Werdna

Sliding panel, I believe. I would leave it unpainted as it's just where two pieces of perspex meet and overlap internally..

For clarity, Dunlop had a major subsidiary in Germany, which continued making tyres for the Luftwaffe. It's not like Dunlop UK were shipping tyres over to Germany after the war had started. This was just a German production facility doing what production facilities do..

Cockpit now painted, using Vallejo interior green, which I don't think is too far out, as far as I can tell, followed by a dark wash. IP painted, dry-brushed, with some detail picked out in white. Just need to add some straps and it's ready to go in. Engine (what there is of it) sprayed in aluminium, then given a wash with Citadel nuln oil, with the pushrod tubes and other bits picked out in a brighter shade. Pointless spending too much time on the motor, as it will be practically invisible once fitted... Next thing is to join the fuselage halves and fit the wings...

Hi Bob - they're relatively new, but once the decal is on, it is possible to remove the carrier film from the decal, leaving just the print/ink on the surface. There are a few videos on how to do this, but most seem to focus on either lifting it with tweezers or a bit of masking tape. There's a thread here which might help..

This is Hasegawa's old-ish 1/48 kit of one of Japan's best and most under-rated fighters of WW2 - generally accepted as the equal, or better, of the Hellcat and Corsair in the right hands. This is my first Japanese fighter in modern times and a topic I know even less about than the Luftwaffe stuff that I usually build. For that reason alone, it's got to be worth a WIP thread, I would have thought.. Obligatory box shot to start.. Paint scheme is relatively straightforward dark green over natural alu. I don't have any IJN or IJA specific colours, but I do have quite a few dark greens and metal paints, so I should be able to come up with something reasonably close to the required colours. In terms of markings, I'll probably go with '201-53', which is a known aircraft, captured at Luzon, Phillipines. I've made a start on the cockpit and engine, built up and primed, before I work out what the interior and engine appearance should be. Anyone knowledgeable is welcome to chip in.. More to come soon..

Thanks all for the kind words... There's something about the 'standard' 74/75/76 scheme that I really like. Next time I'll try removing the carrier film from the decals once they're on - but they go on so well that I'm really not sure there's any need to. Haha - one day I'll get round to it..

Hi all This is Eduard's 1/48 G-6, built OOB and finished in the markings of Major Ludwig Franzisket, Gruppenkommandeur of JG27, from around 1944. Really enjoyable build, with no issues. First time, I think, using Eduard's new decals. Although I didn't try peeling off the carrier film as many are doing, they work very well. Having said that, I still used paint masks for the upper wing and fuselage crosses. Franzisket flew throughout the war, achieving 39+ victories, before surrendering with what was left of JG27 in Austria in May 45. After the war, he studied at the University of Munster, achieving a PhD in biology and finishing up his new career as Professor of Biology and Director of the Westphalia Museum of Natural History. Hope you like the pics...

Not sure Massimo or Nick Millman would see it that way, but no matter...

I can't help with the colours - but by only addressing your question to 'Brits', you are ruling out a lot of potentially helpful answers from the many and varied international members of these forums...

In terms of the Bf109, it would really depend on which version you were looking to build, and whether you wanted to display it with open panels, closed panels, etc. The Hobbyboss 109s are similarly priced (maybe slightly more) but probably offer a better fit, with less complexity.

I think Eduard are slowly getting their heads around the notion of leaving all that 'excessive interior detail' stuff to the aftermarket suppliers. Having said that, I've still got a couple of these left to build (the A-9 profipack and the D-9 weekend) - after that, I'll try to avoid accumulating any more of them

Yep - the weekend kit is basically the same, but without the 'extras' like paint masks and PE - all the innards are still there unfortunately.

Thanks Andy I guessed the colours as RLM81 dark green and RLM75 for the fuselage uppers (for which I used Vallejo camo green for the 81 and my own mix for 75). For the wings, I used the same 81 green, but the grey in the period pics looked a lot lighter than 75, so I used Vallejo medium sea grey, which comes out a fair bit lighter than 75. The light blue on the sides and underneath is just regular Vallejo RLM76.

Cheers Jack - it was the old 'weekend' kit, 84111. Took more than a flippin' weekend though...

Hi all This is my take on Fw190F-8 'Yellow 14' of SG2 - or SG10 (I don't think anyone is certain which), photographed at the war's end, standing on its nose in a scrap dump at Neubiberg. I had the usual and well-documented nightmares with the early Eduard kit, but most of the problems can be overcome with plasticard and/or filler.. I also used the kit decals, which mostly went on pretty well. Rather strangely, the kit did not come with the outer wing SC50 racks which are clearly fitted in the original pics (and are also pictured on the box art), but I had similar items in the spares box, so used those. Anyway, hope you like..