mark.au

I generally use a damp cotton bud, very lightly. Sometimes I use my finger, too. With the end in sight, I had three major tasks remaining once I’d taken care of the simple stuff like the pitot tube (.040 stainless tube), the antenna post, and the landing light (for which I used liquid clear built up in layers for that because - surprise - the kit part didn’t fit). Of those three, the propellers were first. There’s nothing very special there, a paint, a wash and some light weathering on the blades. I didn’t apply the decals because there’s no sign of them in the photos. Then, the second last job was the antenna wire for which I used EZline. It went amazingly well with everything sticking first go. I used a little Elmer’s glue for the insulators. Then, the radar. It was fiddly and the instructions were less than clear in terms of attachment points. I referenced the photos for final positioning but the kit parts stubbornly refused the align as far forward as I wanted to place them. Consequently, it’s really not as well aligned, square or level as I’d like but I didn’t want to push my luck when I had them close… I cobbled the centre array together from some brass tube and a spare 3D printed array from an earlier project. And then I sat back. It was done. What a frustrating kit that is, I’m glad to be moving on from it. So much potential spoiled by some really poor design and execution by Eduard. If I ever build another 110 I’ll try very hard to find a ProModeller version. Having said that, this build did produce a new paint technique for me, and I’m actually pretty happy with how it turned out. Many thanks to everyone in the GB, and especially for all of the encouragement and kind words. Next up for me is another GB build, this time a P-51D Mustang. Cheers.

There’s quality work going on here, following with interest.

I like that a lot; to my eye you’ve captured a worn paint finish without exaggeration (artistic or otherwise) for an overall very pleasing result.

I forgot to mention that I don’t think you need to fix the antenna wire, that line often had a little slack in it which gave it a slightly wrinkled look. For what it’s worth, that’s how I’m setting mine.

You’ve got a great looking 110 there, the weathering looks spot-on to me and the overall impression very realistic.

Many of the techniques I use came from just trying suff, making mistakes and adjusting; the mottle on this one is case in point. I've got lots of failed attempts... 🙂. The paints I use allow for a lot of adjustment and correction, my results have improved since I started using them because they are so forgiving and flexible in application. I can't recommend enough just experimenting and trying different things to find what works for you. And a good airbrush, I do recommend investing in a good airbrush. So this happened... I attached the wings and despite my confidence that I'd fettled them sufficiently for a seamless fit it wasn't to be. I needed to fill both upper and lower seams. After carefully applying some PPP I wiped it away with a damp cotton bud. It took applications to achieve a satisfactory result. Next I carefully repainted, ensuring to match the mottled variable hue of the surrounding paintwork on the fuselage and wings. With the paint done, I added a clear coat to use as the canvass for redoing the weathering. I reapplied a washed to match the weathering and ended up with this. I followed the same process on the underside which was more or less the same in terms of where I started and where it ended up. The angle of the last photo exaggerates the starboard side seam a little, it matches the port side. Neither is perfect but both are acceptable. Next I flipped it on its back to finish the underside. First the undercarriage. I expected this to be fiddly and not very strong based on others' experience but I found ti went well quite easily and is strong when set. The weight is carried through the main gear leg to a solid plinth on the forward bulkhead while the narrow supporting struts - which have zero structural integrity - are attached around the main and look nice while not being required to support any weight. Next I worked on attaching the fuel tanks. But first a note on the Eduard decals. I don't like them much but their one saving grace - and this is enough to keep me using them - is that they can be weathered beautifully. I used some tape to remove the top film and then repeated the tape application to wear down the decal to how you see it on the tanks. Some of it came away, some of it wore away to a shadow, and some remained almost untouched. I really the realism this imparts. I weathered the tanks quite significantly compared to the airframe as I figured that's possibly how they looked, having hung down there for a long time without much maintenance. The final job on the underside was the ventral antenna which was present on this airframe but not provided in the kit. I used wire and EZline to make it, having first marked out the posts' location with some tape to make sure I got the spacing right. In studying photos, these antennas weren't that tidy she I made mine look a little ragged. To be perfectly accurate I still need to run a line to the fuselage from each side in the centre. I may or may not actually do that. I probably will. The topsides will require the finish to the canopy, the propellers and antenna lines. And then, the radar array. Not looking forward to that very much. I expect the next update will include the finished model. Cheers.

They’re not open at the exhaust end? What a pain…. They look nice otherwise though.

That’s a great paint job and superb result, I’m glad you like it a little more now it’s in the cabinet.

Your tenacity and ingenuity in this build was and is truly inspiring. A brilliant result.

Fantastic work on this one Alistair, it’s looking really good.

Thank you all for the comments. I just can't leave things alone... In studying the photos I noticed that the mottle extends further down the fuselage than I had it so IO needed to add some. And, despite my earlier comments, I decided to take the opportunity to adjust the wing's mottle, too. I loaded up some RLM75 and went to work being careful to avoid the weathering and markings. Next I was equally careful in reverse mottling the 75 with some thinned RLM76 giving this result. Here's a before and after on the wings. Because I use water soluble artist acrylic paint I was able to remove what little overspray there was with a damp cotton bud. I'm much happier with these wings because they look better, and match the fuselage now. Decals next. Cheers.

You could, I've seen your splinter pattern; if you can operate an airbrush you can do this. Paint the dark colour first in a random pattern and then overspray the lighter colour, also in a random pattern. Stop when you get the density you're after. Through a Friday afternoon with no meetings I was able to push on and get the markings painted. First was de-Luftwaffe-ing the airframe. Then, RAF-ing the airframe There's a little MAD (Modeller's Artistic Discretion) at work here because the photos do not show AIR MIN 30 but I do know that this was it's AM number. There's a degree of over exposure in the original Farnborough photos which has removed most of the fine detail from the fuselage; my basis for supposing that it could have been there is that the Luftwaffe markings must have been painted out and we can't really see that, either. The little roundels are non-standard and to my eye missing the yellow outline so I used the logic that these markings were field-applied and therefore a little rough around the edges and not sign-writer quality. Using the same supposition I'll also weather these marking a bit more than on some of the other captured aircraft I've done because, again, I supposing that the markings were several months old by the time we get to Farnborough in October 1945. Last, I added the Wrk.Nr. Apparently there's a little bit of paint bleed on the whiter in the fin flash - it's not visible to the [my] naked eye so it is what it is. Macro is cruel. Next is stencil decalling, then weathering. Cheers.

It’s entirely possible that, a) I was lucky, or b) working in 48th scale makes this approach much easier. Or both. Nonetheless, your finished 110 looks great! I hope mine comes out as well as that.

Very nicely done on a classic splinter pattern.

Like this very much notwithstanding my natural bias to captured Luftwaffe!

Thanks! I think this is an under-utilised technique in our craft; various materials and sections of airframe always have different finishes and sheens. We often fall into a one-size-fits-all on final finish but this can definitely enhance the overall result. I’ve got around five years to go. Not that I’m counting down or anything… Me too! I’ve got several more planned and there’s even [hopefully] going to be a GB for it. I attached the exhausts and added the staining. This kit really has the oddest way of attaching the exhausts, utterly pointless complications IMO. Maybe there was a mould engineering reason. Then, I turned attention to the fuselage. The more I thought about a fairly dense RLM75 and then a reverse mottle the more I liked the idea. So that’s what I did. Here’s how it looked after the 75 was applied. Messy. I filled the airbrush with some slightly more thinned than usual RLM76 and started applying a random squiggle cum splotch pattern to see how it would develop. After the first few passes I had this. To my eye it looked promising so I continued in the same mode, gradually building the 76’s density. The final result (after a protective clear coat) is this. To my eye, that looks very much like the photos. It’s much better than the wings, but I’m not going to go back and change them (as I write this I really mean that, but I also said that about my first finish on the exhausts where I removed them from the sprue attachment but I went back and fixed them this morning - I saved you the details on that). I’m hoping to push this forward quickly now as I’m itching to get into the Mustang GB. Most of the grunt work is done, the markings will be relatively simple and then it’s not much more than some final assembly. And the undercarriage, and the fuel tanks, buggah, I forgot about those. Cheers. P.S. I wrote this on my phone, the usual disclaimer about lacking proof reading applies.

A simultaneous overstatement of my results and understatement of yours…. But thank you. I’ve used cheap thin sellotape for landing lights in the past, cut to exact size and captured by a smear of white glue on the inside edge of the light. I don’t do it often because, well, it’s a pain, but it does look good if you’ve got some detail to show off behind it. Oh, and it’s so fragile that it’s the very last task.

I missed that same intake on mine, too. Almost there, this is looking very good indeed.

What an attractive scheme that is, beautifully rendered too.

That looks gorgeous, James. Very nice work.

Everyone has an off day now and again... Luckily, it wasn't too big a sort shot and I was able to make cuts on the frames. This is where I got to with the exhausts. I noticed in some higher resolution photos I found that the baffles themselves seemed to have an enamel-ish finish so I attempted to replicate that when I painted them. I mixed up some flat black with a drop of burnt iron metallic and some gloss and applied it good and wet to get a nice sheen. Then I bush painted the exhausts themselves with Burnt Sienna and a dry brush of Raw Sienna followed by a black goop wash to dull it down. Last was just a smidge of silver pencil on the shroud clasps. That process is more or less shown below. I also processed the wings; first was a wash to accent some of the accessories panels and show some of the rivets and other surface detail. I used a very dark brown goop for this. There's just a touch of chalk pastels as well, mostly on the uppers. There's a little clean up required on the port wing but otherwise I'll add the exhausts and the exhaust staining and the upper are done. I'll also add the fuel tanks and other minor bits and pieces and then the wings are done. Oh, and the nav lights need painting. Finally, I finished the base paint on the fuselage. After doing this I had an idea on how I might have tried it differently than how I mottled the wings. It occurred to me that had I base-coated the topside with RLM75 I could have modulated how I laid the RLM76 on top to achieve the mottled effect. I might still try it. That's it for this weekend, they go by so quickly, don't they...? Cheers.

That mottle looks just fine. Some of the mottle applied on the real thing was extremely rough and ready, yours is very tidy by comparison.

Would definitely recommend. What I didn’t describe is the state of the intake pieces, a really poor effort at design and worse in production. I can’t use the correct ones for this airframe because they have sink marks I’m not prepared to fix.

Thank you for the kind words. It really is. Communications were quick and helpful and less than a week after dispatch the replacement parts arrived in Australia. Did you spot the one teensy weenie problem with them? These things happen, correct parts on their way now. Hopefully. But, because I’m impatient and actually running out of enthusiasm for this one, I decided to have a crack at a replacement of my own making. I carved off the short-shot pane and cut a pane from one of the extra parts. I slowly whittled the new pane to size and when I was happy with its fit I glued it in. Can you spot the replacement? It’s the fifth from left in the top pic. There’s just a little misalignment in the mask which I only saw when looking at these photos; it’s corrected now. Speaking of the masks, they weren’t properly cut so each one required cleanup to its edges once I pried it off the backing sheet. It’s almost as if everything to do with Eduard’s 1/48 Bf110 is just not their best work. Speaking of which… Next, I painted the upper wing roundels. Wing assembly is on page 7 of the instructions. Once I’d completed those steps I went on to paint. On page 10 I found a surprise (bottom row)… For some reason the intern who designed this one decided that this particular intake is added much later in the assembly than [to me] would seem logical. My bad, I should checked…. Oh, and note also that the decals have suffered in the removal of the clear decal film that these new-style Eduard decals have. It’s my first experience with them. As it happens I quite like the effect as it’s nicely weathered them, but I’m not a fan I can tell you that. Previously, someone mentioned the exhausts were garbage (my word, not his) and he wasn’t kidding. The resin replacements can’t be found in Aus so I’ve started into the kit parts. Here’s the rough assembly, needs a tad of cleanup wouldn’t you say? If you’ve stuck with me to end of this whinge, good on you, I could barely stand it myself. But, I’m confident I’m through most of the slog now and it’s soon on to the fun bits with the fuselage. Cheers.

I've decided on my [first] subject; it's going to be a 506th FG, 458th FS flown by 2nd Lt. Robert Harvey on 1 June, 1945. 2nd Lt. Harvey was lost on the VLR mission that day which became known as "Black Friday." I can't find any photos of this one so I'm going to have to wing it a little. I do know it was a D-20, S/N 44-72553 carrying squadron number 564 and named "Lady Diane" Now, if I can just get that Eduard Bf 110 finished...