BIG X Posted August 25, 2017 Author Share Posted August 25, 2017 Whilst waiting for the latest batch of decals to dry and before the 'main event' of the frame numbers - I need to psyche myself up for that tonight... I made this base - problem is - I have no evidence they were ever over London 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted August 25, 2017 Share Posted August 25, 2017 Likewise there isn't any proof to the contrary either. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Antb Posted August 25, 2017 Share Posted August 25, 2017 You are making some serious progress on these mate! They look great! Those bases are fab too 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted August 25, 2017 Author Share Posted August 25, 2017 29 minutes ago, Antb said: You are making some serious progress on these mate! They look great! Those bases are fab too The base was the easy bit. The library picture of St Pauls is very famous, but it took me a while to find a picture of a suitable period looking time piece - with a 10 minute connection. Then a bit of fading one image into the other and a bit of explaining text and there you go - job done 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonT Posted August 25, 2017 Share Posted August 25, 2017 Great progress, nice patient work on the decals. Your base looks great too. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted August 25, 2017 Author Share Posted August 25, 2017 1 minute ago, SimonT said: Great progress, nice patient work on the decals. Your base looks great too. Hi Simon - I don't think I will be using this base - I just needed something to keep my mind occupied whilst the decals were settling down. I still prefer your idea of a seascape - the 109's skimming the waves... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonT Posted August 25, 2017 Share Posted August 25, 2017 4 minutes ago, BIG X said: I still prefer your idea of a seascape - the 109's skimming the waves... I just watched Dunkirk at the cinema, good inspiration for what you're looking for! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted August 25, 2017 Author Share Posted August 25, 2017 11 minutes ago, SimonT said: I just watched Dunkirk at the cinema, good inspiration for what you're looking for! Strafing the troops in the water??? I haven't seen the movie yet... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonT Posted August 25, 2017 Share Posted August 25, 2017 I won't ruin it. It's highly recommended. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted August 25, 2017 Author Share Posted August 25, 2017 Well its late - but - I've just pulled off my greatest ever modelling feat!!!!!! I've just managed to get all the tiny frame numbers up the up side of a 109 - TWICE ...and I got those up/down scales on the tail planes too. I feel amazing - small things amuse small minds 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Smith Posted August 25, 2017 Share Posted August 25, 2017 (edited) crikey Steve you really have joined the ranks of the damned now haven't you! I'm very impressed at the development of your modelling skills! I just remembered this colour image of a visiting Italian pilot, and that you could actually see the numbers, interestingly these appear to be red.... sorry, not as a catch you out, just noticed myself! Possibly repainted when the side were done? A @tango98 question I suspect. also note the grey canopy frames, possibly left in RLM 66? also of note is the gun trough picked out in a lighter colour and the brush marks on the cross,as well as the detail of the aerial insulator and wire others from the sequence, and, again, just noticed, orangey-brown brake lines? from https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109E/JG1.I.html hope of interest. and, Fantastic work so far. cheers T PS - this took some finding, the only other big colour image I could think of a BoB era 109 showing the station numbers... these look like a repaint... in black or grey... WNr.3891 of 9./JG26 Edited August 26, 2017 by Troy Smith add details and pics 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted August 26, 2017 Author Share Posted August 26, 2017 Thanks for the input and encouragement Troy - always welcomed from your good self. I really was debating whether to put these - you call them 'station' numbers on - especially after I measured them. They are so tiny it is unbelievable - but the pictures at the beginning of the thread show them... ...so I simply couldn't resist in the end. Speaking of @tango98 I have dropped Dave a pm to see if he can shed anymore light on these particular birds or their pilots and he has promised to have a look for me. It would be great to find out more. Don't panic by the way - I did put the no1 in the series under the cockpit - I just got over excited and took the pic before I remembered it. Oh - and that dodgy looking masking on the back of the cockpit - it is just that - there is a vinyl mask to come off there Thanks again - Steve PS - What is the gun trough??? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted August 26, 2017 Share Posted August 26, 2017 The gun trough is the little valley in front of the upper nose guns. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomerJ_757 Posted August 26, 2017 Share Posted August 26, 2017 11 hours ago, BIG X said: Well its late - but - I've just pulled off my greatest ever modelling feat!!!!!! I've just managed to get all the tiny frame numbers up the up side of a 109 - TWICE ...and I got those up/down scales on the tail planes too. I feel amazing - small things amuse small minds Up/down scales - came to me in a flash - angle of incidence - for trimming the tailplane. Looking really good! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted August 27, 2017 Author Share Posted August 27, 2017 With a brutal win for City at Bournemouth, Lewis grinding out a tight victory at Spa and all the excitement of the Blitz GB I have made very little progress this weekend. I've been getting the last few things primed though - tail wheels / pitots / mass balancers / aerials / exhausts / cannons... I've also done the final gloss coat - to seal the decals in. If you look closely either side of the red line on the wing you can see how my microsol / microset really eats into the original gloss - 'clouding' it. The final gloss will get rid of this - but it is a worry and I might try some other setting solutions down the line. The gloss is on now though and we are back to 'shiny - shiny'... not much progress really - considering how fast things have gone this week - but then I have been on holiday and at it pretty much none stop. Not much further to go though - I really just need to stick the last few things on and give it a coat of matt varnish - BUT - these lovely birds are missing 'something'. I don't really want to get into 'chipping' or extreme weathering, as I believe these would have been pretty well looked after aircraft at the time. I've started a thread in the modelling tips section asking about Flory and Unique washes. I have watched a few videos and I think 109s really demand a nice neat panel wash. I've tried this before on a 'mule' using humbrol black wash and frankly the result was dreadful. Either it wiped off completely or stained either side of the panels. The link to the thread and videos is here... They make it look so simple - but is it??? I would hate to wreck these after so much work - a common dilema for me when it comes to the end of the build. I am always afraid to take that last step that turns a good model into a great one. Last time around it was mottling the sides - I did it - but it scared the hell out of me. I may halt the build and order some flory / ultimate - it all depends on the good folk of this forum delivering some sound advice - one way or the other. Back soon -ish - Steve 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted August 27, 2017 Author Share Posted August 27, 2017 I've just got the resin exhausts and brass cannons on - well impressed with the exhausts and will be buying more. I'm very underwhelmed with the cannons - next time I'll just spend a few moments to hollow out the kit parts. However they are superglued in - so shouldn't get broken like plastic. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil5208 Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 The replacement barrels are more impressive when they have additional detail, cooling jackets, springs or cowling. With just plan barrels I would agree that the kit ones are fine. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalkeEins Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 On 8/23/2017 at 0:28 PM, Pauls9cb said: Like you, I can't make sense of his whereabouts/history. During the latter part of August, Goering was a bit peeved with many of the fighter commanders since they had failed to be aggressive enough to neutralise RAF Fighter Command, so he replaced the bulk of the commanders with younger and more aggressive commanders. I'm assuming that perhaps Walter Kienitz may have been one of the less aggressive ones on the basis that I can't find any record of him making any claims during his tenure as Gruppen Kommandeur of III Gruppe. Walter Balthasar was a completely different animal. It's also possible that Kienitz was killed or injured, but I can't find any reference to this. All the best - Paul You may well be correct - the German-language history of III./JG 3 has Kienitz giving up command of the Gruppe and leaving front-line service for "health reasons" at the end of August. Between 21 July and 8 August the three Staffeln were back in Germany and the unit did not operate over the UK until 12 August. His replacement Wilhelm Balthasar was the leading ace of the French campaign (23 vics) and the second to receive the Ritterkreuz. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pauls9cb Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 Always good to find one of the members who speaks the lingo. Very helpful and always makes us less accomplished linguists a bit frustrated. Paul 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted August 28, 2017 Author Share Posted August 28, 2017 59 minutes ago, FalkeEins said: You may well be correct - the German-language history of III./JG 3 has Kienitz giving up command of the Gruppe and leaving front-line service for "health reasons" at the end of August. Between 21 July and 8 August the three Staffeln were back in Germany and the unit did not operate over the UK until 12 August. His replacement Wilhelm Balthasar was the leading ace of the French campaign (23 vics) and the second to receive the Ritterkreuz. FalkeEins - Thanks a million for this interesting input - I always find this side of builds to be probably the most interesting part. So - we have... 21/07/40 to 08/08/40 - in Germany 08/08/40 to 12/08/40 - moving to France - somewhere and preparing for action over the UK? 12/08/40 to 31/08/40 - action over the UK? 31/08/40 - Kienitz stands down for 'health reasons' I wonder... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted August 28, 2017 Author Share Posted August 28, 2017 Whilst hesitating over whether to order some Flory or Ultimate Model Product washes the matt coat and final closure is stalled. I really need some more experienced opinions before I can wrap this pair up. So - in the meantime I have been pondering a better way to fix my aircraft to clear rods. Here are the messy results AND some experimental voids that litter the underside of my SHARPIE 109... ...anyway - I think I've cracked it... Yep - that's a 0.5mm hole - one drop of paint and it would be gone again. Now a 0.5mm rod would be way too bendy to support an aircraft so it was out with the mini drill bits, a piece of 3mm clear acrylic rod and another one of those sewing pins. Having established the centre of gravity - to get a decent balance and then drilling deep enough so it goes through the fuselage AND into the base of the cockpit tub - giving 2 points of contact and stopping it 'swinging about' - with the right length of remaining pin I think I have a 'neat' solution that won't wreck the look of the underside... Now the only thing left to figure out is how to get it to stop spinning round on it's axis. Ideally I need to add something to the top of the rod so the pin can go through it and when the aircraft drops down to rest on it - it creates enough friction to stop it moving - but doesn't permanently stick to the bottom of the aircraft. Any suggestions??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyTiger66 Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 I just caught up with these builds, You've done a very nice job of them . The paintwork looks very good indeed. Congratulations on the decals, your tenacity really has paid dividends. Just one thing; would you be tempted to put a pilot figure in an 'in flight' model? I'm not sure if Airfix include them in the 1/48 kits. I've done lots of in flight models with no pilots (some with too). I know some do like to always have them in. Very good idea with the stands; really non intrusive. TonyT 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted August 28, 2017 Author Share Posted August 28, 2017 4 minutes ago, TonyTiger66 said: I just caught up with these builds, You've done a very nice job of them . The paintwork looks very good indeed. Congratulations on the decals, your tenacity really has paid dividends. Just one thing; would you be tempted to put a pilot figure in an 'in flight' model? I'm not sure if Airfix include them in the 1/48 kits. I've done lots of in flight models with no pilots (some with too). I know some do like to always have them in. Very good idea with the stands; really non intrusive. TonyT Hi Tony Thanks for the kind words - it means a lot coming from someone like you. Don't worry - the pilots are in there - still hidden by the montex masks and waiting for me to decide whether to learn how to wash - using their birds as a test bed. Meet Walter Kienitz and Egon Troha... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawzer Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 (edited) I was beginning to think the production line staff had been given time off For the "spinning axis" problem you could maybe glue a LITTLE bit of plasticard onto the pin and cut a corresponding slot - would need to be big - just a couple of mm? As for the washes I know what you mean. I played around with doing acrylic based washes but on top of future it would just all come off. I took the plunge and bought some Mig Ammo washes. They're pretty good - nice and thin so will flow into panel lines / detail. And you don't need to do the whole thing (as in apply the wash to the entire surface) - start with the panel lines and see what you think. More recently I've got a tube of black oil paint and thin it down with Mig thinners (less harsh than turps?) and put that all over but I'm still not sure if I like it or not.....once the matt coat goes on it really darkens the whole thing. It is a daunting prospect - the thought of destroying all your work.....good luck fella! And one thing I've learned (even though when looking to see how to do the washes I read it countless times) - if you are thinking "does it need just a bit more" - it almost certainly doesn't Edited August 29, 2017 by Lawzer 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIG X Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 31 minutes ago, Lawzer said: I was beginning to think the production line staff had been given time off For the "spinning axis" problem you could maybe glue a LITTLE bit of plasticard onto the pin and cut a corresponding slot - would need to be big - just a couple of mm? As for the washes I know what you mean. I played around with doing acrylic based washes but on top of future it would just all come off. I took the plunge and bought some Mig Ammo washes. They're pretty good - nice and thin so will flow into panel lines / detail. And you don't need to do the whole thing (as in apply the wash to the entire surface) - start with the panel lines and see what you think. More recently I've got a tube of black oil paint and thin it down with Mig thinners (less harsh than turps?) and put that all over but I'm still not sure if I like it or not.....once the matt coat goes on it really darkens the whole thing. It is a daunting prospect - the thought of destroying all your work.....good luck fella! And one thing I've learned (even though when looking to see how to do the washes I read it countless times) - if you are thinking "does it need just a bit more" - it almost certainly doesn't Hey Lawzer - Hope you had a good Bank Holiday. I know what you mean about the 'fear' of destroying your work - that is where I am at. But I will re-gloss the 'sharpie 109' and test it on that. I didn't get much response to my thread asking for opinions on whether to go for Flory or Ultimate - so I've gone with Flory - placing an order online about 10 minutes ago. £40 odd quid is a lot to 'splash' out - for something that may just wipe off - but hey - 'nothing ventured - nothing gained'. I hope it doesn't take forever to turn up. I'm still pondering the 'friction block' idea. You know that rubbery stuff they use stick your new credit card to the covering letter... It's 'sticky' - but it peels of the card and indeed the paper cleanly - something like that might work - but where on earth do you get something like that??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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