offers the small wing bump panels, as these were frequently seen on the G-10 Erla machines so you won’t have to sacrifice a Revell G-6 like I did! Now, Revell, while you're working on important yet overlooked Bf 109 variants, how about a 1/32 scale Bf 109 G-6/AS and G-14/AS? •
Materials Used: Evergreen Plastic Sheet, Plastic Rod – Various Thicknesses, Milliput White Two-Part Epoxy Putty, Tamiya Surfacer Tools and Modelling Products Used: Waldron Punch and Die Set, Tamiya masking tape (various widths), Scribing Tool, Dymo Tape (as a guide for scribing), Tamiya Extra Thin Cement, Revell Contacta Cement, Selley’s Super Glue, Zip Kicker (super glue accelerator), Tamiya Masking Tape, Blu-Tack, Irwin Clamps Paints and Finishing Products Used: Cockpit Interior Paints Tamiya Acrylics: X-18 Semi Gloss Black; XF-1 Flat Black; XF-24 Dark Grey; XF-66 German Grey. Vallejo Model Color Acrylics: 70801 Brass; 847 Dark Sand; 70862 Black Grey; 70865 Oily Steel; 70877 Goldbrown; 919 Foundation White; 70950 Black; 70953 Flat Yellow; 70957 Flat Red; 963 Medium Blue Vallejo Panzer Aces Acrylics: 301 Light Rust; 337 Highlight Ger. (Black) Future Floor Polish Testor’s Model Master Clear Flat Lacquer Solvaset Decal Setting Solution Exterior Paints Tamiya Spray Cans: Fine White Primer; AS-5 Light Blue (Luftwaffe); AS-12 Bare Metal Silver; TS-14 Black; TS-30 Silver Leaf. Tamiya Acrylics: X-25 Clear Green; X-27 Clear Red; XF-1 Flat Black. Gunze Acrylics: H28 Metal Black; H65 RLM 70 Black Green; H68 RLM 74 Dark Grey; H69 RLM 75 Grey; H70 RLM 02 Grey; H304 Olive Drab; H308 Grey FS 36375; H417 RLM 76 Light Blue; H423 RLM 83 Dark Green. Future Floor Polish Testor’s Model Master Clear Flat Lacquer Solvaset Decal Setting Solution First time this version has been available as a mainstream kit in any scale; accurate overall; simpler parts breakdown than earlier G-6 kit; high level of detail; crisply recessed panel line detail; convincing fabric texture; moveable control surfaces; separate leading edge slats; intergrally moulded wheel bulges; useful options (although some not mentioned in instructions) including long and short tail wheel and alternative rudders. Thin lipped supercharger intakes; narrow propeller blades; solidmoulded fuselage scoops; shape of ETC rack and 300l drop tank are not perfect. Rating: 9 out of 10
The canopy was glued shut to reinforce the smooth lines of this late-war hunter.
Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For details visit www.revell.de/en, @RevellGermany or facebook.com/Revell
Aircraft Edition
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KIT PREVIEW: Tamiya 1:72 Mitsubishi A6M3/3a Zero Fighter Model 22 (Zeke). • Kit No. 60795
SIMPLY SUPERB Mark Davies examines the latest in Tamiya’s smallscale Zero family, the A6M3/3a Type 22.
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here have been so many previous kits of the Zero in 1:72 scale that I stopped counting after reaching thirty different brands! Focussing on long-run kits, I think that most would agree that until Tamiya released its recent new-tool Zero kits that Hasegawa’s were the best. They featured good shape and very nice surface detail but only basic interior detail. Tamiya has now released four versions of their new-tool Zero, covering the Models 21, 22, 32 & 52. I could wrap up this review here and now in two words, by describing these kits as “Simply Superb”, but I suppose a little more is called for. The kit comes in a quality top-opening box with excellent artwork. The two grey sprues are enclosed in a single stapled plastic bag, with the clear sprue further protected in their own smaller bag; all with fine attachment points. The multilingual instructions do not have a parts map, and use very well-drawn diagrams that are easy to follow. The painting and markings guide is well done in shaded monotone with four views per scheme. Colours are described using generic names where applicable, with paint codes that correspond to the Tamiya paint range. A separate and extensive aircraft history that includes notes on the different Zero versions is provided. Tamiya kits stand out from all but Eduard for their comprehensive cockpit detail, and this one is no exception. Everything you could reasonably expect to see in this scale is represented, with only the seat requiring minor modification by drilling out the indented lightening holes for best appearance. Check out the accompanying scans of the instructions to see what detail is provided. Decals are included for the instrument faces. Some may opt for a PE harness, but I have found that Tamiya’s decal harnesses can be quite convincing if you do not use them as a decal. I find that it is best to cut the decal out with its paper backing left in place. The The one-piece engine cowling. white backing must then be suitably coloured to match the front face. This process gives some “meat” to the harness, and allows it to be draped and folded into the seat. The edges can be shadowed with a wash. The overall effect is far superior to the very flat and undernourished look that results from applying the decal directly to the seat. Another nice touch is the way the cockpit sub-
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assembly can be fitted after the fuselage halves have been joined and any seam-sanding completed. The clear parts provide a very nice clear and thin canopy, with optional parts for open and closed alternatives, as well as a detailed gun sight. The engine is most convincing, with good shape to the cylinders The kit decal sheet. and their heads, and very fine cooling fin detail. In this scale the integrally moulded pushrods are quite acceptable. The engine halves enclose a poly-cap to grip the propeller shaft. The engine is enclosed by a very cleanly moulded cowl with its cooling gills closed. A separate and cleverly engineered oil cooler fits behind the cowl on the fuselage underside. The prop and spinner finish this area off. The wings feature convincingly deep and nicely detail wheel wells. There are panels that fit in the outer portions of the lower wing half due to mould sharing with another boxing. The tailplane, like the wings, has all control surfaces in the neutral position; and although the rudder is separate, it too is designed fit in the neutral position. The undercarriage is nicely rendered, and includes the retraction linkages for the small inboard doors. Tamiya quality may seem to be a bit of a cliché, but just looking at this kit in the box shows why this brand’s products remain unsurpassed, despite being very closely approached, or even perhaps equalled in the case of Eduard’s 1:48 Spitfire Mk IX. Certainly, in 1:72 scale, it is hard to think of an injected kit that betters this one in the way it combines clever engineering, superb detail, yet
Clear parts offer the option of open or closed canopy.
The moulding quality is excellent throughout.
simple assembly despite a comparatively high parts count. It goes without saying that I would expect this kit to be extremely easy to build. Some will be sick of hearing about how good Tamiya is, but there is no getting around the simple fact that they are. Maybe not perfect, and at times closely rivalled; there is just something about the way Tamiya achieves its results in 1:72scale whilst somehow keeping its kits simple; even when the level of detail offered means a higher than typical parts count. Tamiya’s Zero kits are undoubtedly the best in 1:72 scale, and their Model 22 is a welcome addition to the other three versions so far kitted by them. Highly Recommended. • Thanks to Tamiya for the sample www.tamiya.com
Military Illustrated Modeller - July 2014
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Cana Leopard C2 Mexas ............................................ £48.00 Leopard 1A5/C2 .............................................................£TBA German Civil Car w/Rocket ........................................ £32.00 WWI Mark IV Male ..................................................... £49.99 WWI Mark IV Female ................................................. £49.99
ITALERI IT288 M4A3 Sherman Calliope............................................. £24.99 IT228 WC56 Dodge Staff Car ............................................... £20.99 IT6518 M-108 Howitzer .......................................................... £29.99 IBG MODELS IB35017 Bedford QLR................................................................ £29.99 IB35018 Bedford QLB................................................................ £29.99 IB35025 Skoda 100mm Howitzer ............................................. £17.99 IB35028 Obiceda 100/17 Italian Howitzer................................ £17.99 DRAGON KITS D3543 IAF UH-1N W/Para’s................................................... £42.50 D3546 M-48A3 ....................................................................... £49.99 D6375 Pz IV Crew................................................................... £13.25 D6387 Pz III Ausf L Late......................................................... £49.99 D6553 SdKfz 7 Arm’d W/3.7cm Flak ..................................... £55.99 D6647 Stug IV Last Prod........................................................ £49.99 D6679 7.5cm Pak 40/4 Auf RSO............................................ £49.99 D6695 German Wehr Bivouac ............................................... £16.99 D6732 SdKfz 10 Ausf A W/5cm Pak 38................................. £49.99 D6770 IJA Type HA-GO Light Tank......................................... £35.50 D75048 1/6 Sherman Ic Firefly Hybrid..................................£499.99 D3548 M103 A1 Heavy Tank.................................................. £49.99 D3550 MBT 70 [KPZ 70] ........................................................ £49.99 D6789 M6 A1 Heavy Tank .........................................................£TBA D1623 Schutze Schutzstaffel.................................................. £14.50 D6003 Waffen SS 1944 D DAY ................................................ £9.99 D6021 US Rangers 1944 D DAY .............................................. £9.99 D6028 Tiger Aces Ltd D DAY ................................................... £9.99 D6084 16th Luft Field Div D DAY ............................................. £9.99 D6111 PzGrenadiers D DAY ..................................................... £9.99 D6127 Hedgerow Tank Hunters D DAY.................................... £9.99 D6155 Kampfgruppe 1944 D DAY ........................................... £9.99 D6268 Panther G Late Prod ................................................... £45.99 D6311 Elefant (Prem)............................................................. £45.99 D6358 Panther A Late Prod (Prem)....................................... £45.99 D6575 Pz IV Ausf J Last Prod ................................................ £59.99 TAMIYA 32407 LRDG w/masterbox figs.............................................. £25.99 35335 Nashorn ...................................................................... £44.99
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BM35172 AB3563 AB3564 AB3567 BM35125
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Feature Article: 1:32 Wingnut Wings RE.8 Harry Tate • Kit No.32012
HARRY TAT Some aircraft just look right. The Concorde, the Spitfire, the Albatros, the Zero, the Mustang; these aircraft possess the appeal of form following function that strikes an emotional chord deep within the aesthetic cortex of the human brain. Tony Bell concludes that the RE.8 is not one of those aircraft.
I
nstead of a graceful woman in an evening gown or an elegant man in a well tailored suit, the RE.8 brings to mind an awkward teenager, all knees and elbows, wearing skinny jeans and oversized runners. And yet in spite of this, or perhaps because of it, the RE.8 possesses a kind of quirky charm that makes you want to like it, something that any parent of teenagers (*raises hand*) can relate to. Conceived in late 1915, the RE.8 (Reconnaissance Experimental 8) was intended as a replacement for the B.E.2, sharing the same wings and engine mountings as the B.E.2e. It entered service in November of 1916, and despite somewhat lacklustre performance, it served on the front lines until the armistice in 1918. Over 4000 were produced by a host of manufacturers, including Austin Motors, Coventry Ordnance Works, Daimler, Siddeley-Deasy and Standard Motors, in addition to the Royal Aircraft Factory. The RE.8’s nickname, “Harry Tate” was
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derived from the popular contemporary music hall comedian of the same name. In the slang of the day, the same phrase was also used as an adjective to mean "amateur," "incompetent" or “worried” and although I’m not sure if these other colloquial uses of the name had any bearing on its use a moniker for the RE.8, given that it carried a reputation as being difficult to fly and structurally unsafe, I wouldn’t be surprised.
IN THE BOX
Only a modeller could understand the happiness that springs from opening a Wingnut Wings box. My glazed look and slack jaw certainly alarmed my wife the first time it happened, but she’s used to it now. Inside the box are eight medium grey, plus one clear styrene sprues plus a small photoetched fret. Molding quality is excellent, with crisp details, subtle textures, the faintest of mold parting lines and an almost complete absence of flash and sink
marks. For the most part the ejector pin marks have been limited to locations that are not visible on the completed model. The full colour instruction booklet is detailed and comprehensive and includes a number of reference photos. The large sheet of beautifully printed decals covers five different marking options, all of which have different parts callouts that are clearly identified in the instructions. Because the construction varies from option to option, it is necessary to decide which markings you are going to use before starting your build. Going through the instructions with a marker and circling the steps relevant to your choice is a good idea too.
ENGINE
The instructions would have you start construction in the cockpit, but instead I elected to jump ahead to step 6 and start off with the RAF 4a air cooled V-12 engine. At 39 parts, the engine is a model
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ATE
Careful painting and drybrushing brings out all the lovely detail on the Vickers MG.
The Lewis gun is a real focal point of the model and benefits from some extra attention.
Bungee cords from EZ-Line, photoetched rivets and washers from MiG Productions and a 1/48 photoetched ring sight from Reheat were used to dress up the Lewis guns and Scarff ring.
The ignition leads were made from fly tying wire obtained from a sporting goods store.
unto itself, which makes it a nice, self contained subassembly that can be completed and set aside for later in the overall construction. I find that working this way helps maintain my motivation, giving me a sense of accomplishment at having finished something tangible. I followed the instruction sequence carefully, paying particular attention to the cylinders, each of which is composed of two halves, with differences between the first cylinders and the rest of each bank, as well as between left and right banks themselves. To further complicate matters, a number of cylinder halves on the sprues are marked “Not Used”, so close attention to the parts callout is necessary. The locating tabs for the cylinders are none too positive, with a lot of play. The cylinders have to line up precisely with the exhaust stacks, so I attached them with two part five minute epoxy and used the stacks to hold them in the correct positions, all the while eyeballing the alignment as
The engine is a model unto itself.
Various shades of Alclad, combined with MiG and AK weathering products give the engine a well used, oily appearance.
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Feature Article: 1:32 Wingnut Wings RE.8 Harry Tate • Kit No.32012
the glue set. Fortunately it worked out just fine. As detailed as the engine is, there is still room for some minor improvements. The most obvious area is the wiring harness, which I replaced with black fly-tying wire that I found at my local Bass Pro shop (a local outdoorsman chain of stores), with the loops to guide the wires fabricated from copper wire wrapped around my airbrush needle and then soldered closed. I also added pushrods from 0.020” diameter brass rod. I followed the instructions’ colour callouts closely, using Alclad colours for the engine block, and Testors colours in the little square bottles for hand painting the brass and copper details. Weathering engines is always fun, and to provide some depth to the details I brushed on sepia and black inks mixed with Polly Scale clear satin. I used MiG Oil and Grease and AK Interactive Fuel Stains mixtures to create an oily look. I find that these products look best if applied in multiple thin layers to build up the effects gradually.
The big prop is another focal point. Multiple coats of Tamiya clear gloss, rubbed down between applications, give the faux wood a deep, varnished appearance.
The instrument dials are provided in the kit as decals.
GUNS GUNS GUNS
Not quite ready to tackle the cockpit, I decided to do the guns next. The different colour schemes carry different armaments, some with a single observer’s Lewis gun and some with two, so again you must have decided on your preferred scheme before assembling the rear gun(s). The Scarff ring is a delicate affair, combining fine styrene parts with even more fine photoetch. I added some MiG photoetch brass discs to the inner surface of the ring, plus some brass washers from the same set to the elevation tube pivots. I used E-Z Line elastic thread for the bungee cord and fixed it in place with superglue. The Lewis guns were detailed by replacing the muzzles with fine brass tubing (it would have been too difficult to drill them out, as small as they are) and a 1/48 photoetched ring sight from Reheat. The Vickers machine gun is molded solid, but considering that it will be a real focal point of the model, I decided to hollow out the barrel, muzzle and cooling jacket. To refine the business end I first drilled the muzzle out with a bit the same size as the brass tubing I intended to use for the barrel. I drilled this hole quite deep, about 5-6 mm. Next I drilled out the muzzle with a larger bit so that the walls were a nice scale thickness and carefully cut out the rectangular holes with a new No.11 X-Acto. I then cut off the muzzle and drilled out the cooling jacket, added the photoetched front piece, reattached the muzzle and finally inserted a piece of brass tubing cut to the appropriate length. Finally, I added the photoetched cocking handle with the knob made from five minute epoxy. I airbrushed the guns with Humbrol Metalcote 27004 Gunmetal, buffed them with a soft paintbrush and then drybrushed them with Metalcote 27003 Polished Steel. The wood furniture was first painted Tamiya XF 57 Buff and then with Burnt Sienna oil paint.
All the wood and wicker and brass lends the cockpit a distinctly nautical air
Various shades of oil paints were used for the leather and different types of wood to create visual interest.
INTERIOR
Wingnut Wings provides a very comprehensive fuselage interior that includes all of the major components and lacks only a few very minor details. It is a slightly daunting affair, consisting of 59 parts and covering four pages of instructions which include comprehensive rigging and painting directions. Decals for the various dials and gauges are also provided, which really bring the cockpit
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Somewhat shockingly, the poor bloody observer did not have any sort of seat restraint.
The mid section of the wicker pilot’s seat was carefully cut away and replaced with photoetched brass mesh.
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ather rest.
Archer Fine Transfer rivets and a brass bezel from HGW dress up the fuel tank.
The fit of the engine in its mount was perfect, a testament to Wingnut Wings' excellent engineering.
to life. I started off by priming all of the wooden bits with Tamiya Fine White primer. As good as this product is straight out of the spray can, it goes on a little too heavy for the fine detail of the cockpit parts, so I decanted it and airbrushed it with my Iwata CR Revolution. I simulated the look of wood by brushing on a thin coat of artists’ oil paint, deliberately leaving brush marks to depict the grain. The lighter wood colour was Yellow Ochre mixed with a touch of Burnt Sienna, while the darker wood was Burnt Sienna with a small amount of Burnt Umber. To speed up the drying time of the oil paint, I added a small amount of Japan Drier, but even so, it took about a week for the oils to dry completely. Once dry, I sprayed all the “wood” with Polly Scale clear satin to protect the finish. The black brackets and fittings were brush painted with Humbrol 85 satin Coal Black. The advantage of using this (aside from the fact that it brushes beautifully) is that any mistakes can be tidied up using a clean brush moistened with mineral spirits. As with the engine, there are a couple of opportunities to add your own detail touches to the cockpit. The kit wicker seat is beautifully moulded, but the open band in the middle of the seat is moulded solid. I carefully cut the solid band away and replaced it with some diamond pattern photoetched brass mesh. To be honest, it’s barely noticeable. Speaking of barely noticeable, I also replaced the Very pistol and holster, which is moulded as a single part. I carved an approximate representation of the holster on the end of a wooden coffee stir stick over which I crash molded 0.010” sheet styrene. Crash molding is the technique whereby the sheet styrene is heated over a candle and simply smooshed onto the pattern. Three or four tries resulted in an acceptable piece which I trimmed and painted buff. The Very pistol itself was a spare part left over from the Wingnut Wings Albatros D.V kit. Assembly of the rest of the cockpit went according to the instructions, including the installation of the downward pointing camera behind the observer’s position. I would suggest installing the camera immediately before closing the fuselage halves, as this will allow the sit of the camera to be adjusted so that the lens is centered exactly in the middle of the square opening. I did not do this and had to crack the camera loose
before re-gluing it, a nerve wracking exercise if ever there was. The kit includes some very nice photoetched brass lap belts for the pilot’s seat. I annealed these over a candle as suggested in the instructions, painted them according to the colour callouts and weathered them by brushing them with oil paints applied neat and removed with a cotton bud. The interior rigging and control lines are ceramic wire with fine brass tube for the turnbuckles and little discs of 0.010” at each intersection where two wires cross. Ceramic wire is 0.006” (0.15mm) in diameter and is very straight and stiff. It can be cut by simply pressing down with a sturdy blade (No. 10 or No. 24 X-Acto blades work well) on a slightly yielding surface such as a couple of sheets of paper on top of glass. It is already a dark grey and does not need to be painted. It is very handy stuff. Although the assembly of the fuselage interior is fairly complex, the engineering is outstanding and the fit very precise. So precise in fact, that it is critical to scrape clean all of the mating surfaces before gluing the parts together. This is particularly important around the cockpit floor, which mates up with the interior structure, the fuselage halves and
the lower wing. Tolerance errors in this area can stack up and cause considerable fit issues later on in the build. The fuel tank located immediately in front of the pilot is moulded in two halves split left and right. Due to injection molding limitations, the raised rivet lines fade to nothing over the top of the tank, so I sanded them away entirely and replaced them with resin rivets on decal film from Archer Fine Transfers.
WINGS
The control surfaces are all provided as separate parts, which is good news considering there were rather visible gaps between them and their respective flight surfaces. The bad news is that the contact area available for attaching them is far too small to provide any sort of structural integrity. The only solution is to drill and pin all of the control surfaces. I drilled the holes fairly deep (approx 4mm, give or take) and used brass rod. The brass is stiff enough to provide good strength and yet malleable enough to allow the surfaces to be positioned precisely. British aircraft in WWI were typically left unpainted on the undersides, lending the wings a
The fuselage all ready to close up. At this stage it is critical to ensure that all the mating surfaces are devoid of anything that might interfere with the fit.
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Feature Article: 1:32 Wingnut Wings RE.8 Harry Tate • Kit No.32012
I typically finish my models "clean", but I just couldn't bring myself to hide all that lovely engine detail.
translucent quality that left the internal structure and layering of the fabric subtly visible. To reproduce this I worked from the inside out, applying the paint in thin translucent layers, building up effects gradually to create a trompe-l'œil. I started by priming the undersides of the wings and tail with Tamiya Fine White Primer and then masking off the rib tapes with strips of 1.5mm clear frisket film. To ensure consistency, I cut the strips using two X-Acto blades glued together with a sheet styrene spacer. I carefully airbrushed the edges of the rib tapes with heavily thinned Gunze H66 RLM79 Sand and then applied span-wise strips of frisket along the spars. Again, I airbrushed the edges of the spars with the same Gunze RLM79. I removed the masking and reduced the contrast a bit by misting on a very light coat of Gunze RLM79 (even more thinned this time), and then sprayed the whole wing with my CDL colour (Tamiya X 2 White mixed with a bit of Gunze H24 Orange Yellow, Gunze RLM79 and a bit of Tamiya X 22 Clear).
THE FUSELAGE
With the cockpit and engine complete it was time to close up the fuselage. Drawing on my previous experiences with Wingnut Wing’s extremely tight tolerances and precise engineering, I recognized that it would be absolutely necessary to scrape away all the paint from the mating surfaces of the interior assembly. In spite of knowing this ahead of time I still didn’t do a good enough job of it and ended up with the bottom of the fuselage where it joins the lower wing being a fraction of an inch too wide. Which caused the bottom wing to sit slightly askew, which in turn required the tail surfaces to be adjusted to be square with the wing, which then threw off the alignment of the tail with the engine exhaust stacks. So yeah, cleaning up the mating surfaces is important. One shape issue that I could discern with the model is the blending of the rear gunner’s
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Beware of the Hun in the sun!
cupola with the upper decking of the fuselage. As moulded, the saddle between the circular opening and the rest of the fuselage is too pronounced, so I filled it with Milliput white epoxy putty. Careful smoothing and blending of the putty before it set using various sculpting tools and water minimized the amount of sanding required to finish it off. After attaching the wings and tail surfaces (but leaving the rudder off), it was time to paint the upper surfaces.
PAINT AND DECALS
After masking off the fuselage openings and the CDL undersides, I airbrushed a primer coat of Mr. Surfacer 1000 to check for flaws. The bottom fuselage seam needed particular attention, and when I do another similarly flat bottomed subject I plan to reinforce this seam to avoid the cracking I encountered with this one. I painted the grey areas around the nose Tamiya XF 83 Medium Sea Grey and did a little bit of post shading to break up the solid colour using a heavily thinned mix (9 parts pure rubbing alcohol to 1 part paint) of Tamiya XF 10 Brown and XF 69 NATO Black, followed by a similarly thinned post shade with XF 83 Medium Sea Grey lightened with XF 2 Flat White. PC10 (“Pigmented Cellulose No. 10”) is to WWI modellers as Olive Drab is to WWII modellers, in that no two shades were alike. Officially it was a 4:3 ratio of Yellow Ochre and Umber pigments, with a small amount of Red Ochre and Chinese Blue thrown in. Unofficially, it varied considerably, ranging anywhere from a chocolate brown to a n olive green. The general rule of thumb is that the earlier in the war, the browner the shade and the later in the war the greener. Practically speaking, it gives the modeller license to mix up any old shade of greenish brown that looks appealing. My chosen marking scheme (scheme “B” in the instructions) represents an aircraft in early 1918 so I went with a shade more toward the brown end of the continuum. My PC10 shade for this was
a mix of Tamiya XF 10 Brown, Tamiya XF 13 J.A Green and Gunze H66 RLM79 Sand in roughly equal portions, with a good dollop (1 dollop = 1.56 bloops for those of you working in metric) of Tamiya X 22 Clear to give it a nice sheen. The kit decals performed beautifully, responding well to judicious applications of Gunze Mr. Mark Softer and even more judicious applications of Solvaset. I did have a bit of trouble getting the zigzags lined up on the fuselage sides and ended up having to cut them into several pieces to get them to fit properly. I chose not to use the red, white and blue rudder decals, figuring it would be much simpler to simply mask and paint the stripes.
ASSEMBLY AND RIGGING
There is a lot of rigging on the R.E.8, with approximately 70 rigging and control cables in total. I spent several evenings simply preparing the bits needed to represent the turnbuckles, mass producing approximately one hundred and fifty little eyelets by twisting lengths of fine brass wire around a short length of stiff steel wire chucked in a pin vise. I cut them all to a uniform length by inserting each one into a hole drilled trough a piece of 0.080” styrene and trimming the tails with a Xuron flush cutter. Using my Dremel tool, I cut roughly the same number of 3mm lengths of 27 gauge stainless steel hypodermic tubing, each of which had to have the burrs cleaned up. I also prepared a couple of yards of rigging material which consisted of department store monofilament nylon thread hand painted with Humbrol Metalcote steel. The key to preventing this paint from clumping up is to thin it with lacquer thinner. Each end of each line was threaded down a piece of tubing, passed through the wire eyelet and then back up through the steel tube again. I found that it was much easier to thread bare nylon through the tube, so I left a couple of inches unpainted at either end of each length of rigging.
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The Vickers' mount and synchro gear was particularly fiddly to install.
The locating pegs and their corresponding holes make for a very positive installation of the struts.
Although a decal is provided for the rudder, it was easier to simply paint the red, white and blue stripes.
The kit decals are excellent, conforming to all the subtle surface detail with restrained use of decal solvents.
The turnbuckles were recreated using steel hypo tubing and eyelets wound from brass wire.
The kingposts are particularly delicate. Unfortunately this one collapsed not long after photography was complete.
The landing gear struts were alarmingly wobbly until the rigging was installed, stiffening them up considerably.
More MiG and AK weathering products were used to dirty up the engine panels.
Careful masking and pre-shading create the illusion of translucent linen and the internal structure of the wings.
The big air scoop is a very distinctive feature of the RE.8.
The baffles around the cylinders were refined by sanding and filing to reduce their thickness.
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Feature Article: 1:32 Wingnut Wings RE.8 Harry Tate • Kit No.32012
The RE.8 operated off grass fields, so the wheels would have kicked up all sorts of filth.
A thin wash of oil paint was flicked around the filler cap to create fuel stains.
Tie down rings from brass wire are a simple yet effective addition.
Once threaded, the line can be pulled through to the painted portion and the excess trimmed away. The struts have very positive locating pins which, along with their respective holes, need to be completely devoid of paint if they are to fit properly (are you detecting a pattern here?). They are also keyed to prevent incorrect installation, but close attention to the proper placement of the struts is nonetheless still required. I glued the struts to the lower wing with Tamiya Thin Cement and temporarily installed the upper wing using elastic bands to hold it in place while the glue dried. The instructions suggest propping up the model by resting the leading edges of the wings on the edges of the kit box while things dry in order to ensure correct alignment. This simple trick worked perfectly, to my mild surprise. The folks at Wingnut Wings have thoughtfully included deep dimples at each rigging attachment point, which I drilled out to accommodate the wire eyelets. Before attaching the top wing I attached all of the inboard rigging lines, figuring it would easier with more room to manoeuvre. I attached the top wings with Tamiya Thin Cement and employed the kit box trick once again, leaving it to dry overnight. I proceeded to attach the rigging lines and tighten them up. A dab of gel superglue on the tail of each eyelet fixed each end to the model, and each line was pulled tight by simultaneously gripping the steel tube with one pair of tweezers and pulling on the tail of thread with another. With the tube snugged down and the line pulled tight with friction holding it all in place (at least temporarily), I applied a little bit of thin superglue to the end of the tube to lock it all in place whereupon I trimmed the tail off with a pair of surgical scissors that I had ground to a fine point. On the top of the wing and the undersides of the horizontal stabilizers are small tubular guides through which the control cables run. These were made from small lengths of Evergreen styrene tube heat stretched over a candle in the same manner as
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stretched sprue. To finish off the rigging the rudder and tail skid control cables were represented by lengths of ceramic “Wonder Wire”, with sections of 0.3mm brass tube for the turnbuckles. Two different styles of undercarriage struts are provided, so once again it is important to note which one is appropriate for the version being built. The Wingnut’s representation of the bungee cord lashings are somewhat unconvincing, so I carved and filed them off and replaced them with 0.015” solder wire.
DETAILS AND WEATHERING
The big four bladed wooden prop is a real focal point of the model so I spent some extra effort on it to get it just so. Starting with a base coat of Tamiya XF 57 Buff, I brushed the wood grain with Burnt Sienna oil paint, taking care to get a clean transition between the blades at the hub. The long working time of the oil paint is a real boon here, as it took multiple attempts to get it right. After setting the prop aside to dry for about a week, I sprayed it with several coats of Tamiya X22 Clear, buffing between coats with a 3600 grit polishing cloth for a perfectly smooth finish. The final gloss coat was misted on very lightly to give a subtle satin sheen for a more “scale” gloss. I hand painted the hub with a fine brush. If there is one suggestion I have for Wingnut Wings, it would be to provide the hub as a separate piece, possibly on their photoetch fret, which would simplify painting considerably. The tie down rings under the wings are loops of bras wire, and wrapped around a paint brush handle and soldered closed. The air cooled RAF 4a seemed to be very leaky indeed, so I went to town on the engine panels, layering applications of MiG Oil and Grease and AK Interactive Fuel Stains around the panel lines to build up a nice greasy, dirty effect. I created more subtle oil stains by loading up a No. 10 round paint brush with a thin wash of Raw Umber and Lamp Black oil paints and flicking it on the
There really are spokes made from stainless steel wire under those wheel covers. At least I know they’re there...
edge of an X-Acto blade to spray the surface of the model with fine droplets of wash. By altering the concentration of the wash and the distance of the brush from the model, a naturally random pattern can be built up. Yet more oil streaking was established by applying little dabs of straight oil paint (black, burnt umber, raw umber) and pulling them backwards with a paint brush moistened with thinner. The mud spatter under the wings and on the lower part of the rudder is AK Interactive Engine Grime flicked on as described above. As with the oil spattering, I achieved a natural looking distribution by altering the distance of the brush from the surface and the amount of “grime” in the brush. Some of the spatters I pulled back along the wing with a broad, dry brush to create muddy streaks. Any stray spatter that got where I didn’t want was cleaned up with a cotton swab moistened with thinner. For the muck on the wheels and undercarriage, I used MiG pigment. I mixed a grayish brown colour and added a bit of mineral spirits to make a thin paste. I dipped a small paintbrush in the paste, held it near the model and blasted it with some clean air from my airbrush at about 15 psi to blow it across the struts. I dabbed the same mixture around the wheels and then scrubbed away the dried crust with a short stiff brush, leaving a grubby appearance. I repeated all of this a few times with slightly different shades of MiGs to avoid the muck looking too monochromatic.
CONCLUSION
The Wingnut Wings R.E.8 is yet another excellent kit from this Kiwi manufacturer, and although it is extremely well engineered I would hesitate to recommended for a novice modeller or even for a more experienced modeller’s first foray into WWI, mainly due to the very nature of the subject and its overall complexity. Self inflicted minor difficulties aside however, it builds up into a very impressive looking model. Sitting next to my Wingnut Wings Albatros on the display shelf, it gives a real sense of the diverse menagerie that was WWI aviation. •
Military Illustrated Modeller - July 2014
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MODELSPEC 1:32 Wingnut Wings RE.8 “Harry Tate”
Kit No.32012
Materials Injection molded clear and grey coloured styrene, photo-etched brass, waterslide decals The edging around the undersides of the wings and tail was painstakingly masked before spraying the PC10.
Paints used; Tamiya Acrylics; X 2 White, XF 2 Flat White, XF 7 Flat Red, XF 10 Flat Brown, XF 13 J.A Green, X 22 Clear, XF 57 Buff, XF 69 NATO Black, XF 83 Medium Sea Grey Gunze Sangyo Mr Hobby Aqueous Color: H66 RLM 79 Sandy Brown; H24 Orange Yellow Tamiya Spray Paints: Fine White Primer Krylon Fusion for Plastic; Gloss Black Alclad II Metallic Lacquers; White Aluminum, Pale Gold, Copper Polly Scale Acrylic; 16165 RLM02 Grau, F505073 RLM83 Lichtgrun, F404103 Satin Finish Citadel Acrylics; Chaos Black, Mithril Silver, Skull White, Flesh Wash Vallejo Model Air Acrylics; 26518 Matt Varnish Testors Enamel: Metallic Copper, Brass Humbrol Enamels; 85 Satin Coal Black, 27004 Metalcote Gunmetal, 27005 Metalcote Polished Steel MiG Pigments; P023 Black Smoke, P022 Ashes White, P028 Europe Dust, P033 Dark Mud MiG Washes & Effects; P410 Oil and Grease Mixture AK Interactive Weathering Products; AK 025 Fuel Stains, AK 082 Engine Grime Windsor & Newton Artists’ Oil Paint; Yellow Ochre, Burnt Sienna, Lamp Black, Burnt Umber
With a wingspan of over 40 cm, the Harry Tate is a big model.
References used; Bruce, J. M. Windsock Datafile No. 024 - RAF RE8 Albatros Productions Limited, 1998. ISBN 978-0948414282 Wingnut Wings Albatros D.V Archival Photos: www.wingnutwings.com/ww/productdetail?productid=3003&cat=1 James Fahey’s TVAL RE.8 Photos: http://s1011.photobucket.com/user/Jamo_kiwi/library/TVAL RE8
The fuselage zigzag decals required a bit of cutting and adjusting to get them to fit perfectly.
With the Harry Tate complete, I can hear the Wingnut Wings Sopwith Snipe quietly calling me...
Aircraft Edition
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BUILD REVIEW: Eduard Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6. • Kit No. 8268
THE EAGLE HAS LANDED R
eally, who would want to be a model company? The road to creating a scale model aircraft is paved with peril at every step. The research must be thorough but, just as importantly, the source of the research must be authentic. Even if the overall dimensions are 100% correct, the interpretation of subtle shapes, complex curves and cross sections must always be a challenge to kit designers. Expert advice is undoubtedly helpful, but does the company use its own staff alone or draw on outside experts with its inevitable confidentiality risks? Then there is the choice of surface texture – to rivet or not to rivet? – and the level of detail. Should an engine be included? Structural detail that will never be seen? And of course, there are many options for the Bf 109 G series. Gun bulges, tails, rudder styles, supercharger intakes, oil cooler housings, canopies, and armament – what should go into the mix and how to break down the construction? Once the ingredients are decided and the polystyrene cake is out of the oven, the model has to run the gauntlet of public opinion. Some of this opinion is well informed. Some is not. How does the model company decide which opinions to act on and, even if criticism is justified, is it too late for the model company to do anything about it? These quandaries apply to any release, but they are enormously magnified for any famous
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The Editor examines and builds Eduard’s brand new 1:48 scale Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6
aircraft type, especially the Mustang, Spitfire and Messerschmitt Bf 109. Eduard deftly skipped down this dangerous path with their recent Spitfire Mk.IX family; delivering a kit that was universally praised for its accuracy, subtle surface textures and high level of detail. Considering we have not seen a new 1:48 scale Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6 kit for more than two decades, a new Eduard model was an exciting prospect. Let’s see how they’ve done.
sealing strip between the mid-fuselage and the rear of the engine cowling. The raised umbrella mounts are moulded under the port side of the cockpit. These should be sliced off if your subject is not a tropical version. Fabric matches this high standard, with strip and stitching texture beautifully presented on the control surfaces. If you look closely enough, you will even see the zig-zag pinking edges on the fabric strips – quite incredible.
EDUARD’S 1:48 BF 109 G-6 IN THE BOX
DETAIL
Eduard’s new 1:48 scale Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6 kit comprises 166 parts in grey plastic, nine parts in grey, a coloured photo-etch fret, selfadhesive canopy masks and markings for five aircraft. Nearly 60 of the parts are marked “not for use”, and there are a few optional parts too, so the actual number of parts used is quite modest; promising a fast, trouble-free build. Eduard’s 1:48 Spitfire family set a new benchmark for 1:48 scale surface detail, and this new Gustav is equally impressive in this regard. Panel lines are very crisp, fine and even. Lines of rivets are present, but they are incredibly subtle. The rivet lines seem to accurately follow the pattern applied to the full-sized aircraft too. I was very impressed to see that the small scoops on the nose are actually hollowed out nice! Other raised surface features include the
Eduard combines plastic and colour photo-etched parts in their ProfiPACK, delivering a very high level of detail straight from the box. The cockpit benefits most from the photo-etch with a nice multi-layered instrument panel, coloured harness straps and other coloured details. The inclusion of the clear fuel line is a nice touch too. The inspection tube may be masked for it to remain clear after painting. The standard steel pilot’s head armour and the armoured glass “Galland Panzer” are provided as options for the canopy. Another nice detail touch is the inclusion of handholds on the inside corners of the windscreen. The wheel wells are nicely detailed and are correctly concave thanks to the bulges moulded to the top of the wings. Eduard depicts the wheel well sidewalls with the zippered canvas covers all the way around.
Military Illustrated Modeller - July 2014
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Lovely fuselage surface detail. Also obvious here is the bump moulded to the wing root.
The kit gun cowl insert is moulded with a trough to accept a separate hinge strip – clever stuff.
The wing root panels taken from the Bf 109 G-6 W.Nr. 163824. Note that these feature a smooth surface with no bumps on the plywood panels.
Alternative tails are provided in the box, although the tall version is not mentioned in the instructions.
The cannon fairings look good in shape and size.
Authentic “pressed ceiling” detail for the wheel wells is a first for 1:48 scale Bf 109 G-6 kits.
The kit exhaust stacks are quite tall and too flared. The angled trailing edge of the centre lower wing.
This area should actually be a straight panel, as may be seen on this unrestored example.
The exhausts are supplied in one piece for each side. The centreline weld beads are present, and each of the stacks are hollowed out at the end. Propeller blades look to be a good shape, with nice pitch collar and hub detail.
ENGINEERING AND OPTIONS
The kit is broken down conventionally. The fuselage is full-length with the only inserts being the gun cowl deck and the top of the tail, allowing either the standard or the tall fin to be fitted. The lower cowl is moulded as part of the fuselage sides. The cowling gun bulges and the supercharger intake fit into precisely recessed areas on the nose. The mount for the DF loop (on the fuselage spine behind the canopy) is moulded to the port fuselage half. This should be cut off if you are depicting an early G-6 (the instructions advice which of the kit subjects had this item fitted). The wings have been designed with the wheel bulges moulded in place, and correctly angled away from the chord. The wing tips are separate parts with solid navigation lights and the pitot tube moulded in place. Lower fuselage ejector chutes are moulded open on the bottom wing. All control surfaces are separate, including leading edge slats, ailerons, flaps, elevators and rudder. The ramps at the leading edges of the radiator housings and the cooling flap at the back of the oil cooler are moulded shut. All the radiator
faces are supplied as photo-etched parts. Many options are offered on the sprues. Some of these relate to earlier Bf 109 G or F versions and do not apply, but others – even though they are marked “not for use” – might come in handy for the enterprising modeller. As a bonus, almost everything you need to build a late Bf 109 G-6 with the tall tail or a Bf 109 G-14, is included in the box. The tall tail and rudder, Erla canopy, long tail wheel strut and the rear canopy bulkhead with the battery box housing are all there. Check your references to see which of these features is present on your preferred subject – many different combinations are possible! Just about the only G-14 element missing is the small compressor bump under the starboard side gun bulge, although these were not present on all G-14s. Once again, check your references carefully. Other options include an ETC rack and 300 litre drop tank, under wing cannon gondola, various antennae and bomb racks. The alternative propeller blades, oil cooler housing and wheels are for earlier versions.
CLEAR PARTS
Nine clear parts are included on a single sprue. These include two windscreens (one with two intake scoops and the second with one scoop and one doped flare hole), a standard framed canopy,
a clear-vision Erla canopy, Galland Panzer head armour (moulded with the clear section as one piece - definitely the best solution as far as I am concerned), two rear canopy sections for the standard framed option, a one-piece gunsight/ reflector and the cockpit fuel line that sits on the starboard sidewall. Moulding quality of the clear parts is excellent, with crisp frame detail and surface textures such as rivet lines where appropriate. I like the depiction of the desiccant capsule on the lower front corner of the windscreen too. The framed and Erla canopy options are both included in this initial ProfiPACK release, although the Erla is marked as “parts not for use” in the instructions. Die-cut self-adhesive canopy masks are supplied for the framed canopy (i.e. masks are not provided for the Erla clear vision canopy).
MARKINGS
Markings are supplied for five aircraft: • W.Nr. 27169, Flown by Fw. Heinrich Bartels, 11./JG 27, Kalamaki Airfield, November, 1943 • W.Nr. 440141, Flown by Oblt. Wilhelm Schilling, CO of 9./JG 54, Ludwigslust Air Base, February , 1944 • W.Nr. 18807, Flown by Ofw. Alfred Surau, 9./ JG 3, Bad Wörishofen, September, 1943 • Flown by Oblt. Alfred Grislawski, CO of 1./
Aircraft Edition
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BUILD REVIEW: Eduard Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6. • Kit No. 8268
Once again, W.Nr. 163824 shows us the real thing.
The teardrop base plate for the supercharger intake was not the most common configuration.
Most of the supercharger base plates had a curved cutout to clear the cowl gun bulge, as may be seen here. Check your references for your specific aircraft!
Prop blades look good.
The blank instrument panel is designed to mount the layered photo-etched parts. If you prefer to paint three-dimensional plastic, Eduard also provides that option.
The shape of the spinner looks good, but the characteristic keyhole shape of the propeller blade openings is not present.
The canvas covers for the wheel wells. Framed and Erla canopies are provided.
JGr.50, Wiesbaden – Erbenheim Air Base, September, 1943 • Flown by Maj. Ludwig Franzisket, CO of I./JG 27, Early 1944 All five subjects are finished in RLM 74/75 Grey upper surfaces with RLM 76 Light Blue below. A nice selection of different RV Bands, theatre markings and coloured numbers are offered. The two decal sheets are perfectly printed by Cartograf. One sheet carries he national markings and unique numbers, chevrons, Gruppe markings, unit insignia and kill markings; while the other has a wide selection of generic stencil markings that will be suitable for mid-war to late-war subjects. Printing, colours and registration is perfect on my sample.
ACCURACY ISSUES / QUESTIONS
Eduard displayed the kit online as it entered the final stages of design and production, so the sprues have already been subjected to the blowtorch of public opinion for some time.
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A number of the Forum observations seem to be valid. The first of these are the small pronounced bumps on the wing roots:
WING ROOT BUMPS
The Messerschmitt Bf 109 wing spar is topped with a locking bolt. This high point was covered by a distinct bump on the early Bf 109s (A, B, C, D and E), but the wing root was redesigned on the Bf 109 F to clear this point with a new streamlined and wider design. It is possible that the bump still appeared on very early Bf 109 Fs, but it is likely that the Bf 109 G never featured this bump. Eduard has moulded a bump on its wing root. It would appear that Eduard’s primary reference was a museum aircraft that had been fitted with some post-war fabrications, including the wing roots. These post-war replacements certainly have the bulges, but I can’t find any evidence that they appeared on operational aircraft. I have included a photo showing the wing roots from the Bf 109 G-6 in the Australian War
Two styles of windscreen are offered.
Memorial before they were reattached to the airframe. Note the absence of bumps, and the plywood construction of these late-war parts. You have three choices here – ignore the problem, sand off the bumps or build up the area around the bumps with your favourite filler.
SUPERCHARGER INTAKE MOUNT CUTOUT AND EXHAUSTS
The supercharger base plate on most Bf 109 G-6s should have a cutout to clear the port side cowl bulge, but the kit part is a clean teardrop shape. This is a very easy fix – just sand or trim to match the photograph here. Check your references carefully though, as there does seem to be a batch of Bf 109 G-6s that featured the supercharger base plate as depicted in the kit. The exhaust stacks are also too tall and too flared, giving a toothy look to the nose. A few minutes attention with a sanding stick should improve this situation.
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Comprehensive stencil markings are included.
The kit’s colour photo-etched fret.
The main decal sheet is luxuriously printed by Cartograf.
Yes, I glued the backrest on upside down!
The main plastic cockpit components.
“Considering we have not seen a new 1:48 scale Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6 kit for more than two decades, a new Eduard model was an exciting prospect.”
The layered colour photo-etched instrument panel.
V-SHAPED LOWER CENTRE WING JOIN
This is not so much an error as an odd engineering feature. Instead of a straight join between the bottom rear centre of the wing with the lower fuselage, Eduard has moulded this area as a shallow “V” – i.e. each side in line with the angle of the trailing edge of the wing. This is another fast and easy fix – just fill and sand the join. You don’t even need to rescribe a line! There have been other detail issues raised online, including the contours of the oil cooler housing, but I either haven’t really seen the problem or thought that they were too small to worry about.
some noticeable dimensional differences between published drawings. Having said that, there is a lot of compelling evidence to show that the Eduard Bf 109 G-6 is oversized. This is particularly clear when comparing the wingspan of the Eduard kit to the Hasegawa G-6. Although it is acknowledged that the Hasegawa fuselage is too short, the wingspan is generally considered to be about right. Each Eduard wing is approximately 4mm longer than the Hasegawa wings – a total of 8mm across the entire span. The fuselage would appear to be a few millimetres too long as well.
DIMENSIONAL ACCURACY
CONSTRUCTION
Comparing model kits to published plans and other brands is fraught with danger. Despite definitive statements on various online Forums and published sources, who know what plans and kits are really accurate? This seems to be especially the case with the Messerschmitt Bf 109, where there are
I built one of the test shot kits straight from the box with no additions, corrections or modifications. I did, however, use alternative kit parts including the tall tail and rudder, and the battery box cover. I can report that construction was fast, and fit was excellent. In fact, I would rate the build as
even simpler than the recent Eduard Spitfire kits. The cockpit was particularly impressive, with the photo-etched parts working perfectly alongside the kit plastic. The kit is not completely idiot proof however, as this idiot proved. I managed to glue the seat backrest upside down on the rear cockpit wall. No excuses – just in too much of a hurry I suppose! I really liked the use of the clear plastic part for the cockpit fuel line. I masked off the clear inspection panel at the top of the line, and it is really quite prominent in the completed cockpit. I used the optional shrouded exhaust stack on the port side of the nose (Part No. I 72), which eliminates the tall toothy exhaust problem on that side. Something really does need to be done to slim down the starboard exhausts though. The only minor trouble spot was a narrow gap between the fuselage and the tall fin on the starboard side. This was quickly filled with Tamiya Surfacer. At first it looked as if there might be a slight
Aircraft Edition
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BUILD REVIEW: Eduard Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6. • Kit No. 8268
Cockpit detail, straight from the box. Sidewall detail is mostly moulded to the inside of the fuselage.
The shrouded exhaust on the port side looks pretty good.
Joining the fuselage halves.
Removing the umbrella pips from the side of the fuselage.
I found it helpful to persuade the fin to stand up straight with a piece of Tamiya tape.
gap at the upper wing root, but a generous brushing of Tamiya Extra Thin Liquid Cement sealed the join nicely. The only other area where I deviated from the instructions was leaving off the photo-etched grilles on the wing radiator faces. The plastic parts have raised grille patterns moulded in place, and I thought that they looked good enough without the PE parts.
ASSESSING EDUARD’S 1:48 MESSERSCHMITT BF 109 G-6 We may think of scale modelling as a single hobby, but in reality it has as many versions as there are modellers themselves. Different modellers will have different priorities. Some may only want a kit that is easy to build; or crave as much detail as possible; while accuracy will be the most important factor to others. It is possible to slice and dice the qualities of a model in many different ways, but I tend to assess any kit using the following criteria (in no particular order): Level of Detail, Moulding Quality, Surface
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Cockpit detail is on display inside the fuselage. Wheel well components ready for installation.
Texture, Kit Engineering (Ease of Construction), Options and Accuracy. Breaking down my opinion into these categories, here is my assessment of the Eduard 1:48 scale Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6:
mark behind the base of each propeller blade. Some of the sprue attachments are a little bit tricky to clean up without marring the surrounding plastic too (especially the fuselage spine), but the overall moulding quality is excellent.
LEVEL OF DETAIL:
SURFACE TEXTURE:
4.5 out of 5 The level of detail is excellent straight from the box. The combination of plastic and colour photoetched parts in the cockpit look great (plastic parts or a BRASSIN after market resin cockpit are also available as alternatives). The wheel well looks great too, with its “pressed” roof integrated into the upper wing half.
MOULDING QUALITY
4 out of 5 Moulding quality is right up there with the steel-mould mainstream manufacturers. Sprue attachment points are fine, moulding imperfections are rare, and the plastic is pleasant to work with, being neither too soft nor too brittle. Just about the only problem that I could find was a single sink
4.5 out of 5 Just superb. This kit’s surface textures are just as good as the Eduard Spitfire, comprising crisply recessed panel lines, gorgeous subtle rows of rivets and raised detail where appropriate.
KIT ENGINEERING:
4 out of 5 Parts breakdown is clever and fit is generally excellent throughout. There does appear to be a slight gap on the starboard side of the fin, and the rake of the undercarriage is slightly too extreme, but apart from these small issues the kit is a delight to build.
OPTIONS: 4 out of 5
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Nice fabric detail for the wheel well sidewalls.
The completed wheel wells look impressive.
“We may think of scale modelling as a single hobby, but in reality it has as many versions as there are modellers themselves.”
A view of a G-6 wheel well without the canvass covers.
Above and Right: Basic construction complete.
The upper wing of W.Nr.163824. Eduard has done a good job depicting the angle of the wing bulges.
The kit provides plenty of handy options, some mentioned in the instructions and others not. Cannon gondola, ETC rack and the 300 litre drop tank are all covered in the instructions, but the inclusion of the tall tail and rudder, tall tail wheel strut and large tail wheel, Erla hood and battery box cover all greatly increase the flexibility of this kit.
ACCURACY:
2.5 out of 5 There are a number of strange detail errors and probable misinterpretations, and it seems certain that the kit is oversized too. Having said that, there is no doubting that this model looks like a Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6, but those who want a 100% accurate kit will be disappointed by some of these issues. TOTAL: 23.5 out of 30 (78.3%) Of course, any marks and ratings are purely subjective on my part; and furthermore do not reflect the unconscious weightings that individual modellers will apply to certain categories.
We have seen long and sometimes bitter disagreements on the various modelling Forums about the importance or otherwise of the accuracy issues, especially the kit dimensions. However, the simple fact is, these issues are only important if you think they are important. If someone holds a different opinion, they are not wrong. It is simply their interpretation of priorities, and it defines their individual hobby. For me, the dimensional issues are surprising, especially considering Eduard’s recent track record, but they are not a particularly big deal. When I build a model, my hope is that people will forget about the scale and actually think that it is full sized. My models are generally photographed in isolation against either a plain background or a simulated landscape for that very reason. However, your view may be entirely different, and you are perfectly entitled to it. I am still not really sure that I can pick the dimensional discrepancies with the naked eye (with so much online chatter it is hard to know if we are really seeing something or just expecting to see it), but I will be doing a comparative build of the
Eduard and Hasegawa Bf 109 G-6 kits in a future issue of Military Illustrated Modeller magazine.
CONCLUSION
Regardless of the detail and dimensional concerns mentioned here, I think that Eduard’s 1:48 scale Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6 is still a very nice kit. It simply blows the opposition away in terms of surface textures, level of detail and included options. The Cartograf decals are also a cut above the rest of the pack. Engineering is sensible, and I can confirm that the model is a fast build with excellent fit. In these respects, Eduard’s Gustav is every bit as good as their recent Spitfires. Yes, there are a number of detail accuracy issues and the kit does appear to be oversized. These issues will be a game-breaker for some, and irrelevant to others. It really is up to the individual modeller to make up his or her own mind. I do know that I will be building a bunch of them! • Thanks to Eduard for the sample www.eduard.com
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WALK AROUND: F-104 Starfighter
Side profile of the Luftwaffe F-104G with a RATO rocket assisted take off unit. These units would have allowed German aircraft to save critical take-off time in order to intercept incoming Warsaw Pact aircraft and Soviet Tupolev bombers, which were geographically based close to German airspace.
Lockheed F-104 Starfighter Walk Around Zack Sex takes a close-up look at three F-104 Starfighters – perfect reference for Italeri’s 1:32 scale kit or Hasegawa’s 1:48 scale offerings.
K
nown as the manned rocket in some quarters, and the widowmaker (Witewenmacher) in others, the F-104 Starfighter had a dubious reputation for an aircraft that saw service over a period of 46 years in 15 Air Forces with over 20 variants produced and over 2,578 planes built. The Starfighter story begins with the famous Kelly Johnson talking to U.S. Air Force pilots in the early 1950s during the Korean War about the pitfalls of American aircraft design compared to that of the Soviets. American F-86 Sabre pilots found much to their chagrin that Russian and Chinese-piloted Mig-15s could outperform their mounts in the skies above North Korea. After protracted design and development and examining a number of aircraft alternatives in order to create an aerodynamically efficient single jet engine aircraft, Lockheed came up with the Starfighter. This was initially to be partnered to the J 65 jet engine but ultimately was paired with the more powerful and reliable J 79. This combination with rocket-like fuselage high “T” shaped tail section and short thin wings produced a massively fast aircraft that achieved Mach 2.1, effectively allowing it to climb at an incredible 48,000 feet per minute. This
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speed however was attained at the expense of manoeuvrability, a vital element to any fighter aircraft, not only in interception and engagement but also in pilot handling the F-104 demanded high airspeed be maintained at all times otherwise the aircraft was inclined to pitch up and go into a spin or even stall. This tendency to flight failure was exacerbated by a very poor glide ratio because of its small wings. The fact that the F-104 was a difficult and demanding aircraft to fly, to say the least, can be seen by the non-combat casualty rates of a number of Air Forces that used this aircraft. The Canadian Air Force, which flew nearly 250 F-104s, lost 50% of these during service whilst the Luftwaffe who used well over 1,000 suffered losses of 30% with the deaths of 110 pilots. It is perhaps fitting that Erich Hartmann, the Luftwaffe’s highest scoring WWII fighter ace, warned prior to its introduction to service that the Starfighter was unfit for service. Safety concerns aside, the F-104 saw limited service in the various conflicts throughout the world in the 1960s and 1970s. The U.S. Air Force deployed the Starfighter to Vietnam in relatively small numbers compared to the F-4,
F-100 and F-105, losing more than 14 aircraft to SAMs, AA guns, engine failure and in one case to a Chinese made MiG-19 (J6). While in the Indo-Pakistan conflict of 1965, the Pakistani F-104 managed at least to down a number of Indian Air Force opponents including British made Canberra bombers, Folland Gnats and Dassault Mystere 4; but were judged in aircraft circles to have been bettered by Indian Air Force Mig 21s. It was over the straits of Formosa and the disputed island of Quemoy that perhaps the most exotic engagements took place, with Taiwanese F-104s downing a small number of Chinese Mig 19s. Over time, many of the Starfighter’s problems were ironed out with the downward ejector seats being replaced by more standard upward firing units and the F-104 became the mainstay of NATO Air Forces during the 1970s and 1980s. While for some the Starfighter represents some of the glamour of the American Century series aircraft; it must be said that, while fast and furious, the F-104 was a somewhat flawed design that was extremely unforgiving unless operated completely within its rigid parameters. •
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Detail shot of the Starfighter’s pitot tube and radome or nose cone, which houses the R 21 G/H multi mode radar. Rear detail shot of the rudder and tailfin construction of a Luftwaffe F-104G showing the engine cover as attached by ground crew.
Detail shot of the mish-mash of hydraulic tubing found in the starboard wheel bay.
Side profile shot of a Luftwaffe tandem dual seater, the TF-104G, during their service with Luftwaffe Geschwader (wing). Eight of these particular aircraft were assigned to each unit.
Above: Rear shot of Spanish Air Force F-104 showing to good effect the Starboard side wingtip fuel tank with its 1,287 litre capacity. This version carries four such tanks and in the central fuselage carries a Vicom camera reconnaissance pod.
Detail shot of the undercarriage construction showing the swivel axle control rods, Detail shot of the nose wheel and nose wheel strut and rusted choc bloc. hydraulic lines and wheel.
Detail shot of the shock absorber strut and the hinged access section adjacent to the wheel bay.
Left: Detail shot of the starboard air intake also of note is the Vicom reconnaissance pod slung below the fuselage.
Detail shot of the air intake area of a Luftwaffe F-104 showing the starboard under wing fuel tank with its outboard pylon.
Above: Side profile of the Starfighter cockpit that houses the Martin-Baker IQ-7a ejection seat and the rear avionics compartment, which is covered in a reflective shroud.
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WALK AROUND: F-104 Starfighter
“While for some the Starfighter represents some of the glamour of the American Century series aircraft; it must be said that, while fast and furious, the F-104 was a somewhat flawed design that was extremely unforgiving unless operated completely within its rigid parameters.” Front three quarter view showing the entire starboard side of the F-104.
Starboard side view of the Luftwaffe RATO rocket assisted take off unit.
Side profile shot of the rear port side tail section of a Luftwaffe F-104G in its splinter camouflage. This area houses the J79-11A turbo jet engine. The Starfighter reaching for the heavens - an image that captures the very essence of the F-104 Starfighter.
Detail shot of the tail section of the Luftwaffe F-104G showing the J79-11a variable afterburner exhaust nozzle.
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Rear three quarter shot of the F-104G emphasising the relatively short wings in relation to the fuselage size of this manned rocket.
Head-on shot of the Starfighter that underlines its missile-like silhouette when viewed from the front.
Underwing shot of the port side main under carriage showing the main under carriage leg door to good effect.
Detail shot of the starboard landing gear showing the swivel axle control rods and main wheel.
Close up shot of the emergency runway arrestor hook, an extremely important piece of equipment on such a fast and unforgiving aircraft.
Under wing and wing tip external fuel tanks.
Front three quarter shot of the Luftwaffe F-104 showing its faded northern European paint scheme.
Detail shot of the cockpit area of a Luftwaffe F-104G in a later camouflage scheme. These jets utilised British built GQ-7 ejection seats which were favoured by the German and Italian Air Forces over the original Martin-Baker units.
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Hasegawa 1:48 F-104C Starfighter • Kit No. 07219 Hasegawa 1:48 TF-104G Starfighter • Kit No. 07240
D N A Y T U A E B two different kits, Hasegawa’s quarter-scale F-104 Starfighter: r Pollard and two ver y different approaches by Spence
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D THE BEAST T
he history of aviation is chock-full of successful families of aircraft that have enjoyed long service lives through constant improvement, development and redesign, the Mustang, of Spitfire, Phantom and Skyhawk being just some st that have fit this profile over the years. Among out these families, I would argue that one stands an as perhaps the defining type of its generation, before aircraft that was so unlike anything else seen or since that it deserves a place at the top table. That aircraft is the incredible, F-104 Starfighter. a Designed seemingly from the imagination of spacethe sulated encap t aircraf an child, if ever it. age dreams of a modern generation, this was it Sleek, fast and noisy, the Starfighter looked like on whilst hour an miles nd was flying at a thousa d the ground and though the earlier versions suffere
loadfrom a lack of power, range and subsequently those carrying capacity, later versions - especially get operated by European air forces - would finally the best from Kelly Johnson’s masterpiece.
THIS MONTH’S FEATURE
t for Although I had been a huge fan of this aircraf to time the found really never I’d time, a very long add one to my collection and so when our dutiful editor asked me what I fancied doing for a future look edition of this magazine, I suggested that we at Hasegawa’s Starfighter. Drop this family of kits into any search engine s on the Internet and you will come up with dozen set of of different kits, each sharing the same basic g in parts – both single and two seat – but differin the decals provided with each one. Indeed, there
es cannot be too many operators or special schem that Hasegawa have not covered! In terms of specifics, you’ll find three individual sets of parts: a single-seat F-104C with short tail; single-seat ‘S’ F-104G and subsequent variants such as the Each D/G. TF-104 seat two the and with longer tail; of these kits contains common detail parts such as jet-pipes, intakes, seats and sundry other items to build each aircraft, differing only in the supply of sub-type specific fuselage halves, rudders and tailplanes. That being so, we decided, after some head scratching - and as I will discuss later on, a last s: minute change of direction - to build two model to a single-seat F-104C and a two-seat TF-104G of provide us with the most diverse look for each our models.
“Designed seemingly from the imagination of a child, if ever an aircraft encapsulated the space-age dreams of a modern generation, this was it.”
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Hasegawa 1:48 F-104C Starfighter • Kit No. 07219 Hasegawa 1:48 TF-104G Starfighter • Kit No. 07240
The interior of both models was improved with some scratchbuilt details. Here’s the result of a few hours work inside the TF-104G.
Though the walls were detailed, the tub and seats were used as-is. With hindsight, the seats could have done with some extra work. Maybe next time…
With the kits chosen, we thought it would be fun to approach each one differently in terms of construction and finishing. Here is a list of those differences: F-104C • Cockpit fully painted and weathered. • Weathered camouflage with panel line washes and post shading. • Underwing stores from weapons’ set. • Aftermarket decals. TF-104G • Cockpit decorated with the kit’s console and instrument panel decals. • Shiny gloss finish with no panel line washes. • Kit decals. The reason why this was seen to be a good idea is that not all modellers approach their builds in the same way and so it’s important that we reflect everyone’s needs. Although there are lots of builders who like to weathered their kits to create a more in-service look, there are just as many who opt for a clean finish and so showing the differences is a fine way to cater for both camps. Similarly, not everyone has the skill to accurately paint a cockpit and so the use of console decals is beneficial, providing as it does a quick and easy way to replicate these intricate little features – especially when, as shown here, they are applied over the raised detail on the panels. Where the kits match each other is in their detailing and the materials that were used to finish each one. The cockpits were both detailed with some rod and strip to embellish their rather plain walls and sills and then the results were painted with Gunze Sangyo’s range of acrylics, the colours being applied through my trusty Iwata airbrush. Details were picked out with Humbrol enamels and Vallejo acrylics and where needed, all metalwork was finished with Tamiya aerosol Silver Leaf, or Alclad II. So, with the overview of this project out of the way, shall we take a look at the individual models? We’ll begin with ‘Beauty’, the stunning Italian TF-104G in its incredible blue and yellow anniversary scheme.
WHEN TWO SEATS ARE BETTER THAN ONE… As with their Skyhawk family, Hasegawa had released a number of single-seat Starfighters before they got around to the production of a trainer. The reason for this was that the earlier kits were never designed in a modular fashion and so a whole new fuselage and cockpit needed to be created along with seats and the amended underfuselage tray that includes the from undercarriage bay (the two single seaters only needing new fuselage halves). Once they had decided to produce this variant, the results bordered on the spectacular, the
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The single-seat F-104C was actually an old kit that had been started many years earlier – hence the evidence of paint inside the cockpit. Again, rod and strip was used to improve its appearance.
Under paint, the detail added inside the two-seater, begins to come to life. Not the look of the instrument decals.
There are a number of glazed panels around the airframe that can either be left as moulded, or opened up and glazed either with clear parts supplied in the kit, or as in this case, Kristal Klear.
A little careful painting helps bring out the finer details, as does a delicate wash and some drybrushing.
Compare and contrast: the decalled two-seat tub, sits alongside the fully painted, single seater.
A close up of the painted tub. A wash mixed from Johnsons Klear, water and Satin Black, helped pop some of the finer details.
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And here’s the tub in place. Cleverly designed slots and tabs means that very little glue is needed to hold these parts in place.
sweeping lines and blown canopy of this aircraft, being captured to a tee. Though this is not the place to review these kits – given how long they have been out and how many have been built for magazine features such as this – it may well be worth noting a few things that stand out once you open the box. The first thing to strike you is the quality of the mouldings and the simple way that the designers have broken the kit down. In this day and age of hyper-complex kits that need hours to assemble, this one can be built easily within a few hours. Carefully designed, the internal sections fit neatly within the fuselage thanks to large tabs and slots, which in turn, help locate the wrings at the correct anhedral. Indeed, such is the cleverness of the design, this kit can be dryassembled to completion without the need for glue! Across the board, detail is neat and tidy, everything from the finer surface details, rivets, fasteners and panel lines, through to the cockpit and undercarriage bays being comprehensively decorated. If anything, the wings are overdone (there are no such rivets on the real aircraft) and the inner walls of the cockpit, rather too bare, but these are but minor trifles in what is other a fine kit. Perhaps the only real criticism that can be levelled at Hasegawa’s family of Zippers is the lack of underwing stores, tanks and baggage pods. Many of the type’s operators used a myriad of different weapons and other paraphernalia under the wings and fuselage of their aircraft and so it would have been good to see at least some of those items being replicated. Sure, you can find many within the weapon’s sets that Hasegawa sell separately, but they don’t include the distinctive underwing tanks that are so-often carried and so the depiction of at least those items, would have been most welcome. Thankfully, for those wanted to further embellish their kit, help comes in the form of a very comprehensive update set from Daco, who should have stocks as this issue goes to print. Though the models seen here were built from the box, I did decide to embellish a few areas with some extra detail, just to improve the look of the model. Aftermarket details for the cockpit are available, but that seemed to go against the ethos of this feature and so some good old-fashioned plastic rod and strip was used to add detail to the inner walls of the cockpit. This entailed to simple creation of frames and sundry other little features including switches, breaker boxes, cockpit lights and other smaller structural components. This was
Another view of the second cockpit reveals some of that was around the finer details, mentioned earlier. Additional layers of grey paint drybrushed on, helps to further accentuate the finer detail.
all done rather imaginatively, a busy look being rather more important than absolute accuracy. Whilst at it, the sills were also detailed with tiny clamps, seals and hinges for the opening sections of the rather impressive canopy. The results of all this work could then be airbrushed in Neutral Grey, washed with a mix of Johnsons Klear, water and Satin Black and then drybrushed in lighter greys, to pop the detail. With the cockpit painted in its base grey colour, it was time to deal with the consoles. It had been decided early on that the two models would be finished differently and so this one would be
decorated with the kit’s console and instrument panel decals. The instruction would have you remove the raised detail and then apply the decals, but with solutions such as Gunze Sangyo’s Mr Mark Softer, you can apply the designs over the detail, apply a few drops and then wait for each one to settle down until the raised detail shows through. A little touch-up here and there and a little work with the paintbrush to apply some addition colours and the results can be very pleasing. Once complete the cockpit was sprayed with matt varnish, the instruments glazed with some tiny drops of Humbrol Clear Cote and then everything slotted
Side by side, the two Starfighters have been assembled ready for painting. As mentioned in the text, the two-seat TF-104G was left as sub-assemblies – here, seen dry-fit in place – whereas the other model was assembled almost to completion and painted in one piece.
The undercarriage bays of both models were painted in Tamiya Silver Leaf (decanted from an aerosol and airbrushed on) ready to be masked and the surrounding colours sprayed on. Note the detail in these areas of the model.
As with the bays, the undercarriage legs were airbrushed in Silver Leaf. As I was working on two models at once, all similar sub-assemblies were sprayed at the same time, production line style…
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Hasegawa 1:48 F-104C Starfighter • Kit No. 07219 Hasegawa 1:48 TF-104G Starfighter • Kit No. 07240
Sangyo H25 Sky Blue and H15 Bright Blue and so these were sourced and then using a clean, Tamiya mixing jar, combined along with 50% Mr Color lacquer thinner. By mixing this much paint, I knew that I would have enough to complete the job and not have to worry about running out, having to mix some more and try and match perfectly the original colour! It was now time to spray. With any gloss finish, the trick is to work evenly across the model, applying the paint in long, consistent strokes. In this case that meant starting at the tail and then working all the way to the nose, the brush being opened up to allow a even layer of paint to be distributed onto the model. Each thin layer was dried using a hair dryer, building up three or four until one final, ‘wet coat’ was applied. This is simply a term used to describe the application of enough paint that it looks really wet, and is just at the point of pooling on the surface. It takes a while to master, but really is the best way to ensure that the finish is smooth and even. All of the remaining parts were painted in the same way, before setting it aside to dry for one week to allow it to fully harden.
The SEA camouflage has been airbrushed on and the model given several coats of gloss varnish ready for the decals. At this point the colours are plain with no additional highlighting or shading.
FINISHING OFF
What a gorgeous colour. Several layers of gloss blue followed by another layer of gloss varnish has created a deep, gloss finish ready to be decorated with those amazing, yellow markings.
into place, the design of the kit being such, that very little glue was needed to accomplish this task. Before joining the fuselage halves, the wheel bay needs to be assembled and then painted. This is a nicely detailed section, but as much of it is covered over with the semi-closed doors later on, I simply painted it silver (Tamiya Silver Leaf), washed it the same Klear/water/Satin Black used in the cockpit and then slipped it into place. Incidentally, the main gear legs are held in place with little poly caps, so once again they can be fixed in place with little reliance on adhesive and little risk of damage, whilst doing so. The entire airframe can now be completed. In order to ease the painting and decalling of this model, the airframe was broken down into subassemblies: fuselage, wings, tip-tanks, tailplane and then smaller details such as canopies, seats, undercarriage and jet pipe. Across the board the assembly of these sections was quick and easy, the only areas of concern being the nosecone to fuselage joint and the tip tanks, where their main section joined their cruciform fins. In both cases a
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little filler and Mr Surfacer was needed to smooth out some fit issues, before applying several thin layers of Tamiya Fine Surface Primer in readiness for the paintwork.
ANY COLOUR SO LONG AS IT’S BLUE…
Given that our choice of subject was an overall blue, Italian Air Force anniversary scheme, it seemed sensible to create a nice, shiny finish, devoid of any kind of weathering. The thinking here was that this would allow a degree of variation when compared to our single-seater and offer a subtle difference in approach when it came to the application of the paint and decals. Before beginning any glossy finish the model’s surface needs to be perfect. I’d already checked for any flaws and had applied several coats of primer, so gave the model a final once-over with Micromesh, checking all the time that there was no evidence of dust or texture on the surface. That done, it was cleaned off and then settled into my spray-booth ready for its colour coat. The instructions suggest a 50/50 mix of Gunze
As the application of the decals is discussed is a separate section within this feature, we can move on to the completion of the model, beginning with the seats. Though a decision had been made to build the kit essentially from the box, the seats are one area that perhaps could have been replaced. Despite being made up from eight individual pieces, the level of detail and the shape of the kit’s CQ-7E seats is far from great and that, combined with a lack of straps, really begs for them to be swapped for something more accurate and detailed. Despite that, the seats were used as-is, careful paintwork and some simple masking tape straps being used to get the best from them. That said, they weren’t glued in place so that I can replace them at a future date, when I have just a little more time… Having painted, weathered and installed the undercarriage and doors, it only remained to install the canopies. Of all of the tasks that faces an aircraft modeller, this is perhaps the most important, great care being needed to mask off the frames and install the results without damaging the delicate mouldings. More often than not the glazing can be masked with strips of masking tape, but where the panes are curved around their edges, or complex in terms of design or number, I tend to splash out and buy Eduard masks, as I did here. These are simple to apply and once in place can help create perfectly painted frames, both inside and out. Installing the painted canopy section was rather more involved than I had imagined it would be. The problem is a lack of location points so you need to ensure that the centre section is perfectly in place, otherwise, it throws everything else out. The trick is to use the rear section to line it up, then apply a little adhesive and adjust as necessary. Whatever you do, don’t use superglue as it won’t allow any flexibility should you need to adjust he position of each section. All that remained was to slip the tanks into place, add the pitot tube and tailplane and it was time to tackle the single-seater.
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Successful decalling – a step by step guide During any modelling project, the application of the markings can make or break the finish. Many modellers struggle with the basic techniques when it comes to decals, feeling that there must be some hidden secrets that they cannot find. The truth is rather more mundane, many of the steps to completion being very easy; you just need the right tools and materials, a clean work surface, a gloss finish and patience. It really is as simple as that. Over the next page or so, I’ll take you through the process, so that you can complete even the most demanding decaling job, with ease.
With the model coated in a layer of gloss varnish, each individual image can be cut away. The varnish reduces the chance of air being trapped under the decal, this creating the dreaded ‘silvering’ effect, so never be tempted to apply you decals over a matt finish – it will only end in disaster!
The first decal can then be carefully slid into place on the model. The positioning of the marking is in this case critical, because a number of other line up with it, over the fuselage.
Each individual decal is floated in warm water for a few seconds to soften the adhesive. I use water that is rather warmer than others would recommend, as it tends to speed up the process.
Remove the decals from the water with a pair of tweezers and place image side down on a square of kitchen towel, to absorb any excess water.
Happy that it is place, the excess water is wicked-away using a soft, flat brush. Repeated passes with the brush smoothes the image over, removing any unwanted air bubbles.
Once all the bubbles and water have been removed, the decal can be treated to a fine layer of decal solvent applied with a soft brush. This helps soften the inks and suck the decal down over the finer details. You will see it wrinkle during this process: do not touch it! Let it dry naturally and you will start to see all of the detail appear under the marking.
Once the first decal is down, you can repeat the process for all of the other markings. For a complex scheme such as this, you may need to work on each side over a few days so that you don’t disturb the delicate decals as they dry.
After leaving the model to dry, the decals were sealed-in with several layers of gloss varnish. If you were building a camouflaged machine – such as our F-104C – you would use matt or even satin varnish, for this step.
Tools of the trade: a variety of setting solutions from both Gunze Sangyo and Daco, a sharp scalpel, tweezers and some soft brushes. The only thing missing from this shot is a cutting matt and some absorbent kitchen towel.
All of the decals are in place and fully dry. The model can now be carefully washes in warm water to remove any unwanted glue and solvent on the surface of the model.
A close-up of the tail reveals how the various steps have ensure that the decals have laid down perfectly, conforming to all of the little details with no evidence whatsoever, of any silvering.
One final close-up reveals how, with some simple techniques, even the most complex scheme can be applied with ease.
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Hasegawa 1:48 F-104C Starfighter • Kit No. 07219 Hasegawa 1:48 TF-104G Starfighter • Kit No. 07240
At this stage, you know that you are really getting somewhere, all of the painting and weathering having been completed, ready for final assembly.
Some of the many sub-assemblies that needed to be carefully painted to complete our Italian trainer.
THE STARFIGHTER HEADS ‘IN COUNTRY’…
Let me tell you a funny story. When planning out this feature, I had told Brett that I would build a single seat F-104 and in so doing, would finish it as a camouflaged, Canadian, F-104G. I had the kit, I had the decals and I had plenty of references to get started – and so I did, building all of the sub-assemblies, detailing the cockpit, painting the results and then, joining the whole lot together ready for painting. At no point during this exercise did it occur to me, not once, that the model I was building was completely the wrong version and that building a Canadian bird, would be impossible. That is, until I came fit the rudder in place and having mixed it up with that fitted to the TF-104G, noticed it was a completely different part… Anyone that knows anything about ‘104s, knows that the tail of the earlier Charlie models, is different from the later Golf variant and so
they are not interchangeable. So now, I had a completed model with no decals (this Starfighter had been built from an old, rescued kit with no decals and no instructions) and a deadline looming. What to do? Well, change course, surf the Interweb for some new decals and build and appropriate subject. The F-104C “Snoopy Sniper” is the result. Though the path to completion was less than smooth, the Starfighter does suit the SEA camouflage scheme and so I’m pleased that I had a chance to finish my model in these colours, all of which came from the Gunze Sangyo and Tamiya ranges of acrylics. The decals are from Superscale, sheet no. 48-1135 offering a choice of five F-104Cs complete with nose-art. As with the earlier build, this one was completely from the box, with the exception of a little detail in the cockpit and some 750lb bombs sourced from a Hasegawa weapons set, under the wings. The
Camouflaged tip-tanks and 750lb bombs ready to be loaded onto their aircraft. Note the weathering and chalk inscriptions on the bombs, applied in this case with a sharp, pale grey crayon.
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The use of Eduard’s canopy masks results in an ultra-sharp finish. Masks were used on both models.
pylons for the bombs are supplied in the kit, only some plasticard sway-braces and brass pins being used to hold the weapons in place. In terms of painting the model was airbrushed freehand, each of the colours, light grey, brown, medium green and dark green, being thinned with 50% Mr Color Thinner to create tight demarcations between the colours. Once happy with the finish, it was sprayed with several layers of Tamiya X-22 Clear, the decals applied – which took very little time – and then the model sprayed with a layer of Vallejo Flat Varnish ready for weathering. By the time it came to the application of some wear and tear, the deadline for completion of this model was fast approaching and so I sought a quicker method of weathering the camouflage than I’d been using for the last few years. Normally, I would apply a wash to the panel lines and then add layers of coloured filters, oil paints
Ready for installation, the carefully painted undercarriage units await installation. Airbrushed silver was used for the base coat, out Johnson Klear wash for the weathering and then Vallejo Dark Rubber acrylic for the tyres.
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The artwork for “Snoopy Sniper” in all of his glory.
Subtly applied post shading helps add a neat layer of weathering around Deflected slats and flaps add to the candid look of the model. Rivet the back end of our warbird. detail in this area is rather heavy and could do with being toned-down.
Careful construction helps maintain the sharp edges around the intakes and wings.
Undersurface detail. Carefully applied washes help accentuate the detail and add a realistic level of grime.
If I was to build this model again, the inside edges of the canopy would receive some additional detail. Note the look of the seat in this shot and how painting and weathering can bring out the best in it.
and the like to degrade the finish. In this case I chose a simpler system based on the very fine models that had been built and painted by both Brett Green and Chris Wauchop. Firstly a thin wash was flowed into the panel lines (mixed from Humbrol Matt Black, Winsor & Newton Raw Umber and white spirit), any excess being worked away using a soft, flat brush, dampened
with Mig’s Thinner for Washes. Once dry, a few drops of Tamiya Flat Black and Red Brown was thinned with around 80% thinners and sprayed around the panel lines, details and in vertical lines around the fuselage and also in line with the airflow over the wings, to create the impression of dirt and staining. The dilution of the paint was such that it could be built up gradually until the effect was as
hoped for, any overworked areas being resprayed with thin layers of the underlying colours until the effect was neat and even. As with the previous model, this one could now be completed with the addition of the smaller details, undercarriage, weapons and canopies – the latter, once again painted with the aid of Eduard’s excellent masks. •
The Charlie models flown in Vietnam often compensated for their lack of legs, by carrying a refuelling probe on the left-hand side of the fuselage in order to refuel during missions ‘in country’.
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KIT PREVIEW: Airfix 1:72 de Havilland DH.82a Tiger Moth. • Kit No. A01024
AIRFIX’S TIGER TWINS Mark Davies is impressed with the new-tool Airfix 1:72 scale Tiger Moth, available in both civil and military boxings.
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irfix has released an all-new 1:72 scale Tiger Moth kit in two boxings – one civil and one military. Each kit comprises 39 grey and two clear styrene parts, with decals for one subject. Surface detail is excellent. There is a delightfully rendered fabric effect on the fuselage and flying surfaces. Other surface detail such as entry-hatch definition, control surface hinge lines, leading-edge slat demarcation, and engine cowl panels are also most acceptable. There are also some very finely moulded and delicate parts such as the pitot integrally moulded with the interplane struts. This kit’s cockpit detail is quite adequate for the scale, provided you add some seat harnesses. The kit also provides separate fold-down entry hatches should you wish to cut out those moulded in place to display them open. Unlike with most kit brands, two pilot figures are also provided. Before joining the fuselage halves the instructions advise to drill a couple of holes for control wires and remove the upper rear decking completely. This surgery is in order to fit an alternate upper decking incorporating anti-spin strakes fitted to Tiger Moths from September 1942, and retrofitted to some earlier machines. This wartime fit was apparently related to the use of bomb-racks that caused problems with spin-recovery, but many operators consider them unnecessary as bomb racks were generally not fitted. The engine cowling is a nicely done single-piece moulding, with engine cooling inlet convincingly
The kit features nice depiction of fabric surfaces throughout.
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captured and featuring the front of the engine. A small air intake and exhaust pipe are provided as separate items, the latter fitting slotting into the bottom with an interior locating flange. The upper and lower wings are both one-piece mouldings, with a separate fuel tank bottom to fit in the centre of the upper wing between the cabane struts. The cabane struts locate well both in the wing and to the fuselage. The interplane struts are linked by redundant braces that establish the correct stagger angle, and are to be cut away once the upper wing is fitted firmly in position. This is a great system provided real care is taken removing the braces; a PE razor saw or repeated light scoring with a very sharp blade being the order of the day here. I did read on HyperScale “Plane Talking” where the builder found the cabane struts to be too long. However, another poster pointed out that probably the bottom wings had lost some of their dihedral whilst packaged in the box (they should have noticeably more than the top wing), and once this was restored it counteracted the apparently overly long cabane struts. I mention this as it seems all too possible for others to strike this apparent problem when building. The tailplane is a simple flat fit on top of the fuselage and has two bracing struts, followed by the tailfin. Not much remains to mention; just the propeller, undercarriage and windscreens. The prop is reasonably delicate, and the undercarriage straightforward. The sprues include a tail-skid and tail-wheel, although the former applies to
The clear parts.
this boxing. This is further evidence that another boxing is planned for release. The windscreens are acceptably thin given moulding limitations, and are nice and clear. Rear decking surgery aside, this should be an easy build as far as biplane models go. This is an excellent effort from Airfix, and one I rate as being amongst their better 1:72 scale kits. It appears to be generally accurate in outline shape and detail. The surface detail is very nicely done; whilst the cockpit detail is quite adequate, but will need harnesses added to look its best. The interplane strut engineering aids building; I would expect the kit to assemble well as far as biplanes go. However, I do not like having to perform surgery on the rear fuselage decking to incorporate the anti-spin strakes. I think it would have been better to mould these in place and simply remove them and sand smooth for versions without them fitted. The kit is great value, costing about half its nearest rival’s price whilst generally being superior in appearance and shape, but by comparison has, only one markings option in keeping with it Series 1 status. It matters little however, as Xtradecal and others have come to the rescue with aftermarket decals. This is the best 1:72 scale Tiger Moth kit so far, and a bargain. I recommend it highly. Airfix kits are readily available worldwide. Purchased online from Hannants www.hannants.co.uk •
Two pilot figures are included.
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Dragon 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 110 D/E Nachtjäger • Kit No. 3210
FLIGHT INTO THE UNKNOWN
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orld War Two posed many mysteries and enigmas along its path, but perhaps none more so than the solo flight of Rudolf Hess, Hitler’s Deputy Fuhrer, to Scotland in May 1941. Much has been written about this event; a lot of it very plausible, while some of it perhaps less so. Whatever the mind-set was with the leadership of the Nazi party in the run up to Operation Barbarossa, and whether Hitler actually knew about Hess’s flight, is still a matter of debate. We may never really know. Perhaps the truth is somewhat stranger than fiction. If we put away our own personal opinions, the fact remains that Rudolf Hess, a skilled aviator who flew fighters during the closing stages of WWI and was also a pilot in the inter-war years, climbed into a Messerschmitt Bf 110 E-1, kept to one side for him by Willy Messerschmitt at his Augsburg factory. The time was approximately 5.45pm on a reasonably clear Bavarian evening on May
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10th, 1941. The Bf 110 was to be flown singlehandedly. This meant a remote radio control train needed to be fitted from the equipment in the rear cockpit, in order that Hess himself could operate it from the pilot’s position. 900 litre drop tanks were fitted to this machine for what was to become a one-way flight, ending with the life imprisonment in Spandau, of the man that was third in line to succeed Hitler, upon his possible death. After what was a remarkable feat of solo flying, Hess ended up within only 12 miles of his target destination of Dungavel House, near Glasgow. Spitfire and Defiant aircraft were sent to intercept this lone aircraft, but for some reason, never found him, and were called back to base. Hess wasn’t to conventionally land his aircraft, and whilst possibly low on fuel, made the decision to parachute from his Messerschmitt. Turning the aircraft upside down, Hess fell from the machine, striking his foot on one of the 110’s
tail fins, and temporarily losing consciousness. Despite these setbacks, he made a successful parachute landing and was taken to a scout hut by the home to be interrogated, after initially being ‘captured’ by a farmer. Hess gave his name as ‘Alfred Horn’ initially, before confessing his identity to interrogators. Whatever transpired during Hess’s time in the UK, and whether Hitler did indeed know about the mission, both German and British governments decided upon an unusual course of action by both agreeing that Hess’s arrival in Britain was to be downplayed as the actions of a mad man, with no official sanction for his ‘mission’. Hess was tried at Nuremberg in 1946 and imprisoned for life. He died of apparent suicide in 1987, aged 93yrs. There is far more to this story, but I generally wanted to give a brief synopsis before looking at creating the machine that was to be used by Hess for his last flight as a free man.
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Some of Eduard’s key metal upgrades are subtle but very effective. Notice the riveted floor too.
James Hatch builds Dragon 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 110 D/E Nachtjäger as Rudolf Hess’s Bf 110 E-1 for his one-way flight to Scotland.
The Bf 110’s spent ammo drum container gets a subtle rework.
The main gun pack ammunition stowage positions are replaced with PE, and locations for plastic parts are filled with Magic Sculp.
Hess’s office is slightly reworked with PE parts, and the seat is drilled out to accept the HGW seatbelt set.
WE ARE DETECTIVE
Actually, if I was a detective, I’d be a pretty poor one. I fell into the trap of believing online information that Hess flew a Bf 110 D variant. I had already dismissed other sources that suggested it was a 110 C. The dinghy release cable on the photos of the fuselage, which now resides at the Imperial War Museum London, sort of told me that this was probably a 110 D, so off I went to the Luftwaffe Experten Message Board, and gave them the information I had found. Thankfully, Bf 110 expert John Vasco told me that the Werknummer of this machine, 3866, was actually a Bf 110 E-1, and he and Clint Mitchell gave me some interesting information which allowed me to build this mysterious aircraft and get it as close as possible to what it would have looked like. This monumental flight would have required the largest under-wing tanks that the 110 could carry. These were 900 litre tanks, and they would have
Here you can see the extent of the bare PE part modification/additions. A rear shelf and avionics box was eventually omitted due to being totally obscured by the rear decking.
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Dragon 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 110 D/E Nachtjäger • Kit No. 3210
Main interior components are airbrushed in Gunze H70 RLM02. A red paint pen was used to mark the hole locations in the false panel to the rear of the radio bank.
Lowlights are added using the basecoat, darkened with H12 Flat Black, then centres highlighted with H11 White-lightened basecoat.
Eduard’s unusual approach to upgrading the instrument panel required moulded detail to be removed from each face.
been supplemented by a small external oil tank that was carried underneath the mid-fuselage. Now we’re getting somewhere! Even better was when Clint gave me an image of WkNr. 3866 which showed key information that would/should indicate what WkNr.3869 would have looked like. After all, they were almost next to each other on the production line. The real clincher was that Eduard had used the 3866 scheme in their 1:48 Royal Class Bf 110 kit. All I needed to do was to remove the individual unit colours and personal markings, and I should be very close. My kit of choice was the superb Dragon 1:32 Bf 110 D/E Nachtjäger. This had the parts I required to build this aircraft, including the usual ‘D’ version extended tail section, and the ‘E’ fins. What it didn’t have though, which would have been a serious drawback, were the 900 litre fuel tanks. I had already resigned myself to having to scratch build the oil tank. A request for assistance/
unwanted parts was made on the Large Scale Planes forum, and was answered by Andrew Leitch, who generously donated the parts I needed from a different version of the Dragon kit. When these arrived from the USA, to my surprise, the underbelly oil tank was also included! It doesn’t get more fortuitous than that!
DESERVED REPUTATION?
Dragon’s 1:32 Bf 110 kit incarnation was first released in 2008, and has been both maligned and praised for various aspects, from the instructions to the fit of the model itself. Out of these, the instructions were the ones that held most concern for me. Brett Green has produced his own amendment list for those who wish to tackle this kit. I found that list to be quite useful, although it did seem that Dragon had perhaps addressed some of the issues by the time this kit was released. There’s no doubt that this is an epic kit in terms of
Major cockpit components are now painted and the final effect of Eduard’s colour PE can be clearly seen. Look at the instrument panel and side consoles.
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parts count and sheer detail, but of course, I had to perhaps go a step further and include some photo etch too. Thanks to the wonderful Jan Zdiarsky at Eduard, I soon found the Bf 110 D BIG ED set landing on my doormat. Construction starts with the cockpit, as tends to be convention. The cockpit of the Bf 110 was quite a long and narrow affair, and in the case of this aircraft, more than likely painted with in RLM02. The key was to try to bring such a bland tube to life, and breathe some life into areas that were perhaps a little neglected, such as the cockpit floor. In fact, that’s exactly where this project began. Dragon has moulded this smooth, with no floor surface detail. I decided to work out where the frames would lie underneath the floor, and then marked various lines in pencil. With plastic Dymo tape as my guide, rivets were added using the RB Productions Rivet-R mini and corner wheels to allow me to get right up to edges of raised detail. As I wasn’t using the
Mig Productions Dark Wash was used as a pin wash on smaller internal detail parts.
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The detail on both the instrument panel and port-side console can clearly Here we can see the radio and main gun battery area. Notice the be seen here. Some Frustrating work paid off handsomely here. modified ammunition drum bracket.
The completed cockpit, almost ready for installation to the fuselage.
Tamiya Weathering pastels are great for subtly highlighting and shading key areas. I always apply these with a flay brush as the ‘wand’ in the sets is very poor.
Despite being unarmed, Hess’s aircraft still carried actual guns. Here is the lower MG battery, with Eduard PE and lead wiring added.
Micro Crystal Clear was added to each instrument face to replicate a glass lens.
plastic ammunition drum brackets, I needed to fill in the slots in the floor using Magic Sculp.
THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAIL
Eduard’s photo-etched sets feature quite heavily within the cockpit, and some careful surgery is needed on a number of plastic parts. I really don’t like the clunky appearance of the port-side console containing the throttle and other controls. After scraping away the map case location and removing the rather thick levers, a photo etch map case was added. This part was then airbrushed in Gunze RLM02 and colour PE added for the fascias and levers. I also took an image of an original Luftwaffe map that contained the cost of Northern Britain, shrunk this down and folded it up before popping it in the map case! Well, I’m trying to be reasonably authentic. A number of key constructional PE parts were of course added to the interior before I could begin to throw RLM02 around. These included detail for the spent ammunition saddle bin in the rear gunner position, and also some very fragile parts to replace the plastic ammunition drum brackets for the lower gun pod. On top of this, the Eduard set provided electronic equipment for the gunner’s position that was omitted from the base kit. Eduard employed an unusually novel approach to the kit’s instrument panel. Instead of the two-layer colour replacement we tend to see these days, this one required you carefully remove all detail from the instrument faces, and then to apply individual colour PE instruments. It took some care and a lot of swearing before I achieved the result I needed. I just hoped it would look ok with paint. One rather
sloppy area in this kit is the rear of the radio panel, which can be seen from the pilot’s position. Dragon moulded this ‘open’, so I needed to add a back plate to this using plasticard. The position of this was guided by painting the locating positions of the radio panel with a red paint pen, and transferring this to the plasticard. When the part was made, it was fastened to the radio panel and riveted.
WOT, NO WEAPONS?
Talking of guns, this machine was also unarmed. Whilst the nose guns themselves were still in situ, including those inside the fuselage gun pack, it’s likely that the rear facing MG was removed. That was at least my conclusion. It’s almost guaranteed that as a factory machine, and Hess’s personal ‘loaner’, that no ammunition was carried. That Welcome to my world, where organized chaos is the order of the day!
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Dragon 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 110 D/E Nachtjäger • Kit No. 3210
Rear gunner saddle ammunition racks, mostly built from scratch after cutting away the moulded saddles.
With this model, it pays to add the tail extension to the fuselage before you close the fuse up. Do it Dragon’s way, and beware!
HGW seatbelts have now been fitted to the crew positions. These are probably the very best belts available on You can’t fly from Bavaria to Scotland without a the market, and can easily be manipulated into whatever pose you require. map. Here, an actual Luftwaffe map was used as a basis for this replica.
presented a small problem. Dragon has moulded a number of racks within to incorporate the ammo saddles, or so they are ready to receive drums. I modified the main gun pack rack by cutting away excess plastic, and drilling holes through the mounts. Into those holes I inserted some WW1 turnbuckles (Bob’s Buckles). These would represent the spring-loaded pins that held the drums. The rear gunner racks needed to be totally rebuilt. After cutting away the forward mounting lug, the racks were recreated using Evergreen styrene sections, and the mounting lugs reattached. Despite lack of firepower, those guns still had to be included on the weapons tray that can be seen within the cockpit. Assembly of this was very easy, and the whole unit fit snugly into the opening in the cockpit floor. No glue at the moment though, as this was to be separately painted and upgraded with Eduard PE and some lead wire. As I wanted to show this machine as not a study in every open cover, but simply to recreate this famous machine, I opted to leave the nose guns in an unpainted state within the nose shell. The parts were assembled as per instruction, including the ammunition feed and cartridge ejection chutes, then glued up forever within the single-piece nose. I would just touch up the protruding barrels and muzzles later with Gunze C61 Burnt Iron, before buffing the barrels with a cotton bud.
A COAT OF MANY COLOURS?
I actually hate RLM02 on interiors. I find it drab, bland, and difficult to bring to life. At least on something this size, I could liven it with what I presume modellers call ‘modulation. As much pre-assembly of internals parts as possible was performed before I gave the whole interior, the fuselage halves, a coat of Gunze H70 RLM 02. When this had cured, I darkened this with a little Gunze H12 Flat Black and finely airbrushed panel edges and shadowed areas. The next step was to lighten the base coat with Gunze H11 Flat White and colour-in the panel centres and other open areas. I purposely left the paint to ‘gas out’ before then applying heavily thinned misted coats of the base colour. The result does add some visual interest the proceedings. At this point, I also painted the instrument panel in RLM02. To be honest, it just didn’t look right, so when I began to paint many internal components in Gunze RLM66 Grey, this was then hidden under a coat of that.
MINISTRY OF THE INTERIOR
I have always said that if I can get the interior looking right, then the rest of the project seems to come together more easily, or at least in my head it does. My intention was to only leave the pilot’s canopy open, to signify that this was crewed by one man, but if course, that long greenhouse
canopy still commands that everything within looks right. A number of other cockpit subassemblies still needed to be built and some parts modified to incorporate photo etch parts. These included the upper cockpit deck, complete with instruments, grab handles, canopy ‘roll cage’, and the electrical box/ wiring associated with the aerial mast. These were mostly painted in RLM02, utilising a little shading, as per the interior tub. Radio sets, sidewall equipment and other instrumentation units/panels were painted with RLM66, as were the numerous extra Eduard supplied parts. When all interior paint were dry, a couple of thin coats of Klear helped seal everything up and provide a gloss surface onto which I could apply decals and a pin wash. Before I could do this though, I took advantage of that gloss base to mask off several areas of the interior, such as the cable looms etc, and airbrush them in the appropriate colours, in this case RLM74 Grey and Gunze Aluminium MC218. These details were then touched up with Klear and everything set aside to cure. I’m a big fan of Airscale’s products. Perhaps too much so. I just love adding placards to the interiors of my models. I do try to rein things in a little though so as not to overkill. The idea is to make things look plausible. Reference is also used to give me a good basis in exactly how things
Dragon made a great job of their engines. It’s a pity that didn’t extend to the detailing of the engine firewall.
Test fitting the legs to the bays showed a clear and precise fit.
This is the basic main wheel well, showing the location for undercarriage strut insertion…..
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The guns on this machine wouldn’t be on view, so they were assembled, without painting, and fitted into the single piece nose.
….and the legs themselves.
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were labelled. Airscale’s 1:32 German placard set was then used to good effect, and the remaining colour PE parts from Eduard’s BIG ED set were applied to the consoles, radio sets, instruments and that pre-prepared instrument panel. The individual instrument solution on the IP actually looks very pleasing, and less ‘2D’! With decals in place, and brushed with Klear to seal them in, Mig Productions Dark Wash was used on a 5/0 brush and a pin wash applied to the various assemblies. By now, I had also added wire detail to the gun pack to replicate the electrical firing looms, and compressed gas lines. Essentially the interior was almost complete, but still lacked a little glitz for me. That came after spraying the interior in Gunze Clear Flat H20 and adding a set of modified HGW seatbelts, designed for the Ju 88. Tamiya Weathering pastels were then used to accentuate the interior RLM02 panels a little, giving another feel to the interior. Micro Crystal Clear was placed onto the various instrument faces so that they appeared to have glass lenses. Other small details were painted with Vallejo paints, thinned slightly, and applied with a 5/0 size brush. A little subtle dry-brushing was done with Vallejo Sky Grey, accentuating the edges of instrument units and other equipment. It was time to button up the fuse…..
A TALL TAIL
….Well, almost. So far, everything had gone to plan. If you read the various online builds of this model, there seems to be a common theme, and that is a badly fitting fuselage tail module. The instructions also have you build the fins and stabiliser, glue it to the fuselage extension, then mate it to the fuselage. Sounds great, but if you do, I can almost guarantee you will have problems. Basically, the tail/fuse extension isn’t a clean fit, but that’s because of the way it slots together from within. The actual mating joint is very good. With some modification of the internal connection, which saw me thin the ‘rails’ out, I then glued each extension to the fuselage half. The various internals assemblies were then installed within the fuselage and the whole thing buttoned up.
The painting regime for the main gear bays was the same as for the interior. Detail is picked out with Vallejo paint, and Tamiya Weathering pastels were used to accentuate various areas.
After closing up the fuselage, the wing spars were added, and the belly panel glued into place.
Empty ammunition saddle racks are now fastened into position.
Mr Dissolved Putty is used for removal of seams, and any filling required.
With a score of 7.8 on the Tedium Scale, the model was entirely flush riveted, swallowing up two weeks of my life.
Dragon’s design is excellent, with subassemblies perfectly fitting together.
Mr Dissolved Putty is applied to small gaps, using a toothpick.
THE ENGINES – CLOSE BUT NO CIGAR
This is most certainly a very detailed kit, and as such, includes two complete engines. When I say ‘complete’ though, I mean that they are excellent representations, but I still feel they warrant a little extra wiring to make them shine. My intention was to display one of these with the cowls removed and a serial number replicated from one of the engines of Hess’s machine, which survives today. Sounds great, but it never worked out that way. Firstly, just removing the forward engine cowl provides only a restricted view of the engine block, and leaving off the panel to the rear highlights the total lack of detail present on the firewall. I didn’t have time to start scratch building the required detail and modifying the internals of the forward wing that would clearly be seen. Reluctantly, even though I’d build both engines, I opted to hide them away forever. The only paint that the engines would see would be Tamiya NATO Black XF-69 airbrushed around the engine underside, manifold plates, and radiators. These would be the only areas that could possibly be visible through the cowlings and manifold openings.
SINKING A WELL OR TWO
Dragon has designed the engine firewall so that it becomes part of the main gear bay unit. It
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Dragon 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 110 D/E Nachtjäger • Kit No. 3210
Putty was used to fill unwanted detail from the ‘D’ version. Here you can see the pre-formed wire dinghy release cable.
A long flight needs a lot of fuel. These donated items came from a different edition of this kit, and suited the role perfectly.
Locating holes for the external oil tank were also drilled. Again, the fit was perfect.
After initially drilling the wrong locations for the tanks, the holes had to be filled and re-drilled.
I hate masking canopies. Luckily, Eduard’s BIGED set contained a complete mask set.
was now time to construct these. In a clever bit of engineering, these main gear wells are entirely separate from the wing assembly, and simply locate into the wing when complete. This makes painting and assembly easy. Each wheel bay was assembled, including the various ribs that fit into the lower wing nacelle moulding, and then airbrushed with Gunze RLM02. The same system of modulation was employed in the cockpit area. Once the paint was laid down, details were picked out with Vallejo and Gunze paints, before being sealed with Klear and having a pin wash applied. Again, Gunze Clear Flat H20 was airbrushed over the wells and a Tamiya Weathering pastels used to do some highlighting. A silver Prismacolour pencil was used to create a little chipping. This wasn’t a machine that saw any active service, so there was no need to smother this model in any real sort of weathering. I could now plug the engine module into the
main gear bay and apply some Tamiya Extra Thin Cement. This would prove to be an Achilles heel for me later. Whilst I was spraying RLM 02, I decided to assemble and paint the undercarriage struts. RLM 02 was followed by a thin misting of Tamiya XF-64 Red Brown around the various points of stress. I painted the gaiter in Vallejo Flat Black and other details in Gunze Chrome MC211. Vallejo Red was used to paint the bolt heads on the oleo scissors, as I noticed was the case on the machine in the Berlin Technikmuseum. After sealing with Klear, a Mig Productions Dark Wash was added before a coat of Gunze Clear Flat was applied. I opted NOT to fit these to the wheel wells at this stage as it would have been difficult to then plug the units into the wings. Not installing them now also allowed me greater reign later whilst I was painting the exterior.
Test fitting the fuel tanks proved the re-drilled holes were in the correct position.
A thin shim of plasticard was added to the lower face of the wing spars to remove a slightly sloppy fit.
RIVETTING DETAIL
Whilst Dragon have produced a superbly detailed exterior to their model with fine panel lines, one thing they have omitted was any riveting. Yes, there are a few fasteners here and there, but absolutely no rivets. I had to remedy that, so consulted my Aero Detail book on the Bf 110 and found a rivet pattern for this marque of aircraft. In comparison with other drawings and photos, it did seem to be quite accurate, so I went ahead and began the gargantuan task of bringing this up to my expectations. Now, I rarely use a Rosie the Riveter pounce wheel, with the cockpit floor being a rare exception. Instead, I opt for the more laborious tool that I bought from MDC. This is essentially a jeweller’s beading tool, but it also comes with a photo etch rivet guide which you can tape to the model whilst you add the rivets, one by one.
And (42a) Mr Dissolved Putty was used to fill any small gaps on the wing root joint. Excess was removed with Mr Levelling Thinner and a cotton bud. RLM02 was airbrushed around the canopy area in order to give the correct internal frame colour. You’ll be surprised how many times I forget to do this
Openings were sealed up with blocks of foam, courtesy of Eduard’s Brassin sets.
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Tamiya XF-69 NATO Black was used to pre-shade the whole model.
Light coats of RLM76 were misted over the undersides, until the correct pre-shade contrast was obtained.
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Tesa Tape was used to mask the upper sides so the RLM75 could be airbrushed.
This tool leaves a finely recessed edge to a flush surface, giving the impression of flush riveting. The great thing about this tool is that you don’t need to do them all evenly. Look at an aircraft surface, and you’ll see that some of them partially disappear into the paintwork. Panel by panel, the model was meticulously mapped out with a soft pencil and entirely riveted. In comparison, the difference between this and the un-riveted model is quite astounding. A number of parts had slide-mould seam seams lines on. These included the nose cone and forward upper engine cowls. These were first removed with Albion Alloys sanding sticks and their Flex-i- File tool. Eduard’s colour PE instruments and the kit glazing parts were attached to the inside of the main engine cowls. If tedium isn’t your thing, then this approach to riveting isn’t perhaps for you. One by one, this model took almost two weeks to completely
With all camouflage airbrushed, the mottle was applied and the model sealed with Klear.
rivet. The first three days are the worst, and then numbness sets in. By the end of the first week, you’re on autopilot.
TRICKY FIT?
Before proper assembly could begin, I wanted to complete construction of the tail fins and the stabiliser, as well as add some minor cowl parts to the upper and lower wings. This was against the sequence suggested. I just don’t think Dragon really thought out the manual for this one. Using Tamiya Extra Thin Cement, the tail/fin assembly was joined to the fuselage. The absolute smallest of micro-gaps needed just a touch of Mr Dissolved Putty applying with a toothpick. Next, the wings. Before I could glue the main panels together, I drilled out the holes to fit the 900 litre drop tanks. I later had to fill these in as I’d drilled the wrong holes out. Magic Sculp to the rescue again.
The wheel wells were a drop fit into the wings. Absolutely perfect. Upper wing panels were then glued into place, wingtips added, and when dry, all seams were removed and the leading edge light and air intake fitted. As I was no longer going to display any engine, the cowlings could now be added, but I’d run into trouble. Even though the engine bearers had been pushed fully into the firewall, each engine was pointing downwards by about 1°. This stopped all cowls fitting properly. I decided the only way to fix this was to use surgical skill to slice the lower engine bearer apart, ad remove some detail from the top of the engine block. Now, the engine could be pushed into the correct position and the cowls attached. A little Mr Dissolved Putty was needed for the occasional gap, but in all, things fitted well. Andrew’s fuel tanks and oil tank were now built, and this is where I found I’d drilled the wrong
Small marks were added to the masks so their orientation could be properly checked before securing to the model.
The mask was then carefully placed, and the white areas weeded from the mask.
Tape was used to present overspray around the mask.
White was now applied.
The previously weeded mask parts were put back and the black areas weeded out before airbrushing in black.
The finished result. Very impressive! (for a beginner)
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Dragon 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 110 D/E Nachtjäger • Kit No. 3210
locating holes in the wings. These were now re-drilled properly, using the dimensions taken straight from the tanks. Locating holes were also drilled for the oil tank. After inserting the wing spar section to the cockpit underside, the lower fuselage panel was fitted and seams removed with sanding sticks and a little more Mr Dissolved Putty.
I CAN SEE KLEARLY NOW… Lines were drawn along the top and bottom of the fuselage codes, again to help with location.
Control Central, during this build, providing me with the information I needed, at the flick of a screen.
Wing walkways are masked and airbrushed in Gunze RLM23 Red.
A completed view of the airbrushed fuselage markings.
A model without wings is quite an easy thing to handle, so after dipping the canopy parts in Klear and leaving to cure, these were then fitted to the fuselage with Tamiya Extra Thin Cement. The ‘open position’ pilot side windows were used temporarily tacked into position, along with the upper hood. I would eventually replace those side windows with the closed pane ones, but these were being used simply for the purpose of closing up the canopy area prior to painting. Thankfully, the Eduard BID EG set included a full canopy mask set, and this was then applied. Dragon also supplies a preformed metal wire that forms the dinghy release cord. This was attached using the photo etch loops supplied in the kit. Adding the wings themselves was an area I’d heard horror stories about. I approached things cautiously here. Whether by design or fluke, I experienced no problems here except for having to add the thinnest of plasticard shims to the lower side of one of the protruding spars. Revell Contacta cement is quite gooey, and is a perfect tool for those internal spar areas on models of this size. With each wing first glued with Contacta, a drop of Tamiya Extra Thin Cement was used to wick around the wing root joint. Again, Mr Dissolved Putty was applied with a toothpick, to any resultant gaps in the joint. Thankfully, these were negligible. Excess putty was removed with a little Mr Levelling Thinner, applied with a cotton bud. An inspection of the airframe showed that everything was properly aligned in relation to each other, and no wing sag or unevenness had crept in during this vital stage. All fears allayed. A few coats of Gunze RLM02 paint were now applied to the canopy areas, so the interior framing would be the correct colour.
A SIMPLE SCHEME, RELATIVELY.
Various views of the model in natural light.
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This machine wouldn’t carry any fancy unit schemes. It was to be the Henry Ford of Messerschmitt’s production lines; “any colour you want as long as it’s mottle and no bright bands”. Whilst some modellers advocate always using primer, I get good results without using any. Why use something that has no bearing on my final result? Exactly! Paint adhesion tends to be very good these days, especially with Gunze and Tamiya paint brands. Openings were stuffed with spare foam from Eduard’s BRASSIN resin sets, and Micro-Mask Liquid Masking Tape was painted onto the cowl instrument lenses. Using Tamiya NATO Black XF-69, the entire model was pre-shaded. This colour is a little less harsh than regular black. This scheme was going to be a game of three Gunze colours, namely RLM 74, RLM 75 and RLM 76. I started the paint job by spraying RLM76 onto the undersides of the model, using my Iwata HP-C PLUS airbrush. I thin my paint using Mr Levelling Thinner, at a 50:50 ratio, and at about 12PSI. The RLM76 was extended part way up each cowl and also up the fuselage sides until it almost reached the lower edge of the canopy. Paint was sprayed until I had an effect which just caught the pre-shade
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Masking was applied to one side of key panel lines, and Tamiya Smoke airbrushed to the other.
through the RLM76, but so as it looked organic. I feel I should have shared in a masking tape company. I use Tesa Tape as it’s the same Kabuki stuff that Tamiya use, but the £5 rolls I buy cost far less that shelling out for endless rolls of Tamiya, and at a fraction of the cost. Just as well because this model needed serious masking. Demarcation was sharp edged, so I used Eduard’s Royal Class kit instructions to mark out this machine so as to be identical to WkNr.3866. Once the masking was applied, RLM75 Grey was applied in thin coats so as not to build up hard edges against the masking tape. When complete and dry, these areas were masked over and RLM74 applied. Once everything was unmasked, I needed to start working on that hard demarcation line on the fuselage, between the camo and undersides. Yes, it was mottle time! Love it or loathe it, adding mottle is something that, if you model Luftwaffe aircraft, is hard to escape. My first ever aircraft, when I returned to the hobby, was a Fw 190 D, and I had to mottle it. This was the first aircraft I ever airbrushed too, but thankfully I dispelled the myth that mottle is difficult. It isn’t. Yes, perhaps a little practice, but it’s a very flexible and easy camouflage system. For this, I thin my paint to 1:3 paint to thinner ration, and I drop my airbrush pressure down a little more to around 10PSI. Using RLM75 initially, I airbrushed small blotches of colour down from the hard edge, feathering that edge until it blended away into the light blue undersides in a mottle pattern. The same was done with the darker RLM74, but instead of just feathering this in, I also extended it into the lighter RLM75 areas. There was no hard and fast rule here. All I did was blend the mottle until it looked right. I accidentally went a little heavy with the darker mottle in a couple of places, so to correct this, I used
Shading was applied to the individual areas between the ribs of the ailerons, elevators and rudders.
the underside RLM76 to re-mottle and remove the heavy dark areas, before touching up in the correct colour again. As I said, regular mottle schemes like this aren’t too hard, and look great when applied. This method of mottle was extended down the sides of the engine cowls too.
MASKS: TIME TO LEARN A NEW SKILL
Of course, Dragon didn’t supply the Rudolf Hess scheme in their kit. In the old days, that would be a stumbling block, but not any more. Thanks to the amazing Mal Mayfield and his ‘Miracle Masks’, that is no longer a bar to any specific scheme you want to create. I have to make an admission here. This is the first time I’ve ever used masks. This was new territory to me. To start the ball rolling, I scanned the kit decal sheet, along with a steel rule, and emailed this to Mal, along with an order form. I also included photographic detail of what I needed. Within a week, a set of sharply cut vinyl masks arrived at my door. Mal gave me instructions so that an idiot like me could follow them, and that’s exactly what I did. Masks can take a little getting used to, especially when you are trying to lift the entire multipart mask onto the transport film, and then accurately locate on the model. Mal
tends to send extra masks, so any screw up is covered! Each mask was laid onto the model and burnished down with a cotton bud. As these are German markings, only flat black and white paint were required for the paint process. I followed the instructions meticulously, and everything came out beautifully, despite me being a total novice at this way of marking a model. Even the tricky swastikas came out nigh on perfect, using Miracle Masks’ tried and tested method of application. Yes, this way is more work than decals, but the result is worth it. Of course, it was the only way I was going to see the Hess serial and WkNr codes on this model. At the same time, I manually masked the red walkway lines on the inboard wings, using Tesa Tape, and Gunze RLM 23 Red. After application of the markings, another light coat of Klear was applied, and the kit stencils were added. If you’ve ever built a Messerschmitt of any kind, you’ll know they liked to add stencils quite liberally. Dragon’s decals are a little thick, and I used Mr Mark Setter to snuggle them into the surface
Tamiya Smoke was applied freehand around key fuselage panel lines.
A selection of oil paints were dabbed around the airframe, and these were brushed in with a brush dampened in thinners. The result was a subtle fading of the main colours.
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Dragon 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 110 D/E Nachtjäger • Kit No. 3210
AK-Interactive ‘Engine Oil’ was used to add a wash around the prop pitch collars and nuts etc.
Key components were now painted and awaiting final assembly. This is my favourite part of a project. Chipping was added with a Prismacolour silver pencil.
detail. With fuel filler and the cowl Octane stencils, I needed to use Mr Mark Softer. These were quite stubborn. My experience with oil dot fading has been fraught with problems, to say the least, but God loves a trier. Using a cocktail stick, small dots of different colour oil paints were applied randomly to the model, section my section, and then blurred with a medium flat brush. Daler-Rowney odourless thinner was thin applied damp, to a soft brush, and the wings worked in the direction of airflow. The fuselage was worked vertically, until a subtle fading effect was achieved, with negligible streakiness. This took several hours of cursing and swearing, but in the end, I did achieve a reasonable fade which certainly took the edge of the sharply masked splinter camo and airbrushed markings. Again, Klear was used to seal. Once everything had been sealed in, I masked off one side of each wing main panel line and
accentuated the other with heavily thinned Tamiya Smoke. This was also applied freehand around the key fuselage panel lines. Tamiya Smoke was also used on the fabric ailerons, elevators and rudders. Masking off the surroundings, Smoke was applied to one edge and the trailing edge also. This gave an impression of depth to the fabric, and helped to break up things nicely. Lastly, Mig Production’s Dark Wash was added to panel lines and allowed to dry. Excess wash was removed with a cotton bud.
Don’t sweat the small stuff! The last parts are now prepared, ready for assembly.
SWEATING THE SMALL STUFF
It’s the small things that bring a project to life, so at this point I took the opportunity to attach the undercarriage, then concentrated on a number of small detail parts for the overall airframe. Aileron mass balances, aerial loop, pitot and antenna rails were airbrushed in RLM 76 Light Blue before
Using a compass cutter, masks were made for the wheels.
With the model upside down, the undercarriage, fuel tanks, oil tank and undercarriage doors were now permanently fitted.
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With the hubs masked off, the wheels could be fry brushed in Vallejo Sky Grey.
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A silver Prismacolour pencil was used for adding small paint chips around random rivet lines.
having a wash applied to them. I’d already partially assembled the propellers, so now I painted the various parts. The blades were airbrushed in RLM70 Black Green, spinner in Tamiya X-18 Semi Gloss Black, and the interior/hub in Gunze H2 Gloss Black. After drying, the interior gloss black areas were airbrushed in Alclad Airframe Aluminium before having AK-Interactive Engine Oil applied to the collar bearings and bolts. Tamiya Deck Tan was used to paint the main canopy aerial mast and then Burnt Umber was used to create wood grain. When dry, this area was masked, and the rest of the mast airbrushed in Gunze RLM74. While the model was still upside down, I also added the undercarriage doors, large 900 litre
Here is my fur-colour exhaust painting system. Seems to work for me!
fuel tanks, external oil tank, and the multitude of small parts I’d just completed. Tamiya XF-85 Rubber Black was used to paint the wheels before using homemade masks so I could spray the centres in Tamiya X-18 Semi-Gloss Black. After unmasking, heavily thinned Tamiya XF-57 Buff was used to create an irregular dusty mottle to the tyres. No heavy weathering on this machine. As I said, this never saw general service. Other wheel detail was picked out in Gunze Chrome, Gunze RLM 74 Grey Green, and wheel movement marks were applied in Vallejo Red. Finally, these were fitted to the model using Revell Contacta, applied directly into the hub shaft. A silver Prismacolour pencil was used to gently add a few metallic scratches and chips to
With the exhausts in situ, exhaust staining was added with Tamiya Flat Earth and Gunze Soot.
the leading edge of each propeller blade. Gunze Flat Clear was thinned 40:60 with Mr Levelling thinner and applied to the model in order to tone down the Klear gloss finish. This mixture though, still imparts a fine sheen that looks about right to my eye. A favourite, but slightly worrying task is to unmask the canopy. Despite the large number of masking pieces, everything turned out perfectly. Now the model was starting to look like it was living and breathing. With the model on its wheels, I applied a few paint chips to random rivet areas around the airframe, especially in the area around each inboard, upper wing panel. For this, my silver Prismacolour pencil came in handy again.
Scotland bound!
An insulator cone was made for the aerial line by pushing a pencil into a sheet of softened plasticard. Aircraft Edition
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FEATURE ARTICLE: Dragon 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 110 D/E Nachtjäger • Kit No. 3210
The extra effort spent with MDC’s riveting tool is well worthwhile.
Note the liferaft cable near the spine of the fuselage.
The rear machine gun was most likely removed from Hess’ aircraft to reduce weight for the long flight.
One of the large, distinctive 900 litre fuel tanks.
EXHAUSTING STUFF
I had already decided early in this project that I would replace the kit exhausts with a set of Quickboost ones. The kit parts simply lack any openings on the manifolds, and look quite false. Cleaning up the resin replacements was tricky. I broke one of these multiple times because they are so fragile. When ready though, they were airbrushed in Tamiya XF-16 Flat Aluminium, before a heavily thinned misting of Tamiya Red Brown was applied. Towards the top of the manifolds, I then added some misted coats of Tamiya Hull Red XF-9, before finishing off the openings with a mottle of Gunze Soot. CA was used to fit the exhausts to the model, and exhaust stains were first applied with heavily thinned Tamiya XF-52 Flat Earth. This was applied in short longitudinal streaks, as well as longer streaks in the direction of airflow, ensuring that less paint hit the surface, further away from the exhaust. Following this, Gunze Soot was then used to create the same effect, but well within the footprint of the Flat Earth colour. The overall effect was that the soot tapered out into the brown paint, representing a fairly healthy-running engine. The only canopy that would be posed open was the pilot’s. This was done to reinforce the fact that it was crewed only by Hess. Upper and side canopy parts were now fitted. Tamiya cement was used for the upper lid, but Micro Crystal Clear was used for the side windows, as I couldn’t afford thin cement running along any glazed panels whilst I was trying to position the part.
FINISHING TOUCHES
The aerial mask was fitted and before I added the aerial itself, I heated up some thin plasticard over a candle and pushed a narrow pencil into the soft plastic. This created a small cone that I used for the insulator which was seen on the aerial, near the mast. I drilled a hole into this and added the aerial line using EZ-Line. Micro Krystal Klear was then used to add the small ‘blobs’ seen on the aerial. When dry, Vallejo Black was used to blend these into the aerial line itself. Special thanks to John Vasco and Clint Mitchell for their assistance with the technical aspects of this machine, and to Mal Mayfield (Miracle Masks) for his endless patience. •
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World War Two posed many mysteries and enigmas along its path, but perhaps none more so than the solo flight of Rudolf Hess, Hitler’s Deputy Fuhrer, to Scotland in May 1941.”
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MODELSPEC Dragon 1:32 Messerschmitt Bf 110 D/E Nachtjäger Kit No. 3210 Accessories Used: Airscale Placard decals, EZ-Line (Black), Eduard Bf 110 D BIG ED set #BIG3282, Quickboost Bf 110C/D Exhausts #32051, HGW Ju 88A-4 seatbelts #132530, Miracle Masks, custom made, Dragon drop tank set from a later release kit Isolators on the aerial wire were formed from blobs of Krystal Klear.
A small auxiliary oil tank was also carried on this long-range aircraft.
Tools & Modelling Products Used: Swann Morton Scalpel with blades 11 & 15, Iwata HP-C Plus Airbrush, Harder & Steenbeck AL Plus 0.2 Airbrush, RB Productions Razor Saw, RB Productions Rivet-R and Rivet-R corner wheel, MDC 1:32 Flush Rivet tool, Tesa Masking Tape, Micro Drill Set, Lindstrom Electronics Side Cutters, Six Inch Steel Rule, Lindstrom Carbon Fibre Tweezers, Tamiya Extra Thin Cement, Revell Contacta Cement, Loctite CA, Deluxe Materials CA Gel, Daler-Rowney Ordourless Thinners, Mr Mark Softer, Mr Mark Setter, Mr Dissolved Putty, Micro Kristal Klear, AK-Interactive flat and round brushes - various sizes, Magic Sculp, Micro-Mask Liquid Masking Tape, Lead wire, various thicknesses, Thin Evergreen Plasticard and lengths of various sections, Albion Alloys stick sanders and Flex-i-File Paints & Finishing Products Used: Tamiya Nato Black XF-69, Red Brown XF-64, Smoke X-19, Flat Aluminium XF-16, Rubber Black XF-85, Semi-Gloss Black X-18, Flat Earth XF-52, Flat White XF-2, Flat Black XF-1 Gunze RLM76 H417, RLM75 H069, RLM74 H068, RLM70 H065, White H001 , Black H002, Soot H343 Mr Levelling Thinner Alclad Airframe Aluminium Vallejo Black, Yellow, Red, Brown, Sky Grey Mig Dark Wash AK-Interactive Engine Oil Oil paints: Naples Yellow, Black, Transparent White, Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber Johnson’s Klear Daler-Rowney Ordourless Thinners Tamiya Weathering Pastels Prismacolour silver pencil References Used: Luftwaffe Experten Message Board http://www.luftwaffe-experten.org ‘Double Standards – The Rudolf Hess Cover-Up’, by Lynn Picknett, Clive Prince and Stephen Prior ‘Rudolf Hess: A New Technical Analysis of the Hess Flight, May 1941’ by John Harris and Richard Wilbourn Google searches for Hess Bf 110 wreckage, and interviews with Messerschmitt staff re: Hess aircraft. Eduard’s Bf 110 Royal Class kit instruction manual/schemes. High level of detail; accurate; generally good fit. Poor instructions in places; some tricky fit. Dragon kits are distributed in the UK by The Hobby Company Limited www.hobbyco.net Rating: ? out of 10
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SHOW REPORT: Shizuoka Hobby Show 2014
SHIZUOKA 2014 The Editor visits the Shizuoka Hobby Show 2014, and finds that getting there is half the fun.
T
his was only my second trip to Japan, so the prospect was still fresh and keenly anticipated. In fact, for me, travel to Japan is fresher than to most countries as Tokyo’s time zone is only one hour behind Sydney meaning that jet lag is not an issue. With a flying time of around nine hours, for an Australian it is a mere snip compared to the 23 hours needed for a European visit or 14 hours to Los Angeles.
My flight stopped at Cairns in tropical North Queensland before heading north to Tlokyo.
The commuter crowd at Shinagawa station in Tokyo.
IT’S ALL ABOUT THE JOURNEY
I stepped off the plane into the quiet arrival hall of Tokyo Narita International Airport, moved quickly through Customs, picked up my suitcase and within 20 minutes of landing was standing on the platform of the Narita Express train to Tokyo. I would not classify myself as a train person, but I do love the public transport in Japan. It is fast, frequent, ubiquitous, inexpensive; and even a foreigner such as myself can quickly master the colour-coded, criss-crossing subway and JR lines of Tokyo. Arriving at Shinagawa after 9:30pm, the station was uncustomarily quiet – just the occasional company man heading home from a bar. I trudged up the hill to my hotel and a rest after this long day. I was up and about too early next morning to catch my train to Shizuoka, so I did some reconnaissance at Shinagawa Station. It was raining, but only a fine mist wafted to the ground; not the sort of deluge that usually collapses on Sydney. Unlike last night when just a smattering of office workers were making their way home, this morning the joint was jumping. The station is an example of functional public design - cavernous, with the ever-present neon advertisements. I was swept along a relentless tide of grey suits, and had to cross the human current to reach the ticket office on the other side. I returned a few hours later with my bags to join the Shinkansen Super Express to Shizuoka – that’s the Bullet Train to you and me. The duck-billed Shinkansen pulled alongside the platform and I found a window seat. I could feel the power and speed of the train building as we accelerated through the built-up suburbs of Tokyo, seamlessly blending with Yokohama before the countryside became sparse, dotted with back yards and factories and paddy fields and telegraph lines and those untidy clusters of buildings that seem to sprout up beside railways lines everywhere. Every now and then, a bullet train would speed past in the other direction, buffeting our carriage. When you are standing on a platform and a Shinkansen train races through at full speed, it is quite an experience. These things are fast enough to create their own weather system! Eventually, the landscape changed to a backdrop of ragged mountains, shrouded by mist and fixed still against the blurred foreground. After speeding through tunnels and past wooded hills, the great vista of Mount Fuji emerged on the right. Before too long, our train slowed for Shizuoka Station. The first item of business was Wednesday’s Agents Briefing at Tamiya’s Shizuoka Head Office. Surprisingly, there were no new-tool aircraft announcements this year; but there were plenty of military, car, motorcycle and radio control releases on hand. The tour was also very interesting, guiding us behind the scenes to administration, design, tooling and more.
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A fine view of a brooding Mt. Fuji from the Shizuoka hotel.
Tamiya’s head office boasts an impressive museum with all of its own releases plus a number of unique artifacts on display. This is open to the public. A team of four modellers was working on models to be displayed the next day at the Shizuoka Hobby Show 2014.
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Tamiya’s front lobby is also home to some remarkable full-sized displays!
One of Tamiya’s fleet – 1:1 scale.
The Shizuoka Hobby Show is held in both large halls of the Twin Messe exhibition centre.
The first day showgoers queue for entry.
Two high views of the mail hall.
Tamiya’s large stand at the Shizuoka Hobby Show 2014.
Many companies were present, including DEF Model (with Brett Green)
Scott Hards with Brian and Ryan from HobbyLink Japan / Beaver Corporation making videos.
A number of publishing companies including Model Graphix were on hand too.
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SHOW REPORT: Shizuoka Hobby Show 2014 NEW KIT DISPLAYS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
The trade days of the 2014 Shizuoka Hobby Show followed on Thursday and Friday. A number of new and forthcoming releases were on display:
FREEDOM KITS
This new brand company showed their forthcoming 1:48 scale Kit No. 18001, X-47B Navy UCAV. This is a pretty big model – quite impressive when built.
HASEGAWA
Hasegawa had their revised 1:32 scale Late Version Shidenkai on display. This release features a newly tooled tail section. Also new for 2014 from Hasegawa are a number of variations on existing themes - an A-10C Thunderbolt II, F-35A Prototype, F-15J and a brand new Su-35S Flanker, all in 1:72 scale. There is an F-2A in 1:48 scale as well. Hasegawa also had their very impressive 1:700 scale Akagi carrier. The model has been designed for easy assembly, with the complex hull sides being moulded as one part each. They retain a very high level of detail despite the simple parts breakdown.
Also new from Hasegawa are an A-10C Thunderbolt II…
HOBBYBOSS
Hobby Boss’ stand was busy with new and forthcoming releases. For me, the most exciting item was box art from a forthcoming Me 262 B-1a two-seater trainer. Surely a night fighter can’t be far behind. Also new or soon-to-be-released are their 1:48 scale Brazilian EMB-314 Super Tucano, 1:48 P-61A Black Widow, 1:48 A-6E Intruder, and artwork for a future 1:48 scale F4F-3S Wildcat floatplane.
Zoukei-Mura’s 1:32 scale Horten Ho in test-shot build form. Big model!
Hasegawa’s 1:32 scale SHidenkai receives a new tail for the late version, due for release soon.
229 was
ICM
ICM had their new 1:48 scale Dornier Do 215 B and 1:72 Po-2 on the stand, but no news on the next releases yet.
KINETIC
This Hong Kong company had sprues from their forthcoming 1:48 scale Mirage IIIE on the stand. Looks like I will be able to convert that to an RAAF Mirage IIIO pretty easily!
KITTY HAWK
Next to Freedom Kits was the prolific Kitty Hawk, with a nice build of the soon-to-be-released 1:48 scale F-101A/C kit, as well as test shot builds of their F9F-8 and F9F-9 Cougars.
PLATZ
Japanese company Platz was busy as usual. This year they had their new tiny but perfectly formed 1:300 scale STOL aircraft. Their 1:144 scale thimple-nosed C-46ECM was also on display.
Wolfpack Design’s 1:48 scale T-38C features some newly tooled parts.
How Sweet it is! Master tiny but perfectly formed
SWEET
Sweet is one of the most appropriately named model companies that I know. Their 1:144 scale kits are indeed very sweet! Forthcoming releases include three sets of decals for their 1:144 scale A6M3 Model 22 Zero. Early work on a master for a 1:144 scale Mitsubishi A5M Claude was also present – nice!
WINGNUT WINGS
Richard Alexander from Wingnut Wings made the trip from New Zealand with all the latest releases, including two built-up examples of the new 1:32 scale Roland C.II kits.
WOLFPACK DESIGNS
Wolfpack Designs had the latest in their Talon family on hand, a 1:48 scale T-38C. This kit features a number of newly tooled parts. Their forthcoming 1:72 C-130H Hercules 'JASDF' Conversion set was also on hand, including a model built using the resin parts.
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A good selection of harness straps are available in 1:72, 1:48 and 1:32 scales.
ICM’s new 1:72 scale U-2 / Po-2 Soviet Multi-Purpose Aircraft.
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work in p 1:144 sca
Horten Ho odel!
s! Master ly formed
…and an all-new 1:72 scale Su-35S Flanker.
229 was there
work in progress on Sweet’s 1:144 scale A5M Claude.
Freedom kits had their forthcoming 1:48 scale Kit No. 18001, X-47B Navy UCAV on the Beaver Corporation stand.
This one slipped under my radar – Zoukei-Mura’s 1:48 scale Focke-Wulf Ta 152 H, due for release in July.
Richard Alexander from Wingnut Wings made the trip from New Zealand, bringing the latest releases with him.
Coming soon from Hobby Boss – a 1:48 scale Me 262 B-1a.
Fine Molds’ flexible plastic harness straps looked great on the display seats.
Sprues from Kinetic’s forthcoming 1:48 scale Mirage IIIE.
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SHOW REPORT: Shizuoka Hobby Show 2014 ZOUKEI MURA SWS
Zoukei Mura was present with their existing 1:32 scale aircraft range, plus a test shot build of their forthcoming 1:32 scale Horten Ho 229. Looks impressive! The kit will feature full internal structures and will have a clear nose so that you can see some of it! Also, due for release in July is a newly tooled 1:48 scale Focke-Wulf Ta 152 H. A built up sample was shown on the stand.
PUBLIC DAYS
The trade days at the Shizuoka Hobby Show are busy and businesslike. Besuited visitors speak in hushed tones, meetings take place, and companies show off their new releases on glossy stands. On the weekend, however, the public is unleashed. I have never seen so many people at a model show. The crowds really are quite overwhelming. And the reason they are here is to see the models. More than 8,000 models were on display over Saturday and Sunday. This is a remarkable number in itself, but even more amazing is the consistently high standard of construction, painting, weathering and creativity – with the occasional brilliant piece bursting even above that level. This is not a competition – it is local clubs sharing their work with the public. The visitors form a four-person-wide conga line that shuffles elbow to elbow along the aisles in the large display hall. The Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force was on hand too, with a couple of wheeled vehicles plus one of their newest assets – a Type 10 tank. Also for the Public Days, a Flea Market was set up in one of the buildings. This featured a brisk trade in second hand kits as well as some local manufacturers and “howto” demonstrations.
Plenty of vendors were on hand as well as private sellers.
HOMEWARD BOUND
All good things come to an end and on Sunday morning I packed up, checked out and made the return journey to Tokyo. As I had a few hours to spare I checked my bags into the Tokyo Central Station baggage services area and caught the local JR train to Akihabara, where I visited one of the famous multi-story Yellow Submarine model stores. We will have more news and builds of some of the models launched at the 2014 Shizuoka Hobby Show in future issues of Military Illustrated Modeller magazine. •
Tamiya’s Shizuoka Headquarters.
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The feeding frenzy at Saturday’s Flea Market.
Life Like Models was one of set up in the Flea Market for
This amazing full-sized A6M5 Zero Type 52 instrument panel drew penty of attention.
A full-sized gunsight was on the same stand.
Modelling or art?
Surrounded! Japanese Type 10 main battle tank.
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the compa the weeke
as one of Market for
Demonstrations by master modellers too
the companies that had the weekend.
Oh, the humanity! A view of the crowd in the display area on the first Public Day.
This was a clever product that allows paint to be used as an aerosol.
Club members, often the builders of the models on display, were there to answer questions and provide more information.
There were dozens of themed stands amongst the displays.
There’s a whole brass band in there somewhere…
Back at the Hotel Century, one of the lobby spaces had been transformed into a Mini 4WD racing track. An impromptu model shop had also popped up on the 3rd floor. Model madness everywhere!
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For the serious Modeller Issue 37
Issue 38
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modeller Next Issues military illustrated
ISSUE No.039 July 2014
Aircraft Edition - Brett Green AFV Edition - Marcus Nicholls Publisher; Alan Harman Graphic Design; Alex Hall, Colin Trundle Advertising Sales; Claire Alley Advertising Assistant; Joe Brown Office Manager; Paula Gray Administration Manager; Hannah McLaurie MIM Website; ADH Web Team Editors;
Printed by; Symbian Print Intelligence, Hertfordshire, UK Distributed by; Seymour Distribution 2 East Poultry Avenue, London, EC1A 9PT Tel; 020 7429 4000
Military Illustrated Modeller Issue 40 - AFV Edition on sale 17 July, 2014
UPGUNNED HA-GO
Fine Molds 1:35 Type 4 ‘Ke-Nu’ conversion
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[email protected] Military Illustrated Modeller is published on the third Thursday of each month by; ADH Publishing, Doolittle Mill, Doolittle Lane, Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, LU6 1QX UK www.militaryillustratedmodeller.com Tel; +44 (0)1525 222573 Fax; +44 (0)1525 222574 Editorial enquiries; Aircraft email;
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THE SHANGHAI INCIDENT
Pit-Road 1:35 IJN Vickers Crossley Armoured Car Model 25
Leadwarrior 1:35 Borgward-Goliath F.400 1938 three-wheel delivery truck
Military Illustrated Modeller Issue 41 - Aircraft Edition on sale 21 August, 2014
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DREIRAD ON MY WAGON
LARGE SCALE LAWN DART
Marcus Nicholls tackles the new 1:32 scale F-104 G from Italeri.
SACRIFICIAL SALLY
MPM’s 1:72 Ki-21 Sally by Harvey Low.
D-DAY DOLL
© ADH Publishing 2014
ROTARY PANTHER
Leo Stevenson builds HK Models huge 1:32 scale B-17G Flying Fortress
Kamil Feliks Sztarbala builds Kitty Hawk’s 1:48 scale Eurocopter AS565 SA Panther helicopter.
...AND MORE!
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Aircraft Edition
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Tailpiece RAG AND METAL Fisher Model & Pattern’s 1:32 Ryan STM-2 / PT-20 The Editor examines the latest resin kit from Fisher Model & Pattern.
T
he Ryan STM was one of a series of low wing two-seat monoplanes from the 1930s and early 1940s. They were used as civil sports aircraft as well as trainers by a number of air forces during the Second World War. The STM was a military version with a wider cockpit and a four-cylinder Menasco in-line engine. The STM could be specified with either wheels or floats. The specific version offered here by Fisher Model & Pattern is the STM-2 / PT-20. The STM-2 was built as an export order for the Netherlands East Indies Army and Navy. 34 of these would
Detail cast onto the interior sidewalls.
Clear resin windscreens.
eventually evade capture by Japanese forces in 1942 and enter service with the Royal Australian Air Force as trainers and communication aircraft. Some of these aircraft are still flying today. The PT-20 was the USAAC/USAAF designation for the same design. Fisher Model & Pattern is a specialist manufacturer of resin kits and accessories. They have built an enviable reputation over the years thanks to their accurate shapes, excellent casting and straightforward engineering. Fisher Model builds further on this reputation with their latest release, a 1:32 scale Ryan STM-2/ PT-20 kit. Fisher released a Ryan PT-22 Recruit kit during 2013, and it is nice to see the in-line version of this famous trainer join the 1:32 scale line-up. Packed inside a stout cardboard box with large parts and bags of details lovingly wrapped in tissue paper, the kit comprises 85 parts in pale grey resin, two parts in clear resin, a photo-etched fret and markings for four aircraft. Parts are provided for both the wheeled and
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float version, and alternate cowls for either the Dutch/Australian STM-2 or the American PT-20. Casting quality is perfect. The resin is smooth and the larger parts are almost ready to use straight from the box. Surface detail features finely raised rivets and lovely subtle fabric rib texture. The Ryan STM was a simple aircraft, but all the elements are faithfully reproduced in this kit. Frame and stringer detail is cast directly onto the interior of the fuselage halves, with smaller parts such as trim wheels and throttle quadrants supplied separately. The seats feature impressive pressed
Two styles of engine cowling are included too.
also recommend alternative rigging material – specifically E-Z Line – instead of the supplied photo-etch to avoid problems associated with change of temperature. The windscreens are cast in clear resin and will benefit from a bath in Future floor polish.
MARKINGS
Decals are supplied for four aircraft: • A US yellow-wing PT-20 with bare metal fuselage • RAAF Ryan STM-2, A50-12, finished in Foliage Green and Earth Brown upper surfaces and
Photo-etched parts, including flying wires.
metal effect on the backrests, and photo-etched harness straps are included. The instrument panels are photo-etched parts with open holes, while the dials themselves are printed onto plain paper. This should be quite an effective sandwich. The wings are full span, ensuring precise dihedral and simple installation. The assembled fuselage juts sits on the central wing saddle, and fit is perfect. All control surfaces are separate and may be posed to taste. The most complex aspect of construction will be the impressive one-piece floats and their various struts, but Fisher’s instructions walk us through this process in detail with words and pictures, suggesting techniques along the way to ensure correct alignment. If you are choosing the wheeled option, installation of the spatted undercarriage will be very fast and easy. The photo-etched fret also includes the various flying wires and other rigging. The instructions suggest that these be installed after painting and decaling is complete. The instructions
Fabric detail is really well done.
yellow below • RAAF Ryan STM-2, A50-28, in overall Trainer Yellow, based at Temora • Royal Netherland Naval Air Service floatplane in Aluminium lacquer and bare metal. The decals look excellent, being in perfect register and with nice sharp printing. Fisher Model & Pattern has delivered another stunning replica of a subject never before kitted in this scale. The latest release features a high level of detail, perfect casting, excellent fit and thoughtful engineering. Fisher’s 1:32 scale Ryan STM-2 / PT-20 would be an ideal candidate for someone wanting to try out a resin kit for the first time, or for anyone who appreciates excellence in scale. Highly Recommended. Thanks to Fisher Model and Pattern for the review sample www.fishermodels.com •
Military Illustrated Modeller - July 2014
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NEW in the ‘HOW TO BUILD...’ series OUT NOW ‘How To Build… Tamiya’s Aircraft’, is the latest addition to this popular series of modelling titles and as such, offers the enthusiast plenty of inspirational builds, hints, tips and techniques to enjoy.
Within the book’s 84 pages you will find features on the De Havilland Mosquito, F-4 Phantom, Focke-Wulfe Fw190, Heinkel He162, Bristol Beaufighter, Ilyushin IL-2, F4U Corsair and Supermarine Spitfire, features created by expert modellers, keen to show you what is possible from Tamiya’s range of excellent kits. ‘How To Build… Tamiya’s Aircraft’ – the perfect addition to your library… and your workbench!
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