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Eduard 1/48 Bf-108B - Manchuka Airlines


kpc7676

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After gaining an ok from AndyC (he is doing one aswell, but in a different scheme), I have decided to have a go at this little gem.

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Bought it for $10 at a club meet a few months back. I think the bragin price was because a very little work had been done (some engine pieces glued together and most parts off sprues), but in general it is untouched and ready for attacking.

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Like Andy, I will be adding the fine Eduard etch set.

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And I will be doing the bottom scheme of this sheet, an overall aluminium doped Manchuka Airlines example of 1936.

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Notice the tailart? A little piece of history there, a cross of Japanese and Nazi flags over the Olympic rings, representing the propaganda games of 1936 held in Berlin.

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Wish me luck. I have heard there are a few little fit issues to deal with on this one, but ready to crack into it. Plan to start tomorrow with some cockpit work.

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Brilliant scheme - will be a talking point at any club meet. Good to see yours and mine going along together - I will start mine this weekend

A quick heads-up for both of us - a great build article on the fit 'problems' and how to remedy them on the 108 by Brett Green over on Hyperscale if you hadn't seen it mate

Edited by AndyC
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First update, sorry for the delay.

Cockpit is largely done bar the rear bulkhead and seats, and of course the instrument panel.

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I lost a belt in the carpet monster so reverted the pilots belts to some that I had in a Luftwaffe WWII set, very similar but a little shorter, should do the job though all the same.

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And I can't stand working with tiny etch. The instructions called for the fit of a tiny U shaped etch to secure the belts at the back of the seats, but I left it off because I doubt much of that area will be visible to the eye even through the glasshouse canopy, and I wanted to keep my sanity!

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And here are the two side panels. I have since this shot applied some pastels as I have to the cockpit pics above. I also added a few silver dry brush marks to the cockpit to further replicate some wear and tear.

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I have also dunked the canopy in the Aussie Future equivalent, and will be moving onto the engine next.

This is, can you believe it, my first ever Eduard kit, and it is a pleasure thus far. I am sure a certain cockpit fit may turn my the other way.....maybe.

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And I can't stand working with tiny etch. The instructions called for the fit of a tiny U shaped etch to secure the belts at the back of the seats, but I left it off because I doubt much of that area will be visible to the eye even through the glasshouse canopy, and I wanted to keep my sanity!

Good man! I did the same - ridiculously small piece of etch, I CA'd the ends to the rear of the seat and - no - you can't see it! Great looking 'pit. It's a fab kit

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Oh the pain!!!

After a good few days working on this kit, I can see why it has caused some consternation to others who have made the attempt.

First, the engine. Nice detail, but the exhausts are difficult to get lined up correctly, and on mine protruded too far aft and impinged on the fit to the fire wall. Difficult too are the mounts, which like Brett Green said, are not marked appropriately for length on the sprue, and I cut them a little too short which caused all sorts of issues when I went to connect it all up. Here are the pics, and yes, there is a small broken rocker but I this will be unable to be seen in the finished kit:

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Next came the engine insertion into the fuselage and the dreaded wing to fuselage fit. I, like Andy C, read Brett Green's advice on this one, but I could not achieve any sort of fit with the sidewalls off, so after thinning them in accordance with recommendations, I went for a traditional fit. Reasonable, but there are some nasty gaps that will see the emergence of the Mr Surfacer and some putty (and maybe some cut plastic card) to fill the trenches. The big one is the wing root on the right side, but there is also a nasty one in the underside nose to wing front join. The engine front also does not match up with the cowling after a dry fit, but I will most likely simply glue the prop in one place and negate the need to do any redrilling of the engine front to allow a spinning prop.

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And the cockpit as finished, pictured after installation in the fuselage.

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This one is likely to take a small back step as I get onto the Starfighter for that GB as it finishes sooner than this one. But guarantee I'll be back to it soon, it should be a relatively simple build once the trenches are covered and the painting has started.

Edited by kpc7676
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Nice Kev! Yeah agree with all of that - the exhausts were quite fiddly and the fit was imprecise - the engine fit is always fiddly on Eduard kits - on this one it is daft because there is no facility to expose the engine (like there is on their 190 for example) so you only see what you can through the mouth at the front.

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  • 1 month later...
  • 2 weeks later...

Sorry guys, have totally lost all mojo for this kit and as such it will be put aside so I can focus on a 109 or two for the 109 GB. There is still a remote chance I will finish it before the cut off but unlikely. We'll see what happens.

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What a shame Kev - deep down (and even though I finished mine) it's a trial - I turned down LSA Models at Telford who had (lots of) this exact kit for £7 even though I had the decals and the experience

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What a shame Kev - deep down (and even though I finished mine) it's a trial - I turned down LSA Models at Telford who had (lots of) this exact kit for £7 even though I had the decals and the experience

Mate,

Just thought that I may have a shot at it with Gunze silver vice the planned Tamiya spray that I would have to extract from the can for the first time. This will make things a lot easier. Will let you kow how I go. There really isn't that much work to do in retrospect...it might now have a chance!

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  • 2 weeks later...

I may get there after all!

Paint on, not 100% happy with the surface finish but close enough is good enough after all the issues I've had with the kit. Mr Surfacer 1200 used as a base coat, Gunze silver used over the Tamiya spray silver which I had intended to use, mainly for ease of application.

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Black wing patches sprayed with Gunze flat black. Next is the canopy and then the undercarriage, should EASILY have it done for the GB completion, will be happy to clear it off the bench to be honest.

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Can't wait for the finished results. At least with the main color on, you should be in the home stretch now. Good luck!

Thanks mate,

Yep, agree, in the home stretch and the goals are getting bigger and bigger. Certain finisher come the GB end I am guaranteeing.

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Decals on, first use of Techmod decals, and all I can say is WOW! Some of the easiest I have even used, and also leave no signs of silvering. Next up is the undercarriage, should be able to attack it this afternoon. And pics not the best, I Phone again, but wanted to get them done quickly.

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Edited by kpc7676
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Just finished another lot of work on the little girl. Undercarriage sprayed, prop assembled, canopy sprayed and etch added to outer side, a little pastel work around exhausts and some silver chipping on the wingwalk areas, not bad for a 75min or so period. Should have her done tomorrow or Wednesday, and knowing how quickly AndyC finished his off, it's a definite. And the work tonight may have swung me a little into thinking that it's really not that bad a kit, at least the aircraft itself looks very nice nearing completion.

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Yee-hah! Nice work Kev! She looks great and those decals are the biz aren't they?

They sure are the biz mate, superb in every way, really going to go out of my way now to ensure my decal stash grows a little more with this company's products.

And aim to have the kit finished either tonight or tomorrow sometime, only need to paint the wheels, attach them with the u/c legs, attach some small pieces to the wing undersides and fit the canopy.

Edited by kpc7676
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All done. Thanks to Andy C in particular for providing some guidance and motivation throughout. Had a few small issues fitting the canopy, plenty of dry fitting required and it's still not 100% right, but I just had to clear it off the bench. Hope everyone likes it, I sure do. Best pics in the gallery, here are some others:

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